Page 73 of The Misfit

Katherine’s voice fades away, along with her friend, and Aries slowly lowers his hand. “I didn’t want to leave you in that piranha tank,” he whispers into the quiet night air.

I don’t know what to say so I don’t say anything at all.

“It’s unfair to play a game when your opponent has no idea how to play…” he adds, raising his voice now that there’s no danger of being overheard.

“What do you mean?”

“This is all a game, destroying the lives of others at the expense of their own boredom.” Aries rolls his eyes. “They think they have you beat simply because you don’t know how to play.”

I’m not sure what’s made me so curious. Maybe it’s the soft look in his eyes. The way his new haircut makes him look a little less dangerous. He’s still massive compared to me, his frame towering, but tonight, he doesn’t look like he wants to hurt me. “Do you know how to play the game? Destroy the lives of others out of sheer boredom?”

He shrugs one shoulder and smirks. “We all play a version of this game, no matter your social class. I used to be better at it, but then I had to learn different games. New ones. Adapt and change.” There’s a faraway look in his eyes as he stares off into the distance over the balcony and the twinkling city lights. “There are games for every stage of life, and the only way to succeed is to be the best at every single one. That way, there isn’t a single move that can surprise you.”

I get the feeling there is a hidden meaning beneath his words, and I stupidly want to know the meaning. “What game are you playing right now?”

His gaze finds mine again, and it’s then I see a sliver of the haunted darkness he keeps tucked beneath his mask. “A dangerous one. One where I intend to win everything with a mere sweep of my hand across the board.”

“That sounds …” Honestly, a little unhinged, but what do I know about this world?

“Psychotic?” he questions almost curiously, and all I can do is shrug. “If it makes you feel better, it’s nothingyouneed to worry about. You aren’t my opponent, Salem.”

“Happy to hear that. I have enough of those already.”

His gaze softens, and the mask he wears so often slips back into place.

I guess that means he’s done sharing, then?

“I should probably go home. Lee and I … we aren’t selling it.” Admitting it out loud makes me cringe.

Aries shrugs and skirts me to lean over the railing on the balcony. “Okay, so the only way to win is to make a move that no one else sees coming.”

“How?”

Another shrug of that too broad shoulder, then he skims his eyes down my dress, my gloves, returning to stop at my eyes. “Let’s make sure Lee is all in too. He seems rather distracted this evening.”

“The alcohol,” I mumble, looking away from the sudden intensity in Aries’s eyes.

“I’ve seen him murder a rival football team after downing a bottle of Jack. This is nothing.” He extends his elbow and stands straighter. “I think what he really needs is a little motivation.”

SEVENTEEN

lee

Every second thatSalem is gone amps up my anxiety further. It’s my job to protect her?—

to keep her safe, to ensure she has a good time and that nothing bad happens—yet somehow, she’s nowhere in sight.

Charlotte Henderson’s hand feels wrong on my arm. Too soft, too familiar, too fucking present. I’ve been trying to escape her for twenty minutes, but she’s got the practiced skill of a society debutante—always keeping me just caught enough that walking away would cause a scene.

“And Daddy says the penthouse view is simply amazing,” she prattles on, her fingers drawing small circles on my bicep. “You really must come see it sometime, Lee.”

I grunt something noncommittal, scanning the crowd for Salem. She disappeared after my mother cornered her, and the bourbon swimming in my veins is making it impossible to focus.

“Lee? Are you listening?”

No. I’m not.I’m counting exits and measuring the distance between myself and another drink and trying to figure out where the fuck my fake girlfriend disappeared to and?—

Then the crowd parts like a tide, and my heart stops fucking beating.

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