Page 64 of Born in Sin (Phoenix #3)

Lightning streaked across the sky as they raced around the edge of the school grounds, beer bottles hidden under their uniform blazers. Ishaan laughed, wild and exultant, the sound floating away on the strong breeze buffeting them.

“Shut up,” Amay hissed at him, as thunder boomed overhead. “Someone will hear us.”

“There is nobody crazy enough to be out in this weather!” Ishaan yelled. “Nobody but us.”

“Will you shut up?” Amay shouted back, cuddling his beer bottle like a baby against him.

Virat grinned. There wasn’t much to laugh about in life but tonight, the smiles came easily.

Tonight was graduation night which meant they could leave this hellhole of a school behind a week from now.

The last week was meant for paperwork and packing up their lives at Crestwood. But that was for tomorrow.

Tonight, his friends and he were going to celebrate their imminent freedom. And tonight, he was going to finally tell Celina his good news. He’d gotten his offer of admission from the Ivy League college of his choice.

“Hey Harvard.” Ishaan’s shout had him glancing over. “Stop smiling to yourself and keep moving. These beers aren’t going to drink themselves.”

“You keep shouting about smuggling in alcohol on school grounds and we won’t be drinking it either,” Virat tossed back.

“You’re going to get us caught,” Amay grumbled.

“Well,” Ishaan said dipping into a low bow. “If I do get us into trouble, Virat will get us out of it.” He grabbed Virat with an arm around his neck. “Vir will fix everything. Won’t you, Vir?”

Virat shrugged out of the headlock, laughing good naturedly. “I’m retiring from that nonsense. You’ve aged me before my time, Ish. I can’t fix any more of your messes.”

“Not fair!” Ishaan protested, mock punching Virat in his ribs. “Amay messes up more than I do.”

Amay rolled his eyes. “I bet Virat refuses to even keep in touch with you once he reaches Massachusetts. Then who is going to fix your life for you, huh?”

Now, that would never happen. Admission to graduate school in Harvard might have given Virat a chance to leave his life here behind but he’d never leave his friends.

And he’d never leave her. His suspension had finally been lifted with Graduation Day.

Tomorrow, he was going to find Celi and he was going to tell her everything.

Ishaan groaned. “He’s got that dopey smile on his face again. He’s thinking of her!”

Amay laughed, wagging a finger at Virat. “You know the rules. Today is only about us. The boys. You have the rest of your life to think about her.”

He did. And Virat planned to do exactly that.

“Where are we going to drink this beer anyway?” he asked now in a bid to distract his friends. “Are we walking all the way to Harvard to do it?”

“We’re here.” Ishaan stopped by the school garden.

“Here?” Amay asked, staring at the cucumbers growing on a vine near his head. “What is your obsession with the freaking vegetables in this garden?”

“Yes, here.” Ishaan pulled out the bottle he’d been hiding under his jacket.

“We have food.” He pointed to the vegetables growing in orderly rows behind him.

“We have drinks.” He waggled the bottle in the air.

“And we have the company of friends.” He spread his hands out like he was moving in for a hug.

Both Amay and Virat side stepped him making him stumble and fall in the dirt.

They were still laughing when an aborted scream rent the air. It cut off before they could process it.

“What was that?” Amay asked, instantly sobering. “Did you guys hear it too?”

“It sounded like a scream.” Ishaan got to his feet, the bottle of beer lying forgotten in the mud.

“Where did it come from?” Virat spun in a circle but all he saw was an empty school ground and endless night. A gust of wind slapped his face just as thunder boomed and a cloud burst above them. Rain gushed down, soaking them in minutes.

“There.” Amay pointed into the distance somewhere in the southeast corner of the grounds.

The grove! Unease swirled in Virat’s gut as he stared through the pouring rain towards the cluster of trees in the far corner. No way. They wouldn’t be that stupid, would they? Not today when the campus was just coming down from the high of Graduation Day.

Virat started to move in that direction, but Ishaan grabbed his arm. “Don’t get in the middle of their shit. We’re done with this place and them, right?”

“Someone screamed.” Virat’s wiped the water off his face and squinted into the darkness.

“It’s probably one of their twisted games.” Amay came to stand beside him, chewing on his lower lip in indecision.

“Come on,” Virat said. “We’ll just look from a distance and if it’s their usual shit, we’ll leave them to it.”

“This is a bad idea,” Ishaan protested but he followed them as they started to run towards the grove. They made it there in seconds, the torrential rain masking their approach.

Another bolt of lightning lit up the sky, a bright flash that illuminated everything on the ground. And as thunder boomed in his ears and his heart, he saw her.

Celina Fernandez, his best friend and the love of his young life, stripped naked and tied to a tree, her mouth taped shut with duct tape. Her eyes, wide with terror, met his through the downpour.

“Celi!” Her name was torn from him on a scream as he started to run, slipping and sliding in the wet mud. Behind him, he heard his friends charging forward, even as the Dusty Devils turned to see who was coming.

Varun Gokhale stepped in front of them, his palm slapping into Virat’s chest, stopping his mindless run and shoving him back. He fell backwards, landing on his butt in the mud.

“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll fuck the hell off right now,” Varun said, a chillingly calm smile on his face.

A roar of fury escaped Virat as he launched himself off the ground and at Varun, his arms going around the other boy’s waist and dragging him to the dirt with him. All around them, he heard shouts and yells, and the thud of flesh striking flesh. But loudest of all were her silent screams.

Celi, his Celi!

He shoved Varun off him and ran towards her. He almost made it before someone grabbed him from behind and threw him back. Naveen smiled, his arms up, fists clenched. “Come on lover boy. Let’s see what you’ve got.”

“Let her go.” Virat knew it was pointless, but he had to ask, to beg. “Please let her go.”

“We will,” Naveen grinned. “After we’re done with her.”

A red mist of rage clouded his vision as he launched himself at the other boy, fists pummeling him but barely making any impact. He heard someone cry out in pain behind him, but he didn’t look. He couldn’t look. He could only see her. He could always only see her.

Naveen’s leg connected with his jaw and sparks dotted his vision, agony arcing through him. He landed on his back, wheezing and panting, his breath sawing through his lungs.

“Alright. Alright.”

Varun’s smug face came into view. He had a bloody Ishaan by his collar. He flung him to one side and crouched beside Virat who coughed and struggled to get on his hands and knees. He looked towards Celi, but Varun’s hand shot out, grabbing him by his chin and turning his face away from her.

“You guys want to be a part of this? Let’s do it right, shall we?” He let go of Virat’s chin as he rose to his feet. “Beg us. Beg us to let go of her.”

“Like you guys are going to do it even if we do beg,” Amay spat out. Parash and Naveen had his arms held behind his back, keeping him from moving. Ashish had one leg on Ishaan’s back, ensuring he stayed face first in the wet mud.

Varun smiled. “You guys were always so smart. And yet, you’re dumb enough to try and take us on. What’s it going to be, Jha? Beg for your girl or leave her for us?”

“Please,” Virat said, the words spilling out of him. “I am begging you. Let her go. Do whatever you want to us but let her go.”

“We’re not fucking faggots.” Ashish said, as he pressed his foot into Ishaan’s back.

“No, we’re not,” Varun said softly. “Is this the best you can do, Jha? Is this all you’ll do for her?”

Virat looked over Varun’s shoulder, his gaze meeting Celina’s anguished ones.

Tears poured down her face, mingling with the rainwater that sluiced down it.

His heart tore in two as he forced himself to look away from her and into Varun’s eyes.

He held the other boy’s gaze as he dropped to his knees in front of Varun.

“Please,” he said, the word a broken whisper. “Please Varun. Whatever you want, I’ll do anything. Please let her go.”

Varun Gokhale smiled, the flash of teeth blinding white in the rainswept night.

“No,” he said simply, lashing out and kicking Virat in the face.

The crunch of the blow was sickeningly loud in the midst of the storm filled night.

Virat flew sideways landing at her feet.

Blood pooled in his mouth and when he spat it out, he saw a tooth float away too.

He reached out with one hand and touched her foot, hoping to offer something… comfort, support, hope?

But it was nothing. Meaningless. Useless. Hopeless.

Varun walked over and untied Celina. She fell to the ground beside him in a boneless heap.

He reached for her, but his arms were dragged back as Varun used the same ropes to tie them behind his back.

Varun grabbed his hair, yanking his head back so all he could see was Celina. Battered. Bruised. Broken.

“Oh no Romeo,” Varun murmured in his ears. “You can look but you can’t touch. And you’re going to watch till the end.”

Something crashed in the darkness behind them and Varun’s attention splintered, as he turned towards the sound. Virat used the moment to throw himself at Celina, wrapping his body around hers, using it to shield her.

He heard the furious shout behind him and then there were hands grabbing him, trying to drag him away.

Desperate strength flooded him as he held on, wrapping his legs around her for a grip, and then Celina’s hands found their way around him as she curled into him, clinging to him in hopeless fear.

Kicks to his ribs rained down even as someone grabbed his hair again and yanked.

Pain exploded in his head as a hard punch landed on his ear.

And then, in the distance he heard a shout. A beam of light sluiced through the rain and darkness as someone came running towards them. A muttered curse and a final kick to his head, and the Dusty Devils scattered, running into the dark, leaving them behind.

And then all that was left was the four of them, lying in the dirt as the heavens opened up above them, but no Gods rode to their rescue.