Page 14 of Cruel Academy (Princes of Ravenlake Academy 2)

Haley is still standing where I left her, right on the edge of where the overhead streetlight meets the shadow. Her face is half-dark, half-lit. Those blue eyes are staring daggers at me.

I meet her gaze coolly as I crank the engine to life. It roars in the quiet night.

“Wanna know a secret?” she yells over the sound of the motor.

“Probably not.”

“I’m coming to Ravenlake this semester. Get ready to see a lot of me.”

I freeze. Is she serious? She can’t be. No fucking way.

“You’re full of shit.”

She shakes her head and gives me a tight grin. “Serious as a heart attack.” Like this is all a fucking joke.

I don’t like that. I don’t like that at all.

I keep this shit—the underground fights, the cash prizes, my dealings with the Hell Princes—very, very separate from my life at Ravenlake Prep and my friends there, for very, very good reasons.

They’re two different worlds.

And now here comes Haley Cochran, ready to fuck it all up yet again.

I decide one thing right then and there.

If she wants to try barging into my world…

I’m going to turn it into her worst fucking nightmare.

7

Caleb

My house is dark when I get back.

I already texted J.C. and Noah and told them I was tired after my “jiujitsu tournament” and wouldn’t be hanging out.

They bought the lie, just like they always do. But they’re annoyed since we had plans to get drunk the last weekend before the school year starts up.

Whatever. After dealing with Haley, I don’t have the energy to deal with them tonight.

I pull into the driveway, kill the engine of my truck, and walk up the drive.

The house is the biggest on the street, though it’s still half the size of Finn’s place. Growing up, it was stuffed full of antique furniture my mom picked up at estate sales and appointment-only shops.

Now, though, the walls are noticeably bare.

Things were fine for a while after Dad left. Not so much anymore.

We’re selling everything we can to get by. Mom says it’s just “decluttering,” but we both know the truth. You don’t sell your cherished belongings when things are going great.

The fact is that we’re struggling. Both she and I know it.

It’s why I fight. It’s why I put my body on the line, week after week.

To bring home money for my mom. With Dad gone, she’s all I have left.

I kick off my shoes by the front door and pad into the house.

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