Cecily:About two weeks.
Landon:That’s not long enough. He’s a dog who doesn’t give up on the bone he found, so he could and would come back at any time.
This fucker is too smart for his own good. I’ve always plotted his demise, but right now? I’m downright scheming for his murder and the best burial site to erase his existence from life.
Cecily:I’ll be careful.
Landon:That’s my Ces. Stay safe. I mean it.
My Ces.
My.Ces.
It takes everything in me not to smash the phone to pieces. I delete the conversation and return it to her bedside table instead.
I was going to leave quietly, but now, I’m pissed off.
Pushing her hair away from her neck, I lean over and bite down so hard, I’m surprised I don’t draw blood.
But I will.
Soon.
And when I do, it’ll be much more brutal than this.
Cecily groans, then moans and hides her face in the pillow.
I cover her neck with her hair, take one of her mangas, and jump out the window.
* * *
Instead of going home,I choose to spend time blowing off steam.
On my bike.
I’ve already toured the whole island, but the subtle feeling of intoxication, asphyxiation, and complete irritation hasn’t disappeared.
By sunrise, I stop at the top of a hill, leaning against my bike.
But I don’t look at the view.
I don’t give a fuck about anything beautiful. In fact, I find nothing beautiful.
Everything pretty is destined to wither and die. To shrivel and vanish.
So why find anything beautiful in the first place? That’s setting oneself up for disappointment without even trying.
I fish out my phone to find a long conversation in the Heathens’ chat group.
Nikolai:Did that motherfucker just leave us hanging?
Gareth:He must’ve had something urgent to do. Jeremy isn’t the type to leave without a reason.
Nikolai:I say we vote him down. The audacity of that motherfucker. How dare he wake me up for nothing?
Killian:And who should we put in his place? You?
Nikolai:You shut it, Satan’s heir. And what’s wrong with me becoming a leader?