Page 19 of Ramsay

“You’ll see. It had to be done.”

“What?” I ask again with a kernel of dread.

“Just keep your mouth shut, weather the storm, and you’ll be fine.”

“Storm?”

He looks away. “Just keep your mouth shut.”

The tone is dismissive, and I obey, sliding from the car and watching as he pulls away.

Storm?

∞∞∞

Ramsay

With a silent sigh, I look away from her wide, hazel eyes.

To say this is a cluster would be an understatement. If sweet little Willow heard even half of what we were discussing it could be disastrous. Our secrets are just that for a reason and no is allowed behind the curtain. No one.

It would be bad enough if it had been any one of the other students at Sterling, but it wasn’t. It washer. Fuck me.

What will she do with the information? Does she know what she’s holding in her hand? I don’t know, and that’s what chills the black heart, that my mother insists I have. Mommy dearest would know, wouldn’t she?

Whatever. Focus.

The delectable girl who appeared at Sterling last year, pale and waif thin is an enigma. And to my surprise, she gravitated toward the last person I would have assumed—Sabrina. They couldn’t be more different. Sabrina is nothing but a series of lies she’s created to give her life meaning but Willow doesn’t care about popularity. It’s easy to see that there’s no passion in her status as one of the in-crowd and she takes no pleasure in the bullying that comes with it.

So why does she put up with Sabrina’s bullshit?

She thinks she’s fooling the masses, and to her credit, maybe she has successfully hid the wildness within from those fucking fools, but she can’t conceal it from me. I recognize it all too well. The question is, when is it all going to boil over? In this, I think she’s more like Oliver than either of them sees. Maybe that’s why he can’t fucking stand her. Who knows, but much like Oliver, eventually, she’s going to blow.

It’s why I’ve been keeping an eye on her. I can’t afford to have unknowns around me and the fact that I see the broken soul hiding behind the good girl, cheerleader façade and still can’t predict her next move eats at my bones.

So far, she’s managed to lay low, until now that is. But what was she doing by the guy’s locker room? Who hit her? What the fuck is going on?

Unfortunately, I can’t trust her, and I can’t risk what she brings. Still, I’m willing to give her a chance, with a little help, of course. If she’s smart, she’ll understand. I did her a solid and hopefully, she’ll heed our warnings and go quietly into the night.

Strangely, I suspect she’s not the type to roll over and I look forward to what comes next.

Chapter Four

Willow

My parents hardly noticed my absence, much less my presence as I let myself inside. Mom, sitting at the dining table gives me an absent grin, to which I give her a rude one. It’s the same game we play, dancing around the issue, except I recognize there is one, and she stays firmly in the dark.

A couple of years ago, I understood her devastating sorrow because compassion and pain were my companions too in the wake of everything that went down. Now, I’m just angry. I’m still here, I want to rail and shout, but they don’t see me. They only see her and believe me, I miss her too, like a cancerous ache that won’t go away, but she’s gone, and I’m not.

I guess all I need to do is run away, and maybe they’ll pay attention.

“Hey sweetie, how was your run?”

Huh? I glance down at my clothes and back to her face with a frown. Could she be more fucking oblivious?

“Spectacular,” I mutter sarcastically and stomp my way up the stairs but make no mistake, this is for my benefit because she can’t hear past the cloud of whatever she exists in.

Dad passes me in the hall without a word, his face drawn with tired lines. He’s aged tremendously, they both have, and gone are the lighthearted parents I remember from before.

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