"He better not try."
I started to leave but turned back. "I asked Grace if she saw anything at the party, but she said no. Can you press her? Complain about me or something. I don't care what you do, but see if she tells you."
"You're sure she saw something?"
"Yeah. I'm sure. She doesn't trust me anymore."
Corrigan's eyes went flat. "I'll figure it out. Go rest."
As I walked back through my home, I caught sight of Bryce in the far corner of my living room. He held a bag as Raz filled it. They were laughing and talking together. In that moment, I saw a carefree look in his eyes. It was genuine, and that took my breath away. It was in the way he stood, how his shoulders seemed lighter. I stopped and watched him. It felt good to see that, to see that Bryce could still be like that. It gave me hope, but I averted my eyes after a moment and brushed away a tear. Something told me it'd be a long time before I saw that side of him with me. It felt like a storm was coming our way, and we'd be lucky to get through it.
When I walked outside to my car, I stopped inside the garage door. Leah leaned against my car with hands stuffed in her tight jeans. She gave me a tense smile and brushed some hair out of her face. "I can't go in there because it's enemy territory."
I propped myself beside her. "I'm sorry." And I really was. I should've paid more attention to how much of a bitch Cadence was.
She shrugged. "It's fine."
It wasn't. I'd done this to her. Because of the rival sorority inside, she'd been exiled from this event, from the fraternity and friends that were hers inside. No matter what I thought, those guys were her friends and I'd been involved with putting them with the house that would separate Leah from her friends.
I turned to her. "I'll fix it. I promise."
Leah assessed me for a moment and then shrugged again. I saw acceptance in her shoulders, and I didn't like it. "It's fine. It is what it is."
"You told me those girls were bad news. You told me Cadence was bad news. I didn't listen because I didn't care. I care now." They took one friend from me. They weren't going to take my other two. "If they're doing what I think they're doing, I will take them down. Trust me."
Leah laughed and I heard a bitter note in her voice. She shook her head and let loose her hair. "Do you know who you're dealing with? Cadence is one of the most deceptive, conniving, manipulative bitches that I've ever met, and I'm not new to this block. My brother was an Alpha Mu five years ago. I've been coming around since he was a pledge. I've seen girls come and go. Some were awful, but Cadence takes the crown. I'll tell you to stay away, but that's all I'm willing to do. I don't want to tangle with her. I don't even want to see what she's fully capable of."
I smiled, half-heartedly. "I've met worse."
She watched me closely. "What are you going to do that others haven't?"
"You're forgetting something. I don't have much to lose. Cadence can't take what she wants from me, and contrary to social manners, I have no problem making enemies. I rather enjoy it."
She grinned. "I do believe that."
"What are you doing here, anyway? This is kind of morbid, don't you think?" I gestured to the house. "You can't go in where you want, watching from the outside."
Leah looked over my shoulders. "What do you do when you're losing your friends? I didn't feel up to a carton of ice cream."
She stared at my house with a mix of emotions, and I realized that I'd misjudged her. I didn't misjudge many, but Leah wasn't who I originally thought. She really considered these guys her friends.
"What do you do? You fight back," I murmured. It's what I'd do. It's what I planned to do.
Leah looked away. "I don't know. Things could get worse."
"What's worse than being alone?"
She smirked. "What if you like being alone?"
"You don't, though," I shot back. I was beginning to figure out what made her tick. "Stop hiding from this. It's your fight. Own it."
"And it's not yours?" She peered at me with a tear in her eye.
"It's mine too, but I need to heal for a little bit. And then I'm coming back. Hard. This isn't my first time around."
Leah shook her head. "How do you do it? You sound so sure? Like you know exactly what you're doing, what needs to be done? It's not that simple or easy."
I considered everything I'd been through. Marcus. Losing Bryce. Losing Corrigan. Getting them both back again and now losing them once more. Losing my family. Losing two girlfriends that I'd hoped would stick it through… I sighed. "If someone's coming at me, trying to destroy what I have, then I know exactly what to do. I understand what they're trying to do. Now, crazy people, I have no idea what makes them tick. I don't even know what makes me tick most of the time, but someone threatening my family—that's a cakewalk for me."
Leah murmured, "Then consider me down for whatever you have planned. I want in."
I smiled. I was starting to like this girl.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
I said that I'd head to the hotel, but I went to their sorority house instead. I'd gotten an invite to one of their earlier parties, and the address wasn't hard to find. It was the only four-story house on the block with a pink sign that read Zeta Gamma Phi in front of it.
It was risky. I knew that, but I remembered that Corrigan mentioned how his none of the guys in his fraternity liked to carry their keys, so they left a pledge behind. They wouldn't have to lock the doors.
I hoped the girls were as lazy.
I parked around the corner and went to the back door. I held my breath, tried the knob, and found I was in luck. Apparently the Zetas did have the same theory as Corrigan's house. The only problem was that I didn't know how many pledges were at home. And I didn't know where they were.
The back door opened to the kitchen, which was huge and shiny. The floor looked like it had been waxed recently, and I felt like I was walking on water. I heard sounds from a television and headed down a back hallway. Slowly, I crept past the room where the noise came from and found a stairway.
Rather than open every closed door, I only wanted to find Cadence's room. Since she was the head bitch, I assumed she'd have the biggest room. Something told me it'd be at the top. When I got as high as I could in the house, I started to poke my head around. The first three rooms weren't hers. Then I opened a door and found another set of stairs. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Of course they'd have a secret stairway.
I started to leave but turned back. "I asked Grace if she saw anything at the party, but she said no. Can you press her? Complain about me or something. I don't care what you do, but see if she tells you."
"You're sure she saw something?"
"Yeah. I'm sure. She doesn't trust me anymore."
Corrigan's eyes went flat. "I'll figure it out. Go rest."
As I walked back through my home, I caught sight of Bryce in the far corner of my living room. He held a bag as Raz filled it. They were laughing and talking together. In that moment, I saw a carefree look in his eyes. It was genuine, and that took my breath away. It was in the way he stood, how his shoulders seemed lighter. I stopped and watched him. It felt good to see that, to see that Bryce could still be like that. It gave me hope, but I averted my eyes after a moment and brushed away a tear. Something told me it'd be a long time before I saw that side of him with me. It felt like a storm was coming our way, and we'd be lucky to get through it.
When I walked outside to my car, I stopped inside the garage door. Leah leaned against my car with hands stuffed in her tight jeans. She gave me a tense smile and brushed some hair out of her face. "I can't go in there because it's enemy territory."
I propped myself beside her. "I'm sorry." And I really was. I should've paid more attention to how much of a bitch Cadence was.
She shrugged. "It's fine."
It wasn't. I'd done this to her. Because of the rival sorority inside, she'd been exiled from this event, from the fraternity and friends that were hers inside. No matter what I thought, those guys were her friends and I'd been involved with putting them with the house that would separate Leah from her friends.
I turned to her. "I'll fix it. I promise."
Leah assessed me for a moment and then shrugged again. I saw acceptance in her shoulders, and I didn't like it. "It's fine. It is what it is."
"You told me those girls were bad news. You told me Cadence was bad news. I didn't listen because I didn't care. I care now." They took one friend from me. They weren't going to take my other two. "If they're doing what I think they're doing, I will take them down. Trust me."
Leah laughed and I heard a bitter note in her voice. She shook her head and let loose her hair. "Do you know who you're dealing with? Cadence is one of the most deceptive, conniving, manipulative bitches that I've ever met, and I'm not new to this block. My brother was an Alpha Mu five years ago. I've been coming around since he was a pledge. I've seen girls come and go. Some were awful, but Cadence takes the crown. I'll tell you to stay away, but that's all I'm willing to do. I don't want to tangle with her. I don't even want to see what she's fully capable of."
I smiled, half-heartedly. "I've met worse."
She watched me closely. "What are you going to do that others haven't?"
"You're forgetting something. I don't have much to lose. Cadence can't take what she wants from me, and contrary to social manners, I have no problem making enemies. I rather enjoy it."
She grinned. "I do believe that."
"What are you doing here, anyway? This is kind of morbid, don't you think?" I gestured to the house. "You can't go in where you want, watching from the outside."
Leah looked over my shoulders. "What do you do when you're losing your friends? I didn't feel up to a carton of ice cream."
She stared at my house with a mix of emotions, and I realized that I'd misjudged her. I didn't misjudge many, but Leah wasn't who I originally thought. She really considered these guys her friends.
"What do you do? You fight back," I murmured. It's what I'd do. It's what I planned to do.
Leah looked away. "I don't know. Things could get worse."
"What's worse than being alone?"
She smirked. "What if you like being alone?"
"You don't, though," I shot back. I was beginning to figure out what made her tick. "Stop hiding from this. It's your fight. Own it."
"And it's not yours?" She peered at me with a tear in her eye.
"It's mine too, but I need to heal for a little bit. And then I'm coming back. Hard. This isn't my first time around."
Leah shook her head. "How do you do it? You sound so sure? Like you know exactly what you're doing, what needs to be done? It's not that simple or easy."
I considered everything I'd been through. Marcus. Losing Bryce. Losing Corrigan. Getting them both back again and now losing them once more. Losing my family. Losing two girlfriends that I'd hoped would stick it through… I sighed. "If someone's coming at me, trying to destroy what I have, then I know exactly what to do. I understand what they're trying to do. Now, crazy people, I have no idea what makes them tick. I don't even know what makes me tick most of the time, but someone threatening my family—that's a cakewalk for me."
Leah murmured, "Then consider me down for whatever you have planned. I want in."
I smiled. I was starting to like this girl.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
I said that I'd head to the hotel, but I went to their sorority house instead. I'd gotten an invite to one of their earlier parties, and the address wasn't hard to find. It was the only four-story house on the block with a pink sign that read Zeta Gamma Phi in front of it.
It was risky. I knew that, but I remembered that Corrigan mentioned how his none of the guys in his fraternity liked to carry their keys, so they left a pledge behind. They wouldn't have to lock the doors.
I hoped the girls were as lazy.
I parked around the corner and went to the back door. I held my breath, tried the knob, and found I was in luck. Apparently the Zetas did have the same theory as Corrigan's house. The only problem was that I didn't know how many pledges were at home. And I didn't know where they were.
The back door opened to the kitchen, which was huge and shiny. The floor looked like it had been waxed recently, and I felt like I was walking on water. I heard sounds from a television and headed down a back hallway. Slowly, I crept past the room where the noise came from and found a stairway.
Rather than open every closed door, I only wanted to find Cadence's room. Since she was the head bitch, I assumed she'd have the biggest room. Something told me it'd be at the top. When I got as high as I could in the house, I started to poke my head around. The first three rooms weren't hers. Then I opened a door and found another set of stairs. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Of course they'd have a secret stairway.
