Page 75 of Volatile King (The Kings of Wayward Academy #6)

R en

This felt strange. After nearly two months of being homebound, I’d gotten up early, donned my school uniform, and then climbed into the back of a limo with the guys and Vicky.

The car had been quiet to say the least, and no one seemed to be willing to break the tension.

Myles was asleep with his head on the window.

Nash was furiously typing away on his phone.

Theo was reading. Blake was scribbling in his song notebook.

Meanwhile, Liam lounged in his seat like he was lying by a pool as he glared at the queen bee herself.

Vicky had shown me her softer side, but it was like a public flashing.

There one minute but gone so quickly that you thought you imagined it.

She had grudgingly agreed that it made sense for us all to travel to Wayward together, but she wasn’t happy.

She even went so far as to exclaim that everyone would think that she’d joined the damn harem.

That was genuinely hilarious. Maybe the funniest thing I’d heard in a while.

Unlike Vicky, I wasn’t concerned that people might think we were in a relationship.

I was more worried they would want to speak to me, that they would want to know what happened, and if I was okay, and…

that meant I had to talk. Even though I was doing much better, I wasn’t perfect, and when I was nervous or stressed, it got worse.

“Shit,” Nash suddenly swore, and Myles jumped beside me.

“I got em…where is he,” Myles asked.

We all stared at him as he blinked and looked around.

“What?”

Blake and I laughed while everyone else shook their head or rolled their eyes.

“Rude…I’m goin’ back to sleep.”

Grabbing Myles’s hand, I linked our fingers together before I turned my attention to Nash.

“What is shit?”

“No matter where I search or who I talk to, I can’t track down my father. Not him or my mother, and I know they’re still around,” Nash growled.

“Have you tried his number,” Vicky asked, crossing her arms.

As usual, her tone was condescending, like she wanted an argument.

By the look on Nash’s face, he was happy to give her one.

“No, I thought just randomly searching for days to find him would be a fun way to pass the time. Of course, I tried his number,” Nash snarled.

“I installed a tracker on his phone as well to be extra safe, but the tracker and phone are offline. They have been since he showed up at the hospital. I think he destroyed it.”

Vicky sighed dramatically and pulled out her phone. Nash’s lit up as a message arrived.

“There, try that one,” Vicky said, and then looked away from Nash to stare out the window.

I wished I knew how to get Vicky to lose the icy exterior.

The girl I’d met crying in her bedroom was someone that I would be happy to call sister.

But other than the moment at the mall…I hadn’t seen her since.

Nash opened the text. His brow furrowed as he stared at his screen.

“Where the hell did you get this,” he asked, excitement in every word.

“Where do you think? Bet you’re happy I fucked your father now,” Vicky said with a sneer.

The boys shared equally disgusted expressions, except for Myles, who was blissfully back asleep and didn’t have that image in his head.

“Um…”

Nash looked like making him say yes was worse than having his teeth pulled out.

“Ugh…fine, whatever. That’s his booty call number. I doubt he changed it if you didn’t know it existed. And before you ask, no, I haven’t used it since that one time. I never get rid of numbers…so whatever, now you have it.”

“Vicky…”

She glared at Nash, and I could see her readying herself to be ridiculed.

“This is fucking great,” he said. “But why didn’t you give it to me sooner?”

The way that Vicky made you feel stupid with just a look was impressive. She cocked her head to the side and stared at Nash.

“Why would I? You never said you were trying to find him. It’s not like I’m kept in the loop of your happy little fuck group.

And Lawrence isn’t at the top of my mind these days.

I have much more important things to think about.

So instead of questioning me, why don’t you say thank you, because I could’ve been a bitch and not given it to you at all. ”

Surprisingly, Nash didn’t yell. Instead, he sat back in his seat and nodded.

“You’re right. Thank you for the number.”

Vicky grabbed her purse and fluffed her hair as we turned into Wayward.

“You’re welcome or whatever,” she said, ending the conversation.

We would probably hear for the rest of our lives how Vicky had saved the day with her kitty cat. I wanted to gag just thinking about it.

Now that we were here, the butterflies in my stomach went crazy. The car stopped, and Myles startled awake.

“Where is he? I’ll kill ‘em,” Myles grumbled.

“Does he have to be so embarrassing,” Vicky asked, rolling her eyes.

“I’m not as embarrassing as yer face,” Myles snarled and then yawned.

I let go of his hand to grab my backpack while Vicky clapped.

“Almost original. Just like you,” she said as the driver opened the door to let us out. “Thank god, one more minute in this car and I was going to suffocate from mediocrity.”

Vicky stepped out of the limo, followed by Nash.

“Who the hell is she callin’ mediocre,” Myles asked, and we all stopped moving. “I’m not mediocre…am I?”

“Don’t worry, Myles. She’s just projecting her own insecurities,” Theo said, smirking. “But it is fascinating that you believed she was speaking of you specifically.”

Theo and Liam got out chuckling.

“He just insulted me…didn’t he?”

“No, you…” I leaned in and kissed his cheek. “Not mediocre.” A deep dimple formed when he smiled. Grabbing my bag, I hunched over and slid around on the seat to the open door.

Blake turned to me and Myles.

“Dude, what the hell are you dreaming about?”

Myles shrugged and ran his hand through his hair.

“It was weird, man. Dancing teddy bears on roller skates with guns.”

Blake and I just stared at Myles.

“I’m sorry I asked,” Blake said, getting out.

The conversation was silly, but it helped me forget why I was nervous, and the uneasy sensation had disappeared.

I followed Blake out and smiled as I stared up at the school.

Such a stark contrast to the first time I’d arrived here.

Sucking in a deep breath of the cold air, I could honestly say that I was happy to be back.

Just being here made me feel normal, like I was getting back to myself, and everything was going to be okay.

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” Nash said, his face dark as he prowled around me.

When I looked to see why he was so angry, all I saw was Sabastian and Ivy holding hands on the sidewalk.

That seemed like an overreaction on Nash’s part until I noticed who else was there.

Christov marched toward us with an overconfident smirk on his face.

He had the swagger of a man who believed he was untouchable. What the hell was going on?

My stomach flipped, my blood ran cold, and my heart raced as Christov turned his eyes to me. He’d forced my mother into a loveless marriage and was the reason she had run for her life. I glared back.

Nash growled like a guard dog, and I could feel the violence rising inside of him like it was my own.

I quickly grabbed his hand and squeezed, knowing that I was the only thing keeping him from attacking.

As much as I wanted to see Christov punished, if it happened here, then we would be the ones seeking mercy from the Curators.

The guys moved to block the threat, but Nash held up his hand, stopping them. Christov smiled wickedly as he stood in front of us. My gaze shot to Ivy when she and Sabastian stayed beside Christov. She bit her lip and glanced around, genuinely confused by all the hostility.

Ivy had been with us in Canada when we first learned about Christov, but she had chosen to remain in the dark. I’d never mentioned that at one point we thought he was my father, and she didn’t know how dangerous he was, or that he was friends with Lawrence.

What I didn’t understand was why Sabastian was here with Christov of all people? Did he know him? Had he finished his exams at Hawking Shores? And why was he in a Wayward uniform?

“You have a lot of nerve showing your face here,” Nash said.

Christov shrugged and tugged at the cuffs of his suit.

“Why, Nash, I don’t know what you mean. I’ve done nothing wrong,” he said, but even I could pick up on the subtle fuck you in his tone that screamed the opposite.

“Just being associated with my father is enough, let alone a lifelong friendship. It doesn’t exactly speak highly of your life choices,” Nash said, but Christov ignored him and stared at me. “Plus, there was the whole showing up at the hospital uninvited.”

Nash looked over at the men standing by the armored vehicle, specifically Marcus.

“It would be wise of you to leave now. I don’t think Marcus likes you very much.”

“I’m sure he doesn’t. Marcus…being here brings back memories,” Christov said, acknowledging my father’s best friend.

“Not pleasant ones,” Marcus drawled.

Christov smirked as he mumbled, “I suppose not,” under his breath. He turned back to me.

“Lilya, you look…so beautiful, so much like your mother. We really need to speak soon about your future. I have plans for you,” Christov said, and a shiver raced down my spine.

I opened my mouth to tell him to go to hell, but Nash tugged me behind him.

“Back the fuck off before I make you.”

“Why, Nash, it looks like you inherited your father’s temper. Maybe it’s not me that Lilya needs to worry about, but someone much closer. I hear that you tend to make women go insane,” Christov said.

There was nothing subtle about that statement. He meant Mya and was letting us know he knew everything. If he knew, then he’d either seen her or spoken to Lawrence. Maybe both. Prick.

I squeezed Nash’s hand tighter. “Don’t,” I whispered. “Not here.”