by Dukey, Ker
I shift in my seat to unstick my nutsack from my thigh and shake my head.
The week passed uneventfully. I managed getting to all my classes early and made some new acquaintances, but all things Elite were obsolete. Not even a murmur about the secret society—and that left me on edge. I assumed there would be an atmosphere surrounding the college, everyone waiting to see if they were going to be picked, but in reality, it really was secret and under most people’s radar.
That was the whole point, but it made finding out information about them really fucking difficult.
“Rhett,” Lillian coaxes, reminding me she asked me a question.
“What made you think we would be a good match?” I almost laugh, the memory of Chastity giving me the finger before she fled the room at God’s party playing in my mind.
I’d seen very little of Chastity since God’s party, and didn’t count on changing that even if she did cause the competitor inside me to pursue her just to change her mind about me. Or too get her to talk while I slept.
Fuck it. I have more important things to worry about.
“She’s well-liked on campus and knows the grounds better than most,” Lillian tells me, then quirks her head to the side, studying me.
“Was there an issue?”
“Apart from Chastity hating the male species? No.”
Smiling, Lillian flicks her fingers over her keyboard, typing something I can’t see onto her computer.
“I’m surprised you couldn’t persuade her otherwise.”
Is she flirting?
“The feisty ones tend to bite. Best to leave them be.” I shrug.
She changes the subject to my parents, and I spend the next twenty minutes nodding or shaking my head to her questions. I don’t want to talk about why my mother isn’t around right now, or that I’d seen more of Chastity last week than my dad.
“Is there anything you’d like to speak about?”
Nope.
“I’m good.”
“Okay. Well, have a good day. I’ll see you next week.”
She doesn’t follow me to the door like last time, and as I swing the door open, I almost collide with none other than Chastity.
There’s a stand-off of sorts in the doorway, both refusing to apologize to the other or move out the way, even though it’s clearly her clumsy ass who almost took us both out.
A sweet candy apple scent surrounds her, making my mouth water. Her eyes pierce me to the spot with defiance, the violet hints more prominent than the blue today.
Lazy and seductive, I lean in and inhale her scent before winking down at her.
“You smell real sweet today.”
She narrows her eyes. “It’s called a bath.” She makes a point of leaning forward and sniffing at my shirt. “Ever heard of it?”
I know from running here I must stink, but that’s not disgust on her pretty features. She’s trying to convince herself she’s not attracted to me and it’s cute as hell.
I scratch at my chin, then, in a low tone, say, “Nope, can you explain it?”
“Soap, water, look it up.” She tries to move around me, but I sway my body to mimic her movements just for sport.
“Isn’t that where you’re all naked and lathering up that creamy skin with bubbles?”
Relishing the tint to her cheeks, I brush past her, letting her move into the office, and call over my shoulder, “Thanks for the visuals, by the way, the towel over the weekend, I’ll be thinking about it all day.” I reel her in and watch her blow.
“You make me gag,” she says, then catches her words. Her shoulders deflate, and a grin tugs high on my lips.
“Yep, sure would, sweetheart.” The door slams shut, and a real chuckle resonates from my gut. Fuck, it feels good.
“You want to go to Gaspe’s for lunch?” God asks, staring at his cell phone.
“You waiting on a call?”
Looking up at me for the first time since we came outside, he shakes his head.
“Just checking my fantasy football.”
My own scoff almost makes me choke. “Yeah right.”
A couple guys tossing a ball back and forth a couple feet away filters into my vision.
“Let’s just eat on campus,” I tell him, holding my hands up for the ball.
Gaspe’s is my favourite place to eat. It’s expensive and a thirty-minute drive away. God doesn’t think about either of those things; he lives his life to a completely different tune than the rest of the world.
“Okay. I’ll get them to deliver it here.”
Unbelievable.
Waltzing into the parking lot, my feet skid to a halt on the gravel underfoot. No car. I forgot to arrange a ride and God fucked off after lunch. Pulling out my cell, I shoot him a text anyway.
Where you at? Need a ride.
A few seconds later, he replies.
Busy for next two hours.
Perfect.
Stacks upon stacks of books over two floors fill the space of the library. The area is airy and sparse, perfect for studying while I wait for God to pick me up.
Finding a table tucked away at the back of the room, I drop my ass in the seat and people-watch for a while. When that gets boring, I reach in my bag to pull out my books. A white envelope drops out with my name scrolled in red ink across the front.
My heart begins to thunder in my chest. Could this be it—the invitation to The Elite?
It seems too easy.
I scan the library for potential people who could have snuck it in my bag, but there’s not many people here, and where I’m sitting is secluded. Anyone could have slipped this in my bag at any point today. I open it up, finding an invitation to a club inside.
What the fuck? It’s just a party invite? We have an app for that, people.
My hope diminishes, and I stuff the card back in my bag and pull out my books.
Trying to ignore the not-so-subtle looks and whispers from a group of females sitting at table a good twenty feet away, I re-read the same page five times and still don’t know what it says. Slamming the book closed, I sag in the chair and close my eyes. It’s been over two hours, and I hit my limit at one. I need food and a shower.
“You’re in my seat,” a familiar feminine voice informs my almost asleep form.
Cracking an eye open, I sigh and force the other eye open. Sure enough, Chastity is standing with her arms folded over her ample chest, giving me a small glimpse of her cleavage.
“Are you sure you’re not stalking me?” I ask, not moving.
“You wish, Romeo.” She says Romeo as an insult, but it only makes me want to fuck her just to hear her moan it on her lips.
“This library is huge and you’re harassing me for my seat?”
“My seat,” she corrects.
I make a show of looking over the seat, then shrug with a satisfied smirk.
“Your name doesn’t appear to be on it.”
Huffing, she reaches into her bag, pulls out a book, opens it up, then drops it on the table in front of me.
A list of names, dates, and times are placed in columns down the page.
“I booked this spot from six until eight.”
This has to be a joke. “You booked a seat in the library?” I mock.
“Study area, yes. This place gets real busy in the evenings—not that you’d know, it’s the first time I’ve seen you here.” She plops her bag at the foot of my chair.
“So, you’ve been looking for me,” I surmise with a grin.
Her mouth opens and closes, then she turns on her heel and saunters off to the reception desk. I watch her speak in hushed tones, then point over at me. The guy’s eyes follow her finger before he stands from behind the counter.
She flashes me a smile that says, “I’ve won,” then walks back over to me with the library guy hot on her heels.
“I’m sorry, man, but this table is booked out from six. You’ll have to move to a non-reserved spot,” the guy tells me, dropping a little reserved p
laque on the table.
What a brat.
“No problem. I was leaving anyway.” I pack my shit up and shove to my feet. Chastity stands with her shoulders back, a victory stance.
The guy leaves us to go back to doing his job of allocating study areas. What a joke.
“You know,” I say, bringing my body within breathing space of hers.
“If you took that stick out your ass, I could replace it with my cock, that might relieve some of that tension you seem to have.”
“You’re disgusting.” She sneers.
“Hmm or you could put those lips to use instead.”
Her eyes take in every part of my face before dipping low to my crotch. “Tempting, but I’ll pass. I already had Vienna sausage for lunch. One’s enough for any lifetime.”
“Ha!” I bark. It’s natural and comes as a shock to us both. She’s got jokes and that took me by surprise.
“Shhh,” some guy hisses from a table where he has at least ten books cracked all at once. Nerd. Just as I’m about to tell him to shut the fuck up or I’ll shut him up, God appears behind him, bending to whisper something in his ear. The guy’s face blanches.
“Is he threatening him?” Chastity asks, her voice holding concern.
God marches up next to me, slapping a hand on my shoulder.
“We’ve got places to be,” he informs me, ignoring the beauty in front of us and taking off the way he came.
“I guess that’s my cue.”
“Yep. Hope not to see you around.” She smirks, and it does shit to me. That pretty fucking face doesn’t match the bitchtude, and it’s weirdly intriguing.
“You should probably stop seeking me out then.” I snort, leaving her fuming in my wake.
When I get outside, God is in my car. It looks shiny and new, and I do a double take to make sure it’s actually mine and not something he decided to buy on a whim.
Looking up from his cell, he says, “I had them detail it while they had it.”
“You know I love you, right?” I pop the trunk and dump my bag in, then drop into the driver’s seat.
“What’s going on with the chick?” he asks, nodding his head toward the library.
“She’s got it bad for me, just doesn’t know it yet,” I inform him, kicking the engine over and taking off.
“You tapped that.”
“Nah. She’s high maintenance as fuck. I’d have to work for it.”
I’ve never had to work for it.
“You’ve never had to work for it.” God jabs me in the arm, verbalising my own thoughts.
“You want to tell me where we’re going?” I prompt.
Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out an envelope that matches the one I found and holds it up.
“Tell me you got one of these?”
Looking between him and the road, I jerk my head, motioning yes.
“It’s just a party invite though, right?”
The galloping of my heart is back full force.
“Did you look at it?”
Briefly. I was too disappointed to inspect the fucking thing.
He holds it up, and I shrug. The party is being held at Club Envy in town.
“So what.”
“Dude,” he grunts, pointing to some writing at the bottom.
INVITATION TO DEADLY SINS.
“What are deadly sins?” I ask, keeping my attention on the road despite the desperate need to want to look at him and see what he’s getting at.
“Don’t leave me hanging, man,” I bite out.
“Deadly Sins is an underground club not open to the public. You can only access it from the back of Club Envy, and my sources tell me it’s an Elite ran club.” He grins.
Pulling over, I cut the engine and snatch the invitation from his hand.
“Who gave you yours?” I demand, checking the thing over for any clue that this is really it, our way in.
Pulling out a vape pen, he takes a hearty pull, then fills the car with a cloud of cannabis scented vapor.
“You getting high?” I ask.
“Fuck yeah I am.”
“Since when do you vape?”
Grinning he shrugs. “Some kid sold it to me.”
Snatching the vape pen, I take a hit. “Woot! This is it!” I yell.
“Fuck yeah it is. Let’s go get showered and shit. I have some clothes being delivered to the house. We need to look the part.” He grins.
Yeah we do.
Looking good has always been something that came easy to me, but tonight I feel good too.
This is what I’ve wanted and been working toward, and tonight could be the night it happens for me.
God had outfits sent over that reeked of wealth and superiority. The watch hanging from my wrist costs more than my car, thanks to God’s jeweler loaning me the twenty-four carat gold Rolex.
The invitation was scanned for an invisible barcode when we arrived, and unlike we assumed, we were directed to elevators taking us to a club above Envy, not below it.
God gives me an approving nod when the elevator doors open and music caresses over us like a soft wave hitting the shore. Unlike most clubs, the bass doesn’t shake the room. Instead, a rhythmic pulse emits through the room, giving it a heart beat.
Bodies grind and sway on a dance floor lit up by white strobe lights, moving with the beat of the music. Glass tables that look like they were sculpted from crystal line the back walls and are occupied.
There are people of all ages enjoying themselves, and the vibe is on a level I’ve never experienced before.
Liquor is placed on tables by the bottle delivered by barmaids wearing tight, all black pantsuits. The fabric hugs their figures in an alluring manner without being sleazy.
God pulls out his black credit card and slides it across the bar. “Let’s get wasted.” He rolls his head over his shoulders and slaps my back. The bartender places drinks in front of us, but shakes his head at the credit card, pushing it back to God. Drinks are free.
Jackpot.
There are multiple private rooms throughout the club. Lights are muted inside these rooms, just a blue hue emanating from the ceiling. Alcohol stirs, intoxicating my thoughts.
Women dance around me, grinding their bodies against the hard ridges of mine.
Crooking a finger, a blonde makes a show of placing a pill on her tongue, then takes my mouth with hers, transferring the drug to me.
Our tongues dual and bodies mingle, music pulsing through me. I become part of it, my essence entering the atmosphere around me like the vapor from God’s pen.
Everything feels too fucking good. More drinks are consumed, until it feels like I’m living outside my body on another plane of existence.
I’m losing myself.
My eyelids heavy. My limbs sluggish. My mind gone.
I’m floating in the emptiness of space.
Fog clouds my mind, and I hear Robbie calling to me through the haze.
“Rhett, don’t forget about me.”
I won’t, I promise.
I promise.
I promise.
Water soaks my body as rain punishes down on me. The drops turn to acid, corroding my skin, burning me through to the bone. The sounds chop and change as my vision swims in and out, and there’s a constant ringing humming through the torrent.
RING. RING. RING.
Everything is gray, dripping down the walls of my subconscious, until the images bleed into nothing and I’m pulled into consciousness.
My heartbeat is erratic and too loud in my ears. Sweat dampens my skin, saturating the sheets I find myself on.
The ringing is coming from my pocket. I’m in my bed. What the fuck? I don’t even remember leaving the club. I’m shirtless, but still wearing the black jeans that look like melted black crayon against my skin. My flesh hums with an itch of a thousand tiny legs crawling under the surface. My head is groggy as fuck.
The ringing stops and immediately starts up again. I fish my cell from my pocket, a
nd something comes with it, dropping to the floor with a clink.
Leaning over the side of the bed, I will the nausea to retreat and frown at the gold coin laying on the floor.
A skull image with writing beneath it decorates one side. Picking it up, I flick it over in my palm. The Elite Seven is embossed on the other side, and a tingle spreads throughout my body. My cell shrills in my hand, and God’s name flashes on the screen. I swipe to answer his call.
“About time,” his voice echoes down the line, but it’s too close. My door pushes open, and God waltzes in, throwing his cell down on the bed and then catapulting himself onto the space next to me.
“I’ve been trying to call you for hours.” He looks tired. Shades cover his eyes, but his skin is paler than usual.
“I don’t even remember getting back here,” I tell him. “I woke up with this.” I offer him the coin, and he sits up on one elbow, taking the coin and grinning.
Handing it back to me, he burrows into his own pocket and pulls out a replica.
“Check your bedside table,” he croaks.
I do, and find another invitation with coordinates and nothing else.
“We’re in?” I breathe. Flopping back on the bed, a ton weight releases from my shoulders. God slaps a hand at me, catching my arm and chest. “We’re in, brother.”
Sighing, a real smile tugs at my lips.
“By the way, some blonde chick answered the door in her underwear. I thought she was following me back to your room, but she went into your dad’s room.” God shudders.
Groaning, I crawl out the bed and hit the shower. I’m sick of my dad’s midlife crisis and have more important things to think about.
Wind howls through the trees, making them sound like ocean waves crashing against rock. A slither of moon shines through a break in the clouds illuminating the large brick wall standing at least twelve feet in the air, concealing the abandoned nunnery inside its concrete arms.
“You sure this is where they lead?” I ask God, snatching up the card with the directions.
“Makes sense to me. It’s creepy and has a secret society vibe for sure,” he says, swinging his legs out of the car and testing the iron gates.
