Page 135 of Kings & Corruption

Oscar shrugged. “He’s the one who canceled it.”

Chapter62

Willa

Ispent the rest of the afternoon in bed reading. I ate the soup and was relieved when it stayed down, then nibbled on the cookies while I read. I was trying to distract myself, both from the disturbing image of Neo cleaning up my puke and the fact that he’d canceled tonight’s fight.

I didn’t know for sure it was because of me — and even if it was, it might have been because he didn’t want the hassle of going to the Orpheum with someone who had a giant target on her back — but I couldn’t think of another reason.

I’d only been to one of the fights, but it was obvious that image was a big part of the whole thing. Neo wouldn’t have canceled lightly, not when it might have made him look weak.

Had he canceled because of me? Because I was sick?

But that didn’t make sense. He’d probably cleaned up after me to protect the kitchen floor. Maybe he’d even done it to benice— although that was hard to imagine when he was still calling me Jezebel and sneering at me every chance he got — but actually caring that I was sick was way too much of a fantasy.

He was more of a mystery now than when I’d first moved into the Kings’ house, and that was something that made me deeply uneasy. Things were supposed to be getting clearer, not more complicated.

Which brought me to the other thing, the thing I was trying to avoid thinking about: whether or not to stay at Aventine.

The package from my stalker had been disconcerting, but by itself, it wasn’t enough to make me consider leaving. I’d be an idiot not to consider it now that Nikki Wells had turned up dead.

My shock over Nikki had faded to sadness, then morphed into real fear. I had no idea who might be next, but I was definitely at the top of the list.

Did I want to find out what had happened to Emma badly enough that I was willing to risk my life? My mom and I had our differences, but I wasn’t sure she’d recover from another loss, not even with Roberto Alinari paving the way with designer handbags and hundred-dollar bills.

The questions echoed through my mind until my phone buzzed with a text from the group chat I shared with the Kings.

Feeling good enough forLove or Money?Oscar had texted.

I’ll heat up some more soup, Rock added.

My stomach grumbled. I was suddenly starving, and I knew exactly what I needed.No more soup, but I’d kill for some greasy lo mein.

I wondered if Rock would be offended, but a few seconds later four emojis showed up: a bowl with noodles and chopsticks.

Coming right up, he added.

I waited, wondering if Neo would contribute, but I wasn’t surprised when he didn’t. He hardly ever spoke to me — in person or otherwise — unless it was to say something snide, and he seemed annoyed as fuck by my relationships with Oscar and Rock.

Oh well, what was it Nana Russo had said? Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth?

Oscar and Rock were on offer, plus trashy TV and lo mein. It was enough of an incentive to make up for having to deal with Neo

I got out of bed, brushed my teeth again, and applied deodorant. I was brushing my hair when my phone rang, Mara’s face lighting up the screen for a FaceTime call.

I answered, then propped up the phone while I brushed.

“Hey,” Mara said. She wasn’t smiling, and I knew why: word about Nikki was out beyond Blackwell Falls. I would need to call my mom. “I just heard. Are you okay?”

I paused my brushing to lean my elbows on the sink. “I’m okay.”

“She was Emma’s roommate right?” Mara asked. She was on her bed in the dorm, her curly hair pulled into a messy bun on top of her head. “I saw her picture on the news.”

I nodded. “Same Nikki.”

“Oh my god…” Mara’s eyes were wide. “What’s going on up there, Willa?”

I considered telling her about the envelope from my stalker and my visit to see Nikki, but it only took me about half a second to nix the idea. There was no point worrying Mara. She was hundreds of miles away. She couldn’t do anything to help me, and knowing what was going on would only make her worry.

---