Page 48 of Ever Dark

She sighs and retrieves a pen from her purse. “May I?”

I nod, dumbfounded.

She circles six of the words. “Look, Mia.Thorns. Black. Crane. Well. Bones… It’s cryptology. Emma embedded a code in this letter. Aries Thorn. Draven Blackwell. Bones Crane.”

A wave of nausea hits me. “Fuck. It’s been staring me right in the face. It’s not even well hidden. I’m an idiot.”

She clasps my hand. “No, it’s out of context for you because you didn’t grow up here. It would be confusing for anyone who isn’t part of these fucked up founding families.”

A dark energy slides through my veins like black sludge. I shudder. “Draven hates me. Aries thinks I’m a toy to play with. And your brother jammed my truck’s gear shift the other night so they couldlure me into the woods. And Emma wants me to trust them? What in the hell was my grandmother smoking?”

Lettie starts to take a sip of her sake but pauses mid-air. “Bones did what?” A few snickers come our way at the sound of her raised voice.

I motion for her to lower it. “It’s fine. They’ve made it their life’s mission to torment me.”

She slams her cup down and fishes for her phone, all while cursing in Spanish under her breath. “I’m sorry, Mia. I should’ve waited for you to drive out before I left. Bones asked me to invite you. He promised me that it was with good intentions. I feel like the idiot now.”

I stop her from dialing. “I’m a big girl, Lettie. And you aren’t responsible for Bones.”

She huffs. “Those boys and their stupid poison wars. I don’t want you to get caught in the middle.”

“I already am… The second I moved into Harker Mansion, I became a part of it. I just have to figure out what I want to do about it.” I sigh into my sake.

Lettie motions to the server for the check. “Well, your grandmother is trying to tell you something about them. Maybe there are more clues in your house. I can help you look if you want.”

I’d go through life without friends all over again if it meant it would lead me to this one. She’s worth the wait. “Thanks, hon. But can we just get really fucking drunk tonight? I need to take my mind off everything.”

She lights up. “Hell yeah, we can. Happy hour at Duff’s is just about to kick off.”

“Perfect.” I smile back. Hopefully, Draven, Aries, and Bones are brooding in a dark hole somewhere. Although, a tiny little depraved part of me is hoping I run into them.

Fuck. I’m such a glutton for punishment.

To my disappointment, my new stalkers are not at Duff’s when we arrive. They seem to be the only ones in the whole town who aren’t here. We grab a couple of shots of whiskey, wade through the crowd, and find an open spot to stand by the pool tables.

The spicy liquid burns on the first sip, but it sends a warm flush through my veins that I welcome and breathe into. “Fuck, I needed this tonight.”

Lettie surveys the crowd, her eyelids fluttering toward a group of pretty girls over by the bar. “Mmm, same.” She takes a slow sip of her drink.

“You know them?” She can’t take her eyes off the group.

She sucks in a deep breath. “I used to. I haven’t seen them in a long time. Ever since I moved away for school.”

“Do you wanna go say hi? I’ll hold our spot here.” There’s a storm brewing in her gaze.

She shakes her head. “No. Some things are better left alone. You know?”

Oh, yes, how I know that all too well. But I don’t have that luxury. My past is all around me. A history that I can’t escape no matter where I go. I leave Lettie to get us two more shots at the bar. I side-eye the girls she was staring at, curious as to what the history is there. They whisper and giggle when they catch me looking. I snicker.Catty bitches.

Fuck it. “Can I get four shots of your house bourbon?”

The big, bald man from behind the bar nods as he lines up the shot glasses and pours them all in a row without spilling a drop.

“Nice.”

He gives me a wink. “You want a tray to carry them?”

“That would be awesome. Thanks.” He must be the owner. He has that air about him.

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