Page 54 of The Honor Society

“No.” Rhodes shakes his head pulling my attention away from Charlie’s worried expression. “You want me to put an innocent woman who doesn’t even know she’s the heir to Death on my arm and parade her around the monsters of the upper echelon of society? Are you insane?”

“Yes.” Charlie mutters.

I roll my eyes. “Someone has to have a bit of insanity to be this genius. And yes you will, as Proctor I am not asking, Chancellor.” I turn to Jenner. “Go with Jude, bring Lilah to Rhodes, make sure she’s completely packed as of today she’s his new arm candy⁠—”

“—Who the fuck do you think you are!” Jude roars.

I charge him. No warning. No hesitation. I simply knock him onto his ass, pull out a knife, sit on his fucking chest and hold it to his neck. “Like I said, I hate odd numbers, but I don’t hate blood, I love the smell, the warmth, the addiction of knowing I’m sucking the fucking life out of you and you can’t do shit about it, test me one more time and you’ll know death, I’ll personally introduce you and it won’t be brief, Conquest.”

“Enough.” Rhodes takes one last drink of his wine and sets it calmly on the table. “We all know recent decisions on your part makes your heart a bit desperate to kill, yet hilariously unable to unalive certain pests.” He peers around me to Jude. “That would be you.”

“Caught that, asshole.” He squirms beneath my knife. “Touch her and I’ll kill you myself, I don’t give a shit about The Honor Society, about your stupid rules about⁠—”

I grin. “Careful Conquest, the last man who talked back to The Chancellor lost his tongue.” I flick the tip of the knife into his chin and slowly draw a tally mark down digging into his skin enough to slightly scar him and show my mark, the mark that matches my mask. “And now, you know a hint of the pain The Honor Society will bring you by way of The Proctor.”

“I won’t touch her.” Rhodes says. “I’m celibate. I’m the safest choice in this room.” He eyes me. “Second safest.”

Bastard!

I pull away from him, blood dripping from my knife and very characteristically, wipe it between my fingers. “Don’t make enemies you can’t afford Conquest, the last thing you need is your name on my fucking ledger.”

His eyes say more than his words ever could. I walk over and grab a rag and toss it at him.

He dabs his chin and nods to Jenner, they start walking out, Rhodes follows and when he’s finally to the door he calls over his shoulder. “Like I said Proctor, getting too familiar.”

“I handle my shit, you handle yours Chancellor.”

“Eleven days. Don’t let me down.” He closes the door behind him.

I hang my head knowing I’m about to face hell itself and when the yelling doesn’t start, I get worried.

I quickly turn.

Charlie’s sitting at the table fucking eating.

I just cut up her best friend’s boyfriend’s chin and she’s eating a steak? She cuts into it. “Cold because I slept, but still tender. Is this Syrah?" She eyes the bottle.

I smirk despite myself. Unbelievable. She’s so easy to love when I so desperately need to hate her. “It is. And glad you like it.”

The only sound is her chewing, scraping silverware against my stone plates, and then she gets up and starts doing dishes like this is normal, like we live together, like I’m not a killer.

And when she’s done, she walks back over to the couch and sits.

I look around the space. “What are you doing?”

“You marked me.”

“Yes.”

“I’m Famine.” “So?”

“You fed me.”

“And.”

“I was starving. Famine, must always be fed.” She glances up at me. “That’s how I pick my side. Feed me. Keep me from starving in every way, and I’m all yours.”

My heart sinks.