Page 18

Sam

Eden leans back against the wall, scanning the crowded park for a sign of The Queen. “She should have been here by now.” Biting the inside of her cheek, she stands on her tippy toes. “I thought she said two o’clock. She’s always on time.”

I follow her line of sight and shrug. Too many people are passing through Dilworth Park to bother looking for her. “I’m sure she’ll show. We always meet at the side entrance to City Hall.”

The Queen prefers to meet in public places, as do we, and this has been our meeting spot since the beginning of the semester.

“Yeah, but she wears a different disguise every time,” Eden groans. “It’s impossible to spot her in this crowd.”

I pat her on the shoulder to calm her down. “She’s never missed an appointment with us. Maybe she hit traffic. She knows where we’ll be. I wouldn’t sweat it.”

Eden relaxes at my side, rubbing her hands together for warmth. It’s freezing outside, the chill in the air leeching into my bones. Both of us feel guilty for handing The Queen information. We still don’t know her name or why she wants to know things about the men’s ice hockey team.

She’s the most elusive person I’ve ever met. But as long as the checks keep coming and I’m in good standing with the University, I can’t complain.

Dethroned is the talk of the campus. Students crave each piece of juicy gossip, some of which she learned from Eden and me.

I feel awful about working with her now that I know Tucker better.

But I was desperate for cash, and she had plenty of it.

I was only trying to survive when I agreed to help her.

When she approached me at the beginning of the fall semester, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

It was my chance to get even with Tucker for the past while making money to pay the bills.

People like Tucker and his friends don’t understand what it’s like to be broke.

Most of the kids at Strick U want for nothing.

If the roles were reversed, I know Tucker would do the same.

Still, that doesn’t relieve my guilt or shame over helping someone as sadistic as The Queen.

Ten minutes later, a girl with blonde hair cropped under her chin approaches Eden and me.

Last time, she wore a long, red wig. She reminds me of Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman without the hooker costume today.

She’s wearing dark blue jeans that hug her thin legs and a cranberry-colored tunic under an open leather jacket.

“Sorry, I’m late,” she says in a hushed tone. “I had to take care of a few last details.”

Eden forces a smile. “No problem.”

She’s slightly terrified of The Queen. We both are.

She’s capable of things neither of us had imagined.

We both feel trapped and are afraid she will dig up dirt on us for her blog.

I have nothing to hide apart from my father being a degenerate loser.

But Eden has a few skeletons in her closet she’d rather keep hidden from the world.

“Have anything new for me?” The Queen presses her lips together, smearing her red lipstick.

I still don’t understand why she hates Tucker and his teammates so much. Did they do something awful to her? She screams wealth, from the designer bag on her arm to her high-thread count clothes and red-heeled shoes.

And she pays well.

Small bits of information go a long way with The Queen.

She never fully exposes their secrets, which confuses the hell out of me.

Why doesn’t she reveal names and places if she wants to ruin their lives?

Instead, she always spares the girls involved in every incident.

Maybe it’s her way of showing compassion.

“I’m tutoring Tucker Kane,” I admit, my teeth chattering from the cold.

The Queen nods, and then her gaze lands on Eden. “How about you? Anything new?”

Eden shakes her head. “No, not this month. Since Romeo broke up with me, I haven’t been able to get close to the Delta Sig guys.”

“They’re of no use to me, anyway.” She sighs, pinning me down with one look. “You have the perfect opportunity to get closer to them. Take Tucker up on his advances. See how much he’ll tell you.”

My stomach knots at the thought. I don’t want to hurt him. At first, I tried to destroy him for disposing of me like trash, but now I can’t do it. I don’t have it in me anymore.

I flash a closed-mouth smile. “I’ll do my best.”

The Queen grins, shoving her hands into her jacket. “Try not to get too close… if you know what I mean. Those guys will eat you up and spit you out before they move on to the next girl. Don’t let Tucker do that to you. I learned my lesson the hard way.”

So, she’s an ex? Or, at the very least, a woman scorned by a player on the team. Interesting.

“I know what I’m doing,” I promise, though I’m not so sure I do.

The more time I spend with Tucker, the more I like him. He makes it impossible not to feel something for him, even if it is only lust.

“Until next time,” The Queen says with a wave, and then she disappears, swallowed up by the crowd.

“She freaks me out,” Eden says. “Are you sure you can go through with this?”

I cock my head at her. “Like I have a choice.”

She sucks in a deep breath and blows it out, her breath like a mist in the cold air. “You like Tucker, don’t you?”

“Yes, but what can I do? This is a means of survival. Without her money, I’m screwed.”

She shoots me a wary look. “You can’t separate business from pleasure anymore.”

I wave off her concern. “I can, and I will. Trust me.”

Eden smiles, this time a real one, but her smile fades when both of our cell phones ding with a new notification. She reaches into her pocket, but I ignore it. I don’t care who’s being dethroned by The Queen today. Staring down at her phone, Eden’s eyes widen in shock.

“What is it?”

“You need to see this.” She shares her phone, holding it out for me to read the latest post.

Dethroned: February Edition

It’s that time of the month again. I know you all missed me. But you know who’s not having her time of the month? The sorostitute the Kane twins knocked up.

Oh, baby, the twins are having a baby! But which one is the daddy? Not even a paternity test will tell…

XO,

The Queen

I cringe at the words on the screen, reading the post several times before my skin burns.

“It’s Trent’s.” Eden hooks her arm through mine as we walk through the park toward the train station. “He’s been hooking up with Jordan’s sister for the last few months.”

“But Tucker was with her, too,” I point out.

“He kissed her.” She hugs me. “You only have to keep up this charade until the end of the semester. After graduation, you won’t even remember Tucker Kane.”

I doubt that.

Tucker is unforgettable.

“Yeah,” I mutter. “What’s a few more months, right?”

She smiles and tightens her grip on my arm, pulling me closer to the street. “That’s the spirit. It will all be over in no time. As long as we do what she asks, we have nothing to worry about.”

I’m afraid of what will happen once we’ve outlived our purpose.