Page 62 of Corrupt Me

“Fine. Get in the car, Ever,” he ordered, leaning over the seat to open the passenger door. Tristan rarely asked. He commanded and expected people to obey.

“It’s not that far,” I argued to Tristan’s annoyance. “Really, I made it this far without being killed or kidnapped.”

“Then let’s not push your luck. Get in,” he insisted. “My brother might not have a problem letting you walk the streets alone at night, but I do. You can get in the car, or I can follow you the whole way.”

Huffing, I hopped into the seat, shutting the door behind me. He had the top up on the classic convertible. I was a bit disappointed and nearly asked if we could put it down, but the frown on his lips had me switching tactics. “Has anyone told you how annoying you are?”

He smirked if you could call the slight twitch of his lips a smirk. “Today?”

I shook my head as Tristan guided the car back onto the road. We were under a mile from my house when the sky started spitting rain. It was a good thing the top was up and Tristan had come along when he did.

As if he could read my thoughts, the jerk sent me a smug look that said I should drop to my knees and thank him for driving by when he did or I’d be a dripping mess right now.

I squinted at him, wrinkling my nose.

His low chuckle incited a tingling within me as he steered the car into my driveway.

I had to get out of the car, or his scent would bespell me.

I reached for the door handle once the Mustang stopped, but I didn’t immediately climb out. Pausing, I glanced back at Tristan.

He frowned, his lip ring glinting like a star at night. “Don’t say it, Ever,” he scolded as I opened my mouth.

I smiled sweetly, knowing it made Tristan uncomfortable as would this. “Thank you, Tristan, for coming to my rescue.” I chose my words deliberately. He would hate it, which was exactly what I wanted. Attitude and sarcasm were a safe place to be with Tristan. Anything else put my heart in danger. Even if he only saw me as the little sister he never wanted or asked for.

His brows pitched together. “Get out of my car,” he grumbled, averting his eyes from me and staring at my house cloaked in shadows.

My lips twitched, and I opened the door, stepping into the cool rain. It felt refreshing on my skin. Being locked into a small space with Tristan had turned my blood unseasonably warm. I lifted my head to the sky, letting the rain wash over my face.

Without looking back, a difficult task, I dashed up the porch stairs and into my dark house. Really dark, actually, and the first thing I noticed. Or not noticed considering I couldn’t see a foot in front of me.

The lights were all off, which was unusual. My mom was often alone due to my dad leaving at the crack of dawn and returning late into the night, so she tended to be obsessive about leaving lights on. It made her feel less alone.

The floor squeaked as I stepped forward, flipping on the hall switch. “Mom!” I called out, light flooding the entryway. “Mom!” I called again, but only eerie silence answered.

Had she gone out?

No. I had seen her car in the driveway.

It was possible she might have gone next door to hang out with Anna, but then I remembered Preston had said his parents were at a fundraiser for his father’s business.

The first stirrings of unease fluttered into my stomach.

Dropping my stuff onto the kitchen table, I glanced around. An open bottle of wine sat near the sink, and the sliding doors to the pool were opened. Not all that weird, but it was the darkness that continued to strike me as odd, expanding the pit forming in my gut.

I went into the backyard, my bare feet slapping on the wet concrete. The drizzle of rain hit the pool’s surface, the moon a murky soft glow overhead, and it was more than the sinking feeling something was wrong bothering me. The water…it was off…it was…red?

Why would the water be?—

My gaze landed on something floating in the center of the pool, and my mind convinced me it wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. I had to be seeing shit. It wasn’t… It couldn’t…

My feet stopped working. Or maybe it was because I no longer felt my legs—I no longer felt anything for a few breath-stealing seconds, and when my heart began pumping again, it was at a staggering speed.

And then I screamed.

A bloodcurdling sound pierced the night, echoing up to the stars, winking them out one by one until nothing but an icy cold consumed me.

Mom lay face down, floating in the pool, slashes of red staining the crystal waters my dad paid a fortune to maintain. Her beautiful blonde hair fanned out, rippling on the surface. For a split second, all I could think was how pissed Dad would be at having to clean the pool, and then the gravity of what I was seeing slammed into me.

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