Page 37 of Wicked Games (Silvercrest U #1)

KILLIAN

Leaning against the wall, I glance around the crowded room. I finished my security shift about ten minutes ago, and I’ve been trying to get into party mode ever since.

Nothing is hitting tonight. Not the array of party favors that are being doled out like candy, and not the many offers I’ve had from girls who’ve made it clear they’d be down for whatever I want now that I’m single again.

I hoped seeing some of my classmates getting their freak on would help jump-start my desire to have some fun, but not even the orgy in front of me is enough to hold my interest.

I try watching for another minute or so, but my mind keeps wandering. Giving up, I leave the room and walk toward the back stairwell. I might as well go check on him and put my mind at ease. Maybe then I’ll be able to have some fun and unwind after the shitty few days I’ve had.

I’ve spent way too much time today thinking about Felix, and I have no fucking clue why. I wasn’t expecting him to beg me to fuck him this morning, and that was hands down the best sex I’ve ever had, but it was just sex.

At least that’s what it was supposed to be.

One of the reasons I don’t date or even do casual things when my dad isn’t meddling in my life is that I’ve never met anyone who can hold my interest for more than a night.

Hell, most of the time I get bored before we’ve even finished, and the actual sex is just a way to get off with another person and get my dick wet.

Things aren’t like that with Felix, and nothing about what we’re doing makes any damn sense.

I’m not bi, but I’m attracted to him. I have no interest in hooking up with men, but I can’t get enough of him.

I don’t do repeats, but the thought of never being with him again fills me with a weird sense of rage.

I thought it was the power I enjoyed. That bringing Felix to his knees and taking him apart was what got me off, but this morning proved that’s not the case.

I was feral for him, like a damn animal. I never lose control like that, but the damn building could have literally fallen down around us, and I wouldn’t have noticed because I was so lost in the moment.

In him.

My dick throbs and chubs up as a memory of the marks I gave him invades my thoughts. Seeing him covered in my hickeys and bite marks was almost as hot as finally getting to lose myself in his tight body, and again, I have no fucking clue why.

I’ve never been into marking. I’ve had a few chicks ask in the past, and I did it because they wanted me to, but it didn’t do anything for me.

I didn’t look at them after and think mine like I did with Felix.

I didn’t have the urge to admire them and commit them to memory while I watched them come down from their orgasm like I did today with my damn stepbrother.

And I never had the urge to do it again without being asked first, but I had to actively stop myself from covering his torso and the other side of his neck so everyone would know he’s mine and I claimed him.

But he’s not mine, and I didn’t claim him.

Taking the stairs two at a time, I hurry to my floor. The hall, like the stairwell, is empty as I make my way to my room and pause in front of my door. I’m just pulling my key out of my pocket when something catches my eye.

The door isn’t latched.

What the fuck? I know I locked it. I double-checked.

“Felix?” I shove the door open.

I don’t know what I’m expecting, but being greeted by an empty room isn’t it. There aren’t any signs of struggle. It’s just empty.

Just to be sure he isn’t hurt or hiding, I do a quick sweep.

He isn’t here.

I try to think logically through the fear and anger simmering inside me. Did someone take him? Did he leave on his own? How the hell did he, or anyone, get the door open without the key?

Muttering a curse, I pull out my phone and open the tracking app I have on it. I didn’t see his phone when I was searching the room. If he has it on him and is anywhere on campus, the signal will be strong enough to pick it up and show me his location.

The tracker instantly locks onto his position. Anger and something just as dark flow through me as I stare at my screen.

The fucker isn’t just still in the building, he’s on the main floor.

“Son of a fucking bitch,” I seethe.

I have no idea how the hell he managed to get out, but there’s only one reason he’d be wandering around the party.

He’s looking for someone to fuck.

Blood pounds in my ears, and I have to actively loosen my grip on my phone when I notice that my knuckles have gone white from squeezing it so hard.

My hand is shaking as I send the tracking link to the twins’ phones and open our text thread.

Killian : meet me in 5

The tracker hasn’t moved when I exit out of my texts, and more of that rage flows through me as I shove my phone back in my pocket.

Felix is about to enter the find out stage of fucking around and finding out.

It doesn’t take me long to get down to the first floor, and I make a beeline for his location. My anger must be obvious, even with my mask on, because everyone I pass gets the hell out of my way as I barrel through the crowd and cut through the lobby.

It takes a second for my eyes to adjust to the darkness and red lights once I’m through the doors to the left wing, but I don’t even pause as I storm down the hall and toward his last known location.

Thank fuck the twins are already in front of the door to the study room, flanking it like masked guards.

“What the fuck?” Jace asks as I approach.

In their matching masks, tattoos, and low-slung white sweats, they’re somehow even more identical than they are when their faces aren’t covered.

“Did he really leave your room?” Jax asks when I’m in front of them. “I thought you locked him in.”

“I did, but he got out.”

“How?” Jace glances at the door.

“Who the fuck cares?” I snap and reach for the doorknob.

Jax grabs my arm and stops me.

“Chill for a second, bro.” Jace steps in front of me and blocks the door.

“Get out of my way,” I say, my voice low and menacing.

He snort-laughs. “That shit doesn’t work on me. Now chill.”

“Move.” I’m not in the mood for whatever the fuck he’s trying to do.

I need to get inside that room so I can see exactly who my stepbrother is fucking around with.

“He’s not going to listen right now,” Jax tells him.

Jace sighs behind his mask. “No, he isn’t. Not when he’s like this.”

“Will you stop talking about me like I’m not here and get the fuck out of my way?”

Jace tips his head up toward the ceiling, and even without being able to see his eyes clearly, I know he’s rolling them.

“Move,” I repeat. “Now.”

He steps to the side, and I grab the doorknob and give it a twist. It spins in my hand, but the door doesn’t budge. It’s locked from the inside.

“Fuck this,” I mutter and give the door a sharp kick, putting as much force behind it as I can.

The crack of the frame breaking and the lock snapping is like a gunshot in the hall, but I’m too focused on the door swinging open and smashing into the wall behind it to worry if people heard me or if I’ve drawn an audience.

I’m through the open door before it even stops swinging, and my eyes are immediately drawn to the back corner of the room as I pull off my mask.

Felix is slumped in the corner, his mask on the floor beside him and his eyes wide as he stares at the door—and at me.

“Why did you leave the room?” I demand.

He doesn’t answer, doesn’t move, and just watches as I stalk toward him.

“Why?” I repeat and stop in front of him.

He blinks at me and swallows, his throat visibly working.

“Who were you with?”

One of the twins grabs my shoulder and grips me hard as he digs his nails into my flesh. The pain clears enough of my rage that I’m able to pull in a deep breath to try and calm the fuck down.

“Look at him,” Jax says, his voice deadly calm. “ Really look at him.”

A soft whimper from the floor cuts through my anger, and I finally have enough control over myself to shove the bulk of my anger to the back of my mind so I can look at the situation, and Felix, clearly.

Something is wrong with him. His pupils are blown wide, too wide. It’s dark in here, but not that dark. His skin is flushed, especially his cheeks, and there’s a faint sheen of sweat on his forehead. His breathing is fast and erratic, and his expression is a mix of confusion and relief.

He’s on something, and it looks like it’s just starting to kick in.

“What did you take?”

He just looks at me and slowly licks his bottom lip.

“What did you take?” I repeat through gritted teeth.

Did he seriously sneak out of our room so he could get high and fuck around?

He shrugs and blinks up at us like a baby owl.

“What the fuck do you mean you don’t know what you took?”

Felix flinches at my harsh words and hugs his arms around his middle.

“This is why I told you to chill.” Jace pulls his mask off and tosses it aside. “Can I?”

I nod.

Jace kneels in front of Felix.

“Hey,” he says softly. “Are you okay?”

Felix offers him a small smile and nods.

“Are you hurt?”

Felix squeezes his thighs together and shakes his head.

“Did you take something?” he asks gently.

It’s weird to see Jace be so sweet and tender with him. Only kids and animals get to see this side of him, and Jace’s calm helps both me and Felix relax.

Felix nods, but quickly stops and shakes his head.

“You didn’t take anything?”

“He made me take it,” Felix says. His voice is different. It’s softer and a little dreamy, and I’m so distracted by how he sounds that it takes a few seconds for his words to register.

Jax grabs both of my shoulders and jams his nails into my muscles. The stings of pain are sharp and effective, and I’m able to swallow the surge of emotions that hit as soon as I realized what he said.

“Someone made you take them?” Jace asks, still using that gentle voice he usually saves for strays and babies.

Felix nods and lets out a soft groan.

“Do you know who?”

Felix shakes his head. “He didn’t take his mask off.”