by L. A. Sable
“I’m not sure yet,” I reply honestly. “Nothing particularly interesting has come my way yet.”
“Really?” He asks with what sounds like genuine surprise. “The way my brother talks about you, I’d have thought he already staked a claim.”
My heart beats a little faster. “I didn’t realize that I was a common topic of conversation.”
“Didn’t you? I’m surprised because subtlety isn’t exactly Kai’s strong suit. He must have told you he’s interested.”
“We’re friends,” I say with a careless shrug. “But he hasn’t officially asked me out or anything.”
“He will.” Lukas regards me with a narrow gaze, but a small smile plays at the corner of his lips. “Just make sure you explore all your options before making a decision.”
I turn my hand so the tips of our fingers touch. “Are you saying you’re an option?”
He doesn’t answer immediately and for a devastating moment, I wonder if I’ve incorrectly read this entire conversation. But then he squeezes my hand hard. “If you want me to be.”
The moment couldn’t go better if it had been scripted. Again, I feel the pang of premonition that there haven’t been enough obstacles placed in my path. It’s agony, waiting for the other shoe to inevitably drop.
And as if I’d conjured him from the darkest reaches of my thoughts, I hear a familiar voice behind me.
“Isn’t this a cozy scene?”
I turn to see a smirking Asher standing behind me. His mocking gaze takes in the hand that Lukas is holding before returning to my face. Before either of us can stop him, he slides into an empty chair and leans forward with a mocking smile.
“Hey man,” Lukas says, letting go of my hand. “We missed you in class this morning. When did you get back?”
My head snaps up. “You weren’t in class this morning? Where were you?”
Asher glares at me. “Who are you, my mother? Mind your own business, Goldie.”
“C’mon, man,” Lukas interrupts, his tone sharp. “It’s a new term let’s not start up with that shit again.”
“Wow,” Asher murmurs, leaning back in his chair so that the front legs tip up off the floor. “That didn’t take long. I know you work fast, Goldie, but this has to be some sort of record.”
“Just ignore him until he gets bored.” Lukas says to me with a sigh. The alarm on his watch goes off and he glances down at it with a curse. “I have to meet with my advisor before class. You two play nice.”
Asher places his hand on his chest with an askance expression. “I’m always nice.”
“Sure you are.” Lukas stands but hesitates next to my chair before leaving. “I’ll catch up with you later and we can talk about this weekend.”
“Absolutely.” I wave him away with a smile that fades as soon as I turn back to Asher, who’s watching me like a cat who’s just cornered an injured mouse. “Already skipping class this early in the semester? That’s not a good sign.”
“I had places to be, but if we’re talking about secrets,” he says, pitching his voice low and giving me a conspiratorial wink. “What do you think lover boy would say if he found out about you and me?”
Anger flashes through me and I resist the urge to crack my water goblet on the table and stab him in the throat with the broken stem. “There is no you and me. And you want people to know about that night as little as I do.”
“You don’t think I’m over here pining for you?” He brushes my hand, mimicking the same movement that Lukas had made only moments before.
I snatch my hand away, wishing I could slap the smirk off his face. It still amazes me that someone so gorgeous could be so evil. “I think you should forget that night ever happened, which is precisely what I plan to do.”
“I see what you’re doing here,” he murmurs, gaze passing over my perfectly tailored uniform and designer heels. “And I’m not going to warn you again.”
“I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.”
He grabs my hand with a bruising grip, squeezing hard enough to painfully grind the fine bones against each other. “You’re upsetting the balance and you’re going to end up paying for it. Even your own mother wants you out of here. In fact, the two of you would both be happier back in New York. Take the hint and go.”
“Are you the one who put that idea in her head about me moving into the house and going to public school?” It takes all of my strength to rip my hand away from him. The pain is easy to ignore but the almost manic look in his eyes sends a thrill of fear moving through me. “You realize how crazy you sound, right? I’m not after your inheritance and neither is Trish. Just leave me alone.”
“You don’t have any idea what this is about,” he snaps, expression feral. “I’m not going to warn you again. Stay at Black Lake and eventually you’ll leave in a body bag.”
“You’re disgusting.” Even after everything that’s happened, I remind myself that it’s only meaningless threats. If Asher were capable of really hurting me, he’d have done it by now. He couldn’t have been the one who pushed me in front of the bus. He’s a scared little boy that doesn’t want to lose what little he has. “I think you’re a broken person who’s determined to take everyone else down with you.”
His gaze pierces through me, expression sardonic. “Takes one to know one.”
“I’m serious, Asher. Stay away from me.”
“It’s your funeral,” he murmurs, leaning back so that his unbuttoned blazer flares around him. “When the time comes, don’t say that I didn’t give you fair warning.”
I force myself to turn away without dignifying that with a response. But even with the haughty set of my shoulders as I sweep away, I know he can sense the wave of fear that washes over me. His heavy gaze burns through my back and sends prickles down my spine as he watches me leave the dining hall.
He’s a like a predator, just waiting for the right moment to strike.
Chapter 8
I spend the rest of the day forcing myself to forget about Asher’s threats. We still have English together for third period but he makes a point of ignoring me and I return the favor. The biggest problem is that the open animosity between us makes it more difficult for me to make any friendly overtures with the guys because they always seem to travel together.
But I can’t worry about that right now because it’s time to put the next stage of my plan into motion. To replace Chloe at the top, I have to take everything that matters to her. Breaking up her and Lukas was easier than I thought, but that doesn’t mean I can expect everything else to go as smoothly.
When I show up to the pool, the diving team is already there. The doors haven’t even slammed shut behind me before Chloe and her friends are in my face. Grace and Ocean flank her from slightly behind, bare feet slapping against the tile, as they all come to a stop in front of me.
“This is a team practice,” Chloe says, voice snide. “The class isn’t until tomorrow.”
“I know that,” I reply pleasantly. “I’m here to try out for the team.”
I’m already dressed in my suit with a matching swim jacket over top of it and a monogrammed duffel bag over my shoulder. But it’s one thing to look the part and another to perform. But I can tell from their reactions that seeing me like this is a shock. Their gazes pass quickly over the exposed skin of my legs, looking for any evidence of trauma that they won’t find. All of my scars are on the inside.
Grace and Ocean aren’t quick enough to hide the surprise on their faces but Chloe keeps her expression neutral.
“I’m so sorry,” she says, not even trying to make the apology sound believable. “But we already held tryouts over winter break and there’s a no walk-on policy.”
“Good thing I already got special permission.” I make a point of waving to the new swim coach who’s walking around the other end of the pool with a clipboard in her hand. Coach Lehy doesn’t hold a candle to Liam, but she was sympathetic when I explained the extent of my injuries and
how much diving meant to me as exercise during my recovery. “Seeing as my accident kept me away, Coach Lehy is letting me try out now.”
“That was nice of her,” Chloe says with a tight smile. “And I’m only saying this because I’m looking out for you, but this is a competition team and most of us made state last year. I’m not trying to be mean, but I’d hate to see you embarrass yourself.”
She’d hate it so much that a video would be up on Inner Circle before I’d even swam back to the side of the pool.
“Don’t worry,” I reply, returning the fake smile with one of my own. “I’ve been practicing. It’s amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it.”
“If you want to risk social embarrassment with another belly flop, I won’t stop you,” she replies with a smirk. “We can’t wait to see what you can do.”
“As long as nobody has greased up the diving board, I’m sure I’ll be just fine.”
Chloe’s lips press into a thin line, but she doesn’t bother to look abashed. “I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.”
“I’m sure you don’t.” I gesture for her to move out of the way. “Do you mind?”
Chloe hesitates as if she’s going to physically block me from getting to the bleachers but eventually she steps aside. When I move past her to set my things down on a bench, she follows me.
“By the way, you know I don’t care about the whole Lukas thing, right? He was getting boring.” She tosses the cascade of dark hair over her shoulder hard enough that it hits Ocean in the face. “I was about to break up with him anyway.”
“Oh, good. Your feelings about it were definitely my biggest concern.”
If she hears the sarcasm in my voice, Chloe ignores it. “Of course, if I ever figure out who posted that picture, I’ll wear their hollowed out skull as a party hat..”
“That definitely sounds like a reasonable response,” I reply pleasantly. Chloe won’t come right out and accuse me of doing it because that would only highlight that she’s not in a position of power. But I decide to dig the knife in a little deeper, because every time she loses control, I get one step closer to my goal. “Although, have you considered that whoever took that picture was probably following you because they knew where you were going? The mostly likely culprit is someone who knew your secret.”
Chloe stiffens while Grace and Ocean exchange a glance behind her. I can already see the wheels turning in their heads. “None of my friends would betray me like that,” she snaps.
“If you say so, but you have to be a Diamond to post anonymously on Inner Circle so that kind of narrows the list of suspects.”
Circles of red flare on her cheeks as Chloe glares at me and then abruptly turns away, while her friends go chasing after her. I can’t hear what they’re saying but I assume it’s hasty assurances that they weren’t the ones responsible for humiliating her.
And really, I don’t even feel bad. Chloe wouldn’t be in this mess if she hadn’t been cheating on Lukas in the first place. The chance to make her suspicious of her closest friends is just icing on that particular cake.
The coach comes up behind me as I take off my swim jacket and toss it over my bag.
“You ready?” she asks, a reassuring smile on her lined face.
Coach Lehy looks like she’s spent her entire life under the sun and doing laps in a pool, but she seems friendly enough. I suppress a pang as I remember that it’s supposed to be Liam standing here right now. I’m not the only one who Chloe has hurt, but I can take revenge for the rest of us.
“Absolutely,” I reply.
“I’m going to have you perform your best dive and then we’ll go from there,” Coach Lehy says, as she directs me toward the diving board. “Unfortunately, our team is quite competitive so you’ll really have to show me something special if you want a spot on the roster.”
“I’ll do my best,” I reply with a smile I hope is self-effacing. “And I appreciate you giving me the chance.”
“No problem. Whenever you’re ready, show us what you got.”
Ignoring the pointed stares of Chloe and the others, I make my way around the bleachers and toward the far end of the pool. A muffled titter is audible as I pass them, probably the result of some cutting remark. But being mocked doesn’t bother me because they have no idea what’s about to happen next.
They obviously still think of me as the girl who slipped off a greased up diving board and crashed into the pool hard enough that she had to be carried to the nurse’s office. But that girl is long gone, and I’ve spent the last two months training with the best coaches that money can buy. I’ve practiced for hundreds of hours in the pool, overcoming weakness in both body and mind. Don’t get me wrong, there’s no Olympic gold in my future, but I might be good enough to knock Chloe down a peg or two, which is significantly more important to me.
I mount the ladder with deliberate slowness, aware that a din has fallen over the poorhouse as everyone turns their attention to me. They need to think I’m hesitating out of nerves so they’re primed to see a show. If I know anything about the student body at Black Lake Prep, someone is definitely filming this for posterity.
The most important thing is that I get a spot on the team because it will give me access to Chloe in a way that I won’t have otherwise, and go a long way towards getting under her skin.
With sure-footed steps, I climb to the top of the diving board, high enough that I can see the dozens of faces in the bleachers staring up at me. It’s impossible to imagine what it would feel like to plummet to the concrete below as I walk far enough out to be over the water. I’d like to believe that if I slipped and fell far enough back to hit the tile and crack my head wide open that a video of it wouldn’t end up circulated on Inner Circle, but I don’t have that much faith in my fellow students.
It isn’t just the dive team that’s watching me, I realize. The entire swim team, both male and female, are gathered around the edges of the pool. Even the people who were doing laps on the far side have gotten out of the water to watch.
The thought of my cracked and bloody body smashed onto the tile floor of the pool briefly flashes before my eyes, forcing me to take deep breaths to keep myself calm. I’ve never quite gotten over my fear of heights.
But I keep my composure by focusing on Chloe’s face. She mouths something when our eyes meet that’s difficult to make out but looks like choke bitch. There isn’t anything in the world that I can’t overcome to ensure she gets what’s coming to her, including a ridiculous fear of falling. I am in control of my body and it does precisely what I want it to and nothing more. Breaking from her hateful gaze, I focus on the end of the diving board and slow my breathing until every sensation has faded away, save for a steely determination.
My brain is already walking through the backward double somersault with a half twist that I’ve spent weeks perfecting before my body takes the first step. I don’t even realize that I’ve finished the routine until I feel the cold shock as I dive into the water.
The sound of cheering greets my ears as I swim back to the surface, more than just the polite applause that usually accompanies someone’s turn on the board. There’s no question in my mind that I’ve made the team. The feeling of triumph that rushes over me as I use the small ladder to climb out of the pool is almost enough to eclipse the throbbing ache in my back as my still healing muscles protest.
I’ve been warned by the doctors that it could take months for the residual pain to fade, maybe even longer considering the extent of my nerve damage. I haven’t yet figured out what cruel twist of fate makes it so that bones and joints hurt more when they’re healing than being broken. I’d been cleared for physical activity so no additional damage was being done, but the pain is worse than I imagined it would be, enough to seize my body and rob me of the ability to breathe.
But I’m all smiles as I stand up on the side of the pool, nobody needs to know what’s hidden underneath the pleasant mask.
“
That was amazing,” Coach Lehy gushes as she approaches me with a wide smile. She slaps me on the back in a congratulatory gesture that sends another rocket of agony shooting down my spine.
“Thank you.” I swallow a gasp of pain and smile back at her, reminding myself that there is no such thing as success without suffering. Even though I’ll be paying for this for the next couple of days, showing off my most technically proficient dive is worth a little pain for the look of rage and horror on Chloe’s face. She looks like she’s about to choke on a hairball and I can’t get enough of it.
“You perform that dive in competition and we have a good shot at a state championship this year.” Coach Lehy checks her clipboard before turning to the other divers gathered behind her. “Ocean, I have to give your spot to Lily for the invitational next week because her dive has a higher start value. You’ll be an alternate.”
Ocean looks crushed, but it’s Chloe who has to say something. “That’s not fair!”
“It’s more than fair, Ms. Devlin,” the coach replies repressively. “We can only take three female divers to the competition and the highest scores get those slots. Anyone unhappy with that should work a little harder to increase the complexity of their dives. Now, everyone into the water for warmup laps.”
Chloe glares at me but doesn’t say anything else. All three of them turn back to the pool as Ocean mutters a half-hearted, “Congratulations.”
“Remind me to get you fitted for a competition suit before next week so we can order it in time,” Coach Lehy says, making another note on her clipboard. “Practices are on Mondays and Wednesdays directly after the last school period. If you miss more than two leading up to a meet, then I pull you from the roster. And remember now that you’re a student athlete, it’s important that you adhere to the Code of Conduct. Any violations could jeopardize your spot not the team. Got it?”
“Absolutely.”
I want to question how Chloe could stay on the team after the stunt she pulled last term but don’t bother. Apparently, reading my private journal out loud in front of the entire school body and their parents isn’t as much of an infraction as cutting class. It’s always been clear that the rules were never meant to apply to everyone. And the biggest part of what makes Chloe such a force of evil is that no one has ever placed a real check on her behavior before. When I’m done with her, she’ll have no choice but to face the fact that actions have consequences, no matter how rich and powerful you are.