The Dare Elle Kennedy Audiobook นิยาย & เรื่องราว

Suddenly, Elara was painfully aware of every movement she made. Every breath. Every pause. A million strangers watching. She swallowed once before forcing herself to speak. “My name is Elara Vale.” Her voice came out steadier than she expected. Good. “I know many of you have already decided what I am,” she continued. “Dangerous. Unstable. A containment risk.” The words sounded uglier when spoken aloud. Beyond the cameras, she could see Darius standing near the back of the studio with his arms folded loosely across his chest, watching her with the same focused attention he brought to everything.

Gone were the indoor slippers that had been mine. Oh, Elena, this was such a farce. I set my suitcase down and turned to look at Tracy. "I haven't heard the answer yet. What's the deal with that kid you mentioned?" Tracy's smile hardened. She instinctively let go of Alaric's arm, but he pulled her back and flapped his hand at me dismissively. "It was just a joke, Elena! Don't take it seriously. It was only a game of truth or dare."

“Bet you’ve never even snuck into a bar. You're incredibly boring.” Her jaw tightened since he wasn't wrong, and that pissed her off. Emma had spent her college years building a perfect GPA, not chasing thrills. But the way Jake looked at her like she was predictable lit a fuse she didn’t know was there. She slammed her laptop shut. “Fine. You think I’m boring? Like I’m some predictable little good girl? Give me a dare, then.” His eyes lit up and he sneered. “Alright, hotshot. I dare you to follow me to the Vault.”

The car sped through the darkness, and my heart sank deeper into the pit inside me. … They dragged me into my father's hospital room. The place was silent except for the steady beeping of the monitors. The sterile air felt suffocating. My father lay there, motionless, a breathing tube keeping him alive. Grayson ordered them to tie me to the foot of the bed. My knees hit the cold floor. Then, he pulled out his phone and switched to video mode. "Come on," he said. "Look into the camera and tell everyone your father, Benjamin Ward, is a fraud."

I instructed. More silence, then I heard the clicking of a mouse, the sound of Kennedy opening the attachment. A long pause as he presumably started reading through the forty-seven pages of documented evidence of his crimes and misdeeds. "What the fuck is this?" Kennedy finally asked, but his voice had lost all its bravado now. He just sounded scared. Panicked.

But not with Zane’s last word still hanging in the air. My stomach twisted. Dare felt dangerous, but truth felt worse. “Dare,” I said, voice shrinking. His lips curved up, those empty eyes of his glinting. “I dare you…” My pulse hammered in my ears

*** Later, after dishes were cleared and conversations softened into the background hum of family, I found Donna curled up in Penny’s room. She was awake, her little face propped on her hand, her eyes watchful in the glow of the lamp. “You should have been asleep,” I said gently, smoothing back her curls. “Or at least playing with Penny.” She blinked up at me, voice quiet but serious. “I heard everything.” My heart skipped. “About what, baby?” “About Danger Man. About America.” I sat on the edge of the bed, steadying myself. “Donna—” “Why is everybody so scared of him?” she asked, her small brow furrowed. “He saved me. He helped me breathe. Why is everyone so afraid?”

Some thing that turned my stomach. “Whoa,” Dax said, his voice full of glee. “Kade, you actually did it! You made her confess.” I pulled back instantly, confusion snapping through my chest. “What… what do you mean?” I turned to Kade. “What is he talking about?” Kade stepped forward, his eyes wide. “Lena, I can explain, just let me—” “No,” I said, voice trembling. “Tell me. Did you only say those words… because of a dare?”

"Truth or dare?" Oh, dear fucking God, don't pick dare. Please don't fucking pick dare. "Dare." Fuck. Garrison's smug smile spread into a smirk, and his eyes filled with discord and nothing that could lead to anything good. He stood up and walked up to her, his eyes darkening with something that made my stomach lurch. He leaned down to her and whispered. "I dare you to come back to my hotel room with me." My jaw clenched. Tight, hard. My hands curled into fists, and my eyes narrowed as I held my breath for Leia's response. It felt like an eternity, sitting here, waiting to see what she would say to such a fucked-up request.

She trailed off. "Do you want me to tell you or what?" I fake glared which she replied with a cute pout. She stayed silent the whole time I narrated everything to her, from the dare Addison and her friends made with Jace to the pregnancy, Nate's assault on me, Addison's animosity, the near miscarriage experience, Jace and I's moment, and all. But I couldn't tell her about Jace's intentions. As much as I wanted to, I was afraid someone could be eavesdropping on us. So I did my best to filter what I related to her.