He twists his hands in front of him, and I can’t tell if he’s worried about me or about what it is he’s waiting to tell me. I take a deep breath and try to prepare myself for whatever it is. He ushers us inside, and I know it’s bad when he pulls out the teapot, one of the few things that apparently survived the break in.
I slide onto one of the stools, and Indi does the same as we wait for him to pour us both a cup. I pull my phone out of my bag and turn it back on before placing it down on the counter as Smithy turns and looks at me, frowning. “I heard what happened, Miss Octavia. The lawyers are already working on getting it pulled down… but I’m afraid that it’s already online—more than just your school network. And that stupid gossip rag TV show, Celebrity Time, are threatening to pick it up for their news cycle. Obviously they can’t run the video, but theycanrun the story.”
“Of course they are,” I sigh, putting my head in my hands. “I wonder who leaked it? I mean, being on the school network is bad enough, but to go wide…”
“I’ve been speaking with a friend in the police to get this shut down. She believes she already has the source of who leaked it wide, and they’re working on finding out how it was posted to the school network too. Someone will be punished for this. I’ve also arranged for personal security too, just until we get this under control.”
“I don’t want that. I’ll hide out in here if I need to, but I don’t want someone following my every move ever again.” He nods, taking my wishes into consideration, even though I can tell from his frown that he disagrees with me.
Indi sits, practically shaking with rage, on the stool next to me. “This is such horseshit. Can they even play or print it? You’re still a minor!”
“The tabloids don’t care about that. They won’t play it… but the ‘nation’s princess’ in a sex tape scandal, even if it’s fake one, is hot news,” I explain, and she curses enough to make a sailor blush.
“My sentiments exactly, Miss Indi.”
My phone starts blowing up and I groan, covering my face with my hands. “What a fucking mess.” I look back up at Smithy, seeing the concern in his eyes and let out a sigh. “You know that isn’t me right?”
“Of course, Miss Octavia. I would never believe such things.” My heart warms at his words. His unwavering faith in me is fucking everything. Though my guilt over him dealing with this when he should be resting makes me feel sick.
I nod and look over at Indi, loving that she never thought it was me either. “I’m going to fucking murder someone. How fucking dare they!” My sunshine girl is gone, but I’m so grateful to have somebody this fucking angry on my behalf.
I shrug, hating how resigned I am to the fact that this is my life now. “This is going to be absolute fucking chaos.”
Chapter Thirteen
Iwake up bleary-eyed, dreading the day. I shut my phone off almost as soon as I turned it back on last night. I couldn’t bring myself to look at it, so Indi and I hid in my room, binging reruns of Gossip Girl, trying to convince myself that it could be worse.
My lawyers called to advise that lawsuits had been drawn up against the publications who said they were going to run the story, which should stop it from ending up on the actual news, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t already gone viral.
I cover my face with a pillow and scream into it. I want nothing more than to roll over and go back to sleep, to ignore the world for a week, a month, hell, even a year. But I’m not letting these assholes fuck with my GPA, and missing any school means getting even further behind than I already am. Needless to say, I did not get my study date last night.
Fuck this shit. They don’t get to win. Not now, not ever. I’m not the type to tuck tail and run.
They can go fuck themselves up the ass with no lube.
I’ll face the day the way my dad always rode out a storm. By looking and feeling fucking fierce. I mean, he didn’t tend to do it sober, but that’s not exactly an option for me—I don’t have that choice. If I did… well, fuck being sober.
I kick off my blankets and stomp into the shower. Today, I’m going to look like a bomb-ass bitch because I need the armor. It’s the only way I’m going to either stay out of jail or not break down to a puddle of nothingness.
I turn my phone on, flicking quickly over to airplane mode before linking it up to the sound system, and blast “Queen” byLoren Gray. There’s nothing like music to help reset your mindset. I put it on repeat because this song is absolutely fucking life right now. It’s like they wrote it just for me.
I take my time scrubbing, shaving, and preening every inch of my fucking body till I almost shine. I let the music wash over me, sinking into my pores to help build up the mental walls I need for today. This is the one part of being my father’s daughter that I hate. The paparazzi, the media storms, the inability to have much privacy at all. If I was anyone else, this wouldn’t be a potential national news story.
There have already been some paps here, but this… This will reveal to everyone where I am, which only makes Echoes Cove have the potential to become even more of a nightmare for me than it’s been already. I wish my dad had thought through the stipulations of his will. Why would he make me come back here?
When we left here, we never looked back. Or, at least, I didn’t think so. I guess since Dad kept Smithy on, he had more intention of coming back here than I ever realized.
I lose myself in the monotony of getting myself ready for the day. Once I’ve picked out the most badass underwear I have, I sit down to do my hair and makeup. I pay special attention as I blow my hair out, letting it cascade down my back in dark, shiny waves. I finish the look with thick winged liner and a lipstick calledBitchcraft.It’s a deep purple and makes my eyes pop in contrast.
It’s not lost on me that I have to practice my smile in the mirror to make sure it’s somewhat convincing today. But if this is what I have to do to show them that they won’t break me, then this is what I’ll do. I just wish I knew why.
What did I do to inspire such venom from the people who I was once closest to in the world?
I shake off the thought. Focusing on that shit isn’t going to help me today.
Today, I need to keep my head high and rise above.
Fuck being a princess, today I’m going to be a goddamn queen.