Page 3 of The Deception You Weave

I swallow nervously and it's all the answer he needs.

"Motherfucker," he roars, spinning away from me and planting his fist into my wall.

"Luca," I scream, diving for him and wrapping my hands around his solid upper arms. The answer to all of this is not for him to hurt himself and damage his arm. "Stop it, please. P-please." My voice cracks when I see the blood on his knuckles and he immediately relaxes in my hold.

"Fucking hell, Letty. What have you got yourself into?"

He wraps me in his arms again, holding me tighter than I think he's ever done before.

The air around us becomes heavy and I wiggle for him to release me.

"I need a drink," I mutter, reaching to the chair for my hoodie to cover up.

"I'll go get something," Leon says.

"Make it strong."

He nods before slipping out of the room.

Lifting my hand to my lips, I recall our kiss.

That was a mistake. I knew it the second I did it, but fuck.

Lowering my hand, I press the heel of my hand against my chest right above my heart that feels like it’s shattering into a million pieces.

Luca watches my every move as I curl myself back up on my bed once more.

I don't look up at him, but I feel his stare, feel his concern.

"The blonde had whiskey in her room," Leon says, walking back in with a small bottle.

"Ella," I say, although my voice is empty. "Her name is Ella. She's the one you were dancing with Friday night."

"Yeah, yeah, that's the one. Here," he says, passing the bottle over.

Twisting the top, I lift the bottle to my lips and swallow down a huge mouthful.

My bed dips as Luca sits beside me while Leon takes the chair opposite me.

The whiskey burns all the way down until it begins to warm my stomach. It's more than welcome but it barely takes the edge off.

The image of Kane's devastated face as I confessed what really happened after Skye's party eighteen months ago haunts me. The reason that my life imploded and I found myself here instead of Columbia.

"Let, I get that you probably don't want to talk right now. And if you just want to sit here in silence, then we can totally do that for as long as you need to, but…" I look up into Luca's soft green eyes. "Did he hurt you? Like… really hurt you?" His jaw pops as he asks the question.

"No," I whisper. All of the marks and bruises on my body were more than consensual. "Not physically."

"What did he do, Let?" Leon asks, earning him a warning growl from Luca who's surprisingly got a little more patience right now.

"N-nothing," I admit, dropping my forehead to my knees as I remember the minutes before he fled my room.

"But—"

"There are things that he—that no one knows." I wince because I hate to admit that I'm keeping secrets from them.

"Okay."

"God, this is such a mess. I don't even know where to start."