Page 33 of Her Wicked Knights
"Better hurry up, then." Colton chuckles. "I know that's the only way you can get your dick wet."
A chorus of sniggers breaks out among the pews. Next to me, I feel Tripp stiffen, and when I see him, his jaw is set in a rigid line.
"Come the fuck on," Nick rolls his eyes, pushing to his feet. "What are we doing here?"
"You're learning." Whit says, still trying to make his voice sound mystical and shit. "If you'll all just shed your preconceived notions and open your minds."
"I'd rather open a new bottle of vodka." Audrey giggles, leaning into Jake. I can tell by the way she's moving that she's already had enough, and my irritation with Colton surges again. They feed each other in their own fucked up way.
"Your history is rich in this town. During the first witch trials in Salem, the world went crazy. People scattered to the wind, worried for their families, their friends. A lot of the witches fled south, just a little trip down to this area. The founding families of this town meant for it to be a safe place for all, and it was… until the hysteria set in. Humans have such limited minds."
"He says that like he isn't human." Tripp scoffs, making me chuckle as I watch Whit like a train wreck. It's almost embarrassing, honestly, watching him parade around up there like he's all done up for Halloween. I don't care a ton for what other people think when I'm doing something that serves me, but I'm not sure how this can possibly serve Whit in any way.
"One day, a woman came to this town and bewitched men... she enchanted them, had them obsessed with her. It wasn't natural to the outsiders, who feared what they didn't understand. They thought she hexed the men to do her bidding, put a love spell on them or something. It drew the attention ofthe town council, who couldn't bear the idea of a witch among them. They hanged her."
One of the football players stands up, shaking his head, and his two friends follow him out the door. I watch them go, one of them smashing his beer into the trash can as he passes it.
"You made us come here so you could tell us some stupid old legend that everyone in town hears from the time they're two?" Jake scoffs, rolling his shoulders.
"What legend?" Audrey asks, pulling off of him a little so that she can turn to face him.
"I'll tell you." Whit says, demanding her attention again. "But it's no legend. This stuff is real... there's proof that it all really happened."
"As much as I'd love to hear your evidence," Nick stands, stretching obnoxiously. "I've got to go whack Nikki Jane's lawn, if you know what I mean."
Colton rolls his eyes, but Whit takes a step down the stairs, moving toward his cousin's friends. "I wouldn't go anywhere if I were you."
"Oh, yeah?" Nick mocks. "I'm sure you wouldn't, you fuckin' freak. Does this get your dick hard? I bet it does... I bet it's the only way you can get yourself hard enough to jerk your little dick."
"Charming." Tripp shakes his head, and a few sniggers erupt from somewhere in the church.
To his credit, though, Whit looks relatively unbothered. It could just be because the freaky ass mask covers most of his face, hiding his emotions from our view.
"You know, if you're content to just pick the low-hanging fruit, I won't stop you."
His eyes turn to us, and I think he looks deliberately at Colton for a minute before turning his eyes over the rest of the crew assembled in the church.
"That goes for all of you. If you want to accept a life of incessant middling, that's your prerogative. But if you want to be great, to forge a path toward treasure instead of toiling in obscurity, then I suggest you stay and listen to what I've got to say."
The only other girl here stands quietly. "I... uh... I'm fine with obscurity."
Whit laughs as she scurries out the door. "Anyone else afraid of greatness? Success?"
Nick lifts an eyebrow. "Go back to the treasures thing."
"You can have anything you want. Money is an arbitrary concept, worthless other than what value we it. You want to conjure a thousand twenty-dollar bills? Sure. You want to summon the rarest gem in all the world? It's as easy as breathing, once you know what you're doing."
"And what's it cost to join your club?" Audrey scoffs. "The low cost of a kidney? My firstborn?"
"Everything in life requires commitment." Whit says, turning toward her. "But as with most things, if you have to ask the cost, you can't afford it."
I don't know if Whit's just learned to read Audrey already (not that it's hard), but reverse psychology is the easiest way to get through to her. She's backwards, always looking to do what she is told not to. And from what I've seen of her, she sure as hell doesn't take rejection well. That much is obvious when she rises, pushing off of Jake so that she can cross her arms over her chest.
"I can afford whatever I want." She tells him darkly. "The question is if I want it badly enough for the cost."
"I think only you can answer that." Whit cocks his head at her, drawing close enough that the sharp nose of his mask nearly stabs her in the chest. She glares at him through narrowed eyes, appraising him as he appraises her. They face off, and it's soabsurd I should get up and walk out, but I'm spellbound by watching someone hand Audrey's ass back to her for once.
"Fine." She snaps, gesturing to the steps with a flick of her hand. "Carry on. Chop chop."
