30. Winter

With the anxietyof Asher meeting my parents being over, and my fake dating plan finally paying off, I could focus on other things in my life for a morning. It was then I realized that Selena still hadn't come back from visiting her mom over the weekend. She'd texted me while I'd been busy with Asher saying she wanted to go home for a while. She was close with her mom, so it wasn't any surprise. Now though, it had been days and days. It wasn't like Selena at all. I wondered if she'd ended up going to Trent's party at his super special VIP club, the one he had been trying to make me go to.

I searched for her all day. I called her, sent her texts, but they all went unanswered. I was betting on her coming home to get her cheer uniform for the game that night, so I took the precaution of hiding it in case she tried slipping into the room and grabbing it while I was busy.

It worked, because when I got out of the shower and went to our room, she was waiting for me on her bed.

"There you are! Have you seen my stuff? I can't find it anywhere," she muttered. She looked pale and thinner than usual.

"Yeah, I've seen it, but first…nice to see you," I said, trying to get a measure of her mood.

Selena rolled her eyes. "Where is it?"

"I'll get it in a second. When did you get back on campus?"

"Just now." She evaded my eyes. It felt like a kick in the teeth.

"You've been gone for ages."

"Have I?" she evaded.

"Why do I feel like you're lying to me and avoiding me? Is it because of Asher? Because you had your eye on him now that he's back from Denver?"

She snorted. "I wish my problems were just worrying about your fake relationship with Asher Martino. Some of us have bigger problems."

"Like what? Is it your sister? Your mom?"

Selena opened her mouth to speak and then turned away. "No. It's not them. You don't have to worry about it, okay?"

"No, it's not okay. I want to know what's wrong. Can I help?"

"Believe me, you did what you could. I'm just too fucking stupid to listen to sense and got what I deserved."

"What?" I stood, mirroring her as she seemed to decide to go for the door. I stepped in front of her, blocking her path. "Tell me what's going on."

"Why? Why do you even care? You shouldn't care what happens to me." A tear splashed down her cheek and froze me to the spot.

"Please, just tell me what's wrong," I repeated.

"I got what a mean dumb bitch like me deserves, okay?" She said in a hard tone.

"No, it's not okay. I want to know what's wrong. Can I help?"

She scoffed again, but this time it was ragged. "It doesn't even matter, okay? It's dumb, and I'm just embarrassed, and I don't want anyone else to know."

"Tell me anyway. I'm not going to give up until I know. What did I warn you about?" I hunted for an answer, and then a name slapped me across the face. Fuck, it was so obvious. "Is it Trent Fitzgerald? Did something happen with him?"

Selena stared at me, her words all gone. She blinked hard once, twice, and then a long line of tears sprang from her eyes and dashed down her cheeks. She wiped them away angrily.

"What happened? Tell me," I demanded, panic escalating in my chest. I reached out to stop her from leaving, gently grabbing her forearm. She hissed in pain.

"Are you hurt?" I grabbed her sleeve just as she pulled away. Her sleeve slid up and revealed an oozing sore. It was red and crusted with blood, and the surrounding skin was inflamed.

"What is that?" I gasped, trying to hold onto her, but not wanting to press her skin too hard.

She ripped her arm out of my grasp. "Nothing I didn't have coming."

I followed her as she headed again for the door. "It's Trent, right? Something happened with him? Did you go to that club with him?"

Selena just stared at me.

"Let's go to the police. I'll come with you," I said quickly.

She shook her head wildly. "No. I can't. They won't believe me. You don't understand. I'm going home. I can't be here."

She pulled away and made for the door. On the threshold, she looked back at me. "I'm glad you stayed away from him. If it came down to me, or you — I'm glad it was me." With that cryptic statement, she slipped out of the room.

I went to the football game a few hours later and made excuses for Selena to the captain. I had no idea what was going on, but it was clearly something serious.

The game was boring and long. I watched the play, unseeing, and when halftime rolled around, I was more than ready to go home. I grabbed my thermos out of my bag in the locker room and drank some of the warm tea I'd brought with me. On the way back to the field, I passed by a deserted area near the back of the stands and had the prickling sensation of being watched.

A hand shot out and fastened on my arm. Trent's pasty face reared out of the shadows behind the bleachers. He wrestled me into a dark corner, hidden from other passersby.

I bit down my scream. I had some questions for him.

"Let go," I snarled at him, shoving at his chest.

"Calm down. You're a difficult woman to get alone, Winter, and I'm getting sick of it."

"Ever considered that I go out of my way not to be alone with you?" I demanded.

Trent was looking like shit, worse than usual. His eyes were bloodshot, and his face was pale and bloated. He looked like he was coming off a bender fueled by drugs and drink, and was starting to feel it.

"I think you'll want to hear what I have to say."

"Fine. Talk — I want to hear about Selena. Did you hurt her?"

Trent scoffed. "Hurt her? She got what she was asking for… my attention for the night."

"Did you hurt her?" I repeated in a hard voice.

Trent shrugged. "Define hurt."

My hand was flying before he could stop it, and I slapped him hard.

"Watch it, Winter, unless you want a brand to match your slut friend. I don't normally like to mark high-value pussy, but I'll make an exception for you, since the only person who'll be seeing you naked in the future is me."

I'm going to be sick. The urge to vomit on his shoes made me sway, and I took a moment to compose myself.

"Brand?" I echoed finally.

Trent smiled. "Oh, Winter, how sheltered you are. Branding is the least we like to do over at The Cove."

"You took her there? To that party you mentioned?" I said numbly. That was supposed to be me. I was supposed to go with her. Guilt hit me like a ten-ton truck.

"She wanted to go. She was eager to see the operation in person and I wasn't about to deny her. For what started as just a little side business, it's become quite the moneymaker. Selena visited for a few days. Did you notice she was gone, or were you too busy sucking the hockey player's dick to notice your friend went missing?"

"She was at home with her mom," I stammered.

Trent raised an eyebrow. "Was she? My mistake. I guess I've been having fun with her twin upstate, then."

"She's been with you this whole time?" I asked hollowly. She had messaged me that she was at home. Maybe it hadn't been her at all.

Trent just tilted his head to the side, enjoying my horror. "You're a bit slow on the uptake, aren't you? I invited you both to The Cove. She came alone. Remember? No matter, I don't need my wife to be smart, in fact, I'd prefer she wasn't. Just a pretty face, a tight hole, and the right pedigree. My sons will have DeLaurie blue blood. That's all I need from you."

I felt dizzy. The music from the football field reached us. A cheer song I was missing. Would anyone notice I wasn't there?

"Nothing is ever going to happen between us. My dad likes Asher. He won't force me into anything," I said weakly after a moment.

Trent sighed. "I know, Charles is a bit of a weak link. Your grandparents, now, they were made of stronger stuff. The Fitzgeralds and DeLauries go way back. Long before your mother entered the picture. Your grandfather was part of the club, as well. Now the only member remaining who remembers the old ways in Hade Harbor is my father."

"The club? You mean Invictus H.H Group?" I struggled to keep up. There was too much I didn't understand in this conversation.

Trent scoffed. "Invictus H.H Group is just a circle jerk of old rich guys from Hade Harbor investing peanuts. I'm talking about real power."

Someone walked past and I thought about crying out, but Trent grabbed my arm in warning, and they passed by.

Trent sighed. "Oh Winter, you are truly your father's daughter. Charles and his fondness for making the women in his life happy… he very nearly ruined his family name. His sister, too, your late aunt…what a disappointment. Both of them have been abject failures, except that Charles produced you and you are lovely…" he leaned in and gripped my face, shaking my head so hard my teeth rattled. I clawed at his hands to get him to stop.

"Even if he did breed with a commoner, his superior blood shines through. You're the spitting image of your dead aunt, did you know that? My father is fond of looking at you. He'll get to do it a lot more once I bring you home as his daughter-in-law."

"I don't know what you're taking about, but you need help. You're not right in the head, Trent!" I cried out when he squeezed so hard my teeth ached.

Letting go suddenly, he stepped back, and I fell to the ground, my knees too weak to hold me up.

"Just to be clear, Selena is a cautionary tale. I won't hesitate to do the same to Martino's pretty sister, or his mother, or maybe even yours…Anyone else you know or like. If you have any compassion, you'll offer yourself instead. Furthermore, if that doesn't motivate you…cut the crap with the hockey player or his next game will be his last."

I stared at him in shock, incredulous. "You can't just threaten us. I'll go to the police."

Trent laughed. "Good luck! We have several members in law enforcement in every single town up the coast from here to The Cove. I hope you find one of the good ones to listen to your wild tale."

I swallowed bile at his words. His confidence was daunting. "You can't make me do anything. I'm not some puppet you can force to dance on a string."

"I think you'll find that you will dance, you will obey, or else everyone you care about will pay the price of knowing you. Will your boyfriend still love you when he has to get his leg removed after an accident? Motorcycles are so dangerous, you know?"

I lunged for Trent, my nails aiming for his face, but he pulled back too quickly for me to make contact.

"Please, Winter, come on. Remember your class. Martino has already had an effect on you, I see."

"Go to hell, Trent," I swore at him, getting to my feet as he made to leave.

"Oh, I intend to, and I'm taking you with me, Winter. Make your peace with it now."

I wandered back to the game in a daze.

"Winter, where were you? The formation was totally off," Tina hissed at me.

"Sorry, I'm not feeling well," I mumbled lamely.

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Just sit down, then. You look like you're about to pass out."

I sank onto a bleacher seat and stared at the grass. Trent's words were going around and around in my head. He'd threatened Selena, Eve…he'd threatened Asher. I had no idea what was going on, but the stress was paralyzing me. I looked at my bracelet, the one with the Latin inscription. All of this seemed mixed up with the history between Duncan and my aunt. The Fitzgeralds and the DeLauries, going back generations, it seemed.

I shivered, feeling colder than the cool weather warranted. Again, the feeling of being watched hit me. Had Trent followed me? I twisted to look at the crowd. My gaze landed on a familiar pair of eyes in the crowd.

The sight knocked out of my spiraling thoughts by my surprise.

Asher was sitting in the crowd, an unmoving black leather dot in a sea of red and white.

I'd never seen him at a football game. He looked out of place as hell, and at that exact moment, there was no doubt in my mind — he was there for me.

Somehow, that steadfast dark gaze on me gave me the strength to finish the night.

He was waiting for me after, sitting astride his motorcycle by the curb. Should I tell him about Selena? No, I couldn't. I needed the whole story first. He'd rush in headfirst and maybe even get himself in trouble. Selena's arm was really hurt. I'd seen it myself. Branded. Asher had to stay as far away from that as possible.

"I never took you for a football fan," I said when I arrived in front of him.

He was holding the second helmet on his lap and now held it out to me. "I'm not. Put that on. I'll take you home."

I'd ridden the campus bus to the game, so my car wasn't there. I took the helmet without argument, something that Asher immediately noticed.

"Everything okay, Ice Queen? You're quieter than usual."

I just nodded and slid the helmet on. It was good for hiding my expression, with my feelings whipping into a maelstrom in my chest.

I got onto the bike, snapping the visor down and hiding my eyes from Asher's probing gaze. How we must have looked — him in his black leather and ripped jeans, me in my cheerleading outfit, roaring off on the back of his motorcycle — I had no idea, but I felt safe for the first time that evening.

We got back to Greek row in no time at all, and I held onto Asher's back even once we'd stopped. It was broad and comforting, and I needed comfort right now. I really fucking needed it. I had questions that had no answers, and fears that I couldn't escape. I felt lost and afraid. Alone.

"So, you want to tell me what's up?" Asher asked when I finally got off the bike and tugged my helmet off.

"Why'd you come to get me?" I asked instead, hoping to change the subject.

He studied me for a long moment, seeming to decide whether he should let me get away with avoiding his question, then reached into the box behind his seat. He pulled out my portfolio and offered it to me. "I figured it was about time you got this back."

I took the smooth leather folder and hugged it to my chest. I'd completely forgotten about it. School projects and my photos felt very unimportant right now.

"They're really good," he remarked after a moment.

I blinked at him, the unexpected praise cutting through my spiraling thoughts. "Really? What's the catch? They're really good, but…"

"No buts. They are really good. You are really good. I fully expect there to be an exhibition of your work in some world-famous gallery one day, good — how's that?"

Tears suddenly gripped my throat. It was too much. After worrying the entire game about what Selena had told me, Asher's compliments were dismantling my cool fa?ade.

I blinked a few times, forcing the tears back through sheer power of will.

He raised an eyebrow at me. "You'll send me an invite when that happens, won't you, Ice Queen?"

I forced a laugh. "Why should I bother? By the time it happens, you'll be too busy, off somewhere being an NHL superstar."

He chuckled and shrugged. "Let's hope so. But send me one, anyway. I'd like to see your photos in a gallery somewhere, one day."

I couldn't take the look in his eyes tonight. It was like my scared and wounded heart had ripped open and there was nothing to protect it.

"Sure."

"Promise?" Asher pushed. He was watching me carefully, noticing that something was off faster than anyone else in my life would. This guy had gotten way too close. The lines between us were well and truly blurred beyond return.

"Pinkie swear," I deadpanned and turned to go inside. I needed to put a locked door between me and the world so I could melt down in private.

"Did you know pinkie swears are for life? Oh, and save some time next week to come out to the cabin. Eve and Lily will be there. They'll all think it's strange if you're not, seeing as we're dating and all," Asher called after me.

I paused and turned around. Go out to the cabin with him and his friends?

"Is that something a fake girlfriend should do?" I asked.

He just shrugged. "Should do, shouldn't go…let's make our own rules."

He was waiting for my response, so I simply nodded and headed inside.

I ran up the stairs to my room and locked myself inside, distantly registering the sound of Asher's bike roaring away. Selena hadn't come back. I hoped she'd gone home. I hoped she was okay.

The room felt quiet and empty. I pulled my phone from my pocket and pressed my first saved number. It rang a few times. I needed answers, and there was only one person I could think of to call.

"Winter, darling? What's wrong?" Dad's voice came through clear and strong.

"I need to speak to you about something. It's really important."

"It is? Well, I'll be home for a few days before I leave for Macau. Let's talk tomorrow."

"Okay, let's talk tomorrow. I'll be home in the morning," I agreed and hung up.

I would get answers tomorrow.

Now, I just had to get through the night.