Page 63 of UnWholly Angels
His dangerous eyes stared me down, inches from my face, his grip on my chin punishing as his fingernails dug into the sides of my jaw. “We are way past your stupid mistakes, Maya. This is the most exciting game I've ever played, and I can’t wait to see who comes out on top,” he threatened. Tears welled in my eyes, and I felt embarrassed, humiliated. “Real monsters don’t need to hide behind a mask, Maya. Remember that while he’s in Seattle.”
Waving his hand away, I was released from my captor’s grip and shoved away harshly. Swallowing past the lump in mythroat, I practically ran for the door, gripping the handle tightly when a hand slammed the door shut again.
“And no being a tattletale, okay? Don’t make my friend do something he will regret to his own teammate. They need to focus on winning, and they can’t do that without one of their best players.”
Each breath caught in my throat as I tried to breathe through the fear. Right now, I only saw survival and agreed, doing what I needed to do to get out of the damn room. Rocco stepped to the side, and in a split second, I was out the door and booking it down the hallway, looking over my shoulder every so often to make sure I wasn’t being followed.
In my moment of distraction, I collided with a hard body, immediately flailing my hand around and trying to get a good hit. Rocco wasn't taking me back. My fist connected with a hard jaw before hands wrapped around my wrists, and I shut down completely, my knees weak, and body slowly drooping to the floor in a heap. The only thing keeping me upright was the large grip that held firmly onto my wrists.
Rocco isn’t taking me back.
I’m not going back.
I’m…
I’m falling.
“Get off me!” I screamed against the person with the iron grip. I vividly heard murmuring behind me, but I couldn’t make out words from any of the blurred heads. My knees gave out, and the rest of it was a blur, only calming down when a hint of cedarwood engulfed my nostrils.
“I was looking for you,” the voice said.
“He’s here, he–,” I hiccupped, trying to calm my racing heart down enough to speak. “He was here, please believe me. Why does nobody believe me?” I choked back a sob, fighting the battleinside me. “He told me to put the skates in the equipment room. I'm sorry,” I cried out.
“I believe you, Freckles.” Riley pulled me closer into his chest, coaxing me to breathe. He must have been kneeling on the floor, comforting me, at least I hoped that was what it was. “I’ll always believe you.”
Nowhere was safe.
We weren't safe.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Maya
The events of yesterday were still a massive blur. I don’t even remember being put to bed or the bed dipping as Riley got comfortable next to me. The worst part about it, I couldn’t tell him about that kid. There was far too much risk right now. But I’d be keeping a close eye out once I could get out of my own head. I wanted to thank Riley the only way I knew how, but I’d already messed up breakfast and was lucky that the place didn’t burn down. A chorus of meowing at my feet caused me to scoop up the small creature and hold her close.
“Thank you, Mari. Thank you for pulling me out of it.” Well, that felt weird to say. But this feline was insistent on tripping me with the way she weaved between my legs, trying to distract me from the mental torment. I’d always loved animals, and while Marinara was Riley’s cat, we’d become quite close over the past couple of months. All this cat did was eat, meow, and bite at myleft toe. It was still hard to believe Riley had a room dedicated to her, and she knew it. He was still sleeping, and I was bored out of my mind, already finishing my fifth puzzle this week before I’d even stepped into the kitchen.
Snuggling into such warm, comfortable fur, I felt the worry wash away as I reached for the cabinet. An outpouring of catnip and treats stood neatly lined by flavor. What the rookie said about Riley angered me. He did love, and he cared, probably way more than some people deserved, including me.
“How’s salmon today?” I asked, shaking the bag. A long, drawn out whine of encouragement poured from her and right then I just knew that we’d be best friends during the season while Riley traveled.
Placing the bowl on the floor, I relented and opened my big mouth to negotiate with the big ball of fur. Pawing at the bag, the meow once again pierced my ears, and I opened the bag slowly, the disgusting smell of processed fish permeating my nostrils. “Listen Mari, can I call you that?” This cat would hate me if I burst out laughing every time I called forMarinara.Leave it to Riley to come up with the most ridiculous name.
“I will give you the whole bag if you let me wake up dad today.” The insistent purr caused a smile to spread across my face, and I ripped the bag away with a raised brow. “Deal?” Large eyes stared at me, wide with hunger and licking her lips as I emptied the contents of the bag into the bowl.
My tongue poked the inside of my cheek as I spun around the kitchen, looking for the perfect way to wake him up. He would want to kill me for the thought that crossed my mind. I should find another hobby. He'd find gray hair in no time if I kept up the charade, but it was so much fun. My gaze shifted to the kitchen island, where a few markers sat idly right on top of the playbook he’s constantly studying.
“See you later, pussycat.” I laughed. Almost taken aback by the sound, I paused at the top of the stairs, surprised. My thought was that my genuine laugh was beautiful, and I felt beautiful. Despite all the fear and scare tactics, a part of me forced myself to believe that everything would be okay.
The door pushed open to reveal Riley shirtless and sprawled out on the bed, face down and snoring. He looked so peaceful, and a devilish grin spread across my face.Not for long.
The deep snores flowed through my ears the closer I tiptoed to the bed, climbing over my side to straddle his back. Squeezing my thighs against his side, a small groan erupted from his mouth as he shifted under me. “It’s too early for your shit, Maya.” He groaned. “What are you doing?”
Realistically, I should have asked him if I could color in his tattoos, but I’d been dying to since I laid eyes on the dragon that encased his back. Right over it, a cardinal rested on a branch with a buttercup hanging from its mouth. I flattened my palm against his shoulder blade and leaned down, giving him a quick kiss. “I was just trying to relax and thinking…I’d like to color in your dragon.”
“Is it going to make you feel better?” he murmured into the pillow.
“Maybe. I won’t know until I try.”
