Page 70 of The Invite (The Massacre Ball #1)

I also know you didn’t hold up your end of the bargain.

Not a single one of you did.

The lot of you doesn’t seem to realize what’s at stake here.

You sure as hell don’t, do you, TYRA?

I blink at the name— my real name —to ensure I’m reading it right.

“No!” I gasp as I fall to my knees. The pain doesn’t register as my vision tunnels in and out. Invisible hands squeeze my lungs until I’m a heaving mess on the floor.

How can he know? Tyra doesn’t exist. I stopped being her when I was sixteen. That girl died along with Johnny.

“I’m safe. I’m safe… I’m safe,” I mumble over and over, even though I feel anything but. Several minutes pass until my vision clears and I hold the paper up.

Murderous little Tyra running from her sins.

Does Augustus know who you really are?

I wonder how doting and protective he’d be if he knew why you’re really in his life.

Shall I tell him?

Nah. Where’s the fun in that?

Consider this proof I know your dirty little secret, Tyra.

That was the group’s goal, right?

I see your move, pawns.

Here’s mine.

You failed in working together.

Let’s see how you work AGAINST each other.

Tyra vs Scarlett.

Expose her secret or kill her.

You have until The Massacre Ball.

Cross me again, and it will be your secret out in the world.

Xoxo, A.

“Miss Davenport.”

The smooth voice jolts my spine like a strike of lightning and I jump to my feet, crushing the letter in my fist. Holding it behind my back, I compose myself and turn around. I blink at the two figures standing in the doorway.

One of them is Detective Arjun.

However, it’s the older man standing next to him who shocks me with his presence, making my back go rigid.

“Tyra, sweetheart, how are you?” he says with a kind smile.

I’m assaulted with flashbacks of the morning he visited me at the hospital after I woke up from a medically induced coma. My voice sounds like sandpaper as I greet him, “Detective Michael.”

Or shall I say Agent Michael, since he now works with the FBI.

Both men enter the room and approach me at my desk. I pray that the black envelope stays out of their sight because I have no idea where I threw it. Meanwhile, the letter burns a hole in my hand.

“What are you doing here?” I ask Michael, after I get my bearings.

It’s Detective Arjun who inquires curiously, “Why were you on the floor?”

“Oh, I tripped.”

His expression remains impassive as he nods once. Pretty sure he’s aware I’m lying. His partner, Samuel, was better. He, at least, had a smile on his face. Arjun terrifies me with his silent personality.

“Tyra,” starts Michael.

“Nessa,” I correct him. “I’m Nessa now.”

He nods with a sympathetic smile. Once upon a time, I was Tyra to him, then Stephanie, but hell if I’m going to be anyone but Nessa from now on. The previous versions of me were weak, alone, and sad. A victim of cruelty.

I’m stronger and more confident now.

Happy and in love with a man who breathed life back into me.

A man who doesn’t know who you really are.

Michael showing up unannounced to see me doesn’t bode well for me. I’m shaken by his presence.

“Why are you here?” I shoot straight to the point.

I’m not in the right frame of mind for idle chitchat.

I’m still processing the bomb Anonymous dropped by discovering my real identity.

If it gets out, it’ll lead to blood on the streets.

“Do I need to move again? Because I won’t.

You promised me this was the last time.”

Michael drops the friendly act and buries his hands in his pockets. “You’re still under the witness protective program, but your face being revealed on the internet has complicated the situation.”

My heart plummets to the ground. Of course they heard the rumor. Something else also makes my hackle rise. “What situation?”

“Debolina is hiding here.”

Paralyzing terror grips my bones at the mention of her.

The vilest and one of the FBI’s most wanted serial killers, she didn’t succeed in making me her victim, but still managed to destroy me completely.

The reason I had to uproot my entire life when I was sixteen and became a ghost. One of my captors.

I can still hear her angelic voice calling me love . Yet there was nothing sweet about her actions.

“How long has she been in Fallthorne?” I choke out.

Michael hesitates, concealing his expression completely.

“Michael?” I demand. “How. Long?”

“Six months or so.”

Six months!

But I… I’ve been here for less than one. The betrayal that courses through my veins at the realization I was in the same town as my kidnapper brings a wave of fury. I yell at Michael, “You knew she was here and yet you sent me into the lion’s den?”

“Nessa—”

“How could you!”

“I’m sorry, but it is the only way to draw her out.”

His callous words are a slap to my face. “So, you put my life in danger?”

“You and I both know she isn’t going to stop coming after you. Her attack on you last year is proof enough.”

I block the memory out while hating that he’s right.

I’m the reason she’s on the run. If there’s one thing serial killers hate the most, it’s leaving their victims alive. She will kill me if she gets her hands on me.

Except, this time I have a whole lot at stake.

“Look at the bright side,” Michael says, a strange glee in his eyes. “It worked. You’re the key to bringing her down and we’re closer than ever. It’s what I came here to tell you.”

I’m finally seeing Michael for who he is.

A power-hungry man masquerading as my guardian angel. I’m nothing but bait to him to use in his mission and to earn all the glory of catching the FBI’s most wanted serial killer. Whether I live or die, it is inconsequential to him.

I can’t believe I’ve been lying to Augustus for this man.

“We have reason to believe she already has her eyes on you and the attack on Amber was to send you a message.” This comes from Arjun. “The confession on the wall was to distract us.”

I want to laugh at his theory. He’s so far off the mark, it’s not even hilarious.

Meanwhile, I’m struggling to inhale oxygen. I’m surrounded by danger from every direction.

I jerk my chin at Arjun. “I thought the local cops weren’t involved.”

“We need their help,” replies Michael. “With your face everywhere, it won’t be long before Debolina figures out your new identity and where you live. The local police will be able to keep a closer eye on you and stay alert.”

“You’re using me as bait,” I state, clutching the desk behind me to stay upright. Hysterical laughter bubbles out of me, and I whisper to myself, “It wasn’t supposed to come to this.”

Michael tries pleading—no, manipulating—to my empathetic side. “She hasn’t stopped, Ty—Nessa. We’ve connected four more murders to her. We can’t let her slip away. Don’t you want justice for yourself and to save innocent lives?”

He’s preaching about justice, but we both know the truth. He’s using me as a ladder to climb the ranks in the FBI. Nevertheless, I want to stop have to look over my shoulder for the rest of my life .

“What’s the course of action here?” I humorlessly demand. “Am I supposed to wait like a sitting duck?”

“She’s too smart to attack you at school or at your house, where she knows we’ll keep an eye out since she knows the FBI is chasing her,” says Michael. “She’ll corner you at a public place.”

“Like the night of The Massacre Ball,” offers Arjun.

It’s in two weeks! That’s all the time I have?

I stare aghast, seconds away from having a panic attack. Michael senses it and yanks a chair out to help me sit.

“We’ll keep you safe, Nessa,” he assures me, lowering to his haunches to lock our gazes.

“One of the detectives will keep a close watch on you. We already have a tracker on you, so you need not worry.” I look at my lap when he presses a small card in my palm.

“Here’s my number. You’ll need to buy a burner phone and check in with me once a week.

Make sure you’re alone and away from Augustus whenever you call me. ”

Now, I’m ridden with guilt and soul-crushing pain in my chest for knowingly betraying him. He hates liars, and that’s exactly what I am.

Will he forgive me for lying to him?

Anonymous is holding the same secret over my head.

I’m torn because I can’t confess anything to Augustus, lest I sabotage the FBI’s mission. The sooner they catch Debolina, the sooner I can tell Augustus the truth.

Even at the expense of putting myself in danger.

With determination, I reply to Michael, “Fine. Let her come after me. But after this, I’m done and I never want to see you again.”

He sighs. “I have a favor to ask first.”

“What?”

“The local authorities have agreed to help the FBI on one condition.” Standing up, he nods at Arjun.

Arjun, straight shooter as ever, asks, “Has Augustus ever mentioned his uncle?”

Those are the last words I expected to come out of his mouth.

“Nessa?” Michael prompts.

I direct the question at Arjun, “What has my boyfriend got to do with anything?”

“We believe Elizabeth had a hand in murdering her late husband’s brother, who went missing around several years ago.”

Oh my god!

Silence echoes in my head.

“We’d like you to find whatever you can from Augustus or Scarlett.”

“You mean spy on the Graysons?” His lips flatten into a straight line. “No. I will not be doing that.”

I’d rather die by Debolina’s hands than betray Augustus like that.

It’s a hundred times worse than me lying about my name.

“Nessa?” Micheal utters.

I snap, “I said no.”

A subtle glance passes between the two men and it’s Arjun who speaks, annihilating my world. “If you refuse to help us, then you’ll be moved out of this town once Debolina is caught. So, I’d advise you to think it over before you say no.”