Then the hair at my nape prickled.
“Get your fucking hands off her!” A deep growl sent my heart kicking at my ribs.
Killian appeared from behind the tree and smacked his palms into Micah’s chest. The crack echoed across the grove. My friend flew backward and smashed into a nearby giant tree.
“Killian!” I screamed.
Micah slid down the trunk, his knees wobbling until he hit the hard-packed earth. Killian loomed over him and squeezed his fingers into a fist.
“Stop it! He didn’t do anything!” I gripped Killian’s bicep and jerked him back. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
Deep green irises seared to mine, the storm of emotions so violent, I sucked in a breath from their raging intensity. “I told you to stay the fuck away from him, didn’t I? Why the hell don’t you ever listen to me?”
“And… I–I told you he’s my friend,” I stammered.
A sharp laugh fled through his clenched teeth. “You’re so blind, Red. You have no idea of the depraved monsters surrounding you.”
“I’d never hurt her,” Micah muttered, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose from his spot on the cold ground.
Killian whirled on him, and a murderous glare flashed across those cold eyes. “Really? And what about that girl the other night?”
Micah blanched, his skin so pale, a light green tinged his freckles. “I didn’t?—”
“But you would have,” Killian snarled. “Don’t pretend otherwise. I was there. I saw the look in your eyes.”
“What the fuck are you two talking about?” I was definitely missing something here.
“Don’t worry about it, little Red. Just trust me when I say I’m not the only big bad wolf you need to stay away from.” The violence in his eyes was palpable, raw fury consuming all the light.
I reached for him instinctively before pulling my hand back. “Calm down, Kill. No one is going to hurt me.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. You’re so damned wrong.” Killian huffed out a breath and spun toward the auditorium. After a few long strides, he whirled back around with a murderous look that even I couldn’t argue with. “Sit with me in class. I’ll be on the right side. We have a trip to plan.”
Fuck. For a glorious second, I’d forgotten all about it.
I crouched down in front of Micah and offered a hand. “Are you okay?”
He shook his head, his eyes cast down to the icy ground. “I’m not sure I’ll ever be anymore.”
“What happened the other night at the Sigma Delta house?”
His lips pressed into a harsh line, and a chill raced up my spine. “I can’t tell you.”
“Then how can I help you?”
His head whipped back and forth, misery carving into his expression. “You can’t. Don’t you get it? We’re both fucked either way.”
I crept into the auditorium, searching the right side for Killian. I couldn’t believe I was going out of my way to find the jerk after working so hard to avoid him all weekend. But the asshole was right, we needed to plan this trip, and the sooner we got it over with, the better.
Because I had more important things on my mind. I had to figure out what was going on with Micah. Something had scared the shit out of him, and now I was terrified too.
“Psst, over here, Red.” My head swiveled over my shoulder to the far, right corner of the auditorium. Damn, Killian sure didn’t want to be seen with me. He couldn’t possibly have picked a more hidden location. There was an entire empty row between us and the next live person.
I slid through the empty row and took the seat beside him as the professor started the lecture.
“I’ll keep it quick today, guys,” Professor Kennedy announced. “I want you to use the majority of the period for independent work on your Tectonic Plate project.”
Excited whoops echoed around the massive space.
