Page 109 of Tell Me Why
“I just wanted to protect you,” he says, and all I can see is the big brother who built me a cardboard boat—not to deceive me, but to make me feel less afraid.
A hand on my shoulder makes me jolt. It’s Christian. “We need to go.”
Rising to my feet, I turn and face him. “They’ve done enough damage. Can’t they let him go?”
His eyes are gentle, his voice tight. “It’s not that simple.”
A sense of urgency bubbles up inside me. I can’t just leave my brother in their fucking torture chamber. “Please, Christian. I’m free, so he has no reason to attack the Sacred Sons again.”
But even as I say the words, I know they’re a lie. Sin won’t stop until the Burning Crown is no longer a threat—which is never. Because he doesn’t know what I know—the Sacred Sons are far too powerful to be taken down with brute force. If you want to strip them down, you have to play them at their own game, which is what Itriedto do. But even that hope was crushed…
“They can’t kill him without a vote, so he’s safe for now,” Christian says.
I laugh.Safe?How could Sin possibly be safe in a dungeon with Cash Romano hovering over him?
Christian touches the underside of my chin and tilts it up. “Don’t worry, baby. I’ll come up with something…”
I force a smile and nod, my ownsomethingalready taking shape in my mind…
* * *
The next day, Zuma Beach is filled with students enjoying the hot afternoon sun, sprawled out on blankets, playing volleyball, paddling around in the water. I can’t help but envy them. Life is easy. Normal. Their biggest worry is the traffic they’ll face on the way home—not their brother being held, tortured…
Skye is standing at the edge of the water, looking out at the ocean, exactly where I texted her to meet me. Just seeing her makes my stomach twist, but I need her help, so…
“Hey,” I say stiffly, approaching.
“Hey,” she replies cautiously, like she’s nervous and trying to figure out why I asked her here. “Thanks for texting me. Listen, I just wanted to say that I feel sick about everything that happened?—”
“Let’s not,” I say, cutting her off. “I didn’t ask you here so we could hash everything out again.”
She nods. “Okay.”
Taking a deep breath, I scan the immediate area to make sure no one from the Burning Crown is around. “I asked to meet because I need your help with something.”
“Okay,” she says again, hope flickering in her eyes. “What do you need?”
Skye really hurt me, and I know I shouldn’t feel guilty for what I’m about to ask. But we were friends once, and I can’t help but feel that closeness still, even after everything…
“I need a book from the Humanities office,” I say.
She hesitates, shaking her head slowly. “Eve?—”
“They have my brother, Skye. He’s being held in the basement, and if I don’t get that book, then eventually, they’re going to kill him...”
The blood drains from her face. “Shit.”
I feel nauseous. “Yeah.”
“Can’t Christian help you?” she asks. “He’s one of them, so he’d know what to do.”
I shake my head. “Christian wants to wait, figure out a way to get the rest of the Sacred Sons to release him,” I say. “Me? I’d rather force them. But I can’t go near that office. They’re watching me like hawks.”
“But they won’t be watchingme,” she says slowly, realizing what I’m getting at…
“Yeah.”
She glances around, suddenly nervous. “Eve, if they catch me?—”
