“Don’t think about trying to get out of that. I got a meritbadge in Scouts for my knots. Those aren’t coming loose anytime soon.”
“Jeremy, what’s going on?” I ask sweetly, hoping I can win him over and get him to release me.
He paces in front of me, my eyes fixate on his boots as he speaks. “You know, I watched you for months. I saw the way you fawned all over him. It was desperate and needy, and you’re better than that.”
My head hurts and I’m trying to make sense of his words. “Who?” I croak out.
“Your professor boyfriend,” he spits. He grabs a chair and spins it backwards before he straddles it so his knee is inches from my face. “I think it’s time for a little story. You wanna hear a little story?”
I pinch my eyes closed, willing myself to wake up. This has to be one of my nightmares.
“Oh, that’s right, I don’t give a fuck what you want!” he yells, and I flinch as his laughter follows. “It’s not like you’re going anywhere right now.”
A tear pools in the corner of my eye, and I tilt my head slightly allowing it to escape, suddenly terrified of what he’s going to do to me. This is not the nice guy I’ve gotten to know over the past year.
“Once upon a time, I met a guy named Trent. Ever heard of him?” I’m unsure if he’s waiting for me to answer, but when I refuse, he continues. “A buddy of mine invited me over to his place. We playedCall of Dutyand shot the shit. I thought it was just guys hanging out, but once a few people left and it was just a handful of us, he told us about this chick he’d been with in high school. Told me all aboutyou.” He pokes me on the last word.
“He said you came off like a good girl, but you were a freak in bed. Told us that he’d pay someone a hundred thousand if we could prove that we’d been with you.”
So there actuallywasa club? I joked about it, but it was real?
“It was kinda weird and I thought he was bluffing, but when I looked into his family’s finances, I realized he had the bank account to back it up. I don’t think anyone else took him seriously, but I needed the money, so I came up with a plan.”
I shift against the bench as the edge of it digs uncomfortably into my thighs. He leans down; his lips close to my ear as he speaks. “Stop squirming, or I’ll give you something to squirm about.”
My body goes stiff, and I take shallow breaths.
He leans back. “I played the long game, signed up for that acting class with that dick of a professor, and purposely sat next to you, became your scene partner. When I learned about your little issue, I was pissed. I thought Trent had set me up. There was no way he ever slept with you. But I decided, fuck it. I needed the money, and I didn’t care.” He places his hand against my cheek, smashing my face further into the piano bench.
“You’re a psychopath,” I grit out, barely able to understand myself.
“Undiagnosed, so you can’t prove it, but probably. Anyway, halfway through our acting class sophomore year, Trent mentioned that he’d pay me more if I fucked you and filmed it. I don’t know what you did to piss him off, but I couldn’t pass up that kind of money.”
Flashbacks to my encounter with Trent over spring break that year fill my head. This is my fault.
“I watched you that first year, learned your habits, saw who you hung out with. Oh, by the way, you probably need new friends. It wasn’t hard to convince Megan and Rylee to talk you into going to that party earlier this year. All I had to do was flirt a little with those vapid bitches and they took the bait. I was planning to make a move, but that frat bro at theparty fucked that up. What was curious was when I saw a certain professor beat the shit out of him right after. Why would he do that?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I really don’t. I don’t remember seeing John on campus that night, and he never mentioned it to me.
He leans closer, getting right in my face as he pulls a knife out of his pocket and glides the dull side along my cheek. “Yes, you do, don’t play dumb with me. I know there’s something going on with you two. I just can’t figure out when it started.”
I bite my tongue, not willing to share John’s hidden identity. Things may be strained between us, but I’m not going to betray him like that.
“So I followed your little professor friend. Learned everything I could about him. Did you know he’s married? No wonder he was sneaking around with you. He didn’t want anyone to know you were his dirty little secret. I knew I had to do something.”
“What did you do?” I ask. Anything to keep him talking, hoping it will buy me time for someone to find us down here.
There’s a gleam in his eye, probably a reflection from the light hitting the knife in his hand. “I sent you letters, of course. I’d hacked my way past his alarm and snooped around his house when I came across those letters he sent his wife. It was actually genius on my part. I took them and started leaving them for you.”
“But I got the first one at the end of my sophomore year.” I cringe, worrying I’ve just admitted our tryst, but he continues unbothered.
“I saw the way he looked at you during our acting class that semester, but you were clueless about his interest in you. I figured I’d speed the process along.”
“I don’t understand. You wanted us to be together?” I ask, keeping him talking to stall as long as possible.
“I wanted him to slip up and kiss you on campus or something so I could expose him as a cheater preying on one of his students. I thought it’d be obvious to you that the letter was from him. Then I would swoop in and comfort you, and that money would be mine.”
“And when that didn’t happen?”
