Knights Who Stole My Heart : Knights Series Book 2

by Sonya Jesus

  Fucking VIP hospital rooms. Why did the bathroom have to be so big?

  The urge to rest takes over. I zone out just as the room turns black.

  Chapter 25: Fuzzy Memories

  Hawk

  The director of Public Safety and Residence Life met me at the castle to reprimand and remind me of the rules. Despite the situation involving a student, I was given a formal warning and told to be more professional before someone misconstrued my behavior as an abuse of power. Which meant no more impromptu visits to the hospital while I was on duty.

  My superiors were on alert now, and if they radioed for me, I’d have to check in. The hospital was close, but probably not within the range of the radios. Too risky and a load of shit. Not that risk matters when my Queen needs me.

  It drives me insane knowing she’s in the hospital, vulnerable. I tried all day to trace her steps and locate her phone in attempts to find her attacker, or as the guys suspect, her prankster. I’m nowhere closer than I was before. My only comfort is that she’s in a protected area. The Chases are at least good for that.

  I check the time. Amelia would be discharged soon. Taking advantage of her absence to look for clues, I pull my phone out, dialing Harper. She answers on the second ring.

  “Hey!” she greets me cheerfully. “How did it go?”

  “Well, I got in trouble. Going to have to be on my best behavior for a while. How’s Amelia? Did she come home yet?”

  Her voice drops. “Nope. We haven’t heard anything yet. Natalie is trying to get a hold of Mel and Haley. They left a little while ago.” She pauses, and I can hear Avery in the background, mentioning Robins. “Oh, that’s right! Robins is still there. I guess he’ll bring her home when they discharge her. Public Safety was here. The police haven’t found evidence of an attack. Her wounds are indicative of a fall. They are ruling it an accident and saying the pranks are not enough evidence. They were looking for the pin and the globe, and they couldn’t find it. They found nothing. I can’t believe all of this is happening.”

  “Yea,” I agree with her. “Pretty intense.”

  “Is that you at the door?” she asks, then answers for herself, “Oh, hey Aiden. What are you doing here?” She forgets I’m still on the phone, but her question is valid, especially since he has 6 a.m. practice tomorrow.

  “I just came to see how everything was,” he says.

  “She’s not home yet. You want me to tell her you stopped by? I’d invite you to wait, but everyone is exhausted.”

  “No, don’t worry about it. I’ll just stop by when she’s discharged.”

  “Alright. Hopefully, she’ll be here tomorrow.” After some more gibberish I don’t understand, Harper says goodbye, and returns to our phone call, “Hey sorry. Just one of Amelia’s admirers checking on her.” She chuckles into the phone.

  I strain my voice, “She has a bunch of those.”

  “You don’t know the half of it. Anyway, did you want to stop by? I could really use someone to snuggle with tonight. I haven’t ever been that scared in my life.”

  Then you’ve led a pretty sheltered life.

  “Yea,” I say as I reach my car. “I’ll be right up. Will you let me in?” Using my ID card to access the building with the director keeping tabs on me, is a bad idea.

  “Sure, I’ll come down and swipe you in.”

  “Deal. I’ll be there in a few.” I finish the call and sit down for a second, opening the GPS tracker for Amelia’s phone. It’s still off. Shit.

  I lock the car up and head toward the dorm. Harper stands outside in her flannel pajama pants and hoodie, smiling as I approach. She has bags under her eyes from exhaustion. At least I wouldn’t have to do much work tonight.

  “You look exhausted, are you sure you want me to come up?” I hold my arms open, beckoning her for a hug. She throws her arms around me, nestling her face into my chest. I chuckle when she sighs.

  “I just didn’t want to be alone tonight.”

  I nod. I actually understood where she was coming from. She cared about my Queen. All her suitemates did. She pulls back and peers up at me through puffy eyes. “You really care about her, don’t you?”

  Harper nods and releases me. “Of course, I do! Lia accepted me right away. I was trying to make friends. I felt awkward anywhere I went, and she just came up to me, sat right next to me and saw past it all.” She smiles softly.

  “She’s a great person. I’m glad she’s okay.” Most honest words I have ever spoken to Harper. Taking her ID card and swiping it through the reader, I open the door for her, letting her pass first. I put my hand on Harper’s lower back, guiding her up the stairs together, bypassing the elevator.

  When we get to the suite, Harper takes me directly to her room. I undress, shoes first then jacket, and get into bed with her. She curls into me, and we talk until she falls asleep.

  Since I haven’t slept for over 24 hours, I fight to stay awake. Once Harper is sound asleep, I quietly get out of bed, wiping the sleepiness from my eyes. Stealthily moving through the suite, I open the door and peek into the living room. The lighted cove illuminates the path to Amelia’s room. I need to find those gifts. Maybe they contain some sort of clue. Where would she hide them?

  I search her desk, and all I find is homework. I move into the closet and dig in the drawers, then move onto the storage boxes below. There’s nothing. Unless she put it on the useless top shelf where she likes to keep her purses.

  I open Amelia’s last drawer and use it as a stepping stool to get a better reach. I pull down each purse, one at a time, and search them before replacing them exactly where they were.

  I hear the door from outside.

  Shit! I balance myself on Mel’s dresser and jump up on her empty shelf, flattening myself against the wood. I reach into my pocket for my cell phone and turn on one of the cameras I planted in Amelia’s room.

  What is Haley doing prancing in here in her bra and panties? And why is she rummaging through Amelia’s things?

  The door to the closet swings open and I crush the phone against my chest, dampening the light from the screen. I rotate my head. Haley’s backside comes into vision. She has one of my Queen’s drawers open, shifting through the contents. She slides on one of her shirts and sprays a few pumps of Amelia’s perfume, then takes one of her jackets and closes the closet door on her way out.

  I listen for noise, remaining perfectly still until I hear nothing. I bring up my phone and check my cameras before stepping down. Haley is in the living room looking at her phone, and I have no choice but to wait her out. She’ll eventually have to retire to her room.

  I reach for one of Mel’s old stuffed animals and make myself comfortable. Not being able to go anywhere gives me a lot of time to remember how thrilling sneaking in here is. The panties Lacey found were now in the trunk of my car, crusted over with traces of me. The familiar tingling sensation, the urgency to explode on her things, leaving traces of me everywhere, beckons to me.

  Adjusting myself, I remember where I am and why. Being here, in her element, however, is part of the problem. I want to claim her, leave my mark on everything that is hers, and play out the hundreds of naughty fantasies in my head. Fantasies that would keep me busy for a long time.

  But why do I have to wait? Why am I waiting to make her mine?

  If I played this little game of conquering her heart, I’d steal her heart away. Simplify my life. I wouldn’t have to worry about someone else being with her. I could do that. Sometimes kings competed in tournaments under the guise of common knights. What if I entered the competition? What if I truly won her heart?

  The thought fills me with excitement.

  It’s plausible but highly complicated. There would be some obstacles, but obstacles I could deal with.

  First things first: kill whoever hurt my Queen.

  I flip on the cameras again. Haley was back in Amelia’s room, laying on her bed, hugging that stupid teddy bear. She’s thrown on Connor’s hoodie, and from t
his camera angle, she almost looks like my Queen.

  Wait a minute. I jolt up.

  That night… It wasn’t Amelia.

  Amelia slept at Robins’ place that night.

  I watch my screen and follow the imposter as she disappears from the room. She walks into the living room, grabs her purse from her room, and exits the suite. I drop down from the ledge the moment she’s gone. I step into the living room and notice Haley’s door slightly ajar with the lights on. I step inside. The smell of stale cigarettes and fish infiltrate my nostrils. Ugh. What is that?

  Her room is an absolute mess: dirty clothes piled up on the floor, bottles of water on her bed, trash can full of uneaten chocolates, boxes of Visine, her computer open to Connor’s Facebook page with the message window open. I scan the messages for anything noteworthy. She openly flirts with Connor in them. He points it out a couple of times, chivalrously insisting that he loves his girlfriend, despite opening their relationship. A few more message tabs were open.

  Jaime Montaine?

  I click on the tab, revealing one single message from Jaime: a voice recording file. No doubt the one of her and Connor’s indiscretion. How did I not know these two girls were hashing it out for Connor?

  I open her top drawer and find one of those liquid cigarettes in her first drawer, some condoms and a picture of Connor. The second drawer had papers with a prescription for Lithobid and a full bottle of pills. I check the date: almost a month ago. I take the other one. Risperidone.

  These are anti-psychotic drugs. She’s off her medications.

  I search the rest of the drawer, checking the printed articles. The one titled “50 Common Household Poisons,” catches my attention. I flip through the others on weight loss and toss them aside, focusing my attention on the poison one. I flip over the papers; on the back there are words written in pencil: tetrahydrozoline, arsenic, cyanide, nicotine …

  I drop the papers. The Visine boxes in the trash. I glance at the uneaten chocolates. The smell.

  Haley poisoned Austin.

  No, Haley tried to poison my Queen.

  I open the final drawer and find the evidence I was looking for. The snow globe, the pin, full water bottles. I look in her closet, moving some of the clothes aside with my feet and the tip of a rock pokes out.

  I leave everything the way I found it and hunt down my prey.

  Haley is the attacker.

  Chapter 26: Eeyore

  Lia

  A noise startles my eyes open. My vison is fuzzy and I struggle to lift my head. Where is Haley? How long was I out?

  The nausea dwindles. The instinct to rise and seek help gives me a small burst of energy. Pain resonates in my abdomen. How did Weston not check my appendix? All those toxicology screens and Weston didn’t bother to do an ultrasound?

  I take a deep breath and flatten my palms against the tile floor, straightening my arms and locking my elbows into place. Before my arms give out again, I manage to prop up my upper body long enough to see that I am closer to the shower and tub area. I can’t keep my balance. It’s hard to stay upright. My legs are twitching involuntarily. I lay down, flattening my stomach on the floor and resting my forehead on my arms. My body goes hot and cold

  My body is in full panic mode. “Haley!” I scream. Or maybe I don’t. Is my mouth moving?

  I try it again. “Haley?” But I don’t hear anything. I swing my head up. The bathroom whirls around in my head. I search for Haley through the blurred vision, or my tears. I lift again, my arms twitch and I collapse back down. I fight with my eyelids. Stay open!

  Where’s Haley? Where’s Weston? I try one last time, with one last bout of strength. “Haley!”

  Movement. Legs walk toward me. Thank God.

  Haley bends down next to me, cupping my cheek with her hand. Relief floods me. I have never been so happy to see her in my life.

  “M…mm...mm.” I think my lips are moving, but my tongue is paralyzed.

  “Aww, Lia.” The glee in her voice confuses me. She pinches my cheek hard, sending my body into shock.

  Get out, run. Those three words are bombarding me. I can barely focus.

  Haley breathes out slowly. “It’s about time!”

  I glance up. The delight in her eyes, the contentment on her face. Those are the last things I see before my body gives in to the darkness.

  ***

  When I come to, I’m still on the floor. There’s cotton in my mouth, making it even harder to breathe. It’s wet around me, pungent smelling, chunky residue surrounds me.

  Eww. Is that my puke?

  I turn over and scramble around. Getting up is hard when my feet are tied with the IV cord. My hands are behind my back, secured by something plastic. The cotton in my mouth doesn’t let me scream. I attempt to spit out the cotton, but pieces are stuck to the roof of my mouth.

  Tears build up in my eyes. The stench of my vomit stinging them further. I’m covered in my own bodily fluids, my stomach convulses, ready to spew. I kick out, trying to make some noise by hitting the cabinet with my feet. I pound on it ferociously a few times until my legs give out.

  Haley pops into the door, phone in hand, scowling at me. Stepping around my vomit, she lunges forward and grabs my pony tail, probably the only clean part of me, and tugs my head back at an awkward angle. “You just had to puke didn’t you?” She looks around. “Your body was convulsing so much you started to puke everywhere.” She puts the phone down in a clean spot, and dips into her pocket, pulling out more cotton balls. She jams them one by one into my throat.

  I choke on them, holding my breath until she’s done.

  She mumbles, shaking her head.

  Keep her talking. Stay calm, Amelia. Hard to do when she is stuffing me with cotton like a stuffed animal.

  Stuffed animal. Connor’s teddy bear tucked into my pillow.

  The soothing of the crumpled sheets. I always make my bed.

  Stealing my clothes.

  Dying her hair like mine.

  Smelling like me.

  Eeyore.

  She’s my prankster. “You?” I mumble, forgetting the cotton in my mouth.

  “Yeah. Mostly.” She releases my hair harshly, cracking my bone in the process. She puts one arm on my shoulders, another on my waist and rolls me onto my back, away from the vomit. She pushes me up into a standing position, propping me up against the cold wall, and holding me up until my legs manage on their own.

  “You aren’t that easy to scare, Amelia.” I fidget under her grasp, winning me a backhanded slap. I grunt in pain, eliciting a chuckle from my prankster. Haley squeezes my cheeks, digging her nails into the sensitive skin. With her free hand, she pulls out a large syringe with a huge needle attached to it.

  My eyes go wide as she holds it up in front of my face. The cotton doesn’t allow me to speak clearly, so pleading is out of the question. Tears drop down my cheeks, sliding over her fingers.

  The dampness catches her attention and she wiggles the needle in front of me. My tears speed up, enlivening her and encouraging her to torture me. “You know, if a needle is large enough, and thick enough, you can inject enough air into a vein to kill someone?”

  She brings the weapon way too close to my eyes, grasping it tighter. It’s about the length of a finger and the thickness of a toothpick. She yanks the needle back, admiring it. Then she tilts it horizontally, the piercing tip towards me. It moves through the air with speed.

  She’s going to jam it in my eye.

  I close my eyes, bending my head down in attempts to protect my vision.

  There’s no collision, just laughter. She releases my face. “Don’t worry, Lia.”

  I lift one eyelid slowly before opening the other. The weapon is down by her side, a wicked smile on her lips. She takes a few pieces of the cotton from my mouth and I test out my voice. “Why?”

  She grips my ponytail again, forcing my head back so we were looking eye to eye. “I’m not going to stab you. You’ll die soon enough.” She slams
my head against the tile wall, not hard enough to crack it open, but enough to give me a splitting headache.

  My eyes oscillate, almost twitching in response. “Die?” I ask through the remaining cotton, hoping she understands the garble.

  “Yes, die!” She gives me a toothy grin, stretches her arms over her head, and sighs deeply. She tucks the needle into her back pocket and takes a few steps back, allowing me to step forward.

  I roll my shoulders, trying to ease the tension in my muscles. Thankfully, I’m feeling a smidge better and have enough strength to stand up. “Why?”

  “Because I hate you.” It’s completely cold and detached. “I didn’t start off wanting to kill you. The goal was to scare you enough that you’d leave campus. But, I knew scaring you wasn’t enough. And I knew for sure you weren’t going to leave campus. Not when you have so many reasons to stay.” She shakes her head and glances at the door. “So I had to improvise.”

  When she faces me again, a flash of anger appears on her face. “I don’t understand! They just flock to you!” She points at her clothes. My jacket. My t-shirt. My boots. “I dress like you.” She tugs at her waves. “I dye my hair and curl it to be like you. I have the same friends as you. I get the same grades as you. I go to the same parties as you. I even pretend to be innocent just like you. And yet it’s always you, you, you, you!” she growls, waving the needle in the air. “I did everything you did and Connor told me that he could never see me as anything more than a friend.” She stops and looks at me. “A fucking friend!” She annunciates every syllable.

  “All of this and yet he wants me to back off because he doesn’t think of me like that. But he thinks of you like that. Even after all your fucking indecision, he still clings to you. Maybe I should be all ‘I like Connor’,” she mimics my voice. “Or maybe not because ‘I love Robins. Oh, but wait! Maybe Dylan’.” Her voice returns to normal, “Or is it Aiden? I’m still a little confused on your love life.”