I fumble the keys out of my bra and press the fob, diving into the safety of the backseat and pulling the door closed, locking all of them with a double press of the button. Hauling a rug over my head as I curl my body into the footwell. Anyone looking inside won’t know there’s a person here, hiding.
Those girls tonight. Ignoring me or calling names. Getting shoulder checked in the corridors, starting from the break after I told Caylon I wouldn’t go out with him.
The low-key bullying I’d been too afraid to acknowledge. Not wanting to be the girl who cried wolf or, more accurately, the wolf who cried wolf.
My phone buzzes again, a call this time, and I answer it with a whispered, “Hello?”
“I’m at the party,” Wilbur says in a strained voice. The one he uses when he’s being forced to behave but really doesn’t want to. “Where are you?”
“In my car.” I suck in a breath that does nothing for me, exhale, then try it again. This time, some of the oxygen makes it into my aching lungs. “I’m parked in front of a little reserve, around the corner.”
“I know it.” There’s a pause, the sound of him moving in the background. “You didn’t answer my text.”
“Sorry. I took a nap in my car and must have missed it.” My words sound stilted and false to my ears, bad enough to make me wince. “What were you after?”
“It doesn’t matter what I wanted. What matters is that you didn’t respond when I texted.”
There’s a knock on the window above my head, making me give a little shriek.
“God’s sake, Emily. That’s me.”
I pull the rug off my head, peering up at the dark window. A hundred horror movies flick through my head.
But it’s just Wilbur. The silver in his hair catches the glow from the nearby streetlamp, turning it golden.
His expression is quizzical, quickly turning to amused as I unlock the door and step outside. He tucks his phone away in his jacket pocket before pulling me against him. “You’ve been crying.”
“I got drunk.”
He uses his thumb to clean away the last of my eye makeup. My body is so twisted, filled with so many mixed signals, that I lean into the soft touch.
“You disobeyed me, Em.” His voice sounds sad, disappointed, but there’s a light dancing in his eyes that makes it hard for me to look directly at him.
He lets go of my face to pull a phone out of his pocket. When he clicks it on, a website is loaded up, ready to play. He touches the arrow, and my naked body appears on screen.
I can’t swallow. I want to cry out, but the words can’t form, won’t even make it all the way to my lips, let alone vibrate my vocal cords.
It’s me. Just as he threatened.
“You made a mistake. I understand.” Wilbur’s voice is gentle, soothing, reassuring. “This is a reminder, nothing more. It’s been cropped so nobody can see your face. Nobody will recognise you.”
The relief that pours over me is soon lost underwater as he issues the same threat.
“Next time, I won’t be as generous.”
I frown at the screen, thoughts scattered.
Caylon and I were alone. Upstairs. Behind closed doors. He still found a way to spy on us.
The terror explodes behind my eyes, but I keep my outward composure. If Wilbur sees how freaked I am, he’ll feed on it. It’ll make him worse.
“I’m sorry.” When he tugs me close, I let him, trying to ignore the scattered pulse ticking in my ears.
“Your car will be safe here overnight?”
I nod, pulling away to bump the door closed with my hip and locking it with the fob. “Yeah. I should get back to the party.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You’re a mess.” He says the words with such a kind smile, it takes the sting away. “You’ll come home with me.”
