Page 123 of Ramsay

Tapping the cover, I shake my head and say, “No. You did it for this. Didn’t you? Why? You risked your life? How did you even know it exists?”

Oliver sighs and I spin in my seat with a glare, motioning to the seat beside me. Of course, he clenches his jaw and I’m gearing up for a showdown with the dick when to my surprise, he pulls back the chair with a scowl and drops into the seat.

Since he could change his mind and refuse to cooperate at any time, I shove the book in his direction, and hiss, “I deserve to fucking know. Tell me.”

“Uh,” Diem says, and Oliver shakes his head. They share some sort of bro message that I can’t decipher but pisses me the fuck off.

Before I can comment though, Diem says, “What? She has a point; she deserves to know.”

“Know what?”

“We didn't know if it exists, but we suspected,” Diem admits.

“No one knew about this…no one,” I say slowly, mulling it over in my head. I hid this so carefully but then again, I was high all the damn time, maybe I wasn't as careful as I thought?

“How did Yates get it then?” I ask aloud.

“We’d all like to know that,” Oliver grunts.

Rubbing my hands down my face, I smile behind my fingers and say dully, “This is what you wanted all along. It was never about me.”

“Not true,” Diem protests, but I push back from the table and say softly, “Whatever. You can have it. If it's even worth anything, anyway.”

“Will,” Diem says, holding out his hand, which I ignore, pausing at Oliver’s coldly spoken warning, “You can’t leave.”

“Fine,” I rasp because I can’t breathe through the pinch in my chest and I’d rather mourn my stupidly hurt feelings, again alone.

Once I’m free of their damn air, I suck in a breath and wipe a tear away. It was always about something else. I was just the pawn. Always the fucking pawn in someone else’s game. I’m such a damn fool. When will I ever learn?

After strolling down one room after another, I end up in Ramsay’s bedroom where I collapse to the bed and stare at the wall until sleep finally claims me. In my dreams, I find the only respite from my nightmare and hold tight to the image of Ramsay lying beside me and stroking my hair.

∞∞∞

When I wake, I’m alone and I sit up, staring at the darkness beyond the window. It’s been hours. Why didn't Ramsay wake me when he returned?

With a yawn and a stretch for my ancient feeling bones, I step down the hall. It’s quiet all around me and I begin to feel the first trickle of alarm when I search the main parts of the first floor and find no one. Where the fuck did they go?

The only other place I can think of to search is at the second house in the trees and with a shiver, I follow the flagstones around the path before approaching the door, which I’m relieved to find is lit from within.

I slow when I find the door ajar and pause just before the threshold, my heart somersaulting in my chest when I spy Ramsay sitting on the couch with his head in his hands.

“It was coming to this anyway, Ram,” Oliver says.

“Yeah,” Ramsay rasps.

I take a single step forward, my heart hurting at his defeated tone when Diem says, “What about Will?”

Ramsay’s head shoots up and he says in a deadly soft tone, “We end them all. Every last fucker who took what’s mine.”

“No matter the cost?” Diem says solemnly.

Ramsay raises his fist. Diem meets it with his own before they both turn to Oliver.

He looks between them with a ferocity that makes me shudder and says, “No matter the cost.”

His feral response lights a fire in my soul but their fervent vow inspires me to slowly back away. Once I’m closeted back in Ramsay’s room, I cross to the window and stare out over the back property, spying the faint light from the house hidden in the trees.

Although my throat is swollen with an emotion I cannot define at their words, I’m left considering the consequences. Am I willing to see them sacrifice themselves for me?

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