Page 74 of Kings & Carnage

My cramps had intensified since waking up from my morning nap and I was desperate for some aspirin, but the call with Mara was too important to put off, and I was afraid to start moving around in case she used it as a distraction to avoid a subject she clearly wasn't eager to discuss.

"Well, you made it pretty clear you don't want me to come to Aventine, so I'm not sure," she said.

I sighed. "I thought we settled that. I never said I don't want you here. I just said that things are weird here right now. It isn’t safe for anyone.”

"You're there," she pointed out.

"Because I have to be," I said. "For Emma.”

"Your turn to bullshit again I guess," Mara said. There was an unusual bite to her words. Mara and I hardly ever fought, but I could feel her resentment through the phone. "I think we both know you settled in there just fine. Just admit it and stop making it all about Emma.”

I felt called out, and rightly so. "I've gotten used to being here, that's true. I didn't expect it and it’s still hard to believe sometimes, but I’ve started to feel at home here.”

"Because of the Kings?" she asked.

A few months ago she wouldn't have been able to mention the Kings without throwing in some sexual innuendo, but all the playfulness had gone out of our friendship.

"That's a big part of it," I said, wanting to be honest with her about something at least.

"So you're a thing now?" she asked.

"More or less," I said.

"With one of them or all of them?”

I covered my eyes with one hand, feeling weirdly embarrassed to admit my relationship with all three Kings.

Maybe it was because I'd sworn I’d never fuck Neo. Maybe it was because it still felt weird to admit to having a sexual relationship with three friends at the same time.

Either way, I could barely utter the next sentence.

"All of them," I said.

"All of them all at once?" she asked. "Or all of them separately?”

I peeked through my fingers. "All of the above?”

A smile finally broke through her gloomy expression. "You dirty whore.”

"Guilty," I said, glad to be back on safer ground.

"Wow," she said. "So how does that work? Do they take turns? Is it always a group of you? Do any of them get jealous?”

I laughed. "That's a lot of questions. I don't know… It just works. Sometimes we’re all together and other times it's just one or two of them. I think maybe they get a little jealous every now and then but it still works.”

"Girl, I'm so jealous I feel like I'm turning green," Mara said.

"Nothing stopping you from finding a little fan club of your own," I said.

"Ugh," she said. "The guys here suck. And I know you think I shouldn't come for a visit, but I could really use it. I wasn't kidding when I said I miss you.”

I saw it in her face and felt like the worst friend ever for what I was about to say next. "I meant it when I said I missed you too. But I’m basically not even allowed out of the house except for school. Too dangerous apparently.”

It was depressing just to say it out loud. I had no idea how long it would take the other houses to name the psychopaths who’d helped Roberto. It had been one thing to be told I had to stay at the Kings’ house after the week we'd spent at Daisy’s.

Back then it had felt like being consigned to a five-star hotel compared to the drafty old house at the top of the falls.

But we’d been back for almost three weeks. It was almost February, the days long and dark, the sun still setting early. The thought of being stuck in the house for weeks or even months made me want to scream even though I objectively had the three hottest roommates known to man.

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