Page 73 of The Predator

“Bye!” Ely squeaks.

“Bye. I’ll see you a little bit later.” They disappear out the door and even if it’s the last thing I want to do I know I need to let her go. Let her have freedom to explore.

Drew rolls his eyes and starts after them. I stop him dead in his tracks by placing a hand on his shoulder. “Anything happens to either of them, and you know the deal.”

In typical Drew fashion, he’s unphased by my threat of violence, “I’m not scared of you, Seb. You’re a suit-wearing prick. But need I remind you—if anything were to happen to either of them, I’d do everything short of killing myself to make sure they were okay.”

“I know.” I tell him and lift my hand off his shoulder.

He continues forward, disappearing out the back door. I know he’s telling the truth. When it comes to Bel there is nothing Drew wouldn’t do. And I know he wouldn’t let anything happen to Elyse by extension of his devotion to both Bel and me.

Aries is still braced by the back door, his big arms crossed over his chest. "What’s my job in this grand plan of yours?"

“I thought you’d never ask.” I grin. “You’re the muscle. If anything happens to us, you’ll step in, and if by some fucking miracle Ely’s dad gets away, you’ll catch him.”

There's a hard set to his jaw but he nods. "I'll be taking care of that bitch, as well."

"If Ely's dad gets out of this house alive it'll mean I'm as good as dead, so I won't give a shit."

“Chin up, Buttercup, the only one dying today is Ely’s dad.” Lee exclaims, squeezing my shoulder hard. Even as confident as I am in this plan, I still have my doubts and fears, and my friends see that. I have to make sure this happens: the reign of terror Elyse endured her entire life ends.

CHAPTER 22

ELYSE

It's hours later when Sebastian finds me sitting in the media room, the TV playing some kind of infomercial. I don’t know what it is...I’m not even watching it. I couldn’t focus on a television show if my life counted on it right now.

"You okay?" he asks, as enters the room.

I jump at the sound of his voice and then give him a smile. "Yeah, fine. Still anxious but there's nothing I can do about that. I’ll be anxious until we see this through."

He approaches, crouches in front of the oversized leather chair I’m curled up in, and tips my chin up. "Good thing I’ve got something to distract you."

"Oh do you? What’s that?” I don’t even bother curtailing the grin blooming at the idea.

He narrows his eyes and smiles back. "Notthatyou dirty girl, but I'll remember that for later. Go put on some warm clothes, your coat, and all the layers. We'll be outside for a bit, and I don’t want your toes to freeze off.”

"Okay, I’m officially surprised. Give me a hint."

He stands and smoothes out his pants. "Nope, just get ready. I'll bring the car around."

I bounce out of the chair and then the door, shaking my legs as I walk since my feet fell asleep at some point. In under ten minutes, we’re in the car, the heat on full blast to warm us. Sebastian even flicked on the heated leather seats to ensure I stay warm before we go out in the cold again.

He drives out of the edge of town and I’m staring out the window, scanning the light dusting of frost and snow on the last of the fall leaves. "You going to tell me where we are going?"

He doesn’t say anything but turns off on a dirt road.

"Is this the part where you murder me?" I ask, laughing at the absurd idea. He might fuck me, chase me, or use me, but he’d never hurt me.

There are lights up ahead but I can’t make it out through the slight frost on the window and the darkness surrounding the lit up area.

I keep my eyes locked on the display out the windshield, the sunset behind the surrounding forest finally highlighting a small winter carnival set up in a clearing. "What...is this?"

"I remember you mentioning that you'd never been to a carnival before, after you missed the school's fall carnival last year. So I decided to bring one to you."

I blink, tears already building, along with the ache in my chest. “Are you serious? You did all of this for me?"

He cups the back of my neck and draws me into a soft kiss. "There's nothing I wouldn't do for you. The sooner you realize that the easier our lives together will be."