I feel naked and exposed without it, but for the first time, I don’t want to be Barry’s North Star. Not right now. Not when I'm lying to him about where I'll be. It's because I know how stupid I'm being that I can't wear that necklace.
I’ll get an Uber to a hotel instead, so at least if Lionel finds me, I’m not endangering anyone else.
But before I can pull up the web browser to book one, I see a plethora of text messages.
Shit, Sable called.
I had already forgotten about it, so I swipe down on my notifications, only to glimpse a text of her freaking out over someone being there.
My blood runs cold, and I immediately go into another panic. Fuck, I’m such an idiot! What if my father’s there? He could’ve found out about her and is going to use her to get to me.
It’s been ten minutes since she first called, which means he could already fucking have her.
Heart pounding and hands trembling, I go to hit call, but a call from her pops up on my screen first.
I rush to answer. “Sable? Are you?—”
“What the hell is Dread doing?” she rushes out, her tone on edge and fiery.
I sputter for a moment, my brain trying to process the whiplash of going from panic to confusion in a matter of seconds.
“Uh, wh-what?” I stutter, completely thrown off. “What do you mean?”
“His stupid-ass friend broke into the home and is harassing m— Don’t fucking touch that, you idiot!”
My mouth hangs open, utterly bewildered, while something metallic clatters in the background, followed by a low, amused murmur. Oftentimes, Sable stays past closing to work, so it’s no surprise she’s still there.
But what the fuck is Dread's friend doing there?
Sable exhales heavily. “He scared the shit out of me,” she says, considerably quieter, her tone steeped in vulnerability. “He said he was here on Dread’s behalf, and made it sound like you were in trouble. I was texting and calling, but you weren’t answering.”
“Wha— Wait a fucking second. Who? Which friend?” I stammer, my heart picking up speed once again.
“The one with the stupid-ass name—Rogue,” she answers, growling his name with distaste.
“Damn, it sounds sexy when you say it like that,” Rogue teases in the background.
Sable descends into a furious tirade in Spanish while my head spins.
Did Dread send Rogue there to distract her? Or is he there to drawme out of my dorm?
I close my eyes, defeated, exhausted, and a prisoner to the headache squeezing my brain.
All I know is he has something planned for me tonight. And no matter what it is, it’s going to wreck my already fragile sanity.
“I can’t deal with this,” I mutter, swiping a hand through my hair and getting to my feet. I rush to my dresser and quickly rustle through a drawer, pulling out a sweatshirt and leggings.
Adrenaline is steadily releasing into my veins, cracking the stone molded around my bones and weighing me down mere moments ago.
“Lock your door, and whatever you do, don’t come out,” she orders sharply. “I’m going to kill that motherfucker, I swear to Christ, Rev. You can’t stop me this time.”
I pause for a moment, closing my eyes and tipping my head back with a sigh, my frustration mounting. It feels like my head is going to fucking explode. The whiplash of emotions circulating through my system, along with fear and panic over two men who can’t seem to leave me the hell alone, has me on the verge of combusting.
“Sable,I can’t. I have to leave.”
“Why?”
I put her on speaker and then tear off my pajamas to redress in the warmer clothing. “My father… he’s… here. Somewhere. He was in my room earlier when I was working, so I have to leave for the night.”
