LOGINGabriel
Ten more days until Van Straus’ Christmas party.Ten more days before I have to betray Raquel.While we have the more important details of the heist figured out and solidified, I still haven’t determined how I’m going to take the USB from her.Will she put up a fight? Most definitely.Do I have it in my heart to hurt her? Absolutely not.I tell myself it’s simply a matter of strength. I can easily overpower her if I have to and take theVIOLETI’ve been getting strange looks all day. And, stupid me, I write it off as being back after a semester away. It wasn’t like I was unpopular. People liked me. I had a good amount of friends, including a lot of the athletes. That was the circle I ran in, being on the dance team. But now, there’s a weird hush that precedes me. I’ve been in a quiet bubble, unable to break through it.Until Amanda finds me.She skids to a stop in front of me in the hallway outside my third and last class of the day. I created my schedule so the majority of my classes were on Mondays and Wednesdays, and I’m paying the price for it now.But besides that, Amanda seems stressed. Or nervous?“What’s wrong?”She bites her lip and releases it. “Willow’s been yelling in the IT department’s office for an hour.”
VIOLETSunlight slants across my face, and I groan. I block it with my hand, but then my overhead light flicks on.“Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty. It’s almost one o’clock.” Willow climbs onto my bed, flopping beside me. “How are you feeling?”I squint at the ceiling. “Like my head is an anvil and it’s being struck by a hammer over and over. Undecided on my leg. Or the rest of me.” That’s a lie. As soon as I focus on my lower leg, pain shoots up into my hip in waves. I grit my teeth.“Well, you went a little hardcore…”Yeah, that’s true. I couldn’t bear to look at Greyson at the bar. He completely ignored me after accosting me in the bathroom. Instead, he flirted with Paris and one of her friends. And meanwhile, I kept freaking out.Why the hell is he here? Did he know
GREYSONMy teammate nods to the guy sitting at a table full of girls. “Jack, Greyson. Jack is the quarterback on the football team.”I quirk my lips. The football team lost spectacularly this year, no thanks to Jack here. It’s a good thing the hockey team is picking up the slack and bringing some attention back to this school.That’s where I shine.In the spotlight.Well, correction: that’s where I used to shine.My gaze goes to the girl beside Jack, who seems like she’s about to be violently sick. She looks familiar in the way most girls do. Like I might’ve had a chance encounter with her at some point in my life but nothing worthy of me remembering.Maybe we ran into each other here, at Haven. After a game.I smirk at her, and she flinches. Not the usual reaction.&nb
VIOLETA Widely known fact about me: I don’t like surprises. I’m jumpy. I make unholy noises. My face gets beet red, and my body gets hot and tingly, and sometimes I feel like I’ve run out of air. Unfortunately, that combination is the perfect reaction for people who do like surprises.Which is why I’ve spent my life being surprised. Birthday parties, jump-scares, visitors I wasn’t expecting… People love to see the dramatic reaction, and I seem unable to help but give it to them.And, naïve me, I keep expecting people will remember I loathe them.Not today.I’ve barely pushed open the apartment door when the lights come on and a dozen people scream, “WELCOME BACK!”I scream right along with them. My coffee goes everywhere, and my feet go out from under me. Only quick hands grasping my arms keeps me upright.And falling would probably suck a lot under my conditions.After my heart stops trying to escape from my tight chest, I find my darling roommate-slash-best friend at the center of
So y'all won't be confused... the first book is over This book is titled BRUTAL OBSESSIONEnjoy??BRUTAL OBSESSIONGreysonThe cash slides from my palm into the valet’s. His fingers curl around the wad of bills as he pulls back, and he looks away.Aw, he’s embarrassed.The girl on my arm giggles and leans into me. Money and good looks will help people get away with just about anything. I learned that at the tender age of five from my father, thank you very much. He toted me around and flashed his smile or his wealth, and doors opened for us. Sometimes literally. Sometimes figuratively.We were invincible. Look at that sentence. Then read it again.*We. Were. Invincible.*Back when I was a kid, my father and I wore gilded armor. He was a king, and I was a prince. We floated above the rest of society, and nothing was out of our reach. I experienced the world through my father’s view of getting everything he fucking wanted. It’s only natural that I became him.Look, I’m not saying it’s r
RaquelFOUR MONTHS LATERBOOM!The ceiling shatters and the walls crumble, burying me beneath thick dust, chunks of concrete and splinters of glass. I groan, gesturing toward the screen in frustration.“I’m so bad at this game,” I lament, watching my video game character once again meet her untimely demise while under my shaky and indecisive control. “I swear to God, this level is impossible.”“Lemme try!” Odette says, taking the PS5 controller from me. She settles on the couch, a look of determination and concentration on her cute little face. What took me thirty minutes to fail, she beats in under five. “See? It’s easy.”I comb my fingers through her hair, adoring how much her smile looks exactly like Gabriel’s. “What can I say? You’re so much more talented than me.”“Can I try the next level?”“Sure, sweetie, but then afterward you have to promise to go wash up for dinner.”“Okay, Mom.”Mom. My heart sings at the word.I check my wristwatch. Gabriel was supposed to be home almost a
GabrielWe don’t end up in New York or Los Angeles, but Seattle. It’s a strategic move on our part. The weather is milder, the city’s by far more affordable, and there are plenty of good schools for Odette to attend.I walk my daughter up the path toward her school, my hand giving her shoulder a ge
RaquelWhile I’m glad I’m not dead, the raging headache makes me wish I was. The pounding pressure behind my eyes is so overwhelming that I’m nauseous. Gulping air, I summon all the strength I can muster and sit upright in bed. The blanket slips from my shoulders and bunches around my stomach. It’
GabrielOdette crosses her arms and pouts, refusing to eat her food.“Ma chérie, Penelope worked hard to make breakfast for you,” I tell my daughter patiently. “She even made your favorite: oatmeal with cinnamon sugar.”My little girl shifts in her seat, working her jaw. Her eyes flit between Penel
RaquelBOOM!The ceiling shatters and the walls crumble, burying me beneath thick dust, chunks of concrete, and splinters of glass. I hit my head hard against the cracked tile floor, unable to tell if the ringing in my ears is the building’s alarm system going off or if I’ve blown an eardrum.Knowi







