I knew the look on Benji's face.
He was hunting - playing with his victim to increase the fun factor for himself.
Sky had been up last semester; asking her again was just a way of dragging out the unnecessary length and fidgeting.
She wouldn't accept the challenge twice in a row - and Benji knew that.
I had already guessed it earlier. That son of a bitch!
His plan concerning Edwards would include something I normally wouldn't agree with. Otherwise he would have no reason to bring it into our game.
Benji looked around and pretended to think about who he should take next. And he already knew it: I was the victim!
And I would assume. Because I couldn't possibly take care of Chloe and the new professor. It was too much.
He looked at my face, then at Rash, then he remembered and looked at me again.
"Blaire," he said, pointing his finger at me.
I pulled my legs close to my body and remained motionless for a few seconds. Our gazes interlocked.
Benjamin King could look at his counterpart in a way that made his blood freeze in his veins ... and look outrageously good at the same time ...
I took a long breath and slowly answered, "Accept."
The corner of Benji's mouth played around a smile. I pulled my lips inward, pressing them tightly together.
"Blaire... Blaire... Blaire," Benji whispered thoughtfully and unbuttoned the top button of his jacket.
"Spit it out already," I asked with my teeth clenched together.
He took another dramatic pause before saying, "I bet you wouldn't dare seduce Edwards and let us all graduate with top marks."
Benji's grin widened after he'd spoken.
"What?" I greeted him with disgust.
We had already challenged ourselves to bad things - but seducing a professor of our college was clearly going too far!
"I have a boyfriend! Remember?" I was outraged, as if that would do any good.
I had accepted the challenge. If I refused afterwards or failed the assignment, I would be Benji's personal slave for the rest of the semester!
Who knew what else he'd come up with...
But... making out with Edwards? No, that's not an option!
Besides, he obviously didn't like me any more than I like him.
I lowered my legs and sat her cross-legged.
"You can't be serious," I insisted and looked at Benji pleadingly.
"That's your grand plan? What if it doesn't work? Then we'll be even more -" I appealed to his reason, but he interrupted me.
"The plan is perfect," Benji replied. "Who could possibly resist you?"
I rolled my eyes. "What about Liam? I can't do that to him! Did you ever think of that?"
Benji waved him down.
"I would have, if he was as loyal to you as he was to Liam."
"What are you saying?" I hissed.
Benji shrugged, shrugged his shoulders and pulled the corners of his mouth down.
"Except that your boyfriend's a man-whore."
I stood up, snorting.
"Take that back!"
Now Benji stood up, too.
"I would, if it wasn't the truth," he replied, looking at me piercingly. His blue eyes sparkled.
"You know what?" I yelled. "I've had it!"
I ran for the door, but before I could push the handle down, Benji blocked my way.
"You know the rules," he said softly.
I turned around and looked at the others.
Sky made a similarly pitiful face as during Edwards' literature lesson.
Madox and Rash looked like they sympathized with me, but I knew none of them would break the rules.
I bit the inside of my cheek, then pushed Benji aside with all my might and opened the door.
"Hey!" he shouted behind me as I hurried down the stairs. "Do you accept or not?"
"I need a drink first," I replied.
I wasn't sure if he had heard me at all, because the music was quite loud.
I'd have to explain myself later. The fact that I'd left during a game was not our code.
(A code that was passed on every four years from the previous P-Fiends group to the next, and that for ... I don't know, a long time anyway).
The start of the semester had been anything but rosy for me so far. I sincerely hoped that this was not a bad omen for the remaining months.
A Privileged Fiend was not allowed to talk to anyone outside the group about the rules, the games or the tasks they involved.
But even if that were not the case, what normal person would understand such an undertaking?
As I pondered what to do now, I bumped into someone trying to pour punch.
The second time that day!
"O, sorry!"
I was startled at the sound of his voice.
"No, it's okay," I said after turning around.
James Wyatt Cole wore a grey wig, a moustache glued on, and glasses as big as fried eggs.
"Cool costume - very appropriate," he said, looking at my bloody ballerina shoes.
"So are you," I replied, nervously tugging at my pink tutu.
My heart suddenly beat inexplicably fast as I saw green eyes in James.
I'd forgotten how green they really were.
I could hardly remember the last time we had spoken. We used to avoid each other, just looking at each other from a distance every now and then.
Or a hand greeting if we met somewhere and it was impossible to pretend not to have seen the other person.
"Thank you," said James and took the wooden pipe out of his mouth.
He pretended to plug it, which made me laugh.
"Okay, Cole," I started smiling. "I have no idea what you are... or who."
Now James smiled, too.
He took the cup from my hand and finished what I'd broken off.
"Starts with F and ends with rud," he explained as he poured punch into the cup.
I bit my lower lip to suppress another laugh as he added, "Perhaps you need psychoanalysis, Ms.?"
Our fingers touched when he handed me my drink.
I swallowed; my heart was pounding.
"Well then," he said, and thought to me with a look that vanished into thin air all those years between then and now. "See you around, Blaire."
I took a deep breath as I watched him.
Shit.
Shit. Shit. Shit, Blaire. Shit. Shit.
Why was I so out of it?
It was just James.
All of a sudden, Dean pulled my sleeve.
"Blaire," he stammered.
"Yeah?" I asked, looking at him with a look of irritation.
He was sitting in our row in some classes.
"What's up?
I raised my eyebrows and told him to speak. But for some reason, he hesitated.
"You, uh... might want to check in the back of the guest room. Last door, right side," he finally brought out.
"For what?", I asked skeptically.
Without looking me in the eye, he said, "Just look."
Then he pulled away.
I moaned and took a sip of the red sugar water.
After the familiar burning sensation in my throat had spread, I decided to go back upstairs with the others.
I still didn't know what my answer would be, but I couldn't keep them waiting any longer!
As I walked down the hallway leading to the stairs, every second person gave me a strange look.
For a moment I wondered if it was because of my outfit. Then Dean's words came to my mind again and I decided to have a look into the room in question.
I swore to myself, if this was some kind of stupid party joke, I would decapitate him.
When I opened the door, all the voices in my head went silent.
It was as if I had hit a wall at full force!
"What are you doing?" I asked stunned.
My eyes were glued to Liam, who was lying shirtless between Chloe Clarice Bell's legs; he had slipped one hand
under her dress and supported himself with the other.
"Fuck!" he thrust out when he saw me.
"Yes, that's right. "Fuck," I said angrily, putting my hands on my hips.
Liam jumped up.
"It's not what you think," he slurred as he walked towards me.
Meanwhile, Chloe gave me some nasty looks.
"Stay away from me!
Before he could take another step, I slammed the door in his face and ran up the stairs.
For thinking about leaving him not so long ago, it hurt my chest incredibly badly.
Maybe that's because it was Chloe. Or maybe it was because I thought Liam was a good guy all along... he was simple in some ways, yes... but at the core, I thought he was decent.
On the first floor, I stopped at the door I thought my friends were behind.
I leaned the back of my head against the wall and sank to the floor.
Pull yourself together, Blaire, admonished me by my mother's voice inside.
I swallowed and took a deep breath. Then I stood up again and entered the guest room.
"I'll do it," I said.
***
After I had officially consented and the bet was sealed, we scattered in all directions.
Rash, Benji and I mingled with the party crowd, while Sky and Madox stayed behind alone and enjoyed themselves in the box spring bed.
"Another drink?" Rash asked and looked at me questioningly.
I had told my friends about the thing with Liam.
Contrary to expectations, Benji hadn't put on his arrogant "I told you so" look during my presentation.
Unlike the others, he had not even commented on the whole thing.
I nodded at Rash, who then grabbed my cup and disappeared into the kitchen.
Benji put one arm around me and said, "Don't worry, little B, I'll take care of this Chloe thing."
"Will you?" I sighed and reached for his hand. "Like you're gonna take care of Edwards?"
I looked up at him.
"I knew you wouldn't do it without the game," Benji replied, looking me deep into the eyes.
"Is that an excuse for forcing me to accept under false pretenses?"
I lifted one brow.
"What do you mean, coerced?" he replied with a grin. "And there can be no question of pretending."
"Not in a King's world," I said ironically, and gratefully accepted Rash's cup.
"Where are you going?" cried Benji after me as I pushed my way past the dancing students towards the glass door.
"Away from you!"
That was only partly true, because I just wanted to get some fresh air. But I didn't have to tell him that.
I dodged students and cups lying on the floor and breathed a sigh of relief as I pulled the door shut behind me.
I locked up the noise, closed my eyes and inhaled the cool night air as deeply as I could.
"Twice in one day? That's a new record," James remarked and looked at me with a smile.
He was sitting on a wall, right next to the monster pool. I hadn't noticed him at all.
"Hey," I said, eagerly and casually.
"Hey yourself," he returned smiling and showed me his straight white teeth.
Take it easy, heart!
"And," I asked, while I was balancing with my head lowered on the narrow stone line next to the pool.
Why did I do that when I was not exactly known for my skill?
I was nervous as shit and needed something to do!
Why did you do that?
"Having a good time?"
"Totally," James replied ironically.
I smiled.
"Me too."
When I looked up, he looked at me with the same pitiful look as the others earlier when I had told them about Liam.
"You heard about that?" I asked in a casual tone.
James shrugged his shoulders. "It's possible," he replied. His expression was inscrutable.
I sat down at the edge of the pool and stared at the lighted water.
"Sure you do," I said softly. "Probably everybody at the party knows about it."
I took a big gulp of punch from my mug.
"Liam's an idiot," James replied and jumped off the wall.
"Is he?" I thought out loud. "Sometimes he could be really charming."
Oh, God, I was so pathetic.
The guy had cheated on me - why was I defending him now, too?
Was it guilt? I would have had to break up with him if I had made that bet. He had taken that from me now - actually I should thank him!
I sighed.
"Charming is overrated", said James and sat down next to me.
I swallowed and held my breath as we looked each other in the eyes.
It felt strange and familiar at the same time.
For a moment I toyed with the idea of telling him why Liam had cheated on me. And that it was partly my fault, too. No man would wait forever until I was finally ready to sleep with him.
"Blaire," James began, as his gaze sank deeper into mine. We had both hands resting on the edge of the pool. They were not an inch apart.
"Fire! "Everybody out!" suddenly a loud man's voice roared behind us.
Shocked, I turned around and saw grey smoke rising from the windows of the top floor.
It was Josh who had screamed and who now scared all the party guests out of the house.
James was faster on his feet than I was.
He grabbed me by the hips and pulled me up.
"Fast," he said. "Let's get outta here."
"No, wait," I shouted, looking for my friends.
It was difficult to keep track in the turmoil of wildly confused people.
But then I finally made out Rash, Benji and behind them Madox, who was carrying the coughing Sky in his arms.
She suffered from a chronic lung disease and her head had already taken on the colour of a tomato.
They waved. Benji ran towards me and grabbed my hand.
It was only at that moment that I noticed James holding my other one.
"Come on!" Benji pushed and pulled at me.
I looked at James.
"Go on," he said and let go of me. "Let's get out of here!"
"But -" I cried, looking around at him as Benji pulled me behind him.
James raised his hand and nodded at me. Then he ran diagonally away from us towards the exit and disappeared into the crowd.
***
"What happened?" I asked the others when we were at a safe distance.
In the meantime, flames shot out of the windows of the villa. Sirens sounded from afar.
"Guess someone couldn't handle the fireplace," gasped Rash.
We were all out of breath.
I frowned.
There were safety features on these things!
The fire brigade had apparently been much closer than the sirens suggested.
I was really startled when suddenly a man in a yellow helmet handed me a protective blanket.
"Thank you", I murmured, my eyes still fixed on the burning house.
The firemen told us to stay in range. So we waited.
The panic was written all over my fellow students' faces.
All except Benji.
I reached for his arm and pulled him aside.
"Did you have anything to do with this?" I whispered and looked at him threateningly.
His eyebrows narrowed.
"For God's sake, no! Who do you take me for?!"
I looked at him dismissively.
His face reflected a hint of horror - for him that was quite a lot of emotion.
"Okay," I finally said, and breathed out long. "It could have been that you decided for a short time to extend the original Chloe plan," I noticed and looked at him further exploring.
"And burn down a house?"
He trimmed and tilted his head.
"Sorry," I replied. "It's just been a bit much this week.
"The next one will be better," Benji replied, before we went back
to the others.
In the meantime, some onlookers (mainly residents of the surrounding villas) had joined us.
And the police.
"Is that Edwards over there?" Sky asked coughing and pointed to our literature professor who was talking to two female students.
"What's he doing here?" Rash interjected.
At this moment Logan saw Edwards to our group. He came towards us determinedly.
"Are you hurt?" he asked the group, looking at me.
"We're fine," Madox replied in his usual cold tone.
"Fine."
Edwards nodded.
"Stay until the police have questioned you," he said, finally turning his eyes away from me.
"That was weird," Sky remarked - her coughing still persisted.
"I'll get her out of here," Madox explained.
Rash made sure that the policemen closest to us were distracted so that they could disappear.
The rest of us didn't mind waiting a little longer, but Sky urgently needed to get on her oxygen apparatus.
No one but us knew how badly the illness sometimes affected her. She did not want pity. That's why none of us suggested that she should report to one of the paramedics walking around. As long as there was still a chance to drive her home without too much fuss, we would take her.
When Madox and Sky had successfully escaped unnoticed, the rest of us waited to be questioned.
"At least they won't have to worry about the cleaning fees anymore," Benji remarked dryly as he looked over to the Bells' blazing mansion.
"Why do you think Edwards was here?" I asked, looking around in the sea of people.
"Maybe he lives around here."
Benji buttoned his jacket back up.
"Come on, let's sit over there!" he suggested and walked towards a wall at the edge of a house.
I ran after him, closely followed by Rash.
Once more I let my gaze wander. But there was no trace of Professor Edwards.
I see you
The rest of the weekend was uneventful.
Lu asked me every ten minutes whether everything was really okay.
"I'm fine, don't worry," I returned each time in different variations.
Lu had always been very caring - unlike our mom.
On Sunday evening Sky called me and told me that the fire was apparently not an accident.
Her parents had particularly good contacts with the local police, as Sky's uncle had worked in a higher position in the FBI for years. My girlfriend had already mentioned a few times that he liked to pull strings for the family.
Vicious Bet: Don't fall in love! (Sinners and Saints Book 1) Page 7
