Page 17

Xander

Freshman year - Halloween night

?

I stare at Colton in disbelief. “She did what?”

His jaw is tight, and he hasn’t looked me or Lucas in the eye since he showed up at my dorm. “I wasn’t expecting it, either.”

“Why the hell would she do that?” Lucas demands. Tension riddles his broad shoulders, and he looks like he doesn’t know whether he should be shocked or angry.

Both. It’s definitely both.

“We’re about to find out. I asked her to meet us here.”

Unable to stop myself, I start pacing. I need to release this energy somehow. “You’re sure it was her?”

“Haven is the only other person who knew where we hid the briefcase. I saw my dad go into the pool house this morning, and when I went to check the closet, it was gone.”

“So maybe he saw us,” Lucas says weakly. “Or… maybe someone on his staff? The gardener? A maid?”

“No. He wasn’t in town when we stashed it, and I dismissed everyone the day we hid it and didn’t even call you two until I’d watched them all leave.”

“Cameras?” I ask. “We all know how careful Mark is with his security. He’s got cameras pointed every direction outside the mansion.”

But Colton shakes his head. “I looped the footage.”

My heart sinks.

This was supposed to be my way into the Glass Rooks. The organization—or, if you ask me, the secret society—was started by Colton’s father, and Lucas’s stepdad was one of the founding members. It explains the amount of power they both hold in this town. They’ve spent decades working with others in the organization to get to the top.

Lucas automatically gets in because he’s family. I don’t.

Hell, I’m not even supposed to know about the Glass Rooks. Only those on the inside are aware of what the Rooks really are, and it’s their most-valued secret. But Lucas couldn’t keep it from me.

We don’t keep anything from each other.

So we set up a plan to get me inside. Well, Colton did, really. It’s simple: we stole something Mark wanted—something that wasn’t easy for him to get his hands on. Not only does pulling off the heist showcase my abilities, but it gives us leverage.

He want the information inside the briefcase? Then to get it, he has to let me join their ranks.

It sounded foolproof on paper, especially given the specific info we stole. Supposedly, it’s a whole bunch of company secrets from a competitor of one of the businesses Mark owns. According to Colton, it’d be an irresistible deal.

But Haven spoiled it.

“Why does Mark even care?” Lucas seethes. “Xander has a skill set that would be valuable to the Glass Rooks—much more valuable than mine. So why is Mark sabotaging his chance to get in?”

“It’s not about Xander.” Colton’s fists are clenched at his sides. “He’s doing this because he doesn’t like that I’m acting independently from his own wishes.”

“But you’re going to be taking over for him when he retires!”

“That’s not what this is about. Besides, his retirement is still a long way off.”

I narrow my eyes at Colton. The way he said that has me thinking he has other plans that he hasn’t revealed to me and Lucas.

Like forcing him out of his position.

Or killing him.

“I’m not joining without Xander,” Lucas states, arms crossed.

“I know,” Colton says calmly. “We’ll figure this out. There are other ways to get Xander in. But right now, we need to deal with Haven.”

Haven. She wasn’t even supposed to know about our plans. It was pure coincidence that she even saw the briefcase as we were stashing it. Still, she promised not to tell a single soul about it.

She promised.

Why on earth would she go back on that?

“She’d better have a damn good reason for pulling this,” Lucas growls.

“No matter what, we’re not hurting her,” I say. “Not physically, at least.”

Colton cuts me a sharp look. “You think I would?”

“I think we’re all angry, and I don’t want us to lose ourselves.”

“You should be the angriest of all,” Lucas points out. “She just ruined your chances of getting into the Rooks.”

Colton’s eyes harden. “No. We’ll find another way to initiate him. Like I said, this isn’t the end.”

There’s a knock on my door, and when I open it, Haven is standing in the hallway. She’s breathless, like she ran here, and there are already tears in her eyes. When I step aside without a word, she stumbles into my dorm, jumping when I slam the door shut.

“What the hell did you do?” Colton grits out.

With a terrified squeak, Haven backs away and collides with me. I hold her steady, praying to whatever is out there that this isn’t the last time I’ll do so.

“Answer me,” Colton snaps when Haven doesn’t respond.

“I-I’m sorry,” she stammers. “Colt, I—”

“Why?” he demands. “Why would you tell him about the briefcase? What was going through that stupid brain of yours that made you think that was a good idea?”

Haven winces at the insult. “He said you were going to die.” But even she knows that’s a weak excuse because she lowers her head in shame.

“And you believed him?”

“I’m sorry,” she mumbles.

“Didn’t I very specifically tell you to never listen to a single word that came out of his fucking mouth?”

Haven nods, still staring at the floor.

“And didn’t you promise me you’d never talk to him alone?”

“He cornered me! I was—”

“And what did I tell you to do if he did that?”

With a grimace, she whispers, “Call you.”

“So why didn’t you? Did he hurt you? Threaten you? Blackmail you?”

At the desperation in Colton’s voice, Lucas and I exchange a pained glance. He wants that to be the case—wants there to be a way for her to be blameless in all this. Colton would never put Haven in harm’s way to further his plans. If Mark did threaten her physical safety, that would be enough.

He could let it slide.

We all could.

But Haven shakes her head, even though she knows it’s her damnation.

“Then why? Why the fuck would you do this, Haven?” Lucas asks angrily.

“I didn’t know who to believe,” she sobs. “I was scared that Mark was right. Colt, he—he said you were in over your head, and I didn’t… I didn’t want to risk losing you.”

“So you chose not to trust my judgment,” Colton says flatly. “Not to trust us. And in doing so, you gave us up to the one man I asked you not to talk to.”

Haven’s eyes land on me before moving to Lucas. Her hand flies to her mouth, and I realize it hadn’t crossed her mind that she’d lose me and Luc by doing this, too. When she stifles another sob, it tugs on my heart, but I don’t move.

She doesn’t get to cry on my shoulder.

Not anymore.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers.

Colton releases a short, angry breath. “You think that’s all you have to do? Shed a couple tears and say you’re sorry, and all will be forgiven?”

“Please.” She reaches for him, but he steps back. “Colt, please, I’ll do anything.”

He stares at her for long enough that I begin to wonder if he’s trying to come up with a way she can redeem herself, but then he shakes his head. “The only thing you’ll be doing is getting the fuck out of my sight. I never want to see you again. Never want to hear your voice again.”

The look on Haven’s face is one of utter heartbreak. Shaking her head, she reaches for him again, but he grabs her wrist and drags her toward the door. She stumbles and falls to her knees.

I jump to my feet. “Colt.”

“Get up,” Colton snaps as he yanks the door open.

“I only wanted to keep you safe,” she insists. “Why can’t you see that?”

“Oh, I see it. But what you can’t see is that I don’t care. I either have your trust or I don’t. I either have your loyalty or I don’t. And today, you proved where you stand.”

“But we’re friends,” she protests weakly.

“Friends don’t pull shit like this.” He hooks his arms under hers and roughly lifts her to her feet. “Besides, I only befriended you because Julie asked me to so you wouldn’t be lonely.”

Haven jerks back like Colton just slapped her across the face. “W-what?”

“And we only kept you around because we knew you were too pathetic to survive on your own. All it takes is someone looking at you wrong, and you fall into one of your panic attacks. God, you’re so stupid that you thought the stars weren’t real just because you couldn’t see them.”

As Colton keeps going, Haven’s cheeks turn pink, and tears silently fall down her face. Even I’m shocked by that first part about Julie. He never told me or Luc that. Everything else, while true enough, is framed in a way I know Colton has never seen Haven in before.

But it’s doing exactly what he wants it to.

A sob bursts free, and then Haven turns on her heel and runs out of the room. Colton doesn’t watch her go—just slams the door and leans against it, his eyes closed.

As silence fills the dorm, Colton’s words echo through my mind. Every insult he hurled at Haven killed a little piece of her. I could see it in her eyes, how much it destroyed her to have the boy she put on a pedestal rip her to shreds.

Maybe that was a touch too far.

Maybe we should take her upbringing into account—her naivety.

Maybe…

“She was scared,” I say quietly.

“She went back on her promise to me,” Colton snaps. “To us. She knew not to listen to him, yet she did anyway. And if she betrayed us once, she’ll do it again.”

I hate it—fucking hate it—but he’s right. And if Lucas and I are going to join the Rooks, then we can’t have someone we don’t trust in our inner circle. From here on out, things are only going to get more dangerous. We can’t afford to keep someone like Haven close.

“So we just… let her go?” I ask. I’m pissed at her, sure, but there has to be some way she could make it up to us.

Right?

“We let her go,” Colton says, his hands curling into fists. “For good.”

Numbness spreads through my body so quickly, I almost don’t notice Colton’s phone going off. It’s not until he answers and puts it on speaker that I fully register it.

“Dad,” he says tightly.

“Just wanted to check in with you, see how things are going.”

“You know exactly how they’re going,” Colton grits out.

Mark hums. “You were getting too close to her, anyway. You don’t want a distraction like her. Honestly, you should be thanking me.”

Colton scoffs. “Thanking you? For playing a part in one of my friends fucking betraying me?”

“I’m only trying to save you from getting your heart broken. You know where your duties lie.”

“What happens to my heart is my decision,” Colton seethes.

“No,” Mark says flatly, “it’s not.”

Inhaling deeply, Colton rolls his neck. I’m still not familiar with all the ins and outs of his relationship with Mark, but I recognize what he’s doing right now. Mark has had almost two decades to hone the skill of getting his son riled up. If Colton lets his anger get the best of him, his father wins.

So Colton blows out a breath and smiles. “We’ll see about that.”