by C. R. Jane
"I know, we have so little time," she says worriedly.
Evidently tonight I’m being introduced to the “Mercy” way of getting ready for a party. I had thought that Mercy was a pretty laid-back girl. But I also hadn’t imagined that she would hook up with a drug dealer, so obviously I wasn't the best judge of character.
Mercy had us doing facial masks, waxing, manicures and pedicures as well as slathering ourselves with strange serums and lotions. It never seemed to end. What usually was a 15-minute process for me, took the full five hours. But I couldn't deny as I stood in front of the mirror after she finally deemed me done, we looked good.
About as good as it seems it was possible for us to look. Mercy jumps up and claps again. She gives me a serious look all of a sudden. "Do you think once we’re at this party we’ll get invited into the Rockefeller inner sanctum?" she asks.
I stare at her with my mouth slightly open, not knowing what to say to something so ridiculous.
She nods sagely as if I had just answered her. "No, you're right. There's no way they would let us into their inner sanctum."
I just shake my head as I follow her out of my room. Mercy definitely made life interesting.
We walk down the winding steps at the end of the hall that leads to the main floor. Flames from the torches attached to the walls flicker, casting a slightly spooky ambience on our surroundings as we walk. In this moment it’s very easy to believe that there could be a haunted forest, or even a haunted castle based on the vibes I’m picking up from the school at the moment.
I’m actually relieved when we step out through the side doors, unguarded as we had overheard they would be from a group of non-scholarship students who had been talking about the party.
We step out into the night. There is a chill in the air, a sign that fall is here. Mercy had forced me not to bring a jacket so that I could show off my tight black dress, spaghetti straps, and lots of skin as she put it. Now, I’m regretting listening to her. I start to rub my arms in an attempt to warm myself up. Though she’s in a dress too, she doesn’t seem cold at all.
"You know where we're going?" I ask, not seeing any other students walking on the grounds. It’s dark and it’s quiet out here.
She scoffs. "Surely you know that my spy skills are good enough to know where they hold their parties," she says with an affronted look.
I laugh and continue to follow her as we near the forest.
The woods look even thicker than they had when I had been driving up to the school. Many of the branches of the trees are devoid of leaves, making them almost look like arms reaching out to us. Dead leaves crunch beneath our feet as we walk deeper into the forest. The only source of light we have are the flashlights on our phones. Thank goodness for modern technology since we haven’t bothered to bring a real flashlight.
The forest creates such a thick darkness you can’t even see the stars when you look up, a feat considering we were out in the middle of nowhere and the sky should have been filled with stars.
"Mercy, are we almost there?" I ask nervously as I hear branches cracking from a few feet away as if there is someone walking around beside us. My skin crawls, and I keep glancing back but only see darkness following.
She looks back at me, her eyes wide with excitement. "Shhh, don't you know the best way to attract ghosts is by being noisy?" she says, gesturing for me to hurry up.
"I wasn't aware there was a ghost protocol," I say in a disgruntled voice, though I’m thankful I didn’t let her convince me to wear heels out here in the woods.
She throws me another annoyed look. After ten minutes of walking, which actually feels like an hour because of how nervous I feel, we begin to hear the sounds of music and laughter in the distance.
Mercy does another one of those weird leaps that she does when she is super excited and pulls on my arm to hurry me along. We stop just outside a large clearing that contains an enormous bonfire. Based on the thickness of the woods around us, this part of the forest had to have been specifically cleared, I assume not just for a Raven Academy party. The bonfire sits in the middle of the clearing, surrounded by a crowd of beautiful students.
There are Halloween decorations scattered about, and I’m shocked to see some of the coffins like the one I saw in the Dragon Tower when Mercy and I had hidden when we spied on Alexander.
I tap her shoulder. "Look at the coffins. They must be some kind of prop that the school uses for Halloween decorations."
I’m slightly relieved to see them, my mind had come up with some pretty crazy ideas over what they could've been used for over the last couple of weeks.
There is a full bar set up on one side of the clearing, a long line of students standing and waiting for their drinks in front of it. It seems insane to me that there is actually a fully staffed bar in the middle of the forest for a high school party, but evidently this is how the other half lives.
I suddenly desperately want to go back to the school. An overwhelming sensation hits that I don’t belong here. Not with these people. I’ve never been invited to such a party before.
“Come on,” says Mercy excitedly. You would think she has forgotten how much she herself is picked on by this crowd of beautiful people from the way that she is charging into the clearing like she doesn’t have a care in the world.
I can feel their eyes on us as we walk further into the light cast by the bonfire. Whispers start up, and I just know their talking about the fact that we actually showed up.
“Are you sure we’re supposed to be here?” I hiss, holding onto Mercy like she was my lifeline.
“Relax. Soon they will all be so drunk that they won’t even notice that we’re here,” Mercy says confidently. Looking around at the annoyed and angry faces, I’m not so sure about that.
Mercy doesn’t stop walking until we’re in line at the bar. I’m trying to decide if it’s acceptable for me to order a Cherry Coke when Mercy orders two Red Bull vodkas for us. “Can’t we get expelled for this?” I ask nervously when she hands me the frosted glass. Despite the fact that we are in the middle of the forest, somehow the bartender is still able to chill the glass cups.
Mercy takes a big sip, making a face as it slides down her throat. “That’s really strong,” she gasps. “I think I can already feel it.”
I take a small sip, the first I’ve ever taken of alcohol. The vodka burns my throat and I wheeze a bit after I swallow.
“Well, what should we do first?” Mercy asks, taking another sip as she looks around the party excitedly. “I just bet their exchanging all sorts of world secrets right now,” she says, doing her weird jump again and sloshing some of her drink out onto the grass.
“Maybe we should just go sit over there and stay out of the way,” I say, noting a few couches that have incomprehensibly been dragged into a lounge type area in the corner of the party. While I’m in awe that they managed to get actual couches out here in the middle of nowhere, the fact that there’s no one sitting on them yet is the main selling point for me.
“Don’t be silly,” says Mercy, beginning to drag me away once more. “We should dance.”
I’m just about to voice my strong opposition to her plan when Clarissa steps in front of us. “Trash aren’t invited, Crazy Girl,” she spits at Mercy.
Mercy pulls her chin up staunchly. “Adi was invited and I’m her guest. We have just as much of a right to be here as you do, Clarissa,” says Mercy bravely.
“Is that so?” says Clarissa, turning her gaze towards me. There’s so much hatred in her gaze. More than I’ve ever seen leveled at anyone, which is saying something considering all the bullying I’ve put up with in my life.
“Which one are you fucking?” she asks out of the blue.
“What?” I ask cautiously, not sure what she’s saying.
Clarissa is dressed in a black, strapless dress that’s so tight and so low cut that I’m pretty sure I can see some of her nipple. She looks far older and sexier than she usually does in her school
uniform. It’s intimidating.
“I said, which one are you fucking?” she spits out again, getting angry for no apparent reason. “There’s no way that you would have been allowed here tonight if you weren’t at least doing one of them. These guys don’t do charity cases.” She looks me over, a cold, cruel smile all over her face. “Or maybe they are now. I can’t imagine any of them wanting to touch you without putting a bag over your head first to hide the ugliness though.”
I would love to say that her words don’t affect me, but that would be lying. Every little comment digs into my skin like it was a snake, burrowing its way to my heart. It’s so stupid that I allowed Mercy to convince me to come. I don’t belong here.
“I could give you a list if you wanted,” she says suddenly, making me jump at her close proximity. She slides a finger across my collarbone making me sick inside. I half expected her nail to turn into a claw and chop my head off. “A list of what they like. A list of what might make them want you.”
Burning jealousy slides across my abdomen, so strong that it takes my breath away. I could just see Clarissa with them. See Alexander’s lust filled gaze as he kissed her. See them all touching her, owning her, wanting her. It makes me want to throw up.
“Oh, did you assume that I hadn’t had all of them at some point or another?” Clarissa says wickedly, obviously noticing how upset I had gotten at the mention of her knowing things about them. “We’re the same, them and I. In what world did you ever think that you could ever have them?”
All of a sudden, a guy I’ve never seen before slides into the group, putting his arm bizarrely around Mercy. He’s one of the pretty ones, just like Clarissa and the others. I expect Mercy to pull away from him, but instead she seems to melt into his touch as he whispers something into her ear. She has this besotted look on her face, so different from the Mercy that I’ve come to know. I watch in amazement as they walk off together towards the edge of the forest, leaving me by myself surrounded by the pack of witches. I’m so shocked that I can’t even open my mouth to yell after her.
Clarissa watches them walk off with a gleeful expression before turning back to me. “Seems your friend didn’t get the memo that girls are supposed to stick together at parties,” she practically sings at me.
It’s funny. I had always been warned about what happened at these kinds of parties. How you needed to be careful about leaving your drink unattended or who you were in a room with, but I had never been warned about how other girls could be the scariest threat at a party. I’m pretty sure there’s nothing more terrifying than Clarissa and her cronies at the moment.
I begin to back away, even as I know it’s a pointless endeavor. Clarissa and the other beautifuls begin to descend on me, terrifying expressions of glee on their faces as they get closer until my back strikes against something hard. Stumbling I look up, expecting to have run into a tree. I’m shocked to see a guy I’ve never seen before standing behind me. He opens his mouth to say something as his arms loop around me. He’s tall and built like a freaking truck with dark brunette hair and faded grey eyes.
Suddenly, the strangest expression slides over his face and he starts breathing in deeply. The startling look of euphoria that crosses his face stirs some kind of memory I just can’t quite bring into focus. I’ve seen a look like that before. But where?
“What do we have here?” he says as he buries his face into my hair.
I gasp as he takes another deep breath.
“Step away from her, Ryan. She’s ours,” comes Clarissa’s voice. To my surprise the guy behind me, Ryan apparently, begins to growl at her like a dog protecting the prey he just captured. His arms tighten around me to the point that I’m worried he’ll leave bruises.
“Um, excuse me. Could you let me go?” I ask, trying to wriggle free from his iron grip.
He snarls again and draws me closer. Clarissa abruptly changes course, smiling at how uncomfortable I obviously am.
“I changed my mind. You can borrow her tonight, Ryan,” she says with a laugh as she and the other girls begin to walk away.
I almost call after them, but luckily, I manage to hold myself in check. Ryan starts to drag me towards the woods, and I push against his iron grip.
“Let me go!”
We’re attracting attention, but no one steps in to help. In fact, most of them study us with amused expressions and a little intrigue about what was happening to me. It almost feels like they’re enjoying the show.
Where are Mercy and the guys? “Relax, sweet thing,” says Ryan suddenly. His voice carries a strange quality to it, familiar and unfamiliar all at once. The sound of it beckons a memory once again, but I can’t quite grasp it.
All at once I find myself walking beside Ryan with no complaints, holding onto his hand with purpose as if we’re really a couple sneaking away to hook up at a party.
The forest is almost black around us when we stop, and all at once I’m filled with fear...as well as confusion of what the heck I’m doing in the middle of the forest with a strange guy.
The last thing I remembered was the party...and Mercy leaving? And then I draw a blank.
“I need to get back to the party,” I tell him in a panicked voice.
“What the fuck?” he says as he looks at me strangely like I’ve surprised him.
I begin to move away from him, but he grabs my arm, making me gasp at how hard he’s holding it. “Let me go,” I screech at him.
“Hold still,” he says to me and all of a sudden, I once again find myself relaxing and leaning back against a tree behind him.
“Much better,” he says. “This won’t hurt a bit.” He leans in, his lips so close to mine that I’m afraid he’s going to kiss me. Instead, he stops about an inch away and simply seems to breathe in.
All at once an image of me standing, dressed all in black, at a cemetery fills my mind. Looking around I see everyone that I knew in my old life crying despondently. Looking to my left, I see my mother, a black veil over her face. Her shoulders are shaking as she weeps. Suddenly I know where I am and who is in the closed coffin in front of me. It’s my father. Gut wrenching sobs start to come out of me at the knowledge that my father has died.
“What the fuck are you doing, you stupid prick?” comes a familiar voice, yanking me out of my nightmarish vision. Opening my eyes, I see Alexander and Finn standing there, both looking like avenging angels as they glare at Ryan who has pulled away from me. They’re like two sides of a coin, Alexander with his dark features, and Finn with his almost white blonde hair. Alexander is practically vibrating with rage.
“Chill man, you know what I’m doing,” says Ryan casually, trying to hide the fear that I can almost smell wafting off of him.
“Wrong answer,” says Finn, and all of a sudden Alexander attacks. He leaps at Ryan, leveling him with a resounding crack that’s so loud, I’m half afraid that Alexander just punched a hole into this guy’s skull.
Ryan falls to the ground moaning, but Alexander doesn’t stop. On and on he levels Ryan with kicks and punches until Ryan stops moving, obviously injured enough that he passes out from the pain. Alexander is going to kick him in the stomach one more time until Finn finally steps in.
“I’d say that’s enough, don’t you think?” Finn asks calmly, as if Alexander hadn’t almost just killed someone. Maybe he did kill him? I don’t think I can see his chest moving.
All I care about though is that he just saved me.
Releasing a sob, I fly into Alexander’s arms. I still feel out of it, much more relaxed than I should be about what just happened.
Looking up I see Finn watching me, his fists are clenched as if he’s holding himself back from reaching out to me.
“Thank you,” I whisper over and over into Alexander’s ear as I hold onto him as if he’s my lifeline.
At first, he’s stiff, but as I continue to chant, he relaxes, and his arms come around me. Finn finally steps closer and brushes the side of my face. I lean into him as if I
can absorb the comfort he’s trying to offer.
Alexander finally pulls back after a minute, even as I start shaking, coming down from whatever just happened.
“I don’t even know how I got here,” I say through my tears. “I was at the party with Mercy, and then Clarissa was there, and then suddenly I was here.” I start to cry harder and this time Finn steps forward to gather me in his arms. He makes soothing sounds while he rubs my back.
My knees falter a bit as I realize how tired I am, and suddenly Finn scoops me up and starts to carry me in his arms.
“I’m so tired,” I tell him, wrapping my arms around his neck. I’m well aware that I’m acting much friendlier than I should with these guys, but I don’t have the energy or willpower inside of me to care.
“What should we do with Ryan?” asks Finn over his shoulder. I can see Alexander walking behind us, his possessive, intense gaze sending shivers down my back.
“Just leave him. If he’s lucky the wolves will get him. He’ll know better than to set foot near her again,” says Alexander in a dark, menacing tone that promises punishment.
I should be scared, but in that moment punishment for whatever just happened is all I want.
We get to the edge of the clearing where I can hear the party is in full swing. I just want to go back to my bed but I’m so tired I think I’ve forgotten how to speak.
Suddenly Dante and Nix appear dragging a drunk looking Mercy behind them. They look at me worriedly.
“Where was she?” asks Nix as his eyes dart all around me as if he’s trying to look for injuries.
“Ryan Caldwell,” says Alexander in a scathing tone as if Ryan’s name explains everything. Dante and Nix’s faces go red with rage. I feel an absurd amount of comfort that these four guys would even care.
“Adi?” Mercy asks in a sing-song voice. Dante rolls his eyes at her. “Someone took a bit too much,” he says exasperatedly.
Took too much? Does Mercy do drugs?
“Warn them off for a week. I don’t want her getting any crazier than she already is,” orders Alexander. Dante nods even though I can tell taking orders from Alexander is not his favorite thing.