Page 41 of Depraved Desires

When we made it to my bed, the guys helped prop my legs and head up in an attempt to elevate my body and then tucked me in like I was a small child.

I was grateful for them, but my mind remained elsewhere. I knew I’d seen her; it couldn’t have simply been a figment of my imagination. The fear that had coursed through my veins, scared of what she planned on doing to me while I was helpless in that bed still lingered in my chest. She could have probably killed me and gotten away with it if she had wanted to. That meant she probably had bigger plans for me.

“I’m going to go grab you something from the cafeteria,” Foster offered, his jaw tight with tension as he looked over my broken state. “And if I pass Rocky on the way, I’m going to beat his ass.”

A laugh got lodged in my throat as my lungs contracted and pain splintered through me, making me wince. Foster was one person that could take Rocky in a fight, and even then, it was fifty-fifty on who would win. That’s a fight I’d like to see, considering they’d only thrown hands in the ring and not out of hatred for one another.

Foster took his leave, Myles mumbling for me to get better before following behind him muttering about more shit he needed to take care of. As much as it annoyed me, I didn’t have the energy to comment on it.

When the door closed behind them, Hunter leaned down, invading my personal space, his hands gripping the sheet as his eyes searched mine.

“I have to know,” he began. “Did youreallysee her?”

“I swear it,” I confirmed. “She’s alive.”

My chest lightened at the prospect of someone actually believing me about this. I thought for sure Hunter was taking Foster’s side on this one. To know that maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t alone in this after all, made me feel a lot better.

Hunter sighed and threaded his fingers through his chocolate-colored hair. “Fuck,” he muttered, righting his posture. He started pacing back and forth across the room, his brows pinched, and his lips set into a thin line. “What the hell does she want? Why is she still lingering around? Why didn’t she run?” he rambled.

Those were all questions I’d asked myself countless times, never coming up with an answer that made sense except for one.

“I think she’s planning something.”

Hunter’s movements stopped and his head whipped over in my direction. “Like what, some grand revenge scheme?” When I nodded, he snorted. “Because that worked out so well for her last time.”

This time it was my turn to be confused. Sure, she did some retaliation, but considering what we did to her, I wasn’t sure if it qualified as actual payback. This felt…different. The look in her eyes, the tension in her limbs, how in control she seemed.

“I don’t know man, she looked like she wanted…blood.” The words that left her lips didn’t match the anger and fire behind her irises. She thought she was playing me for a fool, but I wasn’t naïve.

“Are you scared ofher?” he asked in bewilderment, like the mere thought was insane to him. “She’s like a hundred pounds and doesn’t stand a chance against the four of us.”

He had a point. I wasn’t the type to scare easily; it had simply caught me by surprise. A breath of amusement fluttered from my lips at the absurdity. What the hell was wrong with me? Scared of a petite female who couldn’t take one of us let alone four. That was proven with how many times we’d hauled her away or forced her to follow us around. There was no way she’d do that willingly, so she knew she was nothing compared to us.

“You’re right,” I said with a shake of my head. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“If I’m being honest,” Hunter started, taking a seat on the edge of my bed, making it dip at my side. “I’m relieved she’s not dead.”

My mouth kicked up in acknowledgment, my chest feeling loads lighter than it had over the last couple months. “Me too.” Since she was still alive, there would never be a body for them to find. Aside from Raven’s. My stomach twisted with that knowledge, making my chest tighten once again. Fuck. Whatkind of shit did we get ourselves into? How was Myles always able to do this like it meant nothing? Did he ever feel paranoia?

“Do you think she’ll pay all of us an individual visit, or were you just an exception?” He smirked, arching an eyebrow.

“I doubt she will. I think she only came to see me because I was in the hospital. She knows any of us could overpower her if we wanted; it would be stupid of her to do that.”

He nodded in agreement, his lips pursed while his eyes grew distant, getting lost in his thoughts. Even Hunter seemed a little better since I’d mentioned her being alive the other day. The bags beneath his eyes weren’t as potent, and today, I didn’t smell any alcohol on him. His hair even appeared to be washed.

“Foster and Myles aren’t going to believe it,” he pointed out, slinging his brown eyes in my direction. “I guess they’ll be in for a rude awakening when she inevitably does make her grand appearance.”

“Foster and Myles are both hard-headed,” I agreed. “Why the fuck would I make something like that up?” The fact that I was accused of hitting my head, seeing things, and being unwell, pissed me off. Especially coming from my best friend. He even had me believing that maybe he was right, and I was fucked in the head, but Iknowwhat I saw. Foster could go screw himself.

Hunter shrugged, seeming to follow my exact train of thought if his facial expressions were anything to go by. “You know how Foster is. He’ll have to find out for himself. It’s a lot to take in, and even…unbelievable.” His eyebrows pinched together at the end of that sentence.

“Why do you believe me then?”

“Because I know you, and I saw how frantic you were about the whole thing. You can’t fake fear like that.”

Relief spilled through me but was quickly replaced with another emotion—unease. One problem might have been solved, but what about the new problem that has now arisen? If Aspenwere alive, which she was, then that meant our reasoning for attempting to kill her in the first place was for nothing. If Foster found out she was still alive, there was no doubt in my mind that she wouldn’t be for long. I couldn’t let him kill her. Not again.

“Do you think she’ll go to the police?” I questioned. “About Raven?”

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