Page 3 of Lovely Deceit

I don’t know who notices first, but a small island in the boat’s trajectory pops into view. Leo pulls away from me and launches himself at the wheel to change course.

I grab hold of the side of the railing to keep from flying off with the sharp turn. Luckily, we only have to deal with the bumpy ride of our waves ricocheting off the island’s barrier wall. The boat’s motor slugs through, and then Leo points us back in the direction Oliver went. Who even knows if Oliver’s aware of where the public boat launch is? He could drive around for hours, searching for a spot to tie off.

He might just end up ditching the boat. Wouldn’t that piss the owner off?

“We need to get to her,” Leo demands. “It’s our job,” he adds as an afterthought.

My mouth drops. I can’t believe what I’m hearing from Leonardo Jarvis. “She got to you, didn’t she?” I yell over the wind and the engine. I never thought I’d see the day.

“She’s our job,” he snaps back over his shoulder. “And that royal pain in the ass is taking her away from us.”

“That royal pain in the ass is her best friend. He has her.” I don’t know who I’m trying to convince. Him or me.

Or if it even matters right now. She’s going to be fucked up from what just happened. The Knights taunting her about Delilah. And Leo and I standing there, doing nothing. If we were worried about helping her, we should’ve intervened—at least, that’s how she’ll see it. From her point of view, we showed our cards, and we landed on the wrong side. No wonder Oliver is trying to get her as far away from us as possible.

“Just let her go,” I yell above the boat’s motor.

“What?”

“She’s better off without us.”

“Oh, fuck off, Barclay. I don’t need your altruism right now.”

I stand, marching up to his side, and pull his hand off the throttle. “Do you think she’s going to give a fuck about us right now? We just watched her relive her sister’s death and did nothing. We just stood there as she cried out for us. You heard the terror in her voice.” I shiver at the memory. “If we really want what’s best for her, we’ll let her go.”

“You’re a pussy, Barclay. Get over yourself. You know nothing.” His teeth grind together. “I don’t give a shit about the Astor girl. We’re here to do a job, and that’s what we’re going to do.” He wrestles his hand out of my hold. “If you’re going to back out of your position, take it up with the Elders, but I’m going after the bitch.”

His hard words eke out through clenched teeth, and I wonder if Leo believes his own bullshit. He’s stubborn enough to convince himself, that’s for sure.

Maybe he’s right. Maybe we should go after her. Even if the sight of us will turn her stomach. I’m still panicking, wishing with my whole body that she’s okay. That she won’t be irreparably damaged by the Trial they—we—put her through.

I always knew the Knights were self-deserving, power-hungry bastards, but I never quite understood how far it could go until I found out aboutmysister...

“She’s going to hate us,” I mutter.

“So?” Leo growls. “Do you need a box of tampons, Barclay? Shit. You said she got to me, what about you?”

I shake my head. I don’t want to let myself believe it. Not because I don’t think he’s right, but because I don’t trust myself with her right now. I don’t think I’ve ever done the right thing in my entire life, and I’m not sure I will even now. Hell, this Trial could’ve been a turning point for me, and what did I do? Watched from the sidelines like I could do nothing about it. What if one person intervened? Two people, even? Then what would’ve happened?

I’m full of shit. It would take a running majority to overturn tonight’s events, and there are far more evil Knights than there are any other. I can’t think of one who wouldn’t do anything they could to get a step ahead. That’s all these games are. If a Knight pisses off someone at the top, they’ve effectively dropped themselves to the bottom again.

In short, Eden Astor may just be fucked. And she’s doubly fucked if her only chances are two guys who don’t know whether or not they can escape the clutches of the Knights.

2

Eden

My lids flutter open. Ollie’s blurred profile is the only thing I see. The more I stare, the clearer everything becomes. His jaw is set in hard concentration. His usually perfect brown hair is standing on end, highlighted by the first rays of a blush-colored dawn.

The creases in his forehead deepen while I watch.

Something feels off. Way off. Like the world has turned on its side. It’s like the day I found out Delilah died all over again. The squeeze of my chest; the gasping for air; the unbelievable need to deny everything.

I force my eyes closed once more, and it’s then I feel my head pounding and the stinging pain in my ankle. Sucking in a breath, everything that happened at the dock comes rushing back. Hanging upside down, the mocking, Leo standing there unfazed through it all while Ollie loses it. Immediately, my eyes heat, and a single scorching tear runs down my cheek.

“Edie, love.”

Oliver’s beautiful voice calls to me from the depth of my sorrow. I open my eyes to find him staring at me, attention flicking forward, then back to me. The whites surrounding his pupils are bloodshot, a stark contrast to the attention-demanding blue hue of his irises.

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