HATE: MADISON KATE #1

by James Tate

  "We didn't force your dad to say that shit, MK," he said softly. I wanted to object to his use of my nickname, but it was so much better than the condescending way they always said Madison Kate. As fragile as my emotions were... I let it slide. Just once. "To be honest, there was no way we could have known that was what he'd say. Or what you'd hear."

  I tucked my arms tighter around me, like I was giving myself a supportive hug. "So what was your whole plan, then? Just call him and tattle about Dallas being back in my life?"

  Damn it all to hell, I wanted to believe Kody. He just had one of those faces... those sincere green eyes... Fuck. I never should have kissed him back.

  "Arch..." Kody started to explain, then trailed off, biting his lower lip. He shook his head, blowing out a heavy breath. "It doesn't matter what we planned. What matters here is what he said."

  I nodded, bitterness rising up in my throat again. "Yeah. That he thinks I'm a vapid bitch, that he somehow arranged a two-year prison sentence for the guy I lost my virginity to, and that he's known about my stalker for years and doesn't care enough to do anything about it. God forbid he even make me aware of it."

  Dark emotions were crowding my brain again, and my skin itched with the need to get them out. Kody's brow had furrowed, but the way he was staring at me seemed at odds with the utter, heart-wrenching betrayal I was experiencing.

  "What?" I snapped.

  "You lost your virginity to that asshole? He's old enough to be your dad." Kody said it like he was making a joke, but there was an edge of anger in his voice that confused me.

  "Very funny, asshole," I replied with a growl. "He's not that much older than you."

  Based on what Bree had told me, Kody was twenty-one. Dallas was twenty-three now, but at the time... Yeah it had crossed a few lines back then. Part of the reason we had agreed to keep it a one-time thing and just stay friends.

  Of course, then things had gotten weird and we’d drifted apart. Next thing I knew, he’d been arrested and sent to Mantworth. My father's doing, apparently.

  I shook my head, trying to rearrange all the jumbled thoughts. "I need to get out of here," I muttered, reaching for his door handle. "This whole situation is getting more fucked up by the second, and I'm just about done with it all."

  I yanked Kody's bedroom door open, only to find Steele right there on the other side. His hand was raised, like he'd been about to knock, but who knows how long he'd been standing there. I sure as shit wasn't sticking around to find out, so I shoved him aside and stared down the hall.

  "MK, wait!" Kody shouted, chasing after me and grabbing my arm. "Where are you going?"

  "Literally none of your business. Like I told you the day I got back, stay out of my fucking way, or you'll regret it." My death stare encompassed both Kody and Steele, and when I whirled around to leave, I found Archer standing there with his arms folded over his broad chest. "Move it, D'Ath."

  "Go to your room, Princess Danvers," he ordered me, his bored glare pure ice.

  It just enraged me further. "How does get fucked sound, dickhead?"

  "Sounds like a spoiled brat throwing a temper tantrum because Daddy doesn't love her," he replied, his voice totally flat. "Now you go to your fucking room, do some fucking homework, and stop acting like such a fucking brat."

  He turned as if to leave as if that was the end of conversation and I'd scurry back to my princess-pink room with my tail between my legs. Clearly, he'd forgotten who he was dealing with.

  "No, I don't think I'm going to dance to your tune today, Archer D'Ath," I mused aloud and somewhat caustically. "Not today or ever. What are you actually going to do? Force me to stay?"

  Archer turned back to me ever so slowly, and his eyes held a distinctive, wicked gleam. That vein throbbed over his temple, and I looked at him with pure contempt.

  He took two steps toward me, and I tilted my chin, challenging him. Part of me was pretty confident he was all talk and threats, hoping to intimidate me into falling in line. The other part of me? Yeah... I had a feeling he actually would force me to stay.

  Crap.

  His huge hands clamped down on my upper arms, and he gave me a mean smile. Suddenly all parts of me were sure. He one hundred percent intended to physically force me into my room, then probably lock the door.

  Nope. Not happening. No way, no how.

  As he applied pressure, pushing me backwards, I did the only thing any self-respecting woman in my position could do.

  I slammed my knee into his nuts.

  Then ran like hell.

  23

  I should have just taken one of my father's cars. Maybe then I wouldn't have found myself walking down the street in pouring rain with no shoes and no coat.

  Hindsight was a beautiful thing. And really, it'd have taken me so long to mentally talk myself into actually driving that the guys would have caught up and dragged me back—probably—kicking and screaming.

  Thankfully, though, I was only out in the rain for five minutes before Dallas drove past, braked, then reversed to stop in front of me.

  "Katie? What the hell are you doing?"

  He was so concerned that I just ended up a sobbing mess in his passenger seat. I asked him to take me to Bree's place because, as badly as I wanted to spend time with Dallas... I couldn't get my father's voice out of my head.

  "Are you ready to tell me what's going on?" Dallas asked as we pulled into Bree's parents’ mansion. She'd moved into the pool house, so we bypassed the main entrance and let ourselves through the gate hidden by hedges. We'd spent enough time there in the past, and nothing had changed.

  "Can you tell me about what happened to you?" I asked him, leading the way through the garden path. "When you got arrested? I thought it was a robbery charge, but the more I think about it, the less I can remember." Actually, the more I thought about it, the more sure I was that Dallas hadn't been the one robbing that pharmacy at all.

  "Uh, it's in the past, Katie. I did my time, and now I'm all reformed and shit." He scratched uncomfortably at his new neck tattoo, a geometric wolf.

  I snorted a soft laugh. "Reformed my ass, you big liar. I know you're still in the Wraiths."

  Dallas shot me a wicked grin, then knocked on Bree's patio door before giving me a small frown. "Why do you ask?"

  I bit my lip, then shook my head. "No reason," I lied. "Just thinking about how we lost touch. We used to be so close."

  He ached a lopsided smile at me right as Bree opened the door. "Hey guys, what's up?" She raised a brow at my soaked-through, barefoot outfit. "Okay... pretty confident this will be a good story. Come on in..."

  I ducked past Dallas and into the warmth of Bree's home, but Dallas paused, checking his phone.

  "Ah, sorry ladies. Someone called in sick at work. I've got to go back and cover their shift." He looked annoyed but not necessarily surprised. He was a floor supervisor in some kind of warehouse, which I was pretty sure the Wraiths owned and operated some dodgy shit out of. Not my circus, not my monkeys. "Sorry, girls. Another night?"

  "You bet, babe," Bree replied with a sassy wink, and I did a quick double take between them. Dallas shot her a small smile back, and I started wondering if there was something going on between the two of them.

  "Oh, wait," I gasped as Dallas made to leave. "Did you manage to get the stuff I was after?"

  He nodded, his brow furrowed, and pulled a plastic bottle of white powder out of his pocket. "You sure you know what you're doing with this, Kate? Feels like you're getting in deep here."

  I scowled and took the bottle from his outstretched hand. "I know exactly what I'm doing. That fucker will regret the day he ever messed with Madison Kate Danvers, that's a certainty."

  Dallas just sighed and tucked his hands back into his pockets. "Alright, just... be careful. Okay?"

  "I will." I gave him a reassuring nod. "What do I owe you for this?" I inspected the drug in my hand. There was a lot. More than I’d expected... but then how the hell would I know what was n
ormal?

  Dallas just waved me off, stepping back out into the rain. "On the house, gorgeous. Just be safe."

  When he was gone, Bree closed the door and leaned her back against it, her eyes sparkling mischief. "You're actually going to do it, then?"

  I placed the bottle down on her low coffee table, then cringed at the sopping fabric of my sweatpants against my legs. "I'm definitely doing it. Archer D'Ath is going down."

  She smirked. "What a shame you don't mean that in the fun way. I bet he'd be a freaking beast in bed."

  I rolled my eyes. "I can safely say I will never find out for myself. Now, can I borrow some clothes? I'm freezing here."

  My friend laughed like I was being all kinds of dense, but went to fetch me dry clothes anyway.

  * * *

  By the time I’d finished filling her in on everything that had happened, we'd finished a full bottle of her mom's fancy chilled champagne and eaten three blocks of imported Whittaker's chocolate from New Zealand. If it hadn’t been for all the heavy shit I had to tell her, it would’ve been a damn perfect evening.

  "Holy shit, MK," Bree finally said when I’d fully caught her up. "That's a lot. A lot, a lot."

  I nodded, taking the last sip from my glass. "Yup."

  We sat there in silence for a few moments, just listening to the rain falling outside.

  "So..." I yawned. "Can I stay here tonight?"

  "Of course, girl. Mi casa es... blah blah. You know what I mean." Her words were slightly slurred, and I snickered. She was such a lightweight. "Stay as long as you need. I won't even tell Carol and Greg you're here, okay?"

  I wrinkled my nose at the mention of her parents. "Yeah, that's probably best. Last thing I need is for my dad to call and scream at me. Not now."

  "You got it," Bree agreed, then within moments started snoring.

  I stifled a laugh, but tucked a pillow under her head and a blanket over her body before crawling under the covers of her bed. If she wasn't going to use it, I might as well.

  Despite how exhausted I was and how soothing the sound of rain and Bree's snores were, sleep totally eluded me. I probably dozed off lightly sometime after four in the morning, but when Bree's alarm clock went off, I felt like warmed-up dog shit.

  My best friend—still asleep on the floor where she'd passed out—startled awake and sat up with some epic haystack hair. "It's morning?" she asked, bleary with sleep.

  "Unfortunately," I replied with a yawn. "Thanks for letting me crash."

  Bree got up off the floor and stretched her arms over her head with a loud groan. "No worries, babe. Seriously, stay forever if you want."

  As tempting as that offer was, I shook my head. "Nah, I can't let them think they've got me running scared from my own home. Besides, I've got Archer's hopes and dreams to crush under my boot."

  Bree snickered a laugh on her way to the bathroom. "You're fucking vicious, MK," she called back to me. "I love it."

  I grinned as she turned the shower on but left the door partly open so we could still talk. I'd still had my phone in the pocket of my sweatpants when I'd escaped the Danvers mansion last night, so I rolled over in Bree's big bed to check if Dallas had messaged. After all, only he, Bree, and my father had my number, so I couldn't see anyone else contacting me.

  How wrong I was.

  "Twelve missed calls and twenty-seven messages?" I yelled aloud, double checking the notification display. "What the shit?"

  Swiping my screen unlocked, I groaned.

  "Bree! Did you give the guys my number?" Because I seriously doubted Dallas had handed it over... Maybe my father had? Then again, he didn't seem to care much about what I was doing, and I couldn't see Archer asking him for help.

  Bree didn't reply, and I narrowed my eyes at the cracked bathroom door.

  "Bree..." I repeated, my tone low and warning.

  The shower shut off, and a moment later, her face popped around the door—guilt painted all over it. "It was last week," she explained, cringing at whatever was playing out on my face. "Like, before shit got bad. Before the juice incident. Kody asked, and he was all shirtless and sweaty and..." She trailed off with a helpless shrug.

  I guessed I couldn't blame her. I'd lost my brain plenty of times thanks to those boys being shirtless and sweaty, and if he'd asked before we started classes, it wouldn't have seemed like such a crazy request. We did live together.

  "It's fine." I waved off her concern and sighed. I clicked into the messages to scan the content. It was all fairly unsurprising shit. Where are you? and the likes.

  There were three different numbers, and there was one message from each that helped me identify who each number belonged to.

  Max Steele: Come home, hellcat.

  Anger flared, and I deleted the rest of his messages without opening them. Fuck that. He'd told his friends everything that we'd done, right down to the fact that he had my panties. Had he shown them or something? Ugh. So gross. Talk about drunken mistakes.

  The next one I kept. Don't ask me why; I'll blame it on my stupid, girly hormones.

  Kodiak Jones: I'm not sorry for kissing you. I'd do it again, if you didn't slap so hard.

  Charming bastard.

  The last one made me want to throw my phone across the room and only solidified my determination to fuck shit up.

  Archer D'Ath: Typical princess behavior. We'll be discussing some ground rules when your tantrum is over.

  I couldn't help myself. I tapped on reply and typed out a quick message, sending it in a flurry of irritation.

  Madison Kate: Take your ground rules and shove them straight up your ass, you micropenis, dirty douchebucket.

  Then because I was still frothing with anger, I sent another.

  Madison Kate: Quit the domineering act too. You're no Christian Gray.

  His reply was almost instant, and I jumped when my phone vibrated in my hand.

  Archer D'Ath: No. I'm worse.

  A shiver ran through me, and I decided against continuing the asinine conversation with him, instead, tossing my phone back onto the bed and going for a shower now that Bree was out.

  "Hey, you want to cut classes today?" I asked her while lathering shampoo into my long, pink locks. My walk in the rain the night before had made it all tangled and gross, so it needed the freshen up.

  "Cut classes?" Bree replied, sounding surprised. "It's only the second week, girl."

  She had a point, even if it did feel like I'd been back in Shadow Grove for months already. "So, no?"

  "I didn't say no." She appeared in the doorway of the bathroom, holding up two dresses. "Which one?"

  I swiped water out of my eyes and considered both outfits. "Black one," I picked. "With those cute thigh-high flat boots you've got."

  She nodded. "Yep, that'll look cute on you." She hung the sweater dress I’d chosen on the door handle, then disappeared back into her bedroom.

  I smiled and rinsed out my hair. I'd thought she meant for her, but of course she was making sure I didn't go home in my sweatpants from last night. Typical Bree, she was already thinking about how to make me look amazing, just in case we ran into the guys.

  Not because I felt any need to be primped and made-up for them, fuck no. But because when we felt good about our appearances, it acted like armor. It boosted our confidence, and I could do with every ounce of that I could find today.

  Some time later we were both dressed, makeup on and hair done. I had to hand it to her, too; I felt ready to tackle whatever the day wanted to throw my way.

  There was just one thing missing.

  "So," Bree said, propping her hands on her hips. "Coffee, then... a movie?"

  It was raining again, and to me that was perfect weather for daytime cinema visits. So I happily agreed to her plan. "I know the perfect place for coffee," I told her, "and zero chance of running into anyone we know."

  "Sounds good to me," Bree replied, grabbing her car keys and leading the way out of her villa. "So, where are we heading?" />
  I grinned. "West Shadow Grove. Nadia's Cakes."

  24

  Walking into the coffee shop, a flutter of anxiety hit me. Last time I'd been here, some chick had assumed I was Kody's new girlfriend and slapped me for exactly no good reason.

  To my relief, the shop was fairly quiet and the bitchy brunette, Drew, was nowhere to be seen.

  "Okay, you're right," Bree declared after we’d finished our coffee and two servings of cake each. It was never too early for cake.

  I grinned, licking my fork. "Good, right?"

  She nodded, groaning and rubbing her stomach. "So good. How'd you find this place? You've been back in town for, like, three seconds."

  I grimaced, remembering my coffee date with Kody. "Long story." Thankfully Nadia wasn't there, so I didn't have to field any awkward questions about my "boyfriend" in front of Bree. The old woman was too sweet for me to correct her.

  We left the coffee shop in a great mood, huddling under a shared umbrella as we made our way back to Bree's car.

  "You want to drive?" she asked, looking over at me through her lashes and holding out her keys.

  I bit my lip and shook my head. She knew my hang-ups, but never pushed me too hard. I had my license, but driving wasn't something I enjoyed, thanks to past trauma.

  "Nah," I replied, trying to keep my tone light. "You'd kill me if I scratched your rims or something."

  "Probably," she agreed, clicking the key fob to unlock her car when we came around the corner. Across the street, a couple stood under a wide black umbrella, locked in an intense kiss. There was something strangely familiar about the girl...

  "Oh shit," I breathed, stopping dead in my tracks beside Bree's car.

  It was Drew, the girl who'd slapped me. But that wasn't what had just made the bottom fall out of my stomach. She'd just shifted the umbrella, revealing the guy's bleached blond hair and broad, muscular frame.

  Bree gasped. "Is that—?"

  "Yep." I bit the word off, feeling bitter disappointment churn in my stomach. "Come on, let's go before he sees us."