Page 81 of Tag

I switched to our old thread.

The first thing I realized was that I hadn’t finished my text about seeing the guy beneath the tree. Thinking about it now, I should have known that because they never would’ve been silent after a message of such caliber. The second thing I saw was that the screenshot from my Huntsman hadn’t loaded. There was only a broken image icon. No text or preview, like the message had been erased from existence. I frowned and tapped into my photos, locating the screenshot again. It was still there, crisp and clear.

Okay…

I copied it, opened the new group chat Roxxi had created, and pasted it in. Then I waited. Nothing. The same thing happened—a corrupted file symbol.

How was this possible?

Kellan glanced over, catching the shift in my expression. “Everything good?”

“I don’t know yet,” I murmured. I tried again with a new screengrab and got the same result. Was my screenshot corrupting? Glitched? Was the file protected somehow?

Cici

What are you trying to send?

I’ll fill you guys in after my next class. Weird shit is happening.

I pocketed my cell and ran a hand through my hair. “The Hunt hasn’t even started yet, and I’m already over it.”

“Yeah… Sophie is going to flip,” Kellan laughed. “Wonder if she’s marked too.”

“Sophie, as in Sophie Wolfe?” I questioned, careful to keep my tone light.

“Yeah. We’re not official, but it’s been going well.”

I forced a smile. Sophie Wolfe. The same girl who’d thrown a flirty smile at Rook across the dining hall like he was the only person in the room. I was almost certain he’d slept with her recently enough that the sheets could still be warm.

“Oh.” I injected as much casual into that single syllable as I could. “How new is this?”

“About two months in,” he answered, completely unaware of the emotional detour my thoughts had taken.

“I was holding off saying anything because it’s still early, but we vibe.” He held up his hand with two crossed fingers like a promise.

So, definitely overlapping timelines and wires being tangled. My lips pressed together, my mind spinning.

What was I supposed to do with this news? I couldn’t tell him my best friend was seeing her too. That wasn’t the right word to begin with. Rook didn’t see people; he wrecked them, and they came back wanting more. Maybe Sophie Wolfe thought she was the exception. I’d need to talk to Rook before I said something that made a mess out of things. I just hoped Kellan would never find out I had even the smallest inkling and kept my mouth shut.

I wasn’t as close to him as I was with Rook. Aiden was my cinnamon roll, mine in a fierce, brotherly way. I’d defend him to the grave, no matter what. So even if he did something that wasn’t exactly praiseworthy, I’d still find a way to explain it, spin, and justify it in my head to everyone else. Then I would tell him what I truly thought behind closed doors. My loyalty to my family didn’t come with conditions.

But still…

I trusted Kellan. He’d proven I could count on him. He was the guy who spotted my fall before it started and always showed up when I needed to land. Literally. I trusted this man to catch me midair and toss me halfway to God.

He bumped my shoulder with his, giving me a grin. “Aren’t you going to say you’re happy for me?”

I forced a small smile. “Of course I’m happy for you.” Then added quickly, “I’m thinking about how we might both be Marked by multiple people.”

His grin dipped. “Yeah. This isn’t exactly a dream scenario.”

We stepped into the main building, leaving the chill behind. The heavy door thunked shut behind us, and the air warmed with that faint scent of polished wood, old stone, and something institutional.

“You know what, Sanj?” he said after a minute, voice low and serious. “We don’t need to worry about this.”

“And why is that?”

“Because whoever comes for us is out of their rabbit-ass minds if they think we’re gonna lose this game.”

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