Is he serious?
“This fucking idiot was about to hack into your accounts, Lakyn. Take your fucking money, and who the hell knows what else. That’s the type of dick you let walk into your life and between your legs,” Kyler snaps, and I snarl as I glare at him over my shoulder.
“She made it easy. It took nothing to slide between her legs. She even opened them before I could say please.” He chuckles, taunting me with his words.
Fury unlike anything I’ve ever felt rolls through me. It feels as if the freezing water surrounding me warms, boiling as it crashes against my skin. I can hear the splashing of water as my friends grow closer, and only then does Zane look a little worried, his cockiness drowning.
Water squishes between my fingers as I squeeze a chunk of his shirt. My teeth bare, and unfortunately for him, even though he might have been able to hide who he really is from me, I also hid the fucking animal beneath my own skin.
“Tell me you’re lying,” I growl.
A small smile lifts his lips. “I knew when I met you, you were nothing but a little slut for your friends. Don’t let your feelings get too hurt, baby. It just wasn’t meant to be.”
I can hear my molars crack as I grind my jaw. Glancing over my shoulder, I stare at each of my friends. The people who will do anything for me.
The ones who are everything to me.
“Get him,” I whisper, and as if on autopilot, I spin back around. My fist rears back, and I swing forward, plowing my tense knuckles straight into his face. Skin meets skin, and my knuckles scream as his bones shift against mine.
The splashing of water surrounds me as Zane fights back, and then bodies surround me, pummeling into Zane without a second thought. Seven against one. He fights back at first, his wild fists attempting to connect with any type of flesh he can find.
Though eventually they slow, until we’re savages against limp bones, flopping limbs no longer thrashing, but hanging at his sides. It feels as if it goes on forever, until the dark water turns red, and Zane’s body becomes completely motionless.
I let go first, then the girls follow right after me. The guys don’t stop, though, and the sound of bones hitting flesh, splashing through the water, becomes a trance in my ears.
“Stop,” I mumble, my knuckles throbbing fiercely. It ricochets up my arm and into my head, pounding against my temples and behind my eyes. “Stop!” I shout, my voice echoing into the tall evergreens. The splashing ceases, as do the fists, then the only sound remaining is our heavy breathing, and the distant waves lapping against the shore.
I turn around, seeing Archer hold on to Zane’s shirt, his back arched, his hair and legs floating in the water. What used to be a handsome face is now indistinguishable, swollen, and discolored. Dark bruises already form and mix with the thick, red coating of crimson blood.
“You killed him?” I whisper.
Archer’s eyes flare. “Lakyn…” he warns, as if he knows where my mind is going.
I don’t know what I feel at the moment, but it’s not the euphoria I wanted to. It’s not the pure bliss of destroying a man who was looking to hurt me. We’ve played our games, we’ve done shit that would land us in prison.
But murder? This is a line we’ve never crossed.
This is not how I wanted my Halloween to end. I imaged intoxication and pure bliss, but all I feel is dread and the death that coats my fingers.
What have I done?
Kyler stands there, his hands still fisted at his sides. The black and white paint washes away as sweat and droplets of water dilute his mask and drip from his chin. His black eyes look menacing, as if his outside is as dark as his inside.
“He’s fucking dead, Archer!” I scream, feeling like I’m losing my mind. I reach for my hair, pulling on the blonde threads that have fallen from my updo. My limbs have turned numb, and I no longer feel the cool air, or the icy water, or even my burning veins.
I feel nothing. Nothing but madness.
My hands lift in front of my face, and I stare at the monster I’ve become as I see my fingers coated in blood. So much blood.
Shit.
He wipes his face, blood and paint smearing across his chin. “He fucked up, Lakyn. He knew what was coming for him the moment he started talking to you. He knows who we are. He knows who our families are. Zane made his path to hell the moment he stared into your pretty eyes,” he snaps.
His hand reaches down, and he grabs onto Zane’s waist, lifting him into his arms. Zane flops over Archer’s shoulder, water dripping from his body in quick rivers.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here. We have to take care of the body.” He stalks past me, his pants sagging and looking heavier with each step. His legs cut through the water, both Kyler and Creed following closely behind him. They keep their eyes on the surrounding area, and my body stiffens, realizing that not only did we make a grave mistake.
We did it out in the open.