10. Tonight, We Play

10

Tonight, We Play

Declan

“How far is too far?”

I glance over at Kole, and he’s holding a branding iron in one hand. His attention is on it as he rolls it around, his dark eyes gleaming with sick amusement.

The funny thing about his question is that it's genuine. He really doesn't know the answer to his own question. To him, there are no limits, and it’s one of the many reasons the two of us are friends.

“If anyone else were asking me that question, I’d say they didn’t deserve the marks carved into their chest because there’s no such thing as too far.” I raise an eyebrow. “But you… what the fuck are you considering?”

To be part of Sigma House, you have to be a little fucked-up in the head. Our initiations are essentially torture trials, and even after we graduate and step outside these walls, there are no limits when it comes to what we’re expected to do to protect and advance our brothers.

At least, that’s what I thought.

This past year, the rules keep changing.

I was born and raised to bleed for Sigma Sin. To believe House values trumped all else. I was convinced that surviving here meant something more than being a pawn in a much larger game being played by the Council.

Now, I’m starting to see things more clearly.

They think because we’re young and still wander these halls, we can’t see the truth. They lie to us and use us for their selfish motives. That might have been good enough for the generations that came before us, but it’s not for me.

They’re no longer the president of this House. I am.

And I’m no one’s pawn, especially not my father’s.

I might have pledged because I was born to. Maybe even to appease him. But now that I’m learning the extent of the Council’s manipulation, I’m done playing their games. Sigma House is ours now. It’s time to take the reins back.

After all, Sigma Sin is everything to me.

A home.

A family.

An acceptable outlet when I need to level my head.

It’s something Kole appreciates as well, given the fact that in any other social circle, he’d be locked up for half the shit he does or says .

We were born and bred for this. Conditioned to feel nothing but the need to inflict pain on those we deemed deserving of it. So that’s what we’ll do—inflict judgment.

Pounds of flesh are due.

The Council assumes that just because we took down the Westwoods to prevent my father’s secrets from getting out, we’re on their side. That’s not true at all. I stand for the House, not them. And if my father is a self-serving bastard using Sigma Sin, he’ll go down with the rest of them.

I’m going to uncover the bodies, unbury every secret. I’ll take what’s owed to those of us who honor what we do for the House.

Starting with Teal.

I watch Kole spin the branding iron around, mulling over what he has in his mind for the next trial.

“Do you trust me?” Kole asks, leaning against my doorframe.

“Depends.” I cross my arms over my chest. “How many bodies are we going to bury?”

“Zero.”

I hum, considering it.

“At least… if all goes to plan,” Kole adds.

And there it is.

How this sick fucker ended up with a sweet girl like Violet confuses the hell out of me. Although she shares half my DNA, so maybe it’s embedded in us to trust him.

“Scared, Dec?” Kole smirks, trying to appeal to my reckless side .

He knows I’ve been walking a razor-thin line lately taking orders from Sigma Council, so he’s baiting me.

“Set it up,” I agree because I’m looking forward to the possibility of people not making it through this one. “But save it for tomorrow. I’ve got plans tonight.”

“Fine by me.” Kole walks out of my bedroom, and I’m not surprised he’s in no rush to get started, since Violet’s coming to the party tonight.

Before he started dating her, he rarely attended them. Now, he at least makes an appearance long enough to find her so he can drag her away to his bedroom.

Which is fine by me.

I’ve got other things to focus on. Like taming my colorful little minx.

This might have started with me using her to piss off her father and dig up all his secrets, but it’s turning into more.

The angrier she gets, the more I want to piss her off.

The worse she hurts, the more pressure I want to apply.

The harder she pulls away, the deeper my need to tie her to me.

I passed my seven trials so easily that I thought nothing would ever feel like a challenge again. Tealene Donovan proves me wrong, and I can’t wait to make her break as I prove it.

Now that she’s tangled in my web, she’s never getting out.

I sealed that promise with a kiss, whether she realizes it or not. I didn’t kiss her to prove a point to her father or those assholes at the bar. I did it because she’s mine . She just doesn’t know it yet.

And no amount of her hating me will hold me back.

She has no idea what’s coming.

After reading every detail of her medical records, one thing was clear. Her father has spent years medicating her. Taming her. Numbing her. Making her forget herself because she’s too much to deal with.

I’m going to carve myself into her desensitized skin and remind her who she really is. Corrupt her to her core and see what bleeds out. She will run wild again.

Teal thinks this is a game, and she’s right. It is.

My fingers clench, and I breathe through my nose.

I’ve managed to stay in control this long—to hate her this long—but no more.

She’s been the sickness spreading through my bones since we were kids, and no matter how deep I buried it and called it disgust, I’m ready to dig it out and see it for what it really is.

I close my bedroom door and head to the bathroom, stripping off my clothes to shower before people start arriving. Steam fills the room and fogs the mirror, and I stare at my reflection, unblinking.

I stare at the letters carved into my chest and remind myself why they’re there.

I remind myself why I’m doing what I’m doing.

ETERNAL

I can still hear her voice echoing in my ears every time I see the letters .

After I shower and change, I walk back into my bedroom and find five missed calls and even more text messages. It’s exhausting, and I’m not dealing with it tonight. I slip my phone into my pocket and ignore everyone, heading into the hallway.

Downstairs, music is already thumping. Adrenaline floods my veins with the beat.

The guys are paused at the top of the staircase, watching the room fill below when I join them.

“Hey, Dec.” Maddox slaps the back of my shoulder when I stop between him and Kole. “Nice selection tonight.”

He’s not wrong.

Sigma Sin parties bring out the nicest tits and ass in school, and it’s something I might care about if I wasn’t distracted by one girl in particular right now.

“Front door, red halter.” Maddox tips his chin to the girls filtering through, and I spot the one he’s talking about immediately.

Blonde hair. Big tits. Too much makeup. Mad’s type.

“In the mood for an Eiffel Tower?”

“Not tonight, man.” I keep my eyes on the door, waiting.

Teal might have ignored my text, but she’ll be here.

She likes to pretend she hates me, but I saw the truth in her eyes the second I broke our kiss. I’m the only one who gets that reaction, and I’m going to take a bath in it.

Teal’s submission will feel better than spending the night slamming my cock down some girl’s throat while my friend fucks her ass.

I’m going to own her .

To destroy her.

Until I’m all she thinks about. And maybe then, she’ll finally understand what she does to me.

Maddox passes me a confused glance for turning down his offer. He and I usually share girls because I don’t like fucking them one-on-one. The more people in a room, the easier it is to disassociate from what’s going on. And if he’s keeping them happy, I can come down their throat and pretend I’m still interested in doing anything at all.

“Do you need me tonight?” Maddox asks, his eyes moving back to the blonde chick.

“No. Have your fun.” I shake my head. “I’ve got other plans in mind.”

Plans Teal is going to hate.

Something that will push her to her limits and finally prove my point.

She’ll resist until she doesn’t.

Eventually, I’ll string her up in the basement, and we’ll get to the root of this game she doesn’t know we’re playing.

Maddox lifts off the railing, and Kole is right behind him when Violet walks through the door, surrounded by her little group of friends. My attention moves to the one I’ve been waiting for.

Teal walks in wearing a deep-blue tank top and skintight black pants. They’re like paint on her skin, and the chill from being outside has her nipples peeking through the thin fabric.

I know she senses me up here, even if she avoids my gaze .

She disappears into the crowd and tries to pretend she didn’t come for me.

Teal spends her life locked in her little studio. Earbuds stuck in her ears, drowning out the world around her. I’m going to make her hear it. I’m going to make her feel it.

Run all you want, Tealene. Tonight, we play.