Saven Deception (11 page)

LC: You did nothing wrong. It
was me. You were right. I was messing with you, and it seemed like a good time
to give up the game. I’d prefer if you didn’t contact me again.

Something splinters irreparably inside me.
The tears I’ve been holding at bay let loose like a river bursting its banks. I
sob big, fat, ugly tears, and I hate that I’m so weak, that I’ve been reduced
to this pitiful version of me.

I reread his message over and over until
the words are a hazy mess through my blurry eyes. How can he sound so cold and
matter-of-fact after all the romantic endearments that came out of his mouth?
Because
he was messing with you, and he didn’t mean a word of it.
My inner voice is
cruel but to the point.

A shrill, piercing noise splinters the air,
and I’m adequately distracted. I pop my head into the corridor. Vin is pacing
up and down. “Stay put until I understand what’s happening.” The alarm blares
and a flashing red light streaks along the corridor.

I duck back into the empty dorm. After a
few minutes, the buzzer ceases and my ears give silent thanks. Vin sticks his
head around the door confirming it was a false alarm.

With nothing better to do, I rest my head
on my pillow and fall asleep.

I wake at ten minutes to midnight in a
cruel twist of fate. Unfortunately, my body and mind are still painfully
attuned to Logan.

Unable to fall back asleep, my feet
gravitate toward the library of their own accord. I try to ignore the sliver of
hope I feel: Hope that he might show up at our usual time and I’ll discover the
events of the last twenty-four hours were merely a bad dream. My fingers curl
around the door tentatively, and my tongue feels fuzzy in my mouth. Stepping
into the room, all hope evaporates as I stare out the window at the empty space
across from me.

My heart feels like a block of ice as I
walk to the row of books. Perhaps I should choose something frivolous or
humorous to try to cheer myself up, but I’m drawn to dark, destructive
romances, like a moth to a flame. Selecting
Gone with the Wind
, I settle
down on the cushioned seat and start to read.

Angst drips off the pages and writhes in
my chest, but I enjoy the rudimentary torture.

A muted thud on the window startles the
hell out of me, and I jump in fright. My heart is thundering and liquid fear
races through my veins. Bolstering my courage, I face the glass.

Stark soulless eyes stare blankly at me as
a pasty, wrinkled, weightless body floats in the water outside. Bobbing against
the glass, Odie’s lifeless form strikes a knife of terror straight through me.

I’m vaguely aware of a cacophony of
screams echoing all around me.

It takes several moments to realize the
screams are coming from me.

Firm hands squeeze my shoulders, and I’m distantly aware of
words being spoken in my ear. A blistering pain rips across my cheek, and I
surface from my comatose-like state. I massage the spot where the slap hit my
skin.

Vin’s concerned face hovers over mine.
“I’m sorry I had to do that, Sadie, but you’re in shock and I needed to bring
you back to us. Did you see Odie fall?”

 “No. I was reading and I heard a bang
against the window, and when I looked out, I saw him. Oh, God.” I clamp a hand
over my mouth, battling to keep control of my fragile emotions. “He’s really
dead, isn’t he?”

“I’m afraid so,” Vin replies gently.

I bury my head in my hands and try to get
a grip, conscious of the rising murmurs behind me. If I’m having a total meltdown,
I’d rather not do it in front of an audience. I’ve never seen a dead person
before, and I’m more freaked out than I’d care to admit. For as long as I live,
I don’t think I’ll forget the vacant look in Odie’s eyes.

“Can you take her to the kitchen and stay
with her until I finish up?” Vin says over my head.

Someone wraps a multi-colored plaid
blanket around me, and I’m drawn into an embrace. Strands of long, blonde hair
stick to the moist skin on my face, and I draw back as if stung. Neve looks
upset. My first thought is thank God because I was seriously beginning to think
she was incapable of demonstrating any normal human emotion.

She starts to lead me out of the room. At
the last second, I spin around, as if coerced. My eyes fasten on Logan’s
through the window. There’s no mistaking the obvious concern in his eyes.
Stupid hope grows wings inside me. But in a split second, it evaporates as I
watch him speedily walk away.

Numb to all sensation, I allow Neve to steer
me to the kitchen, and I take a seat at one of the vacant tables while she
prepares drinks.

Mummifying myself in the blanket is of no
use: Nothing can stop the forceful shivering whipping through my body. Cold icy
chills replace the warm blood in my veins.

“Jeez, Sadie, your hands are like icicles.”
Neve rubs my hands between her own as she takes a seat.

“How do you know Logan?” The words fly out
of my mouth with urgency.

Neve’s hands stall and her spine stiffens.

“Don’t even consider denying it. I can
tell you two know each other—it’s the only explanation that makes sense—and you
are
going to fill me in.”

“You’re making a big deal out of nothing.”
She pulls away from me, clasping her hands in her lap.

“I think I’ll be the judge of that.” My
hands curl around the mug of sweet tea, and the heat starts to thaw out my
frozen joints.

Neve refuses to look at me and my
frustration is mounting.

“I thought we were friends?”

Her head whips around. “We are.”

“Friends are honest with each other.” I
incline my head toward her, beseeching her with my eyes. While I understand I
might not like what she has to say, it’s better than being completely in the
dark.

“Look.” She releases a defeated sigh. “I
know him, and he’s not a good guy for you. Trust me on that.”

My eyes and lips narrow in unison. “What
does that mean? That he’s not a good guy
for me
?” My face is on fire,
rage infusing my cells.

“Cool your jets,” she says flippantly.

The strength of my emotion startles me.
“Don’t you dare patronize me!” I jump up and the blanket tumbles to the tiled
floor. While one side of me is shocked at my behavior, another part gleefully
encourages me to continue.

“You’re blowing this out of proportion!” she
roars and I flinch.

I wonder if she has a split personality
because her ability to switch from casual indifference to hotheaded anger
happens faster than I could snap my fingers. A tiny internal voice urges
caution, and I rein in my anger. Plopping back down on the chair, I bend over
and scoop up the blanket, nestling into its protective cocoon. “Tell me what’s
going on. Please.”

She clearly spots something in my eyes
because she takes pity on me at last. “You remember I told you that my family
had powerful connections and we had to use those to our advantage?”

I nod, not liking where I sense this might
be going.

She folds her arms across her chest.
“Logan’s family is even more powerful, and you don’t want to get tangled up in
that. Besides, he isn’t a free agent and he should’ve told you that.”

“What?” I’m sure my face looks as
crestfallen as I sound.

“He’s already in a relationship, Sadie,
and he shouldn’t have started anything with you because his future is pretty
much already mapped out. There’s no room for you in any of that.”

I shouldn’t be surprised, really, I
shouldn’t. But her verification that everything he said to me was a lie slaps
me in the face like a wet fish, and a half-laugh half-cry chokes out of my
mouth. I slouch in my chair. I so want this day to be over.

“If it’s any consolation, I think he
actually did like you.”

“It’s not.” An awful thought rises to the
forefront of my mind. “Oh my God, it’s you, isn’t it? He’s in a relationship
with you!”

Neve takes one look at my face and busts
out laughing. She laughs so hard tears roll down her cheeks. I glare at her. I
know I should leave, but I’m not budging until she responds to my statement.

Once composed, she maneuvers her chair
closer to mine and tries to take my hand.

“You have some serious mental issues, and
I honestly can’t figure you out,” I say.

The corner of her mouth twitches.

“Neve.” I inject as much venom into that
one word as I can. My jaw clenches painfully.

“Fine, fine.” She waves her hands
dismissively in the air. “No, it’s not me. That’s utterly preposterous.” She
looks at me as if I’m crazy.

I’m tempted to probe further, to find out
if she knows who the mystery girl is, but what’s the point in torturing myself?
She’s told me what I needed to hear.

Now all I need to work out is how to eject
that rat-bastard from my mind.

***

I emerge from the dorm sometime after noon the next day,
after another night of fretful sleep. I can’t erase the image of Odie from my
mind, and I drag myself through the day, barely coherent. A dull pounding has
taken up residence in my skull, and despite popping the couple of tablets Vin
gave me, the hammering doesn’t let up in the slightest.

Jenna pops her head into the training room
and strides purposefully toward me. She grabs me into a fierce hug. “Can I talk
to you for a minute?”

“Of course. Pull up a pew.” I tip my head
back and guzzle my water.

“I’m scared.”

“Of Dante?”

She nods tersely.

“Did he do this?” It’s all I could think
about last night. Vin had explained the alarm sounded at the exact moment Odie
breached the facility. While they have yet to replay the security tapes, he’s
convinced Odie had taken the elevator to the top floor and flung himself off
the railing into the body of water below.

But I can’t understand that. Why on earth
would Odie commit suicide? Especially at this juncture in his life—when he was
about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime? It’s nonsensical, and I don’t
buy it. While I have no proof, I suspect Dante has had a hand in this. If Jenna
is jumping to the same conclusion, then I must be on the right track.

She vigorously shakes her head. “Dante
didn’t leave my side all night, so he’s not responsible, but I can’t help
worrying that this was all
my
fault. For pushing him away, and favoring
Dante, and that somehow I drove Odie to do this.”

“Listen to me, Jen.” I hold her arms
tight. “This is not your fault. I didn’t know Odie all that well, but I find it
difficult to believe that he’d do this because you chose to spend your time
with another boy. No offense or anything.”

“None taken.” She rubs the back of her
head. “I don’t want to be with Dante, but I can’t stay away from him either. I
think the air down here is definitely jerking me around. Either that or I’m
going crazy.” Expelling a lungful of air, she’s on the verge of breaking down,
and I feel for her.

“I can relate,” I admit truthfully,
“because I’ve felt like that myself. But there’s something about Dante that I
can’t put my finger on. And it’s more than just him being a creep.” I drag my
lower lip between my teeth to stop myself from saying any more. I’m not sure
that I trust Jen to speak completely honestly in relation to Dante. If it’s as
she says—and she has no impulse control when she’s around him—the last thing I
want is her sharing my suspicions with him. I don’t want to draw a big, fat
target on my head. So, I shut up. For now.

“Will you do me a favor?” she asks.

“Anything. Shoot.”

“Can you stay by my side and don’t let me
go anywhere near him? Please.”

The painstaking look on her face kills me.
Not confident in my ability to successfully keep them apart, I agree
nonetheless. I’d be a pathetic excuse for a friend if I didn’t at least try.

***

Leaving Jenna in the training room, I head out in search of
Vin. I’m taking a huge risk confiding in him, but I believe it’s worth it. If
anything happens to Jenna because I was too afraid to speak out against Dante,
then I’d never forgive myself.

Though I realize I sound a bit deranged, I
outline my worries to Vin as succinctly as I can.

“I understand your concern, Sadie, and
I’ve already raised issue with his conduct to my superiors. While Dante most definitely
has shortcomings, he wasn’t involved in Odie’s accident.”

Am I missing something here? “It was an
accident?”

“We’ve reviewed the video footage. While
Odie appeared upset, we don’t believe he actually meant to commit suicide. The
recording clearly shows hesitation before he tripped and fell over the rail.
Unfortunately, it was a tragic accident.”

I want to believe Vin because up to this
point I’ve always felt like he’s told me the truth. But I can’t expunge the
sense of inherent distrust taking root inside me. Self-preservation kicks in,
and I act cool, like Vin is. “Poor Odie. Now I feel awful that I spoke out
about Dante. Forget I said anything, will you?” My muscles are corded with
tension.

Vin slings an arm around my waist and
fixes a lingering kiss on my cheek. His nose grazes mine, and I jolt back at
the unexpected contact and the inappropriateness of the gesture. As his fingers
weave through my hair, my stomach floods with raw panic. “Already forgotten,”
Vin says, smiling.

“’Kay.” I scramble to my feet, knocking
the chair over. “I’ll, um, see you later.”

My face is the color of an over-ripe
tomato as I stumble toward the door. I skid to a halt when I notice Dante
slouching against the doorjamb. Wordlessly, he stalks me with his eyes as I run
the length of the corridor, my heart thudding dangerously against my ribcage.

Skidding into the dorm, I slam the door
closed with the heel of my boot and flatten my back against the wall. My lungs
scream for air and butterflies dive-bomb in my stomach. I’m trembling all over.

I want out. I need out. I need away from
the craziness of this facility. Or I need my head assessed. Or a bit of both.
I’m scared. Of Dante. Of losing my mind. Or losing my life.

Being cooped up in such a confined space
has done nothing for my paranoia. I’ve always been borderline claustrophobic,
so it’s a natural reaction to want to escape. But I can’t lose sight of my end
goal, and Thalassic City is only a couple of days away.

I can grit my teeth and bear it until
then.

***

Vin calls me out after dinner. “I owe you an apology,” he
says, the minute we step into the corridor. “My earlier behavior was extremely
unprofessional. I can assure you that nothing like that will happen again.”
Earnest eyes meet mine.

“It’s okay.” I swallow nervously.

“Can you forgive me?”

I tilt my chin up. “Sure.”

“Thank you. I’d hate you to feel
uncomfortable approaching me. And I meant what I said about Dante earlier. My
superiors will deal with him. However, if you feel threatened or you witness
any unacceptable conduct, please report that to me immediately.”

“You want me to spy on him?” My face
displays my surprise.

“Absolutely not. I’d prefer if you stayed
as far away from him as possible. But if you notice anything out of the
ordinary, please inform me.”

“Of course.” I’d been afraid to say
anything earlier in case Vin concluded I was swinging off the crazy tree, but
now that he appears to share some of my concern, it’ll be easier to confide in
him.

***

Neve and I spend the remainder of the evening in the
library reading. We don’t talk much, but the silence is amicable. Now that
she’s told me the truth, I’ve decided to give our friendship another try. At
least I’m no longer in the dark about Logan, and I’m glad I found out before I
got
too
attached to him. I can’t believe he already has a girlfriend. I
feel nothing but sympathy for her, as I’m sure she’s ignorant of his wandering
eye. I’m sickened to the pit of my stomach that he would say such things to me
when he’s already in a relationship with someone else.