Page 233 of The Invite
“Who?” they both say together.
“You.” I stare at Maverick, whose eyebrows shoot up to his hairline.
“Me?” he utters, turning up his nose. It doesn’t make him look unattractive. “I don’t get my kicks from blackmailing a bunch of my classmates.”
“You mean you’re too lazy and chaotic to pull it off.” Augustus smirks.
“Fuck off!”
Augustus and I share a smile.
Glancing at the list of names on the board behind him, I study them carefully and wonder which one of them has the resources and skills to have discovered about Augustus and my past. It’s obvious Anonymous knows about the connection between Augustus and me based on his threat in my letter.
I pick the first one and share my opinion, “It can’t be Scarlett. Her worry seemed genuine when she came to your room that night, August. Plus—”
“August?” Maverick sighs dramatically. “Don’t you guys make a cute couple?”
I blush.
A vicious glare from Augustus shuts him up.
“Honey,” Augustus urges me to continue.
Maverick makes a choking noise.
“Get out,” growls Augustus. “Or shut your pie hole.”
He makes a zipping gesture over his mouth and crosses his arms after throwing away the invisible key. It’s unbelievable to imagine he has an alter ego called ‘Nightcrawler’, who chases women with a chain in his hand.
“And I don’t think she’ll ever want to hurt you,” I finish.
“Yet she did,” Augustus darkly says.
My gaze softens at the hurt I hear in his voice. He told me this morning that it was Scarlett who betrayed us because he didn’t want to hide anything from me. I had never felt more like a terrible human being than in that moment.
I’m waiting till The Massacre Ball because I gave my word to Michael. It’s my last deed to thank him for saving my life. If they don’t catch Debolina this time, they probably never will. I’m done leading a double life over a wild-goose chase.
After the ball, I’m telling Augustus everything, whether or not the mission is successful.
I have another terrible fear.
If he can’t forgive his sister, who he’s known his entire life and broken the law for, then do I even stand a chance once he knows the truth?
“She thought she was protecting you,” I tell him. “Give her another chance.”
“Nessa is right, man,” Maverick quietly agrees. “I had to stop her from crying this morning. Talk to her.”
“We don’t have time for her tantrums,” Augustus says coldly, making Maverick and I exchange a disappointing look. “I think Anonymous is either Kaid or Daisy.”
“How do you know?” I ask, a little shocked Daisy is one of the suspects.
“Why her?” says Maverick. “I thought Anonymous was a guy.”
“I thought so too.” A pinch forms between Augustus’s brows, deepening his intensity. “In the clip from Nessa’s place, the build is too small to be Kaid’s. While my guard is sure it was a man he fought with. So, they could easily be working together. I also had someone hack the phone and a text was sent to Amber the night before her murder. She must’ve known the person and trusted him or her enough to meet early at school. I read the chats and she told them about her story about swapping names with Capri.”
Maverick nods thoughtfully, and murmurs, “Daisy did say she talked to Amber once. Could be lying about not staying in touch afterward.”
“She and Kaid could be working together.”
