Total pages in book: 177
Estimated words: 178117 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 891(@200wpm)___ 712(@250wpm)___ 594(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 178117 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 891(@200wpm)___ 712(@250wpm)___ 594(@300wpm)
Penelope, Penelope … what have you gotten yourself into?
You’re about to find out how much worse things can get.
There’s a knock on the door, and Alistair quickly grabs the book and stuffs it under his shirt.
“Come in,” I say, biting my lip when the door slowly opens and behind it a girl dressed in a little black top and a checkered skirt appears. She’s still wearing the same outfit from earlier today when she chose to pierce my skin with a pen.
Dark. Tempting. Edgy.
Easily destroyed.
Just like her fucking face will be when I’m done with her.
PENELOPE
There they are.
The three perfectly fucked-up boys of the Serpent & Skull Society.
The boys who run this place.
And they’re sitting on their luxurious, red velvet seats, staring at me with disdain like they’re the fucking gods of this earth.
Felix lights a cigarette and blows out the smoke in my direction, then hands his cigarette to Dylan, who also takes a long drag.
“So … Penelope … you think we’re waiting for you?” Felix asks, spreading his muscular legs because they barely fit in the seat.
The door behind me closes, and I’m eerily aware of the sound it makes.
Especially when it’s locked.
Fuck.
I knew it would be dangerous to come here, but I didn’t expect that fucker Jason to actually lock the door on me.
No turning back now.
“I know you broke into my room,” I say.
Better throw it all out on the table right away.
“Do you now?” With a devious grin, Dylan leans back, looking me up and down. “Where’s your proof?”
“Give me the fucking diary,” I say through gritted teeth.
“What diary?” Alistair mutters, sitting awkwardly in his seat like he’s hiding something.
I know they have it. I know it was them. They know it. But the fact that they deny it to my face pisses me off.
“I’m not here to play games,” I say.
“I am,” Felix says, and he takes the cigarette back from Dylan and takes another deep drag, blowing it all out in one go until the room practically fills with smoke.
I push away the need to cough.
“I know you fucking stole it,” I say, stepping closer to show them I’m not afraid.
Felix looks up at me from his seat, his eyes still at half mast, still as cold as ice. “What if we did? What will you do?”
His gaze darkens, and so does mine, while my hand tightens around the knife in my pocket.
I didn’t come here without something to ensure my safety.
Especially after our last encounter.
“Why did you take it?” I ask as I come closer and closer.
But there’s no answer. All they do is smirk and glare at me.
This book … means everything to me. I need it back. And I am done fucking waiting until one of them admits the truth.
I pull my knife from my pocket and point it at Felix. “Give it to me. Now.”
For the first time since I’ve seen him, an actual smile forms on his lips before it fades into oblivion as though it never even existed. Brief, but a smile nonetheless.
“What are you going to do? Slice me? Stab me like you did in that hallway?” He leans in, closer and closer, until his face is mere inches away from the point of my blade. “Do it then. I dare you.”
Is this fucker insane?
The knife is lodged firmly in the palm of my hand, but I don’t move, not even an inch, because I know the scars I can cause will be permanent. And it would definitely make it harder to escape from here.
“Go on … just the tip,” he muses, leaning in until the tip pierces through the slit of his mouth, and it opens up, his tongue slipping out to curl around the blade like only a snake would.
I retract the knife.
Stabbing him wouldn’t get me what I wanted.
The other two boys laugh.
“Shame,” Felix mumbles and leans back in his seat again.
He’s taunting me, but I won’t fall for this trick.
“No, you’re the shameful ones for stealing what belongs to me,” I say.
“Sounds like it’s important to you,” Dylan says, taking another drag of Felix’s smoke.
“What’s inside?” Alistair asks. “Secrets?”
“None of your fucking business,” I snarl.
“But it is.” Felix’s fingers curl, and his nails dig into the leather. “You came here into our fucking house just to get it back.” He throws me an arrogant look. “I want to know why.”
“Like I’d ever tell you,” I retort.
“You will if you want it back.”
Got him. “So you admit you took it?”
His brows rise. “Depends.”
“On what?”
“Your answers.”
My nostrils flare.
“Did you write it?” Alistair suddenly asks.
When I merely stare at him, Felix says, “Answer him.”
He’s testing me. But I can play this game. “No.”
Dylan’s eyes narrow. “Then who did?”
“My sister.”
Felix’s fingers twitch. “Say her name.”
“Eve.” I tilt my head. “But you already knew that, didn’t you?” I lean on my knees to look him in the eyes. “Because she told you my name.”