Page 76 of Obsessions of the Heart

Thoughts swirled and swirled as my world crashed down piece by piece. Tears sprang into my eyes, and I stared down at the pillow. I didn't know what to think of all this. I didn't know what all this meant.

Were they obsessed with me? Rion was collecting pieces of me in that drawer while Ravi had captured just as many moments to obsess over? I didn't get it. Was this a fetish? Some sick game?

The more I thought about it, the more upset I got. What the fuck were they doing with this stuff? Slamming my hands onto the floor, I got up, knowing I still wasn't done.

Stomping my way to Roux’s room, my anger reached its peak. My skin burned as I tried to focus on the lock. Who the fuck did they think they were, spying on me like that! I bet they all felt bad for poor Layrin, the girl who was left behind. They snuck pictures and stole my information, keeping me just close enough to satisfy whatever needs they had, but what about me? What about what I had to go through while they were peeping in on me and my life? Did they pity me?

That thought stilled my whole body as I connected the dots. The scholarship, the one I didn't remember applying for. My eyes shifted from side to side, probably making me look like a crazy person, but I knew Rion had the skills to crack into the school’s system. I bet he could’ve made a fake scholarship, luring me out here because he was sorry for me.

Was that what I was? A project? Something to save because they felt guilty?

The lock clicked, and I shoved the doors open, so angry that they rattled. The clink of glass came from inside. When I saw what waited inside, I fell backward, slamming my hand over my mouth to keep from screaming.

In front of me were rows and rows of glass jars filled with a clear liquid. Inside each jar, something floated. My damn curiosity got the best of me, so I slowly crawled toward the shelves. A floating orb was in the first jar, and when I drew closer, I realized it was a human eye.

My stomach turned, but my mind was fascinated and disgusted. Each jar had a handwritten label. This one said, “Man, twenty-five, first kill on job.”

Those words swirled around in my head. There were so many of them. Did he kill all of these people? There were at least twenty jars in here. My skin crawled and my throat closed up, but my curiosity continued to win. I carried on in my exploration until I found a name I knew.

“Raina Herbs: bitch,” was all it said, and when I looked at the jar’s contents and saw a toe, my mouth dropped open. Why was my high school bully’s toe in here?

My eyes quickly looked at the one before it, glancing at the label. “Jake Grinder: thief.” Two thin, fleshy-looking pieces floated around, and I thought back to what I remembered of Jake. He’d said that some psycho had skinned off his lips. He had to have major surgery to make them look remotely normal again. Staring at the thin pieces of flesh, I realized what they were.

I scrambled to find another one I knew. A set of nails floated inside of a jar labeled “Kenneth Parish: thief #2.” He was the guy I’d given my first blow job to. Seeing a connection to all of these, I thought back to the last one, the one who got hit the worst, and frantically searched for his name. Up at the top, like it was a prized possession, there was a jar with the shaft of a chopped off dick labeled “Trevor Monic: the worst of them all.”

Stepping back, I thought about all of these people. After their interactions with me, they had freak accidents. Glancing at the wall of body parts, I realized that it wasn't me that was the dark cloud, the cursed child. It was Roux, but knowing how close the boys were, I knew it wasn't just him. They all orchestrated this and, in the end, let me suffer the consequences. All of my suffering, all of my teenage pain had stemmed from his actions.

A sob broke through my lips as I clutched myself, trying to hold in my grief so I wouldn't break, wouldn't fall apart. Why would they do this to me? I said it over and over as I rocked in place, my mind disappearing into the vast abyss of pain and despair.

Something inside of me switched, and I hysterically looked around. It felt like the walls were closing in on me. Everything that I held dear, everything that had made me happy in this life was a lie, a farce.

I needed to get out. Get away. I needed to run.

Snatching up my phone, I bolted, running down the stairs, to the side panel next to the front door. I pressed the gate button and threw open the door, not caring that I’d left everything open, left all my things behind. Their secrets laid out bare for them to see. Now that I knew, there was no going back.

The innocent and pitiful Layrin Smith they had known was dead, and now, with my eyes opened and my soul wrecked, I was leaving them for good.

Tears tracked from the sides of my face, flowing back into my hair as I ran, sobbing between big gulps of breath. I didn’t know how long or how far I ran, only that I needed to get as far away as my feet could take me. When my body couldn't keep up, shaking so hard I thought I would collapse, I slowed down, taking in a long measured breath before realizing that I was clutching my phone. Angrily swiping at my tears, I called the only person I could.

The phone rang and rang, but Cin didn’t pick up. When her voice message kicked on, I spilled everything. “Cin, you were right. You were fucking right this whole time. I—”

Someone kicked at the back of my knees, causing my phone to fall out of my hands as I went down. Pain radiated from my knees to my spine. Thick arms circled around my throat from the back, choking me despite my frantic clawing at their arms.

Gasping for air, I knew it was over when black spots filled my vision. Fingers ran through my hair as a voice cooed next to my ear, “Shhhh. Don’t fight it.”

My eyes rolled into the back of my head, and everything went dark.

Chapter 25

As time slowly rolled by, I had this sinking feeling that something wasn't right.

I didn't like my uncle coming into town early when we had just spoken on the phone the night before. I’d thought I had eased all of his ever-present fears, but it seemed like he either didn't believe me or was testing us. Everything about this meeting was ill timed and rushed—never good things when it came to my uncle.

Then there was the situation with Rin. Something was up with her. After her strange reaction the night before and her equally odd peppiness this morning, I knew for certain. Something was eating her up inside, and I needed to know what it was so I could root it out.

I was determined that nothing would go wrong with Rin. With the Riccis at a standstill and her living under our roof, you would think everything would go smoothly. We just needed her to fall madly in love with us, take out whoever was trying to harm her, and then get Foedus to sanction the relationship. That was it. Then why do I have a gut feeling everything is about to come crumbling down around us?

“You also noticed something was up with Rin?”

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