Page 97 of Tricked By Jack

“Don’t be shy. You’ll like it better with me than with that arrogant bastard.”

My pulse spikes, panic and fury tangling until I can’t tell one from the other. “Get off me.” My voice is sharp, clipped, but it only seems to amuse him.

“You think Jack’s a god,” Caleb sneers, his breath hot against my cheek. “But I’ve seen men like him break. He can’t protect you forever.” His hand creeps higher, brazen now.

Rage explodes inside me. “You’ll never be him.” I shove at his chest with both hands. “Jack will kill you for touching me. You hear me? He’ll tear you apart.” My voice grows louder and shriller with each word.

Caleb laughs, low and cruel, pressing closer. “Let him try.”

The muted pop of a gunshot cleaves the air, wrong in its quiet. His body jerks, eyes wide in shock before going glassy. He slumps forward, deadweight collapsing against me. Screaming, I try to shove him off me, but I only manage to move him to the side.

Blood spreads dark across his shirt, seeping into the couch cushions. At the end of a couch is a figure, one I’m scared to raise my eyes to. But I do it anyway. Shelby stands in the doorway, both hands steady on the gun, smoke curling from the barrel.

Her face is unreadable, calm as a statue. She says something as she moves to the couch and casually shoves him all the way off. But the rising panic in my ears drowns out her voice.

My skin hums with fear. Too much. Too loud. I know this place—this edge. It’s the same one my father forced me to walk when he locked me in the coffin and left me with nothing but the sound of my own pulse.

So I fall back on the old tricks. Press my fingernails into my palm until it hurts. Count my breaths.One. Two. Three.I focus on the sting, on the burn in my lungs, until the world narrows and steadies.

And God help me, it works. Just like it used to. Okay, okay. Now, I need to take inventory, collect every tidbit of information.

Shelby’s notjustin charge; she’s fucking unhinged. The wild look in her eyes is all the confirmation I need. It’s one I’ve seen a thousand times over, just never on her. She’s taken out an ally, and while that’s good, it also shows how volatile she is. I have to be extremely careful in how I deal with her.

Her mouth moves again, and this time I force myself to hear her. “Are you okay?” I’m surprised by the concern in her tone. “I swear, I didn’t think he’d try anything.”

“I…” Trailing off, I search for an answer that makes sense, though none comes to mind. Shelby’s concerned for me? “T-thank you,” I stutter.

Nodding, she calmly holds out a hand, and I don’t hesitate to take it. It might be stupid, but since she warned Caleb to stay away from me, I have to believe she doesn’twantto hurt me.

“I know this probably seems like a lot to you,” she says, leading me away from the living room and into the kitchen where she pours me a glass of water. “I’ll do anything for the people I love. Even get revenge.”

Licking my dry lips, I study her. “But I… umm…” Fuck, I need to do better.

“Don’t worry about Caleb,” she says flippantly. “He was just a means to an end.”

“How long have you two been together?” I ask, finally managing to form a full sentence.

She laughs and playfully slaps my arm. “If you’re asking if I was fucking him at the same time as you, the answer is no.”

I sit down on a chair, crossing my ankles. “That’s good to know.” I force a smile.

“It started at The Black Wedding when he became my Groom,” she admits. “Was nothing more than sex if I’m honest.”

“What about us? Our friendship?” I ask. “Was that also just a convenience thing?”

Her face turns thunderous, features twisting into an ugly grimace. “Wearefriends,” she hisses. “Just because it was Jack that put me up to it and wanted me to get close to you for revenge doesn’t mean it’s still about him.”

“So it’s not about revenge anymore?”

Laughing, she says, “Oh, it’s still about revenge. But now it’s my revenge and not Jack’s.”

At first… the words land heavy. Shelby isn’t Jack’s puppet anymore. She’s her own monster now. Draining the last of my water, I keep my eyes on her, noticing the way she seems nervous to tell me this. I reach for her hand, squeezing it.

“You can tell me anything,” I assure her. “The bastard put me in a cage. I’m not judging you.”

Shelby takes a deep breath, and then she lets it all out. She explains that Jack wanted me at the Sanctuary to force me to marry him, which I already knew. But what I didn’t know is that she was playing her own sidegame.

“Once I realized he had changed and even seemed to like you, I knew I had my chance.”