Total pages in book: 177
Estimated words: 176345 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 882(@200wpm)___ 705(@250wpm)___ 588(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 176345 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 882(@200wpm)___ 705(@250wpm)___ 588(@300wpm)
I throw him a look. “Because I told Milo I wouldn’t talk to you anymore.”
The cheeky smirk that appears on his face, pulling his lips from pierced ear to pierced ear, makes me want to roll my eyes. “And I thought he wasn’t the jealous type.”
“He’s not. It was my choice,” I say.
He grabs his heart. “Ouch. Don’t stab me.”
“Why are you sitting here?” I ask. “You could choose any seat in the room, yet you choose to sit here next to me.”
“Can’t I just sit? I’m not doing anything,” he says.
“Yet,” I reply.
His eyes narrow. “You don’t trust me anymore?”
“Have I ever?”
He snorts and opens his book, shaking his head. “Wow. Becoming a Phantom really has changed you.”
I put my hand under my temple to support my face while I stare at him because it’s fucking on now. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
He licks his pierced lips. “I’m just saying … you used to be so much more fun and easygoing.”
“You’re only saying that because you’re angry with me,” I muse.
“I miss you, okay?” he says, clutching his book while throwing me a casual glance with his dark eyes every now and then. “Isn’t that enough?”
I take in a breath and scroll down on my laptop to pretend I’m working. “Nope.”
“Look, I tried to ignore whatever it is you’ve got going on with that Milo dude, but I need my friend back. Okay?” He glances over my shoulder at my phone, on which I have a picture of all four of us, so I turn it away.
“Who was that?”
I frown. “Just my friends.”
“No, there was a girl on your phone.”
Fuck.
I put the phone down. “It’s none of your business.”
“Is that why you don’t want to hang out with us anymore? You’re too busy with Milo and that girl, whoever she is?”
“What I do with my time is my choice,” I retort.
He sighs drearily. “Oh, c’mon. The Tartarus parties are no fun without you. You don’t miss it? At all?”
“I don’t miss being betrayed,” I say.
He frowns. “What do you mean?”
Like he doesn’t know exactly what Ares did.
“You weren’t there when we needed you guys,” I quip. “When Phantoms were being attacked by Skull & Serpent Society, and the previous dean threatened to close down our society, you didn’t step in and help us.”
“What were we supposed to do?” he quips.
“Offer weapons? Men? Money?” I retort. “Hell, anything would’ve been fine.”
“You know it doesn’t work like that,” he says, shaking his head. “I don’t make the decisions, and I couldn’t convince Ares to …”
“No, but you could’ve supported us. You could’ve supported me.”
He sighs out loud. “I know. I’m sorry. I just wish things would’ve been different. Can we please be friends again?”
“Whatever. I have to think about it,” I say, averting my eyes. “Let’s just focus on our studies.”
I tap the pen vigorously against the paper, trying to write down this essay I have due, but I can practically feel Caleb’s eyes boring a hole into my back. I open a folder on my laptop, but I accidentally click on the wrong one, which holds all the photos of Lana, so I quickly tap away before he sees and starts asking questions I don’t want to answer.
Suddenly, my phone rings, the name appearing on the screen making my heart palpitate.
“Fuck.”
“Who is it?” Caleb asks.
Crescent Vale City Penitentiary is calling.
I jump up from my seat. “I gotta take this one. Watch my stuff.”
I run off to take the call in private.
“Mom,” I mutter as I close the door to the bathroom behind me. “How are you?”
“I’m doing good. I just wanted to call and ask if you’ve been taking care of Rory.”
“Of course,” I reply. “But it wasn’t easy.”
“Don’t let them get to her, you hear me?” she grits. “I cannot lose my little girl to those sons of bitches.”
“Mom, I’m trying, okay?”
“Try harder!”
“Is that why you’re calling me? To badger me? I’m already taking care of it; don’t fucking worry about it.”
“Yes, no, my point is, take care of her because she’s all you got.”
I frown, clutching the phone tightly. “What do you mean?”
“We’re not getting out.”
I swallow away the lump in my throat. “How long?”
“Life.”
The phone cracks.
“Without parole.”
It feels like I got struck by lightning just now.
“That has to be a mistake,” I say. “There’s no way—”
“They know about everything, Nathan. All the money, it’s gone. They took it. And since our businesses got hounded by that Bones Brotherhood, the feds assumed we were part of them too.”
“What? That’s bullshit!”
“I know, but you have to stay away from them,” she says.
“I’m trying, but you left us with a giant fucking debt they wanted paid,” I say through gritted teeth.
“I know, and I’m sorry, Nathan. I wish I could undo what we did, but I can’t.”
“Why did you do it?” I yell.