Page 57 of Fight or Flight
“What?” Killian asks, his long strides cutting across the small room in only seconds.
Jax steps back from the wall so Killian can lean in and look at whatever Jax found.
“Well, damn,” Killian mutters and gently pokes at the spot. “Good catch.”
I glance between the three of them. What the hell are they looking at?
“C’mere,” Jace says, waving me over.
Tentatively, I fit myself between where he and Jax are standing.
I have no idea what the fuck is going on with me, and why I’m feeling so off-kilter and unsure of myself right now. I might not be the most confident person in the world, but I’m good at faking it. I’ve spent so many years pretending to be someone I’m not that I can pretty much fake my way through anything.
But I’m so far out of my element here that no amount of fake confidence can make me feel like I’m on equal footing when I’m around the Hawthorne cousins.
I have no idea how many, if any, of the rumors about them are true, but I know for a fact that they’re not like most of the students here. Our families have been casual business partners for generations, and I’ve heard all about their less-than-legal ventures and how they’re connected to organized crime in multiple countries from my father and his associates.
Our family businesses are also involved in some shady shit, but my dad has kept me away from that side of things, and I only have a vague idea of exactly what we’re mixed-up in.
From what I’ve heard, the Hawthorne cousins have been heavily involved in all aspects of their family businesses since they were young teens, and have no problems doing whatever is necessary to protect their own.
Beyond that, Jace, Jax, Killian, and Xave aren’t just campus royalty; they’re also enforcers, and everyone knows that fucking with one of them means fucking with all of them, including Killian and Jax’s boyfriends.
And after seeing glimpses of what Jace is actually capable of, it’s not surprising that Jax and Killian are just as unfazed by this whole situation as he is.
“See that?” Jace drags his finger over the area Jax pointed out.
I lean forward and study the spot. “No,” I admit.
“Feel it,” he suggests.
I’m very aware of all three of them watching as I lift my hand and run my finger over the spot.
My brow furrows when I feel a slightly raised bump that’s long and skinny, almost like the part of a doorbell that you push on. I run my finger over it again. “What is that?”
“Try pressing it,” Jace suggests.
I pause and shoot him a wary look. “Why does this feel like I’m the guinea pig in case this isn’t what you think it is and it’s actually a trap?”
“Because you’re paranoid and think so badly of me that you assume I would put you in harm’s way to protect my own ass?”
“Is he wrong?” Jax says dryly.
Jace just shoots his brother a serene smile and shrugs.
A weird sense of stubbornness falls over me. I should step back and let one of them push it, but I don’t want to give Jace the satisfaction of backing away after a challenge.
Giving him a flat look, I press on the spot.
The bump or whatever it is moves under my hand, and I can feel a soft click, like how two pieces of a puzzle snap together, when it’s flush with the rest of the wall.
Slowly, I look around, waiting for… something… to happen.
There’s a slight sound, like the scrape of paint on paint, and the four of us turn around as a small panel the size of a textbook lifts away from the rest of the wall.
“Yahtzee,” Jace says as he walks over to the panel.
I point to the button or whatever it is I just pushed. “How did you see that?” I ask Jax.
