Archer grimaces. “Dane and Will, right? I kinda wondered.”
I nod. “I asked him point-blank if there was something between them. He said no. They were just initiating together.” I blow out a frustrated breath. “I told him I knew he was lying to me. And that’s when he walked off. That’s the other part of why I left campus early. Our conversation upset me, and then the note, and I was done. So, I didn’t know anyone… but I think Dane knew who I was.”
Kingston clears his throat. “I figured Will was gay. I guess it never occurred to me about Dane. Definitely not that he might have known who you were.”
I grab onto his hand and squeeze. “Please don’t tell Dane I told you. If he’s just in the closet and has nothing to do with any of this, I’d hate to think I’ve outed him. I know what an invasion of privacy that is. And it seems Will was so fucking scared for anyone to know, he put the ‘Born this Gay’ sticker I bought himinsidehis phone case.”
“Wait.” Kingston holds up a hand to stop the conversation and eyes me warily. “Do you believe Dane also put the note in your bag?”
“He could have. I mean, my bag was in my room. I picked it up and went to class. Boom, there’s a note that wasn’t there before. The only people close enough to me after I left the house were Archer in the back seat of the SUV—I know it’s not you—and Dane in class. So… I don’t want it to be, and while it kinda sounded like what Stuart had said, I can’t figure how it’s anyonebutDane. Archer, you looked at the footage surrounding the day Nick took me, right? Because you’d have seen someone go into my room.”
Archer grits his teeth. “Yeah, I’ve been through all of it a lot and there was no one but us and then Alec when he came to tell you there was a visitor at the door, so—” He groans aloud. “It sucks thinking Dane could be involved. But looking at last year’s events, if we’re assuming it had something to do with some of the brothers in the house not being accepting of Will’s sexuality, we know exactly where the arrow gets pointed. And it’s not at Dane.”
“What if Dane’s known who I am since I stepped foot in Hawthorne Hall?” The possibility has floated around in the back of my head for a while. “Will could have told him about me. You know, if they were truly together, even if Dane is trying to hide it.”
An agonized exhale works its way from Kingston’s lips at the same time Archer shakes his head. “Totally possible. But I can’t wrap my head around Dane knowing who you were all along and not saying a fucking word.” His eyes slam shut. “It doesn’t make sense to me.”
Cannon grabs his phone from the nightstand and quickly shoots us a message.
First, this is making my head fucking throb.
But I’d say we know who to watch.
Alec, Stuart, Joel.
Done.
I shrug. “I can’t say I disagree after what they’ve put me through. But why are they messing with me in the first place?”
“Fucked if I know, Peaches.” Archer shakes his head angrily. “Unless they’re guilty of something and figured you were poking around at things. Or, you know… they’re also just shitheads about anyone who dares do something against the norm. So—you’re female. Or—you’re with all of us, but in that case, why are they fucking with you and not us, too?”
I laugh. “Are you kidding? They’re terrified of every single one of you. Maybe they just want me gone so they don’t have to deal with me once you graduate.”
A text message notification pops up, and I stop to read.
But wait.
If A, S, and J had something to do with Will’s disappearance…
And it really is a homophobe thing…
Why haven’t they gone after Dane?
I chew on the corner of my mouth, glancing into Cannon’s confused eyes before I come up with a tiny thread of a reason. “Because he’s under your protection in a way as your former initiate?”
Archer heaves out a breath and runs his hands through his hair. I don’t doubt he’s really disturbed by all of this. Hell, Kingston, too. Who was it that said something about the cockfest before the third game?Stuart, maybe.Archer finally speaks, brows furrowing as he gives us his thoughts, his mind working overtime just like mine has been. “Or maybe they aren’t sure about Dane because he’s quiet. So, they’re leaving him the fuck alone. Will didn’t have a choice, being stuck with them. They probably figured him out fast.”
“Yep, maybe Dane’s being smart. Flying under the goddamn radar this year,” Kingston grits out, his hand spanning his forehead so he can rub his temples with thumb and middle finger. I hate both the literal and virtual headache this has given him. “Okay, topic shift. Elle, we saw you go into our rooms while we were gone that one night after your concussion. What did you think you would find?”
I exhale unsteadily, meeting his eyes. So, theydidnotice I searched all three rooms. “Well, I knew where I’d stashed the phone, between your mattress and box spring. There was no way I could put it back where I found it because I didn’t want it to disappear. So, I knew I had to go back and get that.”
“Good strategy.” Archer gives me a slight bob of his head.
“Thanks.” I wrinkle my nose. “I had no idea how to gain access to Archer’s computer, so I didn’t even try. I did admire your pile of sci-fi novels, though.” I give him a little wink before I turn to Cannon. “And in yours, that was the first I realized that some of what I was catching onto with you was a serious medical issue. I didn’t get a chance to look very thoroughly, though, because I heard Dane coming, and that’s when I made the mad dash into your room, Kingston, and snatched the phone out of hiding.”
“What’d you do with it?”
“Shoved it down the back of my leggings… Dane almost caught me, but like I told you before, I convinced him I was in there looking for my underwear.”
