Page 24 of Falling for A Lie
“We have a new sister group, The Valkyries, opening up, and we would like for you to lead it. This will be for us only, not the Lords of Ash, but for the Ladies. A security blanket of sorts. We suspect the Lords are working against us, but we cannot be sure. If that's the case, we need someone who will fight for us, to be the avenging angel if we are ever wiped out.We need you, Nightingale.” Scarlett's voice is strong and confident as she speaks, each word clear. The meaning of what she was saying finally struck the part of my brain that I had tried to ignore. She needs me.
The Lords cannot be trusted. We have to be ready for an all-out war to protect ourselves.
“If I agree, what do I get in return?” My voice is low in fake confidence I do not feel.
“You get to live your life without a looming fear over your shoulder. You get the right to make choices that you have been robbed of.” Scarlett answers, taking a pregnant pause and tilting her head slightly, taking in my shaky hands and trembling breath as I wait for her to continue. “You'll go stay in Ashford Hollow. You'll be around others who are in this with you. Your sisters, having graduated two months early, will attend with you. My son and his friends were there. Steer clear of them unless you need to make contact. Understand?” She holds her hands out, and before I have a chance to reply, Josephine cuts in, cementing my decision with her next words, “Jace is back, he's looking, and he plans to go through whatever extent that he needs to do to kill the girl who ruined his life. He's not alone. His best friend is accompanying him on this journey for revenge.” Josephine says softly, not breaking eye contact with me, a look of disgust at what she said crosses over her face. “I will not let him get to you or your sisters, and you will be safe with us by your side. TheValkyries will be yours. You will not answer anyone if you don't want to. With this group, you make the decisions, and you make it into something that will protect us all. You are no longer powerless.”
“I understand what needs to be done. But I have two demands to be made. My sisters join the Valkyrie with me as my first and second in Command. We will still work with the Ladies Of Ash to keep the appearance of a united front. I don't want to add more danger to our backs, and that's what will happen if we are caught by The Lords Of Ash. They will treat this as treason. They will kill us off like we never mattered in the first place, and I've already got one psycho out for blood. I don't want to add more to the list if I can help it. My second demand will be that you send Finley and Miles with me as my enforcement. To make sure my orders are carried through without trouble.” With that, I seal my fate to another promise I pray I can keep.
The rest of the meeting and planning went smoothly, as we set up everything for the girls and me to attend Ashford Hollow in a couple more months.
We also discussed that I will take over ownership of the second house that's currently on campus because living in the dorms opens up the opportunity to be killed by an opposing member with ulterior motives from The Lords. Who, for some reason, tasked the guys with getting information on me? Our meeting in the bar wasn't fate, but a well-thought-out plan toget them into the fucking order. The pain from that last bit only fuels a newfound rage about being lied to and used for personal gain by everyone I have come in contact with. I'll always be a pawn in a bigger game.
I leave the office with a newfound hope and a new future to look forward to. I won't be a puppet or a pawn. I'm going to be the damn queen of my empire, my future. It's about time I realized that no one will ever have the ability to control or hurt me again.
Chapter seventeen
Caden
My mind is still spiraling…
Ideserved every hit that Drake threw at me. I took something I knew he wanted because I could. I could have told her, “No.” I could have walked away after dropping the clothes off and had one of them tell her about Mom and what would happen. For once, I could have been the good guy, the less selfish of us. I knew having sex with her could hurt Drake and maybeeven the others. But I didn’t care. I thought of my own needs, my desires to feel that pretty cunt of hers impaled on my shaft, taking everything I had and submitting to me and my needs.
My eyes connect with the stoplights as they turn green. I shift my weight slightly as I hit the throttle, propelling myself at breakneck speed on my bike pushing further into the seedier side of Ashford.
The only thing that crosses my mind is that little bag that will take away these troubling thoughts that are plaguing me, telling me just how fucked up and worthless I am. How the others would be happy if I just fucking crashed this bike and ended it all, or if my existence didn’t plague their lives. Maybe they could be happy for once instead of whatever the fuck they are now. Barely surviving, just like myself.
That devil of a woman came back into our lives and brought back feelings that we never wanted to face—things that should have stayed buried. She should have been something other than a task to complete and not get close to.
But Fate, being the funny little bitch that she is, had other plans, and now we are faced with the repercussions of being in Soren’s orbit. Even if it is the same fate that helped us save her life.
Hitting a left harder than I should almost causes me to lose control, but I can recover and straighten myself and the bike. The wind blows against my helmet, and the slight thrumming of “Drag the Lake” by The Amity Affliction plays through thetiny speakers. I take the necessary right turn on the rough gravel road that leads to the run-down cabin that honestly should be condemned, but who am I to judge when I’m only out here to get my next high? Then, fuck off back to my room to wallow in self-pity.
Gripping my helmet and lifting it off over my head, the smell of smoke and cow shit assaulted my broken nose. A gag works its way up my throat, and I choke it down with a strangled gulp as I slide off my parked bike beside the tree lines, praying this is quick so the smell doesn’t cling to my skin and follow me home.
My boots crunch against the broken glass and gravel that litter the walkway as I continue my trek to the front door, not giving my surroundings a second glance. Laughter and shouts follow behind the door as I tap three times.
The door opens to a curly redhead. The smell of marijuana follows him as he offers me a yellow-toothed smile. “Long time since we saw you, pretty boy. What can I do for you?” Harold’s breath hits my face, and I recoil at the scent. I grind my teeth to the gums, causing my still-injured jaw to hurt more.
“Been busy, haven’t had much free time. I need to pick up my usual and head out.” My palms are sweaty, and his eyes lingering on my bruised and beaten face has me second-guessing this whole fucking decision together. But fuck it. I’m here, and there is no backing out now.
He nods at me and turns on his heels, making himself scarce amongst the other junkies that lay in various positions across the mismatched couches and floor. All in different stages of shooting up or snorting what looks like cocaine off a dirty DVD case with what I’m guessing is a communal straw.
The sight turns my stomach, cementing my decision to stay rooted in my position. Not wanting to venture further into the cesspool, I silently send a prayer to Lucifer himself that Harold hurries the hell up. Feeling like I need to get the fuck away from this place before the meth I know they cook here blows up and takes me out of the house.
Harold rounds the corner carrying a brown paper sack with the poison that I’ve chosen countless times before. He holds his hand out to collect the cash I have rolled up. He smirked as he made a show of slowly counting the money and licking his dirty fingers. My face is a perfect mask for hiding my disgust. As soon as he finishes, the sack is in my hand. I turn around quickly, rushing to my bike with an urgent need to escape this fucking place and its smells; I slide my leg over the seat in one swift motion. After securing the sack in my backpack, I shove on my helmet, kick up my stand, and bolt out of there. As my engine revs up, I spin the tires and kick gravel and dirt behind me as I speed away.
Back to the civilized side of town.
My bedroom door creaks under my sweaty palm, and the sack weighs heavily in my bag. I entered the house without the others noticing and wanted to keep it that way.
It’s not necessarily like I was trying to avoid them, but well, fuck that. It’s exactly like that.
Sucking in a deep, shaky breath, I drop to my knees at the end of my bed, rummaging underneath the mattress for what I need, the tiny tin with the mirror and card nestled inside, waiting to be covered in this white powder that’s calling out to me. My hands were shaking harder, needing it more than I wanted to admit. Once my fingers find purchase, I pull it out and suck in a shaky breath as I fumble with the bag to get it open. It takes a few tries, but I can finally remove the lid. Gathering up the blade and mirror, I slowly chop and grind the powder into tiny white lines. Once the four lines are evenly lined up, I grip the tiny straw between my fingers and slide it into my less swollen nostril. Holding the opposite nostril closed, I snort each line, making sure to get every last bit. My broken nose aches, but only until the high hits me. I feel it on my toes as I drop my head against my mattress to stare at the ceiling. Sitting in blissful stillness, the cold air from the above air conditioner kicking on, feels like an ice cube sliding down my overheated skin. I tightly grip the rug below me and slowly pray that my brothers leave me alone for the night. Letting meenjoy the peace that the high brings while it erases my sorrows and shame. The feeling of barely coasting by is replaced with the sense of nothing. Nothing but the high that’s causing my heartbeat to rise and my blood to feel like it’s flowing fast and slow simultaneously.
Finally, the thoughts of Soren have evacuated my consciousness, and I can breathe. Even if it’s a task within itself, it’s better than remembering her moaning as I took her as rough as I always imagined I would. How her lips tasted like honey and strawberries, her breathy moans that made me feel like a man reborn, and the way she dripped down my shaft as we both came as one.
Groaning, I grab the Jack bottle from the night before and unscrew the lid. As I take a vast, messy gulp, some dribbles down my chin as another thought crosses my mind. I don’t want to see Drake after the fight between us, where it took everything in me not to hit him back. I deserved to take the punches. Instead, I let him exercise the demons that are causing him not to eat or sleep. He is constantly glued to his computers, as if staring at the screens will make her appear. I’m sure she will know she’s being watched if she does appear.