Daniel grumbled something and glared at me, then stomped off.
Jared looked around, like Everett would pop out from behind a bush at any moment, then grabbed my elbow. “I’ll talk to you. But not here. Let’s go somewhere quiet.”
That meant he was going to kill me or confess.
Well, he could try to kill me, but I’d fight back because I was pretty sure Dakota would make an exception for me using violence in the event my life was in danger.
I pulled my arm from Jared’s hand and followed him around the building. He made his way to a short tree that stood about ten feet off the path, then turned around to face me.
“Look,” he said, licking his lips nervously and glancing around again. “Everett forced me to say Dakota did that because otherwise he’d tell everyone that I was sleeping with one of the professors.”
I raised my brows because what? He was sleeping with one of the professors?
“I’m not,” he said quickly. “Fuck that, I’m not sleeping with one of the professors here. My point is, he was going to spread the rumor that I was and get me—and that professor—kicked out of here. And ruin our lives. I’ve seen what he’s capable of. I went to high school with that asshole, and he gets off on that kind of shit. So yeah, I faked the broken arm and told everyone it wasDakota because….” He shrugged, like it was no big deal that he’d dragged someone else’s name through the mud, that he’d let someone totally innocent take the fall.
I mean, according to him,hewas innocent too, but still.
He wasn’t Dakota, so I didn’t give a single fuck about him. I only cared about what he’d done to Dakota.
Dakota, who’d already spent a year in a behavioral health facility because of Everett.
Dakota, who wouldn’t hurt anyone. Whocouldn’thurt anyone. He fucking hated violence, and if his parents ever took the time to get to know him, they’d fucking know that.
But they didn’t. I wasn’t sure why they’d even adopted him in the first place. To treat him like utter shit?
Fuck, I wanted to kill them all.
And that psychotic piece of shit Everett had hurt him again.
I vowed it would be for the last fucking time. That I was going to put a stop to this. To him.
He was going to regret he’d ever fucked with Dakota.
And me.
A burning rage bubbled in my chest, and I inhaled deeply, counting to ten.
My exhale exploded out of me, though, and I wasn’t able to hide the anger in my voice. “You know, Jared, it must be hard going through life such a coward. I hope you get everything you deserve. You could’ve told the truth, but instead you wanted to save your own ass. I can’t say I’m surprised, though. You people really are all the same.”
Without a single glance back, I turned and walked away.
I had what I needed and I didn’t trust myself to spend a single second longer with him.
I’d made a promise and I was going to keep it.
27
NOT TODAY, SATAN
DAKOTA
Ishouldn’t have said that.
I mean, at least not while we were having sex. But fuck, it had just burst out of me. He was using that mean little mouth and just being so…sohim, that I couldn’t hold back.
I hoped that didn’t scare him away.
I hoped he’d say it back to me one day.
