Page 60 of Volatile King (The Kings of Wayward Academy #6)

N ash

“Shit,” I growled, throwing my cap and goggles across the locker room. “Fuck, I can’t believe this.”

After the shock of last night, I was all up in my head about Mya, and of course, the championship was today.

For most of the conversation, I’d just watched her, expecting her to disappear.

But she didn’t. She was alive…my son was alive.

How my father pulled that one off…no fucking clue.

The piece of shit set me up, ripped out my heart, made me a monster in his games and then kept Mya and my son hidden.

I couldn’t even begin to wrap my head around the level of malicious intent that went into planning such a thing.

When Mya started acting like no time had passed, wanting to sit in my lap and hold my hand, lines had been drawn. But having clear boundaries had done nothing to help me sleep.

Ren had stayed with me, which I appreciated, but I’d paced all night while my mind swirled with all the possibilities.

At three, she had finally ordered me to lie down.

She’d snuggled up to my side with her leg over mine, like she was trying to trap me in place.

I’d eventually fallen asleep, but now…I felt heavy, like every limb was filled with lead.

The bottom of the scoreboard was a new position for me.

I’d secured my spot in the final heat, but just barely.

That hadn’t helped my focus any when it was time to race.

I’d gone to the wrong lane and almost stepped up on the block at the start, and then, I came in second…

fucking second to Sabastian of all people.

The smirk on his fucking smug face was enough to make me want to drown him in the pool.

All I kept wondering was…did he know? Did Sabastian and Christov know about Mya?

Had they helped plan this to get in my head?

And if so, then what was their end game?

Or the better question…what were they trying to distract me from finding out?

“Give yerself a break, man. Ya didn’t get any sleep last night, and yesterday was kind of a shock. There was no way you were gonna be at yer best today,” Myles said.

I knew he was right, but it burned my ass. Yes, I’d planned on quitting, but I didn’t, and I committed to competing and giving it my all. My head didn’t get that memo.

“Just another thing I can blame on my father, I guess. He never approved of m swimming. He’s not even here and still managed to fuck with me.” I clenched my fist but held off on punching the locker.

“If it makes ya feel any better, we’re all swimmin’ like shite.”

“No, it doesn’t make me feel better,” I said, glaring at Myles.

He shrugged. “Worth a try.”

“Myles is right, we suck ass. I’m kind of happy the meet is here at Hawking Shores instead of Wayward. It would’ve been worse to swim this bad at home,” Blake said.

It didn’t matter where we were. Sabastian was transferring to Wayward. He was going to lord this over us until I did something drastic like shooting him.

“We need to win the team medley,” I said.

“Good luck with that,” Sabastian said as he sauntered into the locker room.

“Slithering in right on cue,” I grumbled, loud enough for Sabastian to hear.

He was flanked by two of his Hawking Shores teammates, but Trey was nowhere to be seen. He wore a self-satisfied grin plastered on his face that made my knuckles itch.

“Well, well,” he drawled, grabbing a towel off the rack and tossing it over his shoulder.

He leaned against the wall like he was modeling for a swimming ad.

“If it isn’t the great Nash Collier…the king of…

” Sabastian tapped his chin as my muscles flexed.

“I guess mediocrity, and runner-up to yours truly.”

The guys behind him laughed, and the sound drilled into my skull like a spike. I didn’t fucking need this right now.

“You’ve got a big mouth for someone who only beat me by a hair,” I said. My adrenaline was flowing again, relieving some of the heaviness. “Enjoy it while it lasts.”

Sabastian rolled his eyes. “A hair’s still a win. Last I checked, they don’t hand out gold medals for almost.” He stretched like a lazy cat in the sun. “When the day is done, I’ll be standing on top of the podium. We both know it.”

Myles groaned beside me, rubbing his temples. “Shite, here we go.”

I ignored him and kept my focus on the fucker in front of me.

“Keep talking. Your idiocy only fuels me…let’s see if you’re running your mouth after the medley.”

Sabastian snorted, like he didn’t have a care in the world.

“Please. That medley’s already ours. You can barely keep your head straight today. Don’t think that I haven’t noticed how distracted you are. Girl troubles,” he asked, and that hit way too fucking close.

“I wouldn’t get too cocky, the day is not over,” I snarled.

Sabastian tilted his head as his eyes traveled up and down, that smug grin deepening.

“What I know is that you swam like you were struggling against a current. And I know your head isn’t in the game. Want to tell me why?”

My fingers twitched. He fucking knew something, I could feel it. Myles shot me a look that said, Don’t . But I couldn’t stop the words even if I tried.

“Why don’t you fucking tell me!”

His face screwed up, and he looked over his shoulder at the two guys with him. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“Where is your father hiding? If you’re as innocent as you say you are…then prove it. Where is he?”

Sabastian’s grin faltered. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” I moved closer, close enough to smell the chlorine and uncertainty on him. “Your old man is up to shady fucking shit, and now he’s hiding like a little bitch. A snake like your father doesn’t just vanish. Not someone with his history of staying invisible. So, where the hell is he?”

“Ha! Whatever my father is involved in is only because your father forced him into it.” Sabastian shot back, too quick. He turned away like the conversation was over. It wasn’t.

“Is that what you really think? That he’s innocent and all fuzzy kittens and kindness. Ever wonder why your father was in hiding for fourteen years? That doesn’t seem suspicious to you?”

“We weren’t in hiding,” Sabastian shot back as he whipped around. “We were living our lives normally until your father showed up on our doorstep.”

I laughed. It was a harsh, humorless sound that bounced off the locker room walls.

“Bullshit, Nikitovich or is it Ivankov? You expect me to believe you’re innocent when you’re hiding who you really are? Or that you don’t know what your daddy was up to? I’m not buying it, and by some miracle you really don’t know…then you’re an idiot.”

His eyes narrowed. “Careful, Collier.”

“That a threat,” I asked, stepping so close that our chests almost brushed. My blood hummed, and my fists curled tight. “Because if you’re going to throw threats around, at least make them interesting and back them up.”

Myles groaned. Liam shook his head. Theo looked totally uninterested, while Blake was on the edge of his seat.

Sabastian’s smirk returned, but there was a flicker of something dark in his eyes.

“You’re not as untouchable as you think. If you’re smart, you’ll focus on the medley and leave the real shit to the men who can handle it.”

“And if you’re smart,” I shot back, voice low. “You’ll stop pretending you’re like your father, or else…well, there is always room for one more hole in the ground. Because that’s where he’s going to end up.”

That got him. His nostrils flared, his shoulders tensed, and for a second, I thought he was gonna swing. I kind of hoped he would. Instead, he leaned in, his voice a whisper only I could hear.

“At least I know my father loves me. You can’t say the same. Where is yours again? Oh, right…busy destroying everything he touches including you.”

Rage clawed up my gut. My hands shot out before I could stop them and shoved him back. He stumbled but caught himself, laughing, and I hated that he got to me. He hit a nerve and played it like a fiddle.

“You hit like you swim, Collier…almost, but just not enough,” he taunted.

“You want enough?” I lunged, but Liam jumped in front of me and grabbed my arms. Myles joined in to hold me back.

“Leave it, Nash,” Liam growled in my ear. “He’s not worth it.”

Sabastian grinned, straightening his towel over his shoulder. “See you ladies in the pool. Try not to embarrass yourself again…captain.”

I jerked away from Myles and Liam, my voice cutting through the air. “You’d better hope you’ve got more than that smug mouth when I find out what you’re up to. Because you’re going to need it.”

Sabastian chuckled, a dark sound as he backed toward the door. “You can try, but we both know how this ends.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah…with me winning.” His teammates laughed behind him as they walked out.

Breathing hard and shoulders tight, I stood there. Myles shook his head, muttering under his breath, while Blake leaned against a locker with his arms crossed. Theo yawned, like it was just any other day.

“You done,” Theo asked, one eyebrow raised.

“Not even close,” I snarled, grabbing my towel and stomping over to the corner to collect my cap and goggles. “He’s hiding something. I can feel it. He knows where they are.”

“Maybe,” Myles said carefully. “But picking a fight in a locker room won’t get ya answers.”

I turned to him. “Then what will? What’s your idea? Because I’m done playing nice. I’m not letting that bastard or my father blindside us again.”

Liam smirked. “Then you’d better beat him in the pool first. Nothing pisses off a guy like Sabastian more than losing in his own house. You want to rattle him…beat him.”

I smiled, but it felt more like baring my teeth. “Oh, don’t worry. Sabastian is going down. I’ll make sure of it.”

Myles chuckled. “Feck me. I almost feel bad for him.”

“You shouldn’t,” I said, grabbing my bag and slamming the locker shut. “I want him to see me coming.”

3 :20 pm

We stood by the pool deck and watched the women’s medley. The air was electric with cheering and the sound of the water. No matter how many times I did this, it never grew old.

Sabastian stood further down the line, goggles resting on his head, that same smug grin plastered on his face. I felt him staring, and he caught my eye. For a second, the noise of the crowd faded. It was just him and me, and a silent hatred hanging between us.

He lifted two fingers to his forehead in a mock salute. I answered with a slow smile. He wanted to rattle me, drag me under with his games, but I wouldn’t let him. If there was one thing I knew how to do, it was swim through blood and come out the other side.

Slowly turning back to the bleachers, I spotted Ren with Edmundo.

The men surrounding them in black suits stood out like a sore thumb.

Ren looked so…regal. She didn’t look small despite her size.

She sat up straight, with Ivy on her other side, and looked like she belonged with an entourage of thousands

Her eyes found mine, and she gave me a little nod. My heart stopped when her lips curled up in a smile. She hadn’t said more than two words last night, and I had no idea what she was thinking. I didn’t know what to think about Mya’s return or the fact that my son might be alive.

I refused to go backward, but if I found him, could I really ask her to raise him with me? With Mya?

The idea was too much to wrap my head around, and with each beat of my heart, the noose tightened. My father had slipped it around my neck three years ago and waited for the opportune time to push me off balance.

The possibility of losing Ren over this felt real, and I wanted to race across the deck and beg her to stay no matter what happened. Fuck. Fuck my father, fuck Christov, and fuck Sabastian.

Ren signed. You’ve got this.

Lifting my head, I rolled my shoulders and nodded. She was right. I might not have known anything else, but I sure as fuck knew I could kick Sabastian’s ass in the pool. The rest…that was tomorrow’s problem.