Page 71 of Triumphant Kings

They also mention how Sadie hasn’t been eating much, and they have been worried she was going to start having another eating disorder.

“Hold up. What the fuck are you talking about? What eating disorder?"

“Oh, shit,” Mia whispers, eyes widening. “You don’t know? She didn’t tell you?”

“Tell us what?” Grayson demands.

Emma bites her lips together and shakes her head. “You can yell at us all you want, but that’s something Sadie needs to tell you herself.”

“Wait....” I pause as everything runs through my mind, and things slowly start to click into place. “Is that what happened a few years ago? When she was out sick for a while?”

The girls look at one another, not saying a thing, but their silence says it all.

“Fuck!” I roar, punching my fist into the wall. Pain shoots up my arm, but I don’t care, I’m too worked up, too pissed off.

“What we can tell you is that Tina is the reason for everything,” Mia says softly. “Sadie was fine until Tina started messing with her back then. Then things started getting worse. It got better for a while after you guys came to the college side ofKingston, but then once she made that deal with you guys, she was on Tina’s radar again.”

I knew Tina was giving her a hard time. I thought I put an end to that. Clearly, I was fucking wrong.

I’m done. I’m more than fucking done with this stupid bitch and her fucked up ways.

Spinning around on my heel, I storm down the hall, vibrating with pure murder. If I had a gun on me right now, I don’t think I could stop myself from pressing it between her eyes and pulling the trigger without an ounce of remorse.

Shoving the lunchroom doors open, I find her sitting at her regular table. She’s with her friends. Not giving a damn that she’s a heartless bitch who is ruining people's lives as she tosses her head back and laughs without a fucking care in the world. Fuck that. And fuck her. “Tina!” My voice booms through the room, and everything goes silent.

I’m over to the table in seconds. “Hi, baby.” She smiles up at me, and it takes everything in me not to puke all over her vile face.

“Don’t you fucking ‘baby’ me,” I snarl, leaning down until I’m an inch from her face. “Listen to me, and listen to me fucking good, Tina.” My voice is a deadly warning. “You’re fucking done. Do you hear me? In my life, at this school, all of it. It’s over.”

“What are you talking about?” she frowns.

“I hate you,” I growl, whole body vibrating as I grab her by the shirt and yank her to her feet.

She shouts, real fear in her eyes now. Good. She better be afraid. “Preston, let me go!”

“You are nothing to me. Do you hear me? Nothing. I was never going to marry you. I’d rather drink bleach than spend even another moment in your presence. You’ve gone too far, Tina, and now you can’t come back from this. I will ruin your life. The Taylors, Killians, and Harris will bring you and your familydown. You fucked with the wrong people one too many times, and none of us care about doing this quietly now. You fucked with our girl, and now you’re going to pay.”

“You don’t know what you're doing.” Tina is breathing heavily now. She’s angry, trying to act tough, but I can see the panic in her eyes. “This isn’t going to go how you think it will. Your dad–”

“My dad can eat shit and die for all I fucking care. He’s dead to me and is done controlling my life. You have no power over me. No one does anymore. Because it’s not just me you’re up against.”

“You're willing to risk everything for that whore?” Tina spits, and her back is slammed down against the table hard the next second, taking her breath away.

“The only fucking whore around here is you!” I shout. “Sadie is a million times better than you will ever be. You’re not even on the same fucking planet as her. And if you even think about fucking with her again–” I lean in close so only she hears me. “I will kill you, and I’ll take your life with a smile on my face.”

Stepping back, I leave her lying on the table with a horrified look on her face. Good, let’s hope she got the message because I plan on keeping that promise if she even thinks about going against me.

“Sadie Killian is mine, as well as Declan Harris. Mess with them and you mess with me. Do you all fucking hear me?!” I shout at the whole lunchroom. “If anyone fucks with them, I will come after you. I’m fucking done with this school and its bullshit!”

Storming out of the room, I leave them to whisper and gossip, something they’re best at.

I’m a man on a mission, and no one else is getting in my way. I’m going to see my girl and get some answers. But first, I just need to hear it with my own ears that she’s going to be okay. Ifshe’s not, I don’t even want to think about what that's going to do to me.

I told myself not to love anyone, that it was only going to cause heartbreak and pain in the end. But loving Sadie and Declan was never an option; it was inevitable.

They changed my life irrevocably, and there's no going back.

“Come on,” I tell Declan and Grayson when I reach them, slipping Declan’s hand into mine as I go. They’re quick to get in step. “Let’s go see our girl.”

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