Page 73 of Let the Game Begin

“Yeah, I think people have noticed…” he answered. He was right. It was all Neil’s fault. Neil and my insane life.

But I didn’t offer any explanations, and Logan dropped the subject, turning back to talk with his friends.

An hour later, we were headed back home. During the ride, he finally admitted that he was interested in Alyssa. Apparently they were dating and had already slept together several times. But he, like his brother, insisted that there was no room for love in his life and that what he felt for Alyssa was merely a deep fondness.

“You know, there are essays, books, entire encyclopedias that tell us loveis an energy, this force that you only experience once in your life, if you’re lucky. I don’t think I’ve ever fallen in love. Have you?” he asked as he drove. Being deeply skeptical of human emotions must run in his family.

“No, never…” I looked out the window and thought about Jared. I was positive that I wasn’t in love with him. If I was, I wouldn’t have such overwhelming feelings for someone else. But at the same time, I wasn’t in love with Neil, either. At least, not yet… We had an inescapable connection, marked by an undeniable physical attraction. Still, I was afraid to look too deeply within, because I didn’t want to actually confront what I was starting to feel for him. Though I did realize that thinking constantly about a person was one symptom of falling in love.

“Selene, are you listening?” Logan jolted me out of my rumination, and I glanced over at him only to see that we’d arrived home.

“Sorry, I wasn’t.” I retrieved my bag and opened the door while Logan continued to give me a probing look.

“You’re worried about something; that’s why you’re so distracted.” We exited the car and I followed him up the front steps. I wondered how he put up with me, especially these days when I was perpetually lost in my own thoughts. He had an incredible amount of patience.

“You’re right, I was just…” I ran into his back when he stopped abruptly on the first step.

“Logan?” I leaned around him to see what was blocking our way and saw a black box at his feet.

“Were you expecting a package from someone?” he asked, frowning down at it. I shook my head and Logan glanced around, but there was no one but us. He bent down to pick up the box and motioned for me to follow him into the house.

“Who’s it from? Maybe it’s for your mom or Matt,” I mused.

We entered the living room and sat down on the sofa, where we examined the box. It was definitely out of the ordinary: all black with no sender or recipient on it.

“We should ask Anna who left it,” he said thoughtfully.

“It’s her day off,” I reminded him.

“Should we open it?” He turned it over in his hands, maybe looking forsome sort of marking, a name, anything that might help us figure out what it was. We regarded each other for a few moments, then Logan felt the box all over before placing it on the glass table in front of us and opening it up.

Whatever was inside left Logan completely petrified.

He went white and his mouth fell open.

“What is it, Logan?” I demanded.

“What the fuck is this? A prank?” he snapped.

I began to notice a vile smell in the air, similar to that of a decomposing corpse. I peered inside the box and understood immediately why Logan was so upset.

“Oh my God!” I clapped my hands over my lips and stood up rapidly, thrusting myself away from the package.

“This has to be some sort of sick joke.” Logan shut the box again, passing a hand over his face. Just at that moment, the front door swung open. We both turned to see Neil coming over the threshold, handsome as ever and completely in the dark about what was happening.

He observed us with a serious scowl, like he was trying to figure out the reason for our shocked appearance. Then he closed the door and came over to us with slow, decisive strides.

“Why the faces? What happened?” His forehead wrinkled at me over those lovely honey-colored eyes and I gulped.

“Neil…” Logan began. “I think you should look at this.” He pointed the box out to his brother, who came closer. His fresh, scrubbed smell washed over me as he bent to open up the package.

“Fuck!” Neil shouted, backing away with a grimace of horror on his face.

“What do you think? It’s a shitty prank, right?” Logan asked him, but the dark look on Neil’s face made it clear that he thought it was anything but.

A dead raven, putrid and stinking with live worms all over it, feeding on its innards was no run-of-the-mill joke. It couldn’t be anything but a threat, macabre and disgusting as it was.

“Who would send something like that?” I hugged myself and rubbed my arms; it was as though I could feel those worms crawling on my skin.