Page 24 of Unmask
I glanced at the TV. “I’m fine. Safe,” I added quickly, settling deeper into the couch. “Sorry I left. I couldn’t stay there.”
“After everything you’ve been through, it makes sense you would want to be somewhere that makes you comfortable. I just want to make sure you stay that way.” The strain was evident in his tone.
I rubbed a hand down my arm, already knowing where this was going. “You’re worried the Corvos might try something.” If he only knew who I just kicked out of the house. Perhaps Rusty had a reason to worry. PerhapsIdid.
“Aren’t you?”
I chewed on my lip, thinking about my surprise visit from Kreed. Did I think he would try something wild? “I don’t know,” I replied honestly. I didn’t know who to believe, who to trust. If what Kreed said about the Vipers having a traitor was true, then I had a reason to be suspicious of everyone.
“At least let me send a few guys,” Rusty said, already sounding like he was reaching for keys. “Where are you staying?”
The TV caught my eye as a picture of a girl flashed on the screen. “Rusty, I’ve got to go.”
“I don’t think this is a good idea,” he rushed out. “They’ll look for you there.”
“Uh-huh,” I replied, my eyes glued to the news. “I’ll think about it.” I hit the end call button as the screen lit up with a breaking news banner.
Sixteen-year-old girl reported missing late last night…
My stomach dropped.
It was the fourth one this year. Four girls. Same age range, near mine, which was why it hit so close to home to me,andthey’d all been taken from my town. Same nothing-to-go-on circumstances. Just vanished without a trace.
Elmwood might have looked polished on the outside, but it was rotting beneath the surface. People liked to pretend it was just rumors, and the missing girls had run away, but no one really believed that anymore. How could they? This was a fucking pattern, and I didn’t need to be a criminologist to figure out we had a big problem.
My fingers tightened around the remote. The image on the screen showed the girl’s school photo, a bright smile and innocent eyes. A name and age flashed beneath it, but all I could focus on was the pit forming in my gut. I was alone in Brock’s giant house. Alone in a neighborhood that was probably safe by most standards, but still…I wasalone, an easy target, and the thought didn’t sit right with me anymore.
A shiver ghosted over my spine, and I reached for the blanket on the back of the couch, wrapping it around myself even though I wasn’t cold. Maybe I was being paranoid. Or maybe I was finally realizing just how dangerous Elmwood was. Kreed had said I wasn’t safe. I’d assumed he meant because of his family or my father’s crew. But this? These girls?
This was a different brand of danger.
As much as I hated the thought of going back to the Corvos, especially after everything, I couldn’t deny the part of me thatthought their house might be the only place in Elmwood no one dared to cross.
Unless, of course, you were me.
Was I even entertaining the thought of going back to their house, under Donovan’s care? The person who murdered my parents?
I couldn’t.
Let him force me.
The pit of uneasiness grew. The streets weren’t safe. Things seemed to have gotten worse, or maybe I was more aware of the shady shit happening outside my perfect bubble now that it had been popped.
The clock on the wall ticked too loudly.
I was curled up on the couch with the blanket wrapped around me like a cocoon, but no matter how tightly I tucked it around me, I couldn’t get warm. Brock’s house was massive, an overbuilt mansion with too many rooms. I used to think it was cool… Now it just felt like I was being watched by shadows I couldn’t see.
A creak came from upstairs, and my heart knocked into my ribs. I held my breath, eyes locked on the ceiling, waiting for another sound—footsteps, a door, anything—but silence followed, thick and heavy.
I tried to convince myself it was nothing. Old pipes, maybe. Or just the wind. Until a thud came from down the hall.
“Okay, nope,” I muttered, grabbing my phone and unlocking it.
My fingers were drawn to Kreed’s name, and I stopped myself from hitting his number a second before I made a huge mistake. Annoyed that he was always the first person I thought of, I had the urge to throw my phone across the room.
I didn’t want to think about him right now. I didn’t want to be scared in this house. Or alone. I tapped into my group chat with Kenny and Carson.
Me:SOS. Come over? Please.
