I fucking jumped like a cat about to lose its last life, knowing whose voice it was before my eyes connected with that chilling face. “Carter,” I gasped, my hand flying to my heart. My eyes darted to the side where the main dining room was. I could see Brock sitting at the end of the bar with Fynn, and he could see me, but not Carter. The prick positioned himself just far enough into the hall that he wasn’t visible from the bar. “What the fuck are you doing here?” I hissed, backing up until I hit the condiment station.
Shit. The curse went off like a bomb in my head. We weren’t exactly alone, yet he still found a way to corner me.
Not good.
Fear coated the back of my throat, burning like acid. His presence tended to bring out the adrenaline in me. It was like an involuntary response my body couldn’t stop.
He took a step closer, upping the intimidation factor. His blue eyes were hard, and his clothes were all black like he expected trouble. “You’re not exactly the easiest person to get alone.”
“For fucking good reason, you psychopath. Every time we’re alone, you try to kill me,” I replied, praying my voice sounded steadier than the uneasiness inside me.
He tsked his tongue. “Is name-calling necessary?”
“Yes!” I shrilled, my fingers clutching onto the bottle of hot sauce.
“Okay, that is a little dramatic. Noteverytime,” he said flippantly.
“Whatever! Get out of here before I start screaming.” I fumbled with the top on the bottle, slowly unscrewing it without drawing his attention. At least that was the plan. If he tried anything…
He held up his hands, showing them to me. “Chill. I’m just here to deliver a message.”
Being this close to Carter was a swift reminder of how big he was. Brock might have height on Carter, but there was a reason Carter played defense and not offense for the Academy’s football team. “I think we got the message loud and clear last night. You could have killed someone. What is wrong with you?” I hissed.
He angled his head to the side, absolutely no remorse or emotion in his face. “Oh, that was nothing. Just a taste of what will come if he doesn’t let this go.”
“Can you let it go?” I countered, the cap on the hot sauce completely unscrewed.
“Not when he means to destroy me,” he said bluntly.
This was a twisted game of who could destroy whom first. “What about the stupid messages you’re leaving all over school? What is the point in spilling everyone’s dirty secrets?” I kept him talking to distract him from the bottle in my hands. Carter deserved more than just hot sauce in his face.
Confusion flickered into his eyes briefly, just for a second or two. “Sorry to disappoint, sis. As much as I’d like to take credit for the tagger, the handiwork is not mine.”
Carter was one of those criminals who liked to receive credit for his crimes. He wanted the recognition, as if it were a prize, and he cast just enough doubt for me to think maybe he wasn’t the one marking up the school. “Who is it then?”
He shrugged, shifting his stance in a way that cornered me more than I already was. “Not my problem. I didn’t risk seeing you for that.”
“Fine, I’ll take the fucking bait. What is it you came to tell me?” I told myself I didn’t care what he had to say, and yet my pulse throbbed in my neck.
A pompous grin split on his lips, upping his creepy factor. “Pay close attention to the headlines.”
I blinked. That was it? A vague message about the news? I hated current events and rarely ever picked up a newspaper or watched the news on TV. And I wasn’t about to start just so I could look for some kind of subliminal threat Carter was trying to send me. I refused to play his games. “What the fuck does that mean?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.”
I’d had enough. Before I lost my nerve, I flung the bottle toward Carter’s face, giving it a good jerk so a good dose of hot sauce went flying into his face. I slipped out of the hallway, evading any attempt at Carter’s hands trying to grab me.
As expected, his first reaction was to get the burning sauce out of his eyes. Horrible idea. He just managed to rub it around, making the situation on his face worse. Not that I gave a shit.
“You bitch,” he growled.
“I don’t know how many times I have to tell you. Stay. The. Fuck. Away from me,” I warned, fury simmering in my gut. Fear and anger tended to go hand in hand.
Seeing as he didn’t have me trapped anymore, Carter turned and bolted down the hall toward the backdoor to the side parking lot.
I stood, feeling more rattled by the encounter than I thought, staring at the door as if I expected him to come bursting back in. Catching my lip between my teeth, I considered dashing down the hallway and locking the door, but that was a fire hazard.
Someone slipped a hand under my elbow, and I jerked, whirling around, ready to pop the culprit in the nose. A whoosh of air left my chest, and I dropped the curled fist to my side, my other hand still clutching the hot sauce.