Page 4 of Mad As Hell

Whatever he said pissed her off, but when he grabbed her arm, I saw red. She managed to shake him off and leave…

And he walked right into my unlocked room. Moments later he was out, the playbook tucked under his arm, and then he ducked back into his room just as Maddie came upstairs and hurried to my room to lock the door.

Motherfucker.

She’d told me the truth.

I pinched the bridge of my nose and couldn’t help but remember the betrayal and pain in her eyes, the way her voice shook.

If you leave, then I’m done.

Her last words echoed in my brain.

“I fucked up,” I murmured, sucking in a sharp breath that made me dizzy.

“We all did,” Linc muttered behind me.

Ash shot us a smug look. “I didn’t. No one can fake the kind of innocence that girl had.”

I scrubbed a hand down my face. “I need to find her. I need to talk to her.”

It was after midnight and a two-hour drive to her house, but I needed to see her now. I had to make this right. Shit, she had every right to be pissed, but I refused to accept we were over.

“You’re drunk, dude,” Court pointed out. “Maybe not the best time to go driving up the coast.”

I scowled at him. “Then I’ll take a fucking Uber.” I spun to leave, even as the space around me tilted precariously.

Fuck, I was too wasted to drive.

Ash clapped a hand on my shoulder. “I’ll drive. You assholes get in the car.”

It took longer than I would’ve liked for us to stumble out to Ash’s Range Rover, and even longer for the nearly two-hour drive back up north to the Cabot estate.

My best friend drove like a little old lady, and I was going to punch him in the dick as soon as I was sober enough to get behind the wheel myself. Instead, I had to settle for glaring at him as he drove to Maddie’s.

“It’s dark,” Court remarked from the backseat, leaning forward as Ash turned up the long drive to the massive mansion on a hill that Gary Cabot used to show the world how rich he was.

My heart thumped against my ribs as I stared at the dark house. It looked ominous with all the lights out. I would’ve thought the power was down if not for the fact that all the other houses had lights on.

“Something’s not right,” Ash muttered, squinting as he pulled up in front of the house and put the SUV in park.

I threw open the door and swore as the alcohol made me sluggish. I stumbled up the front steps, not really giving a shit what I looked like. I fumbled for my keys in my pocket, and it took three tries to find the right one.

Linc, Ash, and Court were at my back as I pushed open the front door of the house and was met with silence.

“If this was a horror movie,” Linc whispered, “the killer would have us right where he wanted.”

A smacking sound echoed in the hall as Ash slapped the back of his head. “Shut up.”

“Jesus, you’re grouchy when you’re sober and acting morally superior,” Linc groused.

“All of you shut the fuck up,” I snapped, reaching over and turning on the lights in the front hall.

The sudden wash of brightness was blinding, and it took time for my eyes to adjust.

It was hard to believe that a little over twenty-four hours earlier, there had been a huge party here. Everything looked clean and sterile and… empty.

“Is anyone even here?” Court murmured, his dark eyes sweeping across the space suspiciously.

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