Page 161 of Dare To Live

“I was wondering if the tunnel you used to use was still there. Not that I’ve had the chance to look.”

I’ve been too frightened to go back to the tomb. I am not about to tell him that, not when I’m standing here insisting he needs to face his demons. Eventually, I’ll have to face mine, but for now, I don’t have the courage in my heart to visit that trauma.

I hand him one of the flashlights and then walk to the dresser. My jewelry case is on the top. I ease open the lid and take out the necklace he gave me so long ago. The chain fastens easily around my neck, and I let the platinum padlock settle against my skin.

His attention drops to the padlock when I turn back to face him. “You kept it.” His voice is unreadable.

My fingers close around it. “I never took it off until I visited you in the cabin. You were moving around a lot when you were sick, and I was worried you might damage it.”

“Why put it back on now?”

I move past him toward the door. “It makes me feel safe.”

Chapter 90

Eli

She kept the necklace I gave her all that time ago.

That’s the only thought going through my head as we make our way through the dorm building and out into the chill mid-March air.

The padlock around my neck feels heavy and hot against my skin. I replaced the original chain a few years ago, but I keep it in a small box back in the cabin. It was my mom’s final gift to me, literally minutes before we were involved in the accident which killed her.

I was found with the chain clutched in my fist, and I fought with the EMTs when they tried to take it from me. As soon as I was able, I put the padlock around my neck and that’s where it stayed. Hearing Arabella tell me that her padlock makes her feel safe is like a punch to the gut.

Everything I did to her, everything I put her through, everything she suffered because she opened her heart to me … and a gift I gave her makes her feel safe.

Arabella’s fingers interlock with mine, breaking off my train of thought and I turn to look at her. Apprehension is clear on her face.

“You don’t have to come, if you don’t want to.” Hell, I don’t really want to go, but she’s right. I need to go to the chapel. Kellan needs me to go.

“Of course, I’m coming with you.”

We both stop when we reach the bench where so many of our nighttime interactions took place. I stare at it.

“What the fuck were you thinking, Ari?”

She leans against my side, her head resting against my arm.

“When I got that first dare … the peas.” She laughs. “Fulfilling it was so … so exhilarating. I’d never broken the rules before. I felt alive for the first time. Sneaking across to the cafeteria, hiding from security. My heart was beating so fast, I couldn’t stop giggling.”

“You know I didn’t give you that dare, don’t you?”

“Not at first, but after I found out students only ever got one dare, I realized that someone else had taken them over.” She lifts her head and peers up at me. “Who was responsible for that first dare? Does anyone know.”

“It’s the faculty. As far as I could make out, they do it partly to give students a sense of adventure and a small measure of rebellion. But mainly it’s to give them insight into a student’s character. If the student who receives the dare does it, then the faculty knows they’re likely to respond well to a challenge. If they go to a teacher and report the dare, then they’re clearly not someone who will break the rules. It’s a pretty clever way to find out more about people, to be honest.”

“How do you know it’s the faculty?”

I shrug. “I overheard Principal Warren and a couple of other teachers talking about the dares when I was a junior.”

“How did you know I got the dare?”

“Because you were the only new student. It seemed likely to be you. And you were so … twitchy the next day.” I chuckle. “There was a flush to your cheeks, and you kept smiling. If I hadn’t been so wrapped up in my anger, I would have noticed how fucking sexy the excitement over doing something so small made you feel.”

“I did not feel sexy.”

“Liar.” I pull her into movement. “You didn’t answer my question, though.”

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