Page 72 of Dare To Fall

I frown. “Why?”

“You’ve been acting weird for days. What’s going on?”

That makes me laugh. “What’s going on? Seriously?”

“Not that. I mean with you.”

“Does there need to be anything else?”

He’s silent for a second, and I can feel his gaze on me. “The agreement was that you’d retaliate to things she does.” His voice is soft.

“And?”

“And she hasn’t done anything for days.”

“Your point?” I know what his point is. I just want to hear him say it.

“You dumped yogurt in her hair yesterday. The day before, you poured coffee into her bag. Today you sent her flying into a table. She has bruises on her arms from where you’ve grabbed her and shoved her out of your way.”

I look at him, but don’t say anything.

“Fuck’s sake, Eli. She hasn’t done anything to you.”

My lip curls up on one side.

“This is what you were like when she first joined. You liked hurting her. Is that what’s happening now? Have you gotten a taste for it again?”

The words were almost a mirror for something Arabella said a couple of weeks ago. I squash down the spark of guilt it brings up and reach for my drink.

“I’m doing what I need to do. That’s all.”

“And where will it end? We need to find a better way.”

I stand, bracing my hands on the edge of the table, and lean close to Kellan. “There is no other fucking way. Driving her out of the school is the only thing I can do at this point. It’s either that or she ends up next to Zoey.” I should have let my dad take her out when he mentioned it.

“And the way you’re behaving, you’re the one who will put her there.”

“Fuck you, Kellan.” I shove away from the table and stalk out of the cafeteria.

I’m halfway to the cemetery when my cell chimes. I swipe on the notification to ignore it, only for it to chime again seconds later. I ignore that one, and I’m bombarded with more.

“Fuck’s sake.”

Unlocking the screen, I tap one of the notifications without reading it. It takes me to a video. A quick glance tells me it’s been sent as a mass group text, outside of the social media app, which was shut down after the last video of Arabella was released. I hit play without looking at the thumbnail.

Oh, my darling boy. Look how smart you are. I can’t wait for you to go to school. It’s where me and your dad met.

I freeze. Another voice, robotic sounding, talks over the feminine one.

Before the Monster of Churchill Bradley, there was a boy called Elliot Travers the Third. Short, shy, and scared of everything.

I lift the cell and stare down at the video.

A woman, dark-haired and slim, is standing next to a boy in dark jeans and a navy t-shirt. His hair is messy, flopping into his eyes as he ducks his head away from the camera pointed at him. She’s smiling directly at the screen, and a man’s voice can be heard chuckling.

“Come on, Eli. We need to keep this as a memory. Maybe you’ll meet your soulmate there like I did.”

I swallow.

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