Saven Deception (14 page)

“What the hell is going on here?” Fern
glowers at Haydn and I’m impressed at her willingness to jump into things on my
behalf, even though we’ve only met. “How can you be friends with that asshole?”

Haydn squirms uncomfortably. “It’s more
complicated than that.”

“Try me.” My voice has a hard gravelly
quality to it that’s unusual for me.

“Look,” he says, exhaling loudly. “I’d
like to hang out with you both.”

Diversion technique if ever I’ve heard
one. I clench my jaw. “Honestly, Haydn? You seem like a decent guy, but anyone
that hangs around with him”—I gesture up the way toward Logan—“and condones his
behavior doesn’t earn the right to my friendship. Sorry.” Standing up, I hold
my tray protectively against my stomach.

Fern rises too and moves beside me in a
show of female solidarity.

“Bye, Haydn.” I start to walk away.

“Sadie.” Against my better judgment, I
turn around. “I know he hurt you, but he’s a good guy, honestly.” Thrusting his
hands in his pants pocket, he looks sincere and that throws me slightly.

Then I remember whom I’m dealing with
here. If Logan is a skillful manipulator, what does that infer about his
friends? As much as I’d warmed to Haydn—and honest to God, I had—he’s no more
trustworthy than Logan. “I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree on that
point.”

***

My day goes from bad to worse after that. I’m seated at my
desk in Government and Politics, waiting for the teacher to arrive, when Logan
saunters into the room like a God. I don’t miss how every single head—both male
and female—swivels in his direction. Haydn trails in his wake, like a loyal
little puppy dog.

How I wish Fern were here for some moral
support, but this is the only class we don’t share. So I’m flying solo.

Dipping my head down, I pretend I’m
engrossed in my book. There’s a gentle whooshing of air as someone slips into
the desk in front of me. I don’t need to be a genius to work out who it is.

“Sadie,” Logan says, tilting back in his
chair. “Can we talk?”

“I’ve nothing to say to you.” I refuse to
look at him.

“Please.”

“No.”

A frisson of electricity zings through the
small space between us, and I curse my damned hormones.

A finger lands on my chin and my head is
tilted up. Too shocked to comprehend his action, I do nothing but stare at him
open-mouthed. My skin tingles from the brief contact. “I owe you an
explanation,” he says quietly, his face earnest.

He’s a better liar than I realized. His
warm breath skitters seductively over my skin, and I’m hypnotized all over
again.
Why is he torturing me like this?

Amusement dances in his eyes, and that’s
all I need to snap out of it. I shove his finger away. “Don’t touch me!” I
seethe. “I don’t need or want your explanation. I want you to stay the hell
away from me. Comprende?”

His amused grin evaporates on the spot and
a muscle pops in his jaw. “Loud and clear,” he grits out, swiveling around.

I stare at the back of his head, noticing
how his hair is shorn much tighter at the back and sides. The skin on his
exposed neck looks smooth and silky soft, and it begs to be caressed. I stuff a
fist in my mouth as if that can halt my body’s natural reaction.

Why can’t my body just get with the
program?

This is the worst form of torture and a
girl can only demonstrate so much willpower in one day. I’m virtually crying
inside at the thought of having to sit in this class for the next six months
sharing the same air as him.

He cares for me.

The thought pops unbidden into my head and
I straighten in my chair.
I didn’t think that!
Slowly looking around, I
cast wary glances at anyone in my proximity. Then my eyes fix on Haydn sitting
behind me. I stare at him and he stares back. There’s some kind of unspoken
sentiment in his expression.
Did he put that thought in my head?

Turning back around, I give myself a stern
talking to because that’s preposterous. I clearly imagined it, or perhaps it
was my unhelpful inner advisor trying to cling onto the last vestige of hope
when it comes to Logan. Or it’s plain old tiredness playing tricks with my
mind.

The rest of class is an agonizing lesson
in self-control. I’m fighting a losing battle when the bell shrills. I hop up
out of my seat as if there’s a bomb under it. Flying out of the room, I skip
down the steps and run all the way to the RT station.

 I make it back to the apartment in good
time. Jenna isn’t due back from work for a few hours yet, so I take a leisurely
bath and then jump into bed for a nap. It doesn’t take long for me to fall unconscious.

***

A dead weight presses into my spine, and I’m jolted out of
sleep. A hand lands on my stomach, and my eyes dart wide open in extreme
terror. My heart is beating so fast I fully expect it to blast right out of my
chest. A low snicker sounds at my ear and I spring to life. Shrieking, I slap
the hand away and stumble out of the bed. Frantically searching the room for
something I can use as a weapon, I snatch up my desk lamp and weave it in front
of me. Only then do I look at my intruder.

Dante is lying out flat on my bed with his
hands resting behind his head. He examines me from head to foot, and there’s no
mistaking the lustful look in his eye. I’d been too tired to properly dress for
bed so I’m standing in front of him in only panties and a light camisole. I may
as well be naked.

“Get out.” I wield the lamp as if it’s a
sword.

He chuckles again and sinks back into the
bed, crossing his feet at the ankles.

“I mean it. Get out now or I’m calling
Vin.”

“Ooh. I’m so scared.” He doesn’t budge an inch.

“Jen will be home any minute,” I spit out.
“How’ll you explain this to her?”

“I’m not worried about Jen. Come back to
bed, you know you want to.” He pats the space beside him.

You want him. Jen will never
know.
The thought lands in my mind and I freeze.
This is exactly like earlier. Either I’m losing it or there’s a malfunction
somewhere in my brain. Irrespective, I’m scared out of my mind.

“Sadie?” Jenna calls out from the main
living area.

Dante hops up so fast I can’t even track
the movement. Ripping off his shirt, he stands bare-chested in front of me,
smirking as he yells, “Stop it, Sadie. I’ve told you, I’m with Jenna. I don’t
want this with you.”

I stare at him as if he’s unhinged. He
most likely is.

“What the hell’s going on here?” Jenna
stands in the doorway staring at both of us.

“Babe,” Dante says, striding toward her.
“Thank God, you got here in time. Can you call her off, please?”

“Are you for fucking real?” I scream, too
shocked to acknowledge that I’ve cursed. “Don’t listen to him, Jen,” I implore,
focusing my full attention on my friend. “I was asleep, and I woke up to find
him lying in the bed beside me. I’ve been trying to get him to leave but he
refused.”

Jenna looks shell-shocked as she regards
both of us.

“Babe,” Dante says, nuzzling into her
neck. “You know I only want you. She’s lying. She’s been trying to get with me
from the first minute she saw me, and she’s so jealous of you. I came over to
ask if you wanted to go out for dinner, and she threw herself at me.” The whole
time he trails kisses all over her flushed skin.

She stares at me with shock and confusion
etched on her face.

“Jen.” I step toward her. “You know how I
feel about him and my views on boys in general. You know this is bull. He’s
manipulating you.”

She moves away, putting some space between
her and Dante, and I sigh in relief. “You don’t expect me to believe that, do
you?” She folds her arms sternly across her chest. “There’s no way Sadie could
overpower you, and I don’t believe she’d throw herself at you. I know her”—she
angles her head at me—“and she wouldn’t do this.”

“Baby.” Dante moves into her personal
space. Grabbing her wrist, he makes slow circling motions with his finger.

Jenna checks out  and her eyes glaze over.
Rampant terror whips through me.

“You know I’m telling the truth. She’s no
friend of yours because friends don’t try to steal other girl’s boyfriends.”

Jenna faces me. She looks drugged, and
concern for her overrides everything else. “Jen.” I step toward her and she
slaps me hard across the face. So hard, that I stagger back with the force of
her assault. Tears prick my eyes as I bring my hand up to cup my throbbing
cheek.

“Leave me alone, you slut.” Her voice
drips with venom and I shrink back. She may as well have slapped me again.

“Come on, baby.” Dante reaches around her,
retrieving his ripped shirt from the floor. “Let’s get out of here.” Placing a
firm hand on her lower back, he guides her out of the room.

He reappears, quickly putting his face in
mine. “I’m not finished with you yet,” he growls. “Not by a long shot.”

I’m not sure how long I stand there staring into empty
space. No matter how many times I replay it in my mind, I can’t logically
explain what happened. While I know I should be mad at Jenna, I can’t blame her
because I know this isn’t her fault. Dante has her under some kind of spell,
and I fully intend to find out how and why.

Fear for my friend propels me into action.
Yanking on my jeans and a hoodie, I slip my feet into pumps and race out of the
apartment. I sprint up the three floors to Vin’s room and pound on his door as
if my life depends on it.

“Sadie?” A voice speaks behind me, and I
jump, shrieking in the process. Twirling around, I come face to face with
Haydn. He is standing in the doorframe across from me. “Vin’s not there. He
left about a half hour ago.”

“Damn.” I flatten my back to the wall and
rub my hands up and down the front of my jeans.

He inspects me carefully. “Can I help?”

“Nope.” I push off the wall. “Thanks
anyway.”

I start to walk away but he reaches out,
snagging my arm. “Wait a sec.”

I look up at him. “I appreciate your
concern, but I’m fine. I’ll talk to Vin later, or tomorrow.”

He scrunches his face. “You’re trembling
and your cheek is flaming red.”

I open my mouth to deflect his concern but
stop when I notice my quivering hand. I focus on steadying it, but my fingers
continue shaking as if they’ve a life of their own. “Hmm.”

“What’s going on?” Worried eyes meet mine.

I nearly cave. “Nothing.” I impale him
with a ‘butt-out’ stare.

A rustling at his door distracts him, and
I seize my opportunity. Brushing off his arm, I dash down the corridor out of
sight.

Back in my apartment, I’m on the verge of
majorly freaking out. I’m terrified for Jenna and worried Dante will take
things out on her. I know I should be concerned for myself, but that’s not what
I feel. I’m scared for my friend. Scared because something strange is going on
and she’s slap bang in the middle of it.

I’d presumed all the weird things I’d felt
in the Mock-Up Facility were the result of being cooped up in such a confined,
synthetic space, and honestly? I firmly believed I’d imagined half the stuff I
felt. But now I’m not so sure. Dante is not right in the head, of that I’m one
hundred percent certain, and his domineering fixation with Jenna is more than
troublesome. That he’s trying to drive a wedge between us is not in doubt.
While there was no mistaking the lustful glint in his eye earlier, I’m certain
his agenda was to cause disagreement between us and monopolize Jenna completely.
Well, I’m not going to allow him to do that. Despite the fact none of my
previous interventions have achieved any modicum of success, I’m not giving up
on my friend. There has to be a way to make her see Dante for what he truly is.

I’m contemplating contacting Jarod when a
knock at the door startles me. My blood pressure shoots through the roof. “Who
is it?” I call out.

“It’s Haydn. Can I please come in?”

God, that guy is stubborn. I could refuse
to let him in, but he’ll most likely keep this up until I relent and explain
what’s going on. And while I don’t like to admit it, it’s probably wise to tell
someone else what happened in case things should escalate before I get the
opportunity to notify Vin.

Opening the door fully, I step aside and
allow him entry. Haydn strides into the center of the room. He surveys me with
shrewd eyes. “Look.” He smooths a hand over his head. “I screwed up earlier
today, and I’m sorry that I wasn’t straight with you, but I like you and …” He
trails off as my eyes widen. “God, no, not like that!” He takes a step toward
me.

Instinctively, I step back.

“Crap. I’m making a right mess out of
this.” He scrubs a hand over his jaw. “Can we sit down?” He gestures toward the
couch.

We sit down, side by side. “We were getting
on well before I screwed things up today, right?”

I nod tersely.

“Can we rewind to the part before the
cafeteria and erase the rest, because I think you and I’ll become close
friends, and I’d like that, a lot.”

I slant a wary look at him. “Why does it
matter that much to you?” I tuck my hands between my knees.

“I don’t have that many friends, and it
was cool hanging out with you and Fern today.” His foot taps anxiously off the
ground, and I see him in a different light.

He’s a kindred spirit. For unknown
reasons, he doesn’t trust easily either. However, that acknowledgement doesn’t
resolve the Logan issue.

“I’d like to be friends too, but I can’t
be friends with him. So how’ll that work?”

“I can separate things out. No sweat.” He
smiles confidently.

“Maybe we can hang out in class, but I
draw the line at sharing a table with Logan in the cafeteria. That’s a no-fly zone
for me.”

“Fine.” He lifts his palms in acceptance.
“I get that. So now that we’ve got that sorted, will you please tell me what’s
happened?”

“You have to promise not to tell anyone
else and not to freak out. Okay?”

“Okay.” His eyes burn with curiosity.

I take a couple of minutes to collect my
thoughts. Haydn waits patiently. “I’m worried about my roommate. Her boyfriend
creeps me out and”—I stop, unsure of how to explain this without coming across
like a total loon—“it’s like she’s under some kind of spell or he’s drugged her
or something.”

Haydn gawps, shock rippling through him.

“I know,” I say, waggling my brows, “I
sound like a crazy person. It’s just really hard to explain. It’s like when
she’s with him she’s incapable of thinking for herself.”

He visibly stiffens.

“And she doesn’t act like herself around
him. It’s as if he’s … hijacked her mind.”

He stares at me in a completely unnerving
fashion. Jumping up, I pace in front of him, rubbing my fingers against my
temples. I bet he’s already reconsidering the whole “friends” thing.

“Why is your cheek so red?”

I cup my cheek without thinking. I’d all
but forgotten the stinging slap Jenna had delivered. Self-consciously, I bite
down on my lip.

“You can tell me.”

My eyes lock on his and I decide to come
clean. “I woke up to find Dante—Jen’s boyfriend—lying in bed beside me. He, um,
was trying to make a move on me, and he refused to leave. Then Jen came back
from work, and Dante ripped off his shirt and claimed that I was throwing
myself at him. At first she believed me, but then she did a complete
three-sixty, and she called me a slut and slapped me.”

I flop back down on the couch, drained,
and glance at Haydn. His fists are balled tight at his side and a muscle flexes
in his jaw. My gaze momentarily flits to the bullion at his wrist.

“Listen to me,” he says, taking both my
hands in his. Warmth seeps from his skin into mine. “I know of him and he’s all
you fear and more. Promise me you’ll stay away from him and keep him out of
your bedroom. You have a bolt, right?” He jumps up and moves to the bedrooms.
“Which one is yours?”

“That one.” I point to my room, “Haydn, I
don’t understand. What exactly are you saying?”

He walks into my room and inspects the
back of my door. “There is a bolt, but Dante could break through that in a
second. I’ll sort something stronger out for you tomorrow.”

“I think you’re overreacting a bit. Dante
isn’t interested in me. He purely wants to cause problems between me and Jen
because he knows I disapprove of her relationship with him and that I think
he’s a total jerk. There’s no need to read anything else into it.”

“Sadie, listen to me.” Haydn moves into my
personal space and his eyes drill into mine. “Your instincts are right. Dante
is dangerous, and you can’t underestimate him. Your primary concern should be
your own safety at this point. Trust me when I say that this is definitely not
solely about your friend. Promise me that you’ll stay away from him. Please.”

Now I am scared for
me
. I have the
worst case of the heebie-jeebies known to mankind, and if I was shaking before,
it’s nothing compared to how my body trembles now. “You’re scaring the hell out
of me.”

“A healthy fear of him is necessary,”
Haydn says ominously. “But don’t be scared. We won’t let anything happen to
you.”

There’s another knock at the door and I
jump. This place is quickly resembling Grand Central Station.

“Were you expecting anyone?”

I shake my head. Haydn walks to the door
in three long strides. Forcing my feet to move, I follow him. Haydn opens the
door and Jarod stands there, looking inquisitively between us. My shoulders
slouch in relief.

I’m seriously starting to question the
wisdom of confiding in Haydn. I was scared for Jenna earlier but more than
capable of handling things. Now, I’m standing on the edge of the sanity ledge,
all but ready to pitch myself off the cliff.

“Hey, Sadie,” Jarod says, in an uncertain
tone. “Do you want to hang out, maybe grab a bite to eat? But, ah, if you’re
busy …” He falters, his gaze settling on Haydn.

“Hi, Jarod. Come in,” I say, nudging Haydn
aside. “That sounds good.” I look up at Haydn. “Haydn, meet Jarod.” They
awkwardly acknowledge one another. “Take a seat, Jarod. I’ll see Haydn out.”

Haydn takes the hint and steps out into
the corridor. I close the door halfway behind me. “We’re not done talking,” I
hiss. “I’m totally freaking out, way worse than I was earlier.” I shiver
uncontrollably as if to prove the point.

“Remember what I said. Lock your bedroom
door. I’ll swing by in the morning, and we can travel to the campus together.
Enjoy your night.”

Before I can form a response, he has
walked away.

Stepping back into the apartment, I’m
greeted with a knowing look. “What?”

“Interesting first day, huh?” Jarod winks.

“You’ve no idea,” I mutter. “But it’s not
what you think. Haydn and I are friends. That’s all.”

“If you say so.”

“I do. Believe me, I’m way too distracted
to contemplate any romance.” My stomach emits a hungry rumble and we both
laugh.

“Why don’t you tell me about it over
dinner?” Jarod says. “I found this funky little diner a few blocks away. We can
walk there if you’re game?”

“I’m in. Let’s go.”

***

Jarod and I sit facing each other across the booth. He
wasn’t kidding about this place. It’s as if we’ve time traveled to another era.
It takes kitsch to a whole new level but that’s its charm. Psychedelic murals
cover the walls and ceilings, totally clashing with the cerise pink cushioned
booths and crimson red countertops. Nostalgic tunes from my grandparents’ era
rock out of the old-fashioned jukebox, and the waitresses skate around the room
on rollerblades. The diner buzzes with energy, and it’s exactly what I need to
revitalize my mood.

Sipping on my cola, I turn to Jarod. “How
did your job go today?”

“It was awesome.” His entire face lights
up and gets more and more animated as he talks. “I’ve been assigned to IT
Security, and I’m working with a team manning the cameras and operational
systems. Today was a real eye-opener.”

“Wow. Sounds riveting.” I try to inject
the requisite amount of enthusiasm into my words but it’s challenging. While
his excitement
is
infectious, the job sounds about as exhilarating as my
Medi-Tech job. That is, not exhilarating at all.

He laughs good-naturedly. “It’s okay,
Sadie. I don’t expect you to get it. Most people don’t. But I know you
understand how amazing it is to finally get to do the things you want to do,
officially, like.”

“I do. I was devastated when I had to
leave school. Getting the chance to pick up on that again is unbelievable, and
I still feel like pinching myself.”

The waitress materializes, swaying
dangerously as she slams our plates down on the table. “Sorry,” she apologizes.
“I’m trying to get used to the skates.”

“You look like you’re a fast learner,”
Jarod says. She beams at his compliment before wobbling off.

We don’t talk much while eating, but Jarod
asks me about my day as we prepare to leave. After a brief argument over who’ll
pay, Jarod settles the bill.

“My treat next time.” I step out onto the
pavement and my ears silently rejoice.

Jarod pulls the door shut behind him and
falls into step beside me. “I can’t get used to having an allowance all to
myself.”

“I know. I’m so used to having to ask my
parents’ permission whenever I needed to dip into our currency account that I
keep forgetting we have our own funds here. I love the independence. Why do you
think the government is being so generous?”

He shrugs as we walk past an all-night
pharmacy and convenience store. “They must want this experiment to succeed
badly. Why else would they give us so much freedom and willingly give us such a
generous allowance on top of the funds they already gave our families?”