Page 54 of Rot

Whatever I thought she’d say, she didn’t. Instead, she asked the same question she’d asked me that night after she’d left my grandmother’s room, with her hands coated in blood from her failed attempts at saving her: “What did you do?”

That got me to slowly sit up and turn to face her. I brought my stare to my mother, who sat with her shoulders slumped. “I protected myself,” I whispered, though I knew nothing I said could make her believe me.

“Then maybe I should ask what haveIdone?” she muttered, her lips thinning as she gazed at me. “Do you know why your grandparents locked me up for so long?” I said not a word, causing her to go on, “When I found out I was pregnant with you, I tried to get rid of you. I didn’t want to give birth to that monster’s child. A part of me knew you’d end up just like him.”

She spoke with defeat, as if the world had finally won, “It wasn’t about killing myself. It was about killing you, this ugly life in me that should never have existed. But you were stronger than I knew, even when you were nothing but tiny cells inside. Your grandparents had me locked up, not to save my own life, but to save yours. The longer I was in there, the more I lost.”

If she wanted me to pity her, she’d have to try harder. All I did was sit there and listen to her, giving her nothing in the way of a response.

“Your grandmother pulled strings to keep me there for as long as possible, and by the time I got out, you were already grown. There was no way I could’ve done what I wanted to do all those years before, and your grandmother knew it.” My mother stopped, frowning slightly. “You owed your grandmother everything. I shouldn’t be surprised that we’re here. It’s not because of you. It’s because of me, because I was too weak. Because I couldn’t rid myself of Charles’s evil quickly enough.”

Other people might flinch at their mother telling them this, but I wasn’t your average girl. I think we all knew that by now. So, I did nothing but sit there and wait for her to finish—because she certainly wasn’t finished yet. She couldn’t be.

My mother whispered this next part so softly it was hard to hear, “How many people would be alive today if it wasn’t for you?” Her voice cracked. “And how many more will lose their lives because of you?”

I didn’t answer her questions. Instead, I said, “I’m surprised you aren’t packing and leaving.” It’s what she wanted to do, wasn’t it?

“And where would I go? What would be the point in running when your sins are mine, when your crimes are mine? My fate is tied with you, Sloane. We could run, but you’d always make a mess of things, just like you did here. Why would I try to run when the end result will always be the same?” She let out a strange chuckle, not a sound of mirth but a sound of bitterness and joylessness. “It doesn’t matter, anyway. None of this matters. It’ll all be over soon.”

My eyebrows furrowed at that, and I watched as she got up and left my room, shutting the door behind her.

It’ll all be over soon. What the hell did that mean, and why would she say it? My mother was right in that she was weak and I wasn’t, so I didn’t believe it was her hinting that she’d finally succeed in doing what she’d failed to do when she was pregnant with me.

No, my mother wasn’t a killer. She would never be the one to end things.

Chapter Eighteen

The way sleep came for me that night, you’d never think something was wrong. You’d never guess that I’d just killed someone, staged the body perfectly, and gotten away with it. You’d think I was just a normal teenage girl dreaming about boys.

But there was only one I dreamed of, and he came to me a little after one in the morning, when the night was darkest and my aunt was fast asleep across the hall.

I woke to find Elias looming over my bed, shadows hiding his face from me. “I was wondering when you’d come,” I whispered, my heart skipping a beat as I waited for him to say or do something.

A hand shot out and grabbed me by the throat. Elias leaned down to whisper, “You think everything’s fine now that Jordan’s gone? What the fuck were you doing alone with him in the woods, anyway? I told you, Sloane, you’re mine, and I meant it.” The hand wrapped around my neck tightened in the best, most possessive way.

“You think I went with him to fuck him?” I asked. “You’re so quick to anger, Elias. I have to say, it’s really sexy.” I sat up, and the hand on my neck loosened as I went to kneel on the bed and face him. He didn’t let me go completely, though. I drew my arms over his shoulders, pulling his tall frame down to me. Even with me kneeling on the bed, he still stood taller than me.

“I went with him for two reasons. The first was that I wanted to hurt Dana, and he seemed to be the fastest route. The second was for you.” I scooted closer to his body, leaning my chest against his. The hand around my neck had moved, curling around to the back of my neck and tangling up in my hair. “I had to prove to you that I’m yours.” The words left me in a rush, and how badly I wished it wasn’t dark so I could see the expression on his face.

It was as much of a confession as he’d ever get out of me. I hoped we were past the point where we pretended we weren’t sick and twisted in the same ways. If ever there’d been a more perfect match, I was unaware.

He let out a harsh breath, as if he was holding himself back from saying anything more. The next thing he did was close what little distance there was between our mouths, his lips crashing against mine in a feral, possessive kiss. His other arm wrapped around my lower back, holding me against him tightly.

Kissing Elias made me feel alive. It gave me hope for a future, made me want things I’d never wanted before. Kissing him made my body come to life, all of the nerves in me fluttering with need and my inner core heating up in response. He was addicting in the best of ways, something I’d come to need so desperately.

Never before had I wanted to be with someone else. Not like this. This was desire times one thousand, lust and greed and love all rolled into one. As much as a monster like me could feel, I felt for Elias. I craved him. I wanted him more badly than I wanted air itself. I could never get enough of him.

He broke the kiss to help me out of my clothes, and then he tore his off in a hurry. Within thirty seconds, he was crawling into bed with me, his tall, strong body pinning mine down. His mouth found mine once again, and as my head lay back on my pillow, his hands roamed over every inch of my body, pawing, caressing, grasping. He tweaked my nipples, causing me to moan into the kiss.

“How I wish my mom wasn’t right down the hall,” he murmured against my lips. “I want to fuck you so hard you scream for me, Sloane. I want to make you come on my cock again and again until you can’t think straight.”

Oh, yes. I wanted that, too, now that he mentioned it. But for now, since the house was full, we had to be quiet. No crying out tonight. No loud, rough sex for Elias and me, not this time.

He held up a finger against my lips, wordlessly reminding me to be quiet, and then he disappeared beneath the covers. His mouth found my chest, kissing around my tits until he took a nipple into his mouth. He toyed with it, with me, for a while, and it was the hardest thing ever to be quiet when all I wanted to do was sigh out and show Elias just how good his mouth felt.

But that was nothing compared to how good he felt when his mouth was between my legs… and that was where he went after abandoning my nipple. Elias left a slow trail of kisses down my stomach, then up my right thigh. His mouth then latched onto my apex, his tongue circling my clit.

My fingers squeezed the sheets as I did my best not to make a sound. My skin was on fire, and soon enough I found my lower half beginning to move on its own, gyrating against Elias’s mouth as he gave me head. My eyes closed, and I lost myself to the pleasure coursing through me.

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