I grit my teeth, hating to have to be the one to rehash this with her. “Yep. Alec, Joel, and Stuart told everyone—including the police—that they’d left him tied up in the woods overnight—that was his test, based on everything they’d learned about the poor guy in five weeks—but they came in around four in the morning all freaked out. Said he was gone, and they didn’t know what the fuck was going on. And then we waited. And waited. But he’d never shown up. The waiting was the absolute worst. We’d finished early with Dane, and he’d had no issues whatsoever aside from what we’d anticipated. The seniors hesitated, not wanting to call attention to the brotherhood. It was a full twenty-four hours before they contacted the alumni, who begrudgingly agreed we needed to bring the police in.”
She blows out a breath. “Those first hours are crucial. I get that maybe they didn’t know he was truly missing. But shit!” She closes her eyes for a moment, shaking her head. “I know most of the rest from there on the investigation side. But no one was talking? There weren’t whispers of suspicion?” Elliot wets her lips, looking from me to Kingston.
My jaw grinds, pulverizing my teeth. “Sorry, Peaches. That’s all we know.”
“I mean, we discussed it at the time and came to the conclusion that the obvious culprits would be his sponsors—Alec, Stuart, and Joel.” Kingston’s lips pinch together. “But there was never proof of anything. And no trace of him. Not until that phone showed up.” He releases a heavy sigh. “So.Now it’s your turn. We need to know what you know.”
TWENTY-ONE
ELLIOT
My gazesteadily moves from Kingston to Archer to Cannon. I don’t want to keep anything from them. We need honesty moving forward because they mean everything to me. What I’ve found with them I never thought I’d have, not in a million years, because that’s the sort of thing Nick had steadily infected my thinking with—that I was unworthy. That he was doing me a favor by staying with me. That no one else would want me. That he’d tell everyone I was mentally unstable if I left. And when I came to Hawthorne Hall to escape him for good, he cut a reminder of himself into me, thinking that would do it. Because he can’t fucking let me go.
I have a war on my hands now because I won’t let him win. And I won’t lose these amazing guys I get to call mine.
I can’t.
Last night, I was weak—I really thought I had lost them, and it’d almost killed me. I’d been so sure there was no way to fix what I’d done, that they’d decide maybe this girl who’d come into their lives only to betray their trust simply wasn’t worth the trouble.
My resolve strengthens as I look at them. They’ve proven themselves over and over, from how they cared for me after the concussion to saving me from the clutches of those Bainbridge bastards at the auction to the truly scary shit with Nick. It’s high time I proved myself to them.
There’s only one way to do that—answer their questions. Anything and everything they want to know—even if some of the details of my time here that I’ve kept quiet about are going to anger them. At least then we’ll have a clearer picture of what’s been happening and can look at all the angles.
Archer moves, sitting close enough that he can touch me. And he does, finding my thigh through the duvet. He swallows hard. “I know there must be things we don’t know that have gone down since you’ve been here. It’s time, Elliot. We need to know everything.”
I take a deep breath and nod, all while chewing on my lip again. I haven’t been doing it long when Cannon reaches out, gripping my chin, and uses his thumb and a concerned shake of his head to get me to stop. “Sorry”—I press my hands to my cheeks—“I’m trying to think of the best way to get you up to speed.” I give him a shaky smile before I let my gaze travel to Archer and Kingston.
Kingston’s hand lands on my hip and he squeezes, his touch gentle. The look in his green eyes is reassuring. “You don’t have to be nervous. Just tell us what you know.”
My heart swells, and I nod. “Okay.” I inhale deeply, then begin. “So, like I told you, Will is my best friend. Before he left for KU, we did everything together. I’ve known him my entire life. He’s my rock. My safe place to land.” She swallows hard. “I cried on his shoulder about Nick more than once, but I—” My breath hitches. “I never told him some of the awful things Nick said.” I wet my lips. “In hindsight, I should have. Anyway, you want to know about things I’ve seen and noticed in the house, right?”
Kingston gives a slight jerk of his head as he glances over at Archer. “Yeah. Anything you can think of.”
“So, there’s been the odd comment here and there, but I mostly brushed those off. Bridger’s antics during the games, while annoying and gross… he wasn’t here last year. I’ve already shared the notes with you that came to me under my door.” I swallow hard, knowing I need to show that last note that appeared in my backpack to them, but I’m unsure how to bring it up yet. “Cannon caught Alec and Joel messing with me in the foyer the afternoon before the auction and Archer stopped me from trying to bash Alec’s face in down on the pool deck. Um.” I glance down, securing the sheet at my chest before my eyes flick back up to theirs. “Right after the concussion… maybe a few days after? It was the first day I stayed home alone… Stuart woke me out of a dead sleep on the couch downstairs. I’d actually been sick to my stomach because I was trying to do research on the computer, and my head couldn’t handle it. I went downstairs to get something to drink to settle my stomach, then I laid down, and the next thing I knew, he was barking at me to get up. ‘On your feet, initiate!’ Kinda like that.” I hesitate for only a moment before continuing. “It was pretty clear to me that he was pissed about the night you all spent with them in that house as punishment, and he was seeking to take it out on me.”
I look up to see Archer’s eyelids crash shut. He shakes his head. “That was the day you were acting weird. I didn’t know what to make of it when I got home. You didn’t want to talk at all. Just wanted to be alone.” His eyes pop back open to connect with mine, that steel gray practically turning to ice. “I wish you had said something.”
I nod. “Yeah. I probably should have because I think the thing that’s bothering me are the words he used when he threatened me—it felt eerily similar to what was on the last note I received.” My eyes flick to Kingston, whose eyes have narrowed. I’m positive he’s going to be pissed that I’ve said nothing. “I should have told you, but the day Nick showed up, I got another nastygram—but this time it appeared in my backpack between classes.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” As suspected, Kingston’s hackles go right up, and on my other side Cannon clutches his head with both hands, irritation pouring from him.
“It’s still in the front pouch of my backpack, or I assume it is. It’s partly what sent me home. I was just… done.”
Kingston closes his eyes with a shake of his head. “Do you remember what it said?”
“Something like ‘Did you think we’re done with you? Don’t worry. We’re waiting until you won’t see it coming—’” I grit my teeth. “And then they called me a whore.”
Archer holds up a finger, and it’s clear he’s trying to digest what I’m spilling at the same time he keeps up with the questions he needs to ask. “Elliot, when you arrived at Hawthorne Hall… did you know anyone?”
I take a few breaths.Shit.I knew this would come out, but I don’t know how in this situation I don’t say something. “No. That’s kinda what I was coming to. At first, it wasn’t obvious, but there was something tickling at my brain—” I lift my hands, placing my fingers over my lips. Taking a deep breath, I whisper the words I’ve been fearing having to say. “Right before I found that last note, Dane and I had an argument.”
“What the fuck?” Kingston’s head rears back. “Not Dane. He would have told us.”
I can’t stop myself from biting my lip again.
“Elliot, I think you’d better explain.” Archer’s jaw has tightened so much, he might crack his teeth.
“I found some photos on Dane’s Instagram account, dating back to before Will disappeared. Lots of bros hanging around together, nothing too unusual until I got to the photo of—”
