Page 59 of Wicked Games (Fallen Royals 2)

“Riley offered.”

“Nice of her. Probably better if you don’t get seen down there, anyway.”

“And have you solidified your plan for Amelie?” I ask, biting into my sandwich.

She grins. “Yep. She’s drinking a laxative as we speak. According to my mother, it’ll move through her system in about four hours.”

I wince.

“She’s gonna either be shitty at the top of the pyramid or… you know.” She winks. “But she’s gonna figure it out. It’ll blow back on us.”

“But you’ll be captain,” I say.

“And Caleb will be brought down to one of the average folks when he’s kicked off the team,” she finishes. “All will be right in the world.”

“Have you spoken to Will?”

Her face closes down. “I mentioned Amelie’s threat like an idiot. He said he couldn’t risk it.”

“It being…”

“A relationship. I just got him back, too.” Tears fill her eyes. “Amelie’s going to know it was me and tell everyone—”

“I’ll take credit,” I blurt out. Footsteps alert us to Riley’s return. “That was fast—”

It isn’t Riley.

Ian saunters toward us, a weird smile on his face. “Caught you.”

Sav stands. “What?”

“I knew you two were up to something fishy. Where’s Applebottom?”

“It’s Appleton,” I snap. Since staying in his house, my fear of him has dwindled. Weird how that happened. “And no one invited you to stick your nose in our business, so get out of here.”

He circles around us and picks up my apple. Falling into the chair Riley normally sits in, he takes a bite and grins. “I think I’d rather take the blame for whatever you plan on doing to Amelie.”

“Why?”

“Because she was just sleeping with me to get Caleb’s attention.” He takes another bite and speaks with a mouthful. “Well?”

Sav and I exchange a glance.

“What’s in it for you?”

He sighs. “I’m assuming you did something to Caleb, too? I’ve got to admit, no one will see this coming. The cheer princess and the sheep… and the nobody.” He points to Riley, who has appeared silently. “It’s creepy how you ghost around this school.”

She glares at him.

“What did Caleb do to you?” I ask.

“I admire the way you got under his skin so easily,” he says to me, as if I hadn’t just asked a question. “It’s the kind of move I wish I had more finesse in. Because you were buried in there and when you left, you damn near ripped his heart out.”

My mouth drops open, but Savannah just nods along, biting her lip.

“I don’t think you understand how cruel a hurting boy can be,” he adds. “And I’m not going to rehash everything, but let’s just say—he was a feral animal until Eli, Liam, and Theo came along. Somehow they managed to get him under control.”

“They don’t control him,” I say. “They just…”

---