Page 31 of Twisted Empire

He stretched his legs out in front of him. “When I was a freshman in college, I had this big group of friends I hung out with all the time. Mostly other Roden students, and a few I’d already known for years through family connections. We all had these stupid nicknames for each other. Mine was Prince.”

I snorted. “Prince?”

“It was a reference to my last name. Much funnier when you’re eighteen and just slammed three tequila shots.”

“I figured. Go on.”

“Our group stopped hanging out as much as we used to a few years ago. Some of the guys were older and had already moved on to new stuff, some left for jobs in other cities, and the rest of us—like me—stayed on for grad school. So I haven’t really seen most of them for a while, but…” He leaned forward. “I think one of them might be able to help us.”

“Who?”

“Mellie’s older brother.”

My brows shot up. “Henry?”

“You know him?” Elias asked, lifting a brow.

“I wouldn’t say I know him, per se, but I know about what happened to him. Mellie told me. Also, I think he actually tried to help me a while ago, before all this.”

“Really?”

I nodded emphatically. “I ran into him outside Mellie’s dorm room, and he told me to stay away from her. I thought he was either a total dick or being overprotective of his sister, but when she eventually told me what was really going on, I figured he was actually trying to warn me not to be friends with her, because he knew what was going to happen to me. But obviously he couldn’t say those words out loud, seeing as he’s always being monitored. If he tried to tell me what was happening in detail, they probably would’ve killed him.”

“Makes sense.” Elias nodded slowly. “That’s good to hear, though, because if he was willing to try and help you then, even in a small way, he might still be willing.”

“Yeah. I actually can’t believe I didn’t think of him myself. Last time I tried to escape, I told the cops who picked me up to call him. But they didn’t, of course. They called your father.” I tightened my lips. “Anyway, how do you think he can help us?”

“Well, firstly, he’s gotta be sympathetic to our situation. I know I haven’t seen him in a while, but that’s mostly because after he left the society, he stopped talking to everyone else in it. Even the first and second-level members who didn’t really know anything, like me.”

“I can understand why, though.”

“Yeah, me too. Anyway, because he’ll actually understand our problem, he’ll know how important it is to keep us hidden. The society has been stalking him around for a couple of years now, so he knows their tactics, and he also knows how dire things can get when they want you gone. The only reason he isn’t dead already is because his dad is one of the highest council members.”

“Like you,” I reminded him.

He pressed his lips into a thin line. “That’s a bit different. Yes, my dad is the president, which could help me in theory, but I didn’t just leave like Henry did. I left with you, and I also stabbed one of the other members and probably killed him. That’s a whole new level of betrayal for them.”

“I suppose so.” My stomach lurched. Until this very second, it hadn’t really occurred to me just how much Elias had given up for me. His friends, his family, his power, his connections—all of it was gone, sacrificed to save me. He valued me above everything else.

He clasped his hands together. “Last I heard, since Henry was cut off from everything and had to leave his job at one of the family companies, he’s been working at a realtor’s office. So I thought he might be able to help us find a vacant house to stay in, under the radar. One with decent security, of course. We’d use fake names, so no one would know to look for us there, and you’d finally have a real bed and bathroom.” He motioned toward the van. “I can’t exactly make you live like this forever.”

I smiled. “This has been fine so far. Really. I don’t expect a five star hotel while we’re on the run,” I said, gently rubbing his leg. “A proper house would be nice, though. It would feel a lot safer.”

“Exactly.” Elias rubbed his chin. “There’s just one thing I can’t get my head around. Henry’s phone and computer are always being monitored. So how the fuck do we get in contact with him without the society finding out?”

My brows furrowed. “Do you even have his contact details?”

“I have his old cell number, so unless he’s changed it, I can get in touch.”

“Okay. Why don’t you call him and make your voice sound a bit different? You could make it a bit higher or lower, and also make your tone really casual. Say something like: ‘hey man, it’s Prince’. That way he’d know it’s you because of the nickname, but the society wouldn’t have a clue. Unless some of your old friends from that group are in it.”

Elias smacked his hand against his forehead. “Shit. How did I not think of that already?” he muttered. He hesitated for a second and then looked up at me again. “Some of the other guys are in the society, but none of them made it past first level. They wouldn’t be involved in the search for me.”

“So my idea could work?”

“Yeah. I just need to figure out else what to say.”

“Just keep it casual, and wait for him to clue in. We don’t want to arouse any suspicion.”

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