Page 80 of Blackwood

I stare him down, voice sharp as a blade. “Mariela helped me and Zeke get out. Helped us disappear. She saved us, I would never hurt her. Or her child. Trust me, Mariela and her daughter will live a long, happy life without you, Carlos.”

And then I walk out. Behind me, the screaming starts before we even reach the trees. Wet, raw, soul-deep screams that echo off the water like a damn funeral dirge.

We don’t look back. By the time we make it to Sabine’s car, the smoke is already rising in the distance. A low, orange glowflickers between the trees. The bayou has its revenge. I climb into the passenger seat, exhale slowly, and open my phone.

@LucaWasHere

Damn, Izzy. That shot was slick.

Nice work wrecking Carlos’s dick.

Did it feel good? Watching him fall?

Hearing him beg? Seeing him crawl?

Told you, pet. You were built for war.

It’s in your blood, deep in your core.

You’re finally waking up to who you are.

My chaos. My violence. My rising star.

My fingers curl tight around the phone. Sabine slides into the driver’s seat, glancing at me sideways.

“You good, chérie?”

I nod once, jaw locked. “Yeah.”

Sabine taps her long nails on the steering wheel. “Now don’t forget what I asked for, baby. I did you a favor, I expect the same.”

“Your data’s being returned to you as we speak,” I say smoothly. “Pleasure as always, Sabine.”

She smiles like she just won a hand of high-stakes poker. “Pleasure’s mine. You let Sabine know if you ever need anything else, baby.”

Chapter 28

CADE

Wexley University

551 Days Since Zeke’s Death

BELLA:So, do you want to maybe come to a Trifecta practice next week?

That’s the text that did it. Now I’m here. Front row. Sitting beside about twenty chicks and fifty other guys ranging from jocks, all the way to Wall Street interns, to a guy I’m pretty sure was in my sculpting class last year.

I shift in my seat, arms crossed, trying to act like I belong. Like this is normal. Like I’m not lowkey sweating under my damn henley.

Because I know exactly why I’m here. She invited me.

And that should feel innocent, friendly even. But it doesn’t.

Not when I see her walk in, all legs and fire and confidence in a tiny purple sports bra withBELLAacross her chest. Her black shorts sayTRIFECTA,same as the ones on Haley and Ellie.

The rest of the Legacy girls wear basic black. Their tops sayLEGACY,not their names. I guess The Trifecta gets their own personalized gear.

Some guy is helping Bella stretch. I try not to stare, but of course I do. So does everyone else.