Page 20 of Dare To Break

He nods and we set off across the grass.

The tomb is on the far edge of the cemetery, in a grove of trees. There’s a small archway leading inside. It’s overgrown and unkempt. I could have cleaned it up, but that would make it easy to access for anyone, and that doesn’t suit my purposes. I like having it as a place that only we have access to.

There’s a smaller tomb in the center of the graveyard, which has been used in dares over the years … but this one? This one is ours.

There are five steps cut into the dirt leading down to the metal doors and I walk toward them, pulling a key out of my pocket as I go. It had been in the lock when we first discovered the place during our first year at CBA. Kellan had been attempting to run away, and I’d been looking for a place to hide.

Neither of us are the same kids who arrived at the academy … friendless and scared.

There is a solid thud as the key turns the lock, and I push open the door to walk inside. My eyes scan the interior, looking for anything unusual, but it looks exactly how it did when we left at the beginning of summer.

I move deeper inside and run my fingers across the marble coffin set in the center. “We’re back, Churchill. Have you missed us?”

Kellan snickers behind me. I place my bag onto the coffin and pull out my sketchpad. Flipping it open, I sit down and turn the pages.

“Is that Arabella?” Kellan flicks a finger at the girl I’ve drawn nailed to the cross.

“Might be.”

“Are we going to recreate it?”

I lift one shoulder. “You think we should nail her to a cross?”

“Have you already seen her naked?” His finger strokes over the breasts of the girl in the drawing.

“Not yet. But I have a good eye.” I smirk. “And I went through her closet before she packed to come here.” I pull out another book. I’ve replaced the lock on her diary with a fresh one, just for appearances. “I know all her secrets.”

Kellen reaches for the book. “Is that her diary?”

I toss it to him. “Mostly boring. Lots of ‘woe is me’ prose, but there are a couple of things in there that surprised me. Read it. I’ve highlighted my favorite parts.”

Chapter 13

Arabella

Where the hell is my diary? Rooting through the books I’d thrown in my locker before Lacy took me on a tour of the school, I don’t spy the pink and purple cover with a silver padlock. I’m sure I packed it with my sketch pads, but it was missing from my case when I opened it. The thought of anyone finding it fills me with dread. Even with the lock, it’s pretty simple to get into.

Jesus, what if Elena finds it?

I try to visualize where it could be. It contains my innermost thoughts. I’m not comfortable with the idea of someone finding it and reading it. I’ve poured my heart into it. Scribbled my feelings down when I had no other outlet, letting my emotions bleed onto the pages. Then there were other things buried among the pages. Vivid dreams, and fantasies I’m ashamed to think about when the sun is up.

Lacy appears beside me and leans against the locker next to mine. “Watch yourself around Mr. Drake. He likes the female students a little too much.”

My eyes flit to the teacher in question. He’s standing by the main hall door, watching the throng of young people passing him by. “That’s gross. He’s old enough to be someone’s grandfather.”

“Some girls go for mature and experienced.”

“They need to get their heads checked.”

Lacy laughs. “So, what’s your type, roomie?”

I close my locker. “Why? I hope you’re not planning on setting me up.”

She falls into step with me. “Jace likes you.”

Fingers curling around one of the straps of my backpack, I squeeze it tight, my thoughts still on my diary. “We spoke for less than a minute.”

“I saw him giving you flirty looks.”

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