Page 108 of A Lesson in Obedience
I could practically hear the chancellor tsk.No you said you were done and I respect that. Just do what I say and let the man have his fun.
I pushed myself out the minute I felt him look at me, even though he couldn’t actually see me. I pressed my hand to my chest, feeling my heart beating rapidly. I looked over to Beau and Ike,noticing the familiar had settled down, but his body was still shaking. Ike had his arms wrapped around him while he sat on the floor.
“River, what the fuck?”
“It’s Riley…I don’t know. Something happened at the coven meeting.”
Ike’s eyes widened and he fumbled for his phone, likely to check if Corrin had written anything.
I’d left my phone on the kitchen counter earlier in the day and saw it buzzing. A phone call from Asher was coming through. I went to pick it up when an intense grating sound hit my head. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard, but then it felt like my brain was getting pulverized with a mallet. I gripped the side of my head, trying to build up the walls around my mind. Inch by inch a shield was created but it stopped. I couldn’t keep going or maybe I wasn’t strong enough to keep pushing back.
The shield reverberated as if something was barreling through. It pulsed and I felt my knees hit the floor of the kitchen. The wall I’d tried to build exploded around me and I quickly tried to create another, but each time was weaker and easily destroyed.
Oh, River. You’ve learned so much, but it will never be enough to keep me out.
“No, no, no,” I whispered to myself, continuing to try and fail at helping myself, helping my mind.
Disobedience breeds consequences, son. It won’t hurt too badly.
I slammed my fist against the floor and the feeling I dreaded started to claim my body, my mind…everything. He was starting to take over and I wanted to push back, but he was already in. That familial tie was strong even if I had every reason to want to shred it to pieces. I gritted my teeth, nearly biting my own tongue from the sheer will to not obey him.
I regretted not pushing myself more to be able to take him on. Despite being shielded by Asher, I should have done my due diligence. I knew that.
Ike ran over to me and an anxiety-ridden Beau licked at my face,whining. “River, talk to me. What can I do?” He sounded desperate and I wanted to tell him there was nothing hecoulddo.
I heard what my father wanted and my own will kept attempting to intrude on his control. He was stronger and he always had been. I got up from the floor, feeling myself move like a robot.
“Where are you going? What did you hear?” Ike pushed, grabbing my forearm.
I whirled around and slammed him into the kitchen wall, his eyes grew with shock. His expression quickly morphed into panic when he looked into my eyes. If he realized something, I wasn’t aware because I didn’tfeelanything. I pulled away heading towards the entryway table, grabbing my motorcycle keys.
Beau bit at my heels but I ignored him, like I ignored my own pleas to stop myself.
I left my helmet behind as I slammed the door behind me and got onto my bike. I heard the engine revving and all I could think washe was going to make this hurt. This would hurt everyone.
I backed out of the driveway and headed down the street, not really knowing where I was going but the fact that I needed to keep driving was my only thought. He was leading my directions but never showed me the destination, even though all that came to mind was one word: pain.
40
Asher
EARLIER
Riley hadn’t looked all that focused in my class and I didn’t blame her. I went through the normal motions but always kept her in my sights. Her witch friend would whisper to her and she would answer back, but nothing about her expression ever changed. A simple coven meeting held so much unknown for her.
I had a plan in place. Precautions. I kept telling myself that everything would be just fine and the fact that I was even letting my confidence falter was some kind of mistake. I tapped my pen on my desk remembering how she’d let Corrin go ahead of her and waited for everyone to filter out. She’d slowly made her way around my desk and waited just a quick moment before kissing me.
It was a desperate kiss that told me she wanted everything to be fixed, she wanted to rewind all of this and go back to when things were easier. I pulled away knowing that things stopped being easythe minute we’d decided the four of us being a ‘thing’ was feasible. Her lips had pulled into a small smile before leaving.
I’d checked on River multiple times throughout the day, even though he occasionally updated me through his telepathy. Chancellor Fowler had been quiet, surprisingly. That made me nervous but not enough to call this whole thing off. Villains had to take a moment of rest at some point, right?
Two more classes, an hour spent in my office planning coursework and finally I headed straight to my car.
I didn’t know my father’s schedule completely, but I least knew how Mondays went. He had a bunch of emails to get through in the morning, various meetings throughout the day, lunch with some of the other deans and then back to whatever the fuck he did in his office the rest of the day. Eventually somewhere between five and six o’clock he went home.
It was slowly getting dark when I pulled up. The sun hadn’t completely set, but it was descending towards the trees little by little. I walked into the house and was met with my father coming down the stairs.
“Asher, I’m surprised you’re here,” he acknowledged, looking me up and down.
