Page 9 of Sadistic Obsession (Rise of Phoenyxx #1)

F rost

I am burning a hole on the treadmill we have in our apartment suite.

My mind is racing at what we will have to do in order to get the fuck out of here, and to be able to go home to reclaim our rightful positions by our fathers.

At this point, I would murder a fucking nun to get out of this looney bin.

My phone rings, making me startle a bit. I slow down the machine, swiping the towel laid on it to wipe the sweat from my face. I see it’s my dad. Great, what now?

“Yes, Father?” I answer. “What can I do for you?”

My Father is the head of one of the most powerful families on the East Coast. I am the heir, so I’ll inherit everything when he passes me the mantle. The guys’ fathers are also the heads of their families. We are all heirs.

“Son, we need an update on the girl. Have you succeeded yet?”

“She is feisty and headstrong, Father. Nothing has phased her so far.”

“Well, pick up the pace, then! Need I remind you of the stakes?”

“I’m aware of the stakes, Father. We will escalate the situation immediately.”

“Good. I will notify the other families of this progress. Remember what you stand to lose if you don’t follow through. You will not be let out of there, ever, if you disappoint us. Understand?”

“Yes, Sir,” I grind out. Anger simmers beneath my skin—the only emotion I can barely access. I am a breath away from fucking shit up!

Frost Age 12

I am so confused. I am growing fast and starting to fill out. Girls giggle around me at school. I should be feeling something, right? I understand the concept of emotions, but I’m just empty upstairs. It's just...blank.

This cute little blonde from class sidles up beside me on the playground.

She reaches over to grasp my fingers. “Hi,” she says, as she blushes and lowers her lashes.

I raise an eyebrow, wondering what she wants.

Shrugging, I just lean in to kiss her soft lips, just a brush.

She trembles, smiling widely. I feel absolutely nothing.

I walk away, deciding to test this out. The only thing that seems to make me smile is blood. And pain.

I pull up the chat thread for us, punching out a text.

Me: We need to meet at the apt now. My Father just called me.

Synn: Fuck again?

Purge: On my way, man.

Trikk: Almost there.

Razor: This better be important! I was planning something...

Ghost: At the computer lab, OMW now.

I pace back and forth in the living room, questions flooding my brain. Trikk bursts through the door, with Synn right behind him. The others following.

“So, what is going on?” Purge asks.

I let out a deep sigh. “Essentially, we are not doing enough to break our little deer. She keeps bouncing back, no matter what is thrown at her. I was told we need to step it up, big time. Our freedom rests on this.”

“Mother ass fucker! Anyone have any ideas on what to do now?” Trikk has his lucky lighter out, flicking it open and closed. A sure sign he is highly agitated.

Ghost clears his throat. “We need to get Destiny to corner her and do something drastic. But she needs to be told she can’t off her ass.”

Synn quirks his lips up a bit, one of his tells that he’s thinking of something darkly fucked.

“I have been tailing her. I know her schedule, and where she goes and when. Right at 7 a.m. she takes the stairs down to the second floor in her dorm. It's early, so there’s no one else around. I say we wait, and break her, the Six way.”

Ghost blinks rapidly a few times. He's clearly not happy. “Bro, I don’t want to throw that on that girl.”

Synn whips around to address Ghost. “Going soft already? Really?”

“I’m with Ghost,” Trikk says. “That’s pretty extreme.”

“You two better get your shit together! You're acting pussy-whipped! You want to rot here forever?” Synn yells.

“We are on the same page, Brother,” I say. “You talk to Des, and we will plan on being at that staircase tomorrow morning.”

Synn scoffs. “Why does it always have to be me to deal with that pain in the ass?”

“Cuz she’s obsessed with you, bro.” Trikk shrugs.

“He’s not wrong,” I add.

“Is class dismissed now?” Razor asks, the sarcasm heavy on his tongue. “I’ve got shit to do.”

“Everyone, back to what you were doing. Let's go,” Synn orders.

Phoenyxx

Since I had the therapy and doctor appointments, I’m supposed to go straight to PE on Mondays and Fridays.

The problem is, I have no idea where to go!

I do remember seeing a smaller building adjacent to the medical building when I walked over with Valley.

I head out the door, moving along the path to the unknown building.

It's one story, similar to the cafeteria, but smaller.

There are big metal doors on the outside.

I grab the huge handles, scooting inside.

It's very obviously a gymnasium. There's a large open space with bleachers surrounding it.

There's a locker room at the back of the building. Over to the right is another set of doors. Debating whether to go check it out or not, a student blazes through it, giving me a glimpse of what’s inside.

An exercise room. I smell something chemical, probably chlorine. So, there must be a pool in there, too.

I make my way to the locker room, looking for a teacher to tell me what to do.

The left is marked Boys, the right Girls.

I walk in and see students changing into uniforms by the lockers.

No teacher...of course. I take a chance and walk over to the lockers, tapping a girl on the shoulder.

“Hey, I’m new. Where do I go to get my locker and uniform? Where’s the teacher, anyway?”

“Fuck off, bitch. Do I look like fucking Google to you?” she snarks back.

“Um...sorry to bother you.” I slink away, glancing around for any help.

I turn the corner into the shower area, seeing no one.

Before I can back out of the small area, my bag is ripped from my shoulder, and my arms are being grabbed from behind and wrenched up painfully.

Destiny walks around to stand right in front of me.

“Hold her tight, ladies! Time to have some fun!”

The giggles behind me make me see black. “What the fuck do you want, you stupid cunt? Going to beat me up? Big fucking deal! How about letting me go and fight me like a woman?” I scream in her face; spittle drops landing on her skin.

“Ewww...skank germs! You’re so fucked now, New Girl!” She smirks as she reaches behind her back, brandishing a huge pair of scissors.

I immediately start struggling, attempting to kick out at her, but missing. “Seems like someone’s uniform is not up to code,” she announces.

“What the hell are you talking about?” I grit out.

She grabs the front of my blazer and shirt, wedging the scissors underneath the top, cutting downwards. “A little too much cleavage, I think.”

Behind me, one of the others says, “I think there’s a slit in her skirt, too!” She grabs the bottom of my skirt, cutting a deep slit up the front, my panties peeking through.

“Well, this just won’t do! I think we need to start over!”

She snips away the remnants of my uniform, leaving me there in just a bra and panties. I start to shake, biting my tongue to keep quiet. I'm hoping this is the worst she’ll do.

“You can’t walk around like this,” she laughs. In the blink of an eye, she cuts them away, leaving me completely naked. Knowing I have no uniform or locker yet, I am praying I can find something in the locker room.

“One last adjustment...” She bites her lip, quirking her head. Smiling sadistically, she walks behind me, grabbing my hip-length hair.

“Fuck you, you are dead! You hear me? DEAD!” I scream hysterically.

I hear the snick of the scissors as my locks fall away. She cuts until she decides it’s good enough. I look down and see my hair at my feet, a lone tear welling in my eye. “You done now? Let me go!”

Without another word, the girls turn me towards a mirror.

I look at the butchered mess in horror. It's barely past my shoulders and jagged everywhere! They start dragging me towards the door to the gym, and I fight like a wild animal. I can hear the noise out there; it’s definitely packed with people!

I snarl and spit, to no avail. Destiny jerks the door open, the others shoving and pulling me through. “Attention, everyone!” she yells.

My breathing stops as they all turn to look at me. The girls are yelling slut and whore at me, the boys catcalling and hollering. They finally let me go, dipping back into the locker room quickly. I whirl around to open the door, but they have it barricaded.

My eyes burn with unshed tears, but instead of trying to cover myself, I hold my head up, walking straight through the center of the gym, heading for the hall.

“What the...holy shit!” I hear a male voice say. A kind-eyed brunette boy, skinny but cute, whips off his shirt, pulling it over my head. Luckily, it falls to the backs of my thighs. I sigh out a “Thank you,” but he just nods his head. “Follow me, I’ll get you to safety.”

“What’s your name?”

“Bryan,” he answers. “I'm just a normal guy, but I can’t stand by and see a woman hurt like that. So sorry they did that to you! Those girls are a menace!” he growls.

“Thanks, Bryan. I really appreciate it!”

“Any time, New Girl. Phoenyxx, right?”

“Yeah,” I sigh.

“I’ll walk you back to your dorm. I’ll catch your attention in the hall later, and we can exchange numbers. If you need anything.”

I smile gratefully, relaxing a fraction once we get to my room. “Shit, I don’t have my keycard!”

“No worries, girl, I’ve got you,” he brandishes a small kit, lock-picking tools? He fiddles in the door jamb for a minute, smiling when the door opens. I race inside, locking the door. I'm skipping dinner tonight. No fucking way am I leaving this room again!