Page 72 of Temptation
I was abandoned.
I was used.
I was born in the town where Satanic cults were a thing, and where people disappeared without a trace, never to be found.
I was surrounded by beautiful monsters—not because they committed monstrosities, but because they made me love them, only to betray me. Only to use me for their own personal gain.
“If one of you doesn’t start talking,” I began, “I’m walking out this door, and you will never see me again. That I can promise you.”
“No!” Dylan and Ash shouted in unison and looked at each other, while Kane kept his gaze plastered to the floor, and Rowan just kept looking at me.
“It’s not your choice anymore. All of you,” I pointed at the four of them, “kept making choices for me. You took and took and took, but I have nothing left to give, guys.” I smiled. “I have nothing left to give because you took it all. You never asked me what I wanted. You never asked if I was okay with this wickedness you threw me into—”
“We didn’t–” Ash started, but I cut him off again.
“Yes, you did. You two lied to me.” I pointed at Ash and Dylan. “Ash, you wanted to use me. You wanted to use me to get an advantage, and for what? Do you even know what you’re fighting for?”
“I’m no—”
“Save it. And you.” I looked at Dylan. “You claim you love me. You claim we were meant to be together, that you wanted to protect me. You’re beating yourself up because you failed me, but I never asked you to do it. I never asked you to lie to me.”
“Little One… I don’t know what to—”
“Save it!” I took a step to the left, my entire body shaking from the adrenaline coursing through my veins.
“Kane.” I looked at him. “Why didn’t you tell me the whole truth? You tried to warn me, but why not the whole truth?”
“Because they would’ve killed us both if I told you anything before the time was right.”
“Finally!” I exclaimed. “The first truthful sentence tonight.” I walked toward him, completely ignoring the puppy eyes Dylan and Ash sported. This wasn’t about them and their fragile egos anymore.
This wasn’t about love or hate. This was about survival. My fucking survival, and if I’d learned anything in the past two years, it was that I only had myself.
They tried to help, but they couldn’t help me until they sorted their own fucking heads. They couldn’t be helpful because they didn’t even know where to begin.
I did.
“Ash,” I called out, still looking at Kane. “You said you had information. And don’t tell me that the only information you managed to find out was that a boogeyman was after me.”
I sat down next to Kane and looked at Ash. “You’re gonna sing like a nightingale now, darling. Because I am not dying in this shithole, and neither are any of you. So, whoever doesn’t want to be here, and whoever doesn’t want to share everything they’ve been hiding from me, the door is there.” I pointed toward the entrance. “Feel free to leave.”
“Skylar, I can’t tell you,” Rowan murmured. “But I still want to help you.”
“How can you help me when I can’t trust you, Rowan? How can I believe in anything you have to say, when you don’t even want to tell me what’s been happening with Danny?”
“Tell her,” Dylan said. “Tell her or I will.”
“No.” Rowan shook his head, panic written all over his face. “You can’t.”
“Fucking tell her!” Dylan spat out.
“I can’t,” Rowan cried out. “It would kill her.”
“Tell me what?” I interfered, but neither one of them answered. “Tell me what?” I asked again and stood up. I walked toward them, and stood between the two raging bulls, neither one of them taking their eyes off of each other.
Ash stood next to Dylan as silent as a statue, but his calculating gaze told me that he wasn’t relaxed. Not for one second.
“Rowan.” I touched his shoulder, feeling the strain there. “What is he talking about?”
