Chapter 63

Mady

I didn't know why I was making myself so pretty. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that everyone I knew was enjoying their time together at the trendiest club in town.

Maybe I would just go to Mia's. She was home alone and had been talking about this party all week. She was only fifteen, so she wasn't allowed to go.

My cell phone rang, and I looked at the cracked screen.

Speak of the devil.

Grinning, I answered it.

"Shall I come over?" I asked and heard Mia groan.

"Listen, Mady. I'm at your door. And I need to go to this party." I swallowed. "Everyone, just everyone from my high school is there. Only I can't be there."

I didn't know what to say, so I looked in the mirror, perplexed.

She was far too young for this place. Then again, I had gone everywhere with Vivienna and the others when I was sixteen. The memories of that time hit me painfully.

"Mia, you shouldn't do what everyone else does. It's a club and..."

" Come on , Mady," she pleaded. "I don't have anyone else to drive me there. The others are all there already."

It was one thing not to go to a party because everyone there seemed to hate you, but it was another to have all your people there. Mia shouldn't lose touch with her friends like I did. She shouldn't have to carry the same regret that I was carrying.

I sighed. "Give me five minutes."

Mia groaned in relief. "You're a sweetheart!" Then she hung up.

I looked in the mirror one last time and put on a black velvet hairband. Then I got up, put on one of the many dresses from my wardrobe that was halfway suitable for a Halloween party and hurried downstairs.

In the hallway, I bumped into Ezra.

"Where are you going?"

I slipped on the boots I'd left outside the door after cheerleading practice today.

"I'm just dropping Mia off quickly, then I'll come back home."

I was expecting a moral lecture, but when I looked up, Ezra was leaning in the doorway, watching me with curiosity.

"What?" I asked.

He raised an eyebrow. "Weren't you going to a party?"

"Don't worry, I'll pass," I said with a dismissive wave of my hand and grabbed my car keys.

"Mady?"

I turned to him.

"You're nineteen. As long as you don't get drunk, you should have your fun."

Puzzled by the emphatic way he spoke to me, I paused for a second.

"I had fun a few years ago..." I confessed in all honesty and started to walk toward the door, but unexpectedly, Ezra grabbed my arm.

"Hey" I turned to him, confused. "I want to have dinner with you tomorrow night."

Now, I raised a brow before laughing in confusion.

"What did I do to deserve this honor?"

Ezra looked down, then into my eyes, and it was another one of those moments where I saw our father in front of me.

"I don't spend enough time with you," he sighed. "And I want to do something about it." It sounded sincere. "You're my family. The last one I have left."

His eyes had glazed over, and I did the first thing that came to mind. I wrapped him in my arms.

" Hey , it's okay." I hugged him and felt my own tears. But, as always, I wiped them away. "We're strong. Don't forget that." I released myself from the hug and put my hands on his shoulders. "And I'd love to have dinner with you tomorrow night."

We were both smiling when the front doorbell rang.

Ezra reached for the jacket on the hook and handed it to me. "Enjoy your evening and call me if anything comes up."

I put the jacket on. "Don't worry."

"With you , I never know."

I grinned and headed for the door, but not without turning back to him. He was already on his way back to the living room.

"Ezra?"

My brother turned to me.

"I want it to be like it used to be, too."

He smiled, and it was a real smile . Not one of the ones he forced on himself every day. "Then I'm looking forward to tomorrow night."

I smiled at him one last time, then I opened the front door.

"Holy shit, there's really something going on here," Mia, who had chosen the most uncomfortable clothes in the cold, exclaimed.

She was standing next to me in thin black fishnet tights, a very short skirt and a corset.

I was even more surprised that I had actually swapped her bloody nurse costume from last year for the comfortable dress.

"I'm worried right now whether I should have brought you here at all."

I glanced across the filled parking lot to the large factory hall, which seemed to be vibrating.

"I won't be let in, anyway, but my friends are right over there," Mia laughed, pointing to a group of teenagers near the entrance. The fact that they all seemed to be smoking didn't make it any better.

"So, do you want to leave me alone now?" I joked, and Mia immediately looked at me with indignation, causing me to raise my hands. "That was a joke. Go and see your friends."

I looked toward the entrance, where a few girls from the cheerleading team were just entering the club in their vampire costumes.

"I'll take a look inside," I sighed, knowing full well that I didn't really want to. I was only driven by the urge to see what I was missing, and I knew that as soon as I saw the other girls, my mood would automatically drop.

"Have fun," Mia said with a wink, and I nodded at her.

"If there's anything, call me."

She rolled her eyes. "Of course, Mum."

My jaw dropped, but Mia was already running enthusiastically toward her group of friends.

"Did she just call me..." I just laughed, shook my head and walked toward the club entrance.

The security men grumpily demanded my ID, and I thanked God as I passed the arguing high school group. But when I finally entered the crowded club, I realized – for the first time in a while – what it meant to feel alone.

Everywhere people were dancing together to Dynamite by Taio Cruz , the seating areas were filled with laughing groups of friends, there was laughter around the edges of the dance floors and the long bar was crowded. The situation was no different on the second floor.

Sighing, I started moving, but I didn't get far because I bumped into someone.

"I'm sorry, I..." I began, but I paused when I realized it was Emely. Nash's twin sister.

If she was here, then...

"Damn it, do you always have to be where my brother is?" she snapped at me and I flinched.

"Nash is here?" I asked, trying not to panic and rush outside immediately. I knew his family owned the club, but I hadn't assumed...

I should have fucking known.

Emely was swearing something I didn't understand.

I forgot about Nash for a second and looked at the girl I'd never managed to get through to. Not in middle school, and not when I'd been with her brother.

"Why don't you like me?" I dared to ask for the first time. "I've never done anything to you."

She looked at me for a moment, and I detected the usual tension with which she went about her daily life.

"You changed my brother."

I stared at her, speechless.

What she said was true. But did she know the whole truth? Had Nash ever told her what kind of point he had found himself in back then?

"And I'll never forgive you for that," she added. Then she turned away and disappeared into the crowd.

And now, Nash was back in my head.

I had a choice. I could be reasonable and leave the club or...

"Mady!" a voice squeaked loudly and I spun around.

Kelly Hepburn was standing behind me. One of the girls Vivienna spent her time with. She seemed like she had been drinking a lot, because her pink devil horns were sitting at a strange angle, and she almost tripped over a guy, but just managed to hold on to my shoulders. I eyed the pink sparkly dress, which definitely stood out amongst all the dark costumes and if Nash was really around, he would have spotted me by now at the latest.

"Vi!" Kelly yelled loudly back behind her, and the two other girls turned to me. "I found the Sunshine Girl!"

I sighed, because the fact that Kelly was talking to me at all was only due to the alcohol.

I was expecting anything when Vivienna in her white angel of death costume and Amber in her black one approached me...and forced myself to smile.

The two of them hated me as much as everyone else since the Nash thing, but right now they seemed changed.

I knew appearances were deceptive, at least with Amber, because her smile disappeared within seconds and was replaced by the usual suspicious look.

"Mady," Vivienna chirped in surprise. " You? At a club?"

She seemed to have forgotten all the parties we'd had together at my house when my parents and Ezra had been on a weekend trip.

"Where are your friends?" Amber asked in a suspicious tone before sipping her drink. She looked down at me like something was wrong, and I knew she wanted to turn away.

"Amber, don't be like that... It's Halloween ." Vivienna came to me unexpectedly and pulled me under her arm as if nothing had ever changed between us. "And we should all have fun, right ?"

Kelly giggled with excitement and Vivienna smiled at me.

How much had they drunk already?

"We've reserved a VIP area!" Vivienna yelled to me over the loud music. "Feel invited!"

I felt like I was in the wrong movie. Vivienna had spent the last few years judging me for my relationship with Nash, just like Grace. Now she wanted me to celebrate with her?

Before I could say anything, the girls had already dragged me up the wide staircase.

In the corner of my eye, I recognized Amber tipping back her drink, cursing. She was definitely not in the mood for me.

Once upstairs, Vivienna led me to a white leather-upholstered seating area with a table full of drinks in the middle. Vivienna held two bottles out to me.

"Champagne? Wine? Or something harder?"

She reached for a bottle of gin, and I held my breath. She still knew what I liked to drink.

However, I put my hands up. "I shouldn't..."

"Nonsense," Vivienna snapped at me, and I winced. "Sit down." She simply pushed me down, and I watched, overwhelmed, as the other girls sat down too. "Here." Vivienna handed me a cup. "Try this."

I smelled the mix and knew with my first breath that I wouldn't be driving after that.

"The Copelands are over there," Vivienna snorted, having just sat down and crossed both legs.

I looked up, startled, and glanced around until I spotted Hunter and the other guys in an even bigger seating area. But Nash was nowhere to be seen.

"Don't worry, your ex-boyfriend isn't here," Vivienna laughed and Kelly giggled, only to empty another cup of champagne. Amber snatched the cup from her hand, annoyed, and Kelly continued to giggle.

"We used to be good friends, but you dumped us for that scum over there."

I looked at Vivienna.

Discomfort spread through me.

Did she want to talk to me about the Copelands? Make the same accusations as Grace? I had never dumped her. If it had been up to me, we'd all be friends now. But the girls never wanted to hear anything about that. In their eyes, I was the traitor.

"We want to know if you mean it," Vivienna continued. "Whether you've really broken up with him."

I looked at her at a loss for words. Did she seriously want to talk to me about Nash?

Vivienna stood up and refilled my cup, which I hadn't even drunk from yet.

Something told me I had definitely ended up in the wrong place. Vivienna and I would never have the same friendship again. Not if she didn't get away from this Copeland issue.

"I better go now..." I used the cup as an excuse. "I still have to drive."

Vivienna pulled me back into the back. "My driver can take you."

"Mia's waiting for me..." I tried again, but this time Amber interrupted me.

" Mia ... So, you're still hanging out with the Bardot Bitch?" She shook her head. "That girl will dump you the same way sooner or later, trust me."

Snorting, I stood up. That had been too much. I wanted to leave, but Vivienna grabbed my arm.

"I was only joking." She looked over at Amber with a silent warning, and I wondered why she couldn't just be honest like her friend . "Sit down."

I sat down, even though all I wanted to do was leave.

"So, tell me. What do you know?"

Confused, I looked at Vivienna. Amber almost choked on her drink.

"Vivienna!" Amber hissed angrily, and I suddenly felt Hunter's gaze on me.

"I don't know what you mean," I confessed, honestly confused.

Vivienna looked at her friends conspiratorially. "So, Nash didn't tell you about his little family secret? The reason he dumped you?"

I looked at her in shock.

What family secret?

"Vi, I don't think this is a good idea," Amber continued with concern in her voice, as if Vivienna had planned something.

And then I knew that the Copelands were the only reason I was sitting here. I couldn't believe it.

"Did he tell you why your sweet little high school romance was doomed from the start?"

Something exploded inside me and I jumped up.

"What's wrong with you, Vivienna?" I snapped at her, because these games were enough for me. I'd played the nice girl for long enough. "I really thought we used to be friends."

Vivienna put her head back and avoided my gaze.

Amber just laughed, stood up, and before I could do anything, she had my cup in her hand.

"Dream on, Campbell ."

She poured the contents of the cup over my dress, and I jumped back, startled. But the alcohol was already soaking the thin fabric.

Shocked, I stared at Amber, who was smiling devilishly, and then at Vivienna, who was still looking away. Only Kelly was giggling. Behind them, I saw Nash's guys staring over at us, but no one said anything.

Amber stepped closer and her smile intensified. "You'll never make friends in this town."

On the verge of tears, I stormed out of the seating area and down the stairs, pushing countless people out of my way.

I had never been so humiliated in my entire life. And instead of fighting back, I felt paralyzed. As if Amber could have poured more cups over me, it would have taken me years to get out of there.

I had fallen for Vivienna and allowed her to mess me up inside. What had been her plan? Had it all been for her entertainment?

I was soaking wet, yet I couldn't make it out of the club. The queue for the toilets felt like it was miles long, and so I only had one place left: the bar .

"A Gin Tonic, please," I called out to the bartender, and he disappeared, only to bring me the drink Amber had just ruined Mia's costume with.

I felt myself trying to downplay that moment, but the shock was still in me. Overwhelmed, I reached for the glass and emptied it to the bottom.

My phone rang at that second. I picked it up in surprise when I read the name.

"Julian, what...?"

"You took Mia to a club? What were you thinking?!"

Julian sounded upset, and then I remembered that we no longer had Vivienna's drivers to fall back on after all.

"I'll take her home."

I would walk with her.

"Not necessary. I'm on my way. And we will talk later."

Then he hung up.

I took a deep breath and then waved to the bartender.

"One more, please."

"Every time I find you somewhere, you're in trouble," someone laughed next to me.

I turned to the young man at the bar, who I recognized from the Midnights. One of the DeLoughreys.

"Miles, right?" I asked.

"At your service," he said with a grin.

"My life is at an all-time low right now, and I don't think it can get any worse, so let me drink," I sighed. Then I downed the second drink and groaned with narrowed eyes. I held the glass out to the bartender. "Definitely makes it better."

"It doesn't make it better, Mady." I looked back at Miles, who was looking around the club uneasily. I wondered if his brothers were here, too. "You just think the momentary intoxication will build you back up."

He eyed the bar equipment as if he was considering ordering something too, but left it at that.

"What do you suggest?" I looked at him with a questioning look.

He grinned broadly. "That you dance and then go home as if nothing had ever happened. And the next time you meet these girls, you'll give them your middle finger."

I stared at him. What didn't sound like me at all sounded like the most plausible solution.

I stared at my cell phone. I should probably call Mia and let her know Julian was on his way.

I looked at Miles again, but the bar stool next to me was empty. And I was alone. Just like I'd always been.