Keeping my gaze trained on my feet, I’m stripped of my cloak. Cold air scalds my body, licking the exposed skin.
Someone behind me reaches for the hem of my sweater.
I push my elbows down, trying to shove their hands off. “Don’t fucking touch me!”
The masked person shows no emotion, continuing to try and remove my top. I ball my hands into fists, punching against them to no avail.
“Let go of me, asshole,” I growl, rage boiling inside me—at their unwanted touch and at me thinking Jean-Louis wasn’t pure evil.
I should’ve known better. Should’vetoldSutton about his father or at least told one of my siblings. Of course, his being on campus now isn’t a coincidence.
None of this possibly can be. Fear is an orchestrated notion, an agent of chaos, and I’ve probably just played right into his deviant plans.
I’m not even sure what I volunteered for, but it’s clear something sinister was going down. Since I imagine Jean-Louis would’ve let Sabrina go had I not been with her, I couldn’t let her be punished.
Goose bumps crop up along my skin.What have I done?
“If you do not take your hands off her, I’ll see to it you don’t leave the caves with them intact.”
The masked figure trying to undress me halts, glancing over their shoulder as a taller, broader, green-eyed masked man enters. I’m not sure what he’s doing here exactly, but my fear lessens a little when I realize who he is.
I knew when he touched me out there, though it’d been a strange understanding to have while a crowd of masked strangers stared at me. It also confirmed my long-standing suspicion of him being involved with this organization, and given what I’ve seen happen in the forest, maybe I should be more concerned, but when he touched my chin out there, I didn’t sense any hostility.
Surely, if he wanted to hurt me, I wouldn’t still be here right now.
Nor would he be pursuing me during the day, telling me how much he wants me.
Maybe that’s naive, but at the moment when the rug’s just been torn out from beneath me, it’s the only thread keeping me tied to sanity.
The masked figure attempting to assault me grunts, releasing me with a shove. I stumble, hitting the curved wall and catching myself with my hands. When the person leaves, I turn slowly, swallowing over the massive knot in my throat. He’s close,directly behind me, and I feel slightly less panicked now that it’s only us here.
“Are you all right?”
I nod. He slides my mask back, exhaling, as if relieved to actually find me underneath.
Warring emotions flicker through his green eyes, and I get a sense of déjà vu—not from any of the times we’ve been this close at our leisure, desperate to feel each other, but of something else. Something weighed down by all the secrets bubbling in the distance between us.
I open my mouth to speak, though I’m not exactly sure what I want to say. I have so many questions racing through my mind that it’s impossible to pick just one.
A part of me wants to know why he’s here, what his role is, although the display moments ago should be enough of an answer. The people out there listened to him like he was their god, and it was as terrifying as it was arousing.
Someone clears their throat behind us, and he turns his head slightly in their direction while keeping me shielded. A short, stocky masked person stands there, twirling their red hair around two fingers.
“Elder Dupont—er,Incarnate, sir,” they say. “The Director would like to see you.”
Sutton’s jaw clenches. “I’ll be there in a minute.”
“She said to come immediately,” they call out as they walk away.
When we’re alone again, I let out a breath and meet his gaze. “So what exactly is Incarnate?—”
“You need to leave,” Sutton tells me in a low voice. “Now.”
I blink. “Huh? I can just wait for you to?—”
“Now, Elle. Do not test me on this. The longer you stay, the less likely it is you make it out of here alive. You had no fuckingbusiness entering these caves in the first place. Itoldyou to stay away from this shit.”
Being reprimanded like a child makes me see red. “Wait a fucking minute. I didn’tchooseto come here. Your?—”
