Page 71 of Speak

Her face becomes angry.Well then how do you know it was Axel?

Jonas sighs. “Because he was dating my sister, Cadence, when it happened. She saw him without the mask before they arrived at the ball, when he put it on before he disappeared and then saw when he threw it in the trash before getting back to her. Once those pictures came out, she confronted him about them, he denied it, gaslit her for months about it until she broke up with him.”

So, what then, Axel is gay?

Jonas shakes his head. “I think he knew Tyler had something to do with your accident and tried to hurt him the only way he knew how. You know how the Prescott’s are. Tyler was betrothed… I don’t know to who, but his marriage was already set up by his parents. Rumor was, it was some duchess in England. But once those pictures came out, it was called off.”

Raven pulls the hem of her shirt down and stands.I have a lot to think about. The funeral is in two days. He and his family will be here tomorrow. I… I won’t be able to seduce Tyler, will I?

“Do you have a membership at Inferno?” I ask Jonas.

“Yeah, of course.” He answers, not looking away from Raven.

“I could probably seduce him. If you can get him there.” I reply.

“Getting him there won’t be a problem,” He shakes his head, brown hair falling forward. “The issue is the Prescott’s are entirely too untrusting. It… it would have to be me.” He swallows.

Take me with you.

“No, baby.”

Take me with you. I’ll wear a disguise. The women that go there wear disguises all the time, don’t they? Convince him I want to watch.

“Tyler stays at a penthouse in De Novo. His parent’s stay at their house in Salem when they come to town.”

Perfect. We’ll get a room there. You lure him back. I’ll take care of the rest. Raven signs almost too quickly.

I shake my head. “I think… I think it would be more convincing if…”

Together, we devise a plan. A sick, twisted, plan that makes Jonas’ face scrunch up at me. But every time Raven touches him, he leans into her, letting her touch be the calm in his storm. In the end, he doesn’t look disgusted or in pain. He looks determined, sure of himself, and even more in love with our dirty little bird.

We fuck Raven once more before they leave my office, he takes her from behind and I finally get to feel the soft velvety slickness of her warm, wet, wanton mouth. I almost want to thank Harrington for being such athoroughprofessor.

Chapter Eighteen

Jonas.

The night before the funeral, a vigil is held by the student body president, Edith Mayes, a beautiful golden dark woman with a relaxed perm that falls around her shoulders. Her entire demeanor says she’ll most likely be the first female president or die trying her hardest to be her. I’d vote for her. She’s great. She gives a heartwarming speech into a small microphone behind a podium that barely sounds rehearsed. Beside her, is a blown-up action picture of Chase in his football uniform, mid-run to which she hardly glances at.

Chase broke Edith’s heart our freshman year after taking her virginity. The soft female sobs around us reminds me… well, that’s just what Chase did.

We stand on the practice football field, over four hundred white candles have been lit, at the base of the goal post, there are thousands of flowers, notes, pictures of Chase, stuffed animals, footballs, tequila shots and bottles of tequila nestled in. It’s… fucking sad. If this were anything else, it would be beautiful.

Chase Prescott, dead at twenty-three.

When Paris… when that whole thing happened, Chase was there. He and Riordan, well, mostly Riordan who let me vent and cry on his shoulder. Riordan who’s cerulean eyes are currently staring daggers at my arm draped over Raven’s shoulders.

It’s like looking at a ghost.

________

The funeral is, well, a funeral.

Except, it’s not raining like it does in the movies. I remember reading once… or maybe I heard it in a movie. That when it rains during a funeral, even God cries. Except God isn’t crying today. In fact - nobody is. The students are gone. There are no co-eds or football buddies or rivals remembering Chase Motherfucking Prescott. No. This is a private, Syndicate matter. Raven is not here beside me. Axel isn’t either, but it’s probably because he’s a whole state away since he transferred to Hartford after Raven’s accident to be closer to her.

I stand by Riordan, taking his hand in mine, and he shirks it off but not before tensing up. Public displays of any kind of affection or support are not exactly appropriate.

I didn’t cry at Paris’ funeral. I was to maintain stoicism. But she had been my betrothed. She had cheated on me with her own stepbrother. I remained stoic because I had wanted to puke having to face everyone. I kept having to swallow down bile.

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