ONE MORE MISTAKE
THREAT
Rory Clark was psychotic.
What he pulled back there was...
There was no confirmation that he spiked the drink, and the only proof I had was gone, but I knew he did it. Or rather used Alexis' hand to do the dirty work.
What I couldn't believe was that he downed the alcohol as if it was nothing but I knew why he did it. He believed I was going to reveal his intentions to my uncle, as if I would do such a thing. If my uncle dropped dead before me, I would simply look the other way and pretend I saw nothing.
However he didn't know this, so he reacted in pure instinct.
There was hesitation before he ripped the drink from my hand. He knew he only had two options, either get caught or consume his own poison. He chose the latter because he'd rather feel delirious than get discovered by me.
He disliked me, that much was clear but our encounter from earlier made him hate me. I felt it as I pushed past him, I felt it as I walked away from him. Throughout the night, he wasn't afraid to demonstrate his anger towards me. It lingered in his eyes every time I caught him staring at me from the opposite side of the room. He wouldn't fail to make my skin crawl just by his cold stare.
There was a promise, or rather a threat.
He wasn't going to let it go.
He was holding a grudge against me, as pathetic as it sounded, and I couldn't help but feel satisfied. Not only did I make him consume his own spiked drink, but I also ruined his plan to intoxicate my uncle. I would understand why he would be upset about it but resenting me felt like a stretch.
I glanced down at the first floor and found Rory standing near the bar area. Alexandra and Sterling were with him, but Alexandra was the only one who looked rattled.
And angry.
She shook her head, her long ponytail following her movements. Her mouth moved quickly, her eyes pinned on Rory and I didn't need to be nearby to know what they were talking about. She was part of it, along with Sterling.
But why? My curiosity was getting the best of me and I couldn't stop it.
I kept my eyes downward, leaning by a long window that showed the city.
Alexandra touched Rory on the shoulder, and leaned in to whisper in his ear. He didn't express any emotion to her outburst, it seemed as if he was taking it in.
I glanced at Sterling and he rubbed his chin, his eyes glancing between the two.
Sterling was forcing me to tell authorities about my bruises not so long ago. He wanted me to report my uncle and he seemed hell bent about it, so determined.
I knew for certain Alexandra and Rory had no connection to Bruce.
It must've been Sterlings idea then, to intoxicate my uncle. However I couldn't connect the dots, why would he need Bruce to be in a dazed state. He couldn't possibly use this to his advantage, what could he get from it? It didn't make sense no matter how right it seemed.
Alexandra leaned away from Rory but didn't remove her hand from his shoulder. She stood close to him, almost as if she was keeping him upright.
My back straightened as I watched Rory.
He was intoxicated, it seemed.
He leaned in to Alexandra for a second longer and then backed away from her. He regained his poise in a matter of seconds, his features sharpened in the dull light.
He hid it well, I wouldn't have guessed it if I wasn't watching him closely.
Rory looked up at me, as if he knew exactly where I was and although we were apart by levels, I could've sworn I saw his eyes narrow down at my smirk.
I was sure he was glaring at me from down there, and I couldn't help but wonder if he was able to tell how much it thrilled me to see him like that.
Rory Clark was spiteful, out of all people, I did not expect it from him.
"That boy, he looks like trouble." A voice beside me said.
I turned my attention towards the figure who stood beside me. When I saw it was the same boy from earlier, the one who my uncle wanted me to entertain, my mood dulled. I felt my smirk slowly fade, twisting into a scowl.
He wasn't looking at me, instead he was looking down at Rory. He had a curious expression on his face, almost as if he was trying to puzzle him out from where we stood.
I thought it was a waste of his time, he wasn't going to get anything.
"Seems like it," I said, and when he turned to face me I forced a smile. He scrunched his eyebrows together, trying to figure out if I was talking about him or Rory. He tried to return the smile but it was stuck between his frown.
He shook his head, his eyes lowering down.
"We haven't been introduced yet, my name's James. Your uncle has been wanting for us to meet for quite some time. I'm just sorry it took me so long to accept his request, if he'd only told me you were this beautiful I wouldn't have taken so long to meet you." His eyes didn't come up from my body, they lingered on my chest and it took everything in me to not swing at him.
I gripped my arm.
"James," I pretended to taste the name in my tongue. "I once had a pet named James. He was a great dog, he was very loyal." I looked away from him once his eyes adjusted to mine. I saw him from my peripheral vision that he took a step towards me, and I didn't need to face him in order to know he was irritated with me.
"Are you loyal?" I asked quietly, lifting my eyes up and meeting his. His face shranked back, his eyes holding an accusation he was too afraid to speak out loud.
He tripped on his words, a huff of breath was all that I received. He didn't seem to take that lightly. I tried to hide my smirk, but I didn't think I was doing a good job trying to hide it.
"What are you insinuating?" I inched back from him once I felt his breath hit my face.
"Don't mind her, James." The voice came from behind me, mean and sharp. My smile had instantly disappeared and I held myself in a tense position.
Bruce walked into my view, standing right beside me. And while he smiled kindly at the boy before us, he grabbed my arm in a deathly grip.
The injury he caused from last time still hurt, and he knew yet he didn't care. I didn't expect him to.
James' eyes flickered between us, lingering on the arm my uncle had gripped and then he smirked. He looked back up at me and I saw the moment his anger died down, replaced with a taunting expression.
"Thea doesn't know what she says most of the time, that shouldn't concern you. How about we set up a date so you two can get-"
"There's no need for that, with our brief time together I was able to know what kind of person Thea Nightingale is." He shot a smile at Bruce and without glancing at me, he walked away.
I felt Bruce's anger, even felt the pressures of it on my arm. He could've easily snapped my bones right now, in front of all these people however I wasn't sure what stopped him.
He pulled me to face him, and I was met with a cruel smile on his face.
"You singlehandedly fucked yourself over, you realize that. You left me no choice but to force you into a marriage with someone else who was worse than that pathetic boy." He pointed a finger over my shoulder, his eyes expanding as if he was expecting a reaction from me.
However I felt indifferent to his threat. He was already forcing me to be with so many pathetic men, what was the difference now?
He shook his head in disgust and took one long look at me then ripped his hand from my arm.
He walked away from me, pushing people away from his path.
I rubbed on my arm, watching his blurry figure disappear into the crowd.
"I don't understand," Sterling stood next to me. His voice was heavy and deep. He watched Bruce's retreating form with absolute loathing in his eyes. He swallowed, bringing his arm over his chest and gripping his shoulder.
"He's..." he struggled to form the words, and I knew it wasn't because he didn't know how to describe him. He was trying to control his anger, as if he was doing just about anything to not run after him and release his anger.
"Don't waste your energy hating him, he's not worth it. Trust me." I said as I looked away from Bruce.
Sterling turned to face me, furrow eyebrows stuck in place. His frown deepened when he noticed my state.
"Why are you allowing him to punish you, to drag you everywhere he wants and to treat you as his possession? What does he have against you that makes you stand beside him? To allow him to degrade you like that?" His eyes flickered between my eyes, his face forming to an expression I've seen on Bruce many times before.
I held my breath, betrayal cutting deep inside me.
He might as well have told me the same things Bruce had. Hurt me the same way. But no this was worse, seeing someone that I used to call family looking at me with disgust was worse. Ten times worse.
"You don't have the right to look at me like that, to question me as if you're so perfect. You're far much worse than I am. You ran away from your problems and you want me to do the same but I'm not fragile like you. They won't break me." The words tumbled out of me, each word sharper than the last and I should've regretted them once I finished but I didn't.
Maybe that was the worst of it.
Sterling hid his feelings from me, I knew from the way his eye twitched.
There was nothing that could've prepared me for what he said after.
"Who says they haven't already?" He asked quietly and then walked away from me. I followed his body through the crowd, my question disappearing with him.
I breathed in deeply, looking around for an exit.
I walked towards the open french doors, stepping out in the cold air. My feet took me towards the very edge of the concrete floor, and I gripped the railing hard enough to cause bruising.
Sterling had no idea what I went through the time he wasn't here. He had no idea how hard it was for me to accept his death, he didn't see me.
I closed my eyes and focused on my heartbeat.
One, two, three, four, five, six.
"Are you okay?" The words were soft, unlike anything I've heard from anyone tonight.
I jumped at the sight of Owen standing behind me. His eyes caught mine, and a small kind smile appeared on his lips.
"Owen," I whispered as I glanced back inside the room. Had he followed me out here?
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. You just looked unwell, is everything alright with you?" His question caught me off guard, I didn't think he was roaming around or much less paying close attention to me.
I fixed my face and gave him a smile.
His dark green eyes didn't seem like they believed the false expression. The dim light illuminated half of his face, so I wasn't able to understand the look on his face.
I turned away from his gaze, looking back at the city.
"Sterling came back differently, didn't he?" I asked as I gripped the railing, ignoring his question. Owen didn't respond to me, but I knew he came closer. From my peripheral vision, I saw him stand next to me.
I looked at him, fixing my eyes on his face.
"Since when has he been such a cunning liar?" My voice came out sharp, even though I was trying to suppress my anger, I couldn't hold it. It wasn't Owen's fault, however I did hold some resentment towards him for not telling me about Sterling. He must've known he was alive all this time.
He didn't owe me anything, I knew that, but since we were once friends I believed there was some kind of understanding between us.
But I should've known.
Owen locked eyes with me and sighed.
"Sterling is a complicated person, even before his disappearance he's always been like this." He said, a frown forming on his face. He didn't even believe it himself.
"He was never like that with me, so cruel and insensitive." I whispered, and something close to grief came over me. In a way, Sterling did lose a piece of himself during his disappearance.
"Did you know?" I ask softly.
He closed his lips and clenched his jaw.
"That Sterling was dead?" I didn't realize how desperate I was for an answer, until now. If he knew about Sterling, he'd be able to answer all the questions I had. But I knew it wouldn't be that easy, Sterling wouldn't allow people who were also close to me know of his motives.
The people he would've told were people closer to him, Rory or Alexandra. Clearly people who thought less of me.
"No, I didn't know." He replied, shaking his head.
"If I knew, I would've told you. I don't think I'll be able to keep it a secret. I knew how important he was to you," he looked at me with pity and it hit me harder than the words he spoke.
I nodded, taking a step away from him.
"Thea, I-"
"What a surprise," a voice called out from behind us.
I looked over my shoulder and found Linda leaning against the door with her arms crossed. She had a cold smile on her lips and her eyes held a dark gleam.
She glanced at Owen, and shook her head.
"Thea and Owen are alone together and aren't hooking up. I mean you guys technically hooked up every time you were alone together. Why would it stop now? I wonder what would Alexandra would say." Linda's words were fueled by bitterness. She's never liked me, but she tolerated me before because of Sterling. Now ever since she discovered this defect, she's used it to her advantage to hate me.
She only blamed me though, not Owen.
Throughout everything that happened tonight, I managed to smirk at her and just as I was about to say something, Owen beat me to it.
"I don't think she'll care if Thea and I were together right now," he said softly, however I heard the sharpness of his voice. I looked over at Owen but he just stared at Linda with a blank face. The same blank face he grew to use whenever anyone talked about me and him.
"Right, because you and Alexandra are taking a break right now? We all know how it goes Owen, you guys fight then after a week you guys get back together." She said while chuckling humorously.
"Well this time is different," he said calmly, as if he was doing everything not to express his feelings but I heard the hurt in his voice. He didn't say anything else before he walked away from us. Leaving me alone with Linda, who was scowling at me. I held my tongue and started to walk away from her but before I could actually get away Linda caught my arm. I pulled my arm away but didn't leave.
"Don't cause trouble again." She whispered, meeting my eyes. Then turned away from me as if I wasn't worth her time. I clenched my jaw and my fist, trying to hold down my anger.
I followed Linda not long after but she disappeared in the crowd. I glanced around and found Bruce upstairs, he was holding a glass of wine while laughing.
I felt my anger only enhanced and I knew it was better if I left this party. I gripped my dress and pushed past the many bodies surrounding me. Once I reached the elevators, I punched the button.
When I was outside, there were cars lined up in front of the building. I looked at each of them until I saw a similar figure who was leaning on the car. Kace looked around until we locked eyes. He leaned off the car and I started to make my way towards him but before I could reach I stopped when I saw Rory sitting down on the narrow stairs. His face was hidden by his hands but I knew it was him.
Not far from him I saw Sterling and Alexandra, they stood by a car. Sterling was talking to the driver and Alexandra was standing behind him.
When I turned to look at Rory, he was staring at me from over his shoulder.
When I turned to leave, he stood up. However he almost fell down when he did.
He grunted as he adjusted his footing.
He was wrecked, and although I knew it, this was evidence that the drink in my hand had been laced with drugs.
I took a step back, realizing just how dangerous he was.
Rory noticed my movements and the realization in my eyes and didn't take a second to walk towards me. He walked up the stairs, taking two steps at a time to get to me faster. I didn't think he was able to function properly, much less walk up the stairs. He shouldn't be able to however he did as if there was nothing running through his veins.
Now that he was much closer I was able to see his eyes, they were dilated and his eyelids were drooping. His hair was disheveled and his skin held a thin layer of sweat.
He blamed me for the state he was in.
There was no mistaking the intensity of his hatred for me. It vibrated off him, and I knew he was trying to intimidate me with it but he didn't know what I was like.
"Thea," his voice was thunderous.
This could've easily been me.
"You're intoxicated," I stated.
He knew I knew and he was furious.
"And you're infuriating," his voice was sharp even though he wasn't at his best. He stepped closer to me.
"Why couldn't you have let it go? Why couldn't you have let me drink it?" I asked as I unconsciously took a step back. I knew he wasn't in his right mind to answer my questions, but I couldn't help myself.
Ever since he came to me to rip the drink away, that question lingered in the back, clawing at me for an answer. Rory could've easily let me drink it, left me to deal with it myself yet he didn't.
There must've been more than just trying to remove me from the situation.
Rory's lips tilted slightly but it wasn't a smile or a smirk. He leaned in closer to me, and I thought of backing away from him. Having him this close to me was alarming, and I'm sure he saw it, felt it.
His eyes took in every detail of my face, giving me the opportunity to do the same and it was then that I realized he was frowning.
"Do you know how effortless it is to hate you?" He tried to take another step but failed. "You make it so simple for all of us," his voice was taunting yet soft. I knew he was talking about Sterling and his friends
I'm sure they all talk about me, criticizing and despising me at the same time.
"It's no wonder," he whispered.
I didn't give him the reaction he wanted from me because I knew that's exactly what he wanted. All night I've been mistreated and insulted, it had to end here. Sterling, Bruce, Linda, and even that stupid pathetic guy made me feel like shit. Now Rory was telling me this? No, I couldn't give him the satisfaction that he was able to rattle me with this.
"Good," I told him, a smirk forming on my lips and then I left him standing on the stairs.
I made my way down and I felt him watching from behind me. When I looked at Kace, he was standing in the same place and on the phone. It wasn't difficult to guess who he was talking to, the look on his face was a dead giveaway.
When I reached him, he nodded and ended the call.
"You're a quick one aren't you? Informing my uncle that I'm outside the building. I guess I was misled earlier, when you lied for me." The bitterness was eating at me.
He didn't say anything, and it was even more insulting.
I started to walk towards the car door but he stopped me by blocking my path. I backed away and looked up at him with a glare.
"Am I not allowed to leave?" I asked, even though I knew.
"You can't leave without your uncle's permission." He said simply.
"Permission?" I asked, and I would've laughed at Bruce's audacity if this were any other day.
"Fine," I replied and walked the opposite direction, away from Kace and Rory. I wasn't going to stay here, and wait until my uncle allowed me to leave.
"Where are you going?" Kace called out to me but I didn't turn.
"Nightingale-" there it was, the guilt but it was useless if he wasn't going to do anything about this matter. So I walked further away from him until his voice faded.
There'll be consequences, I'm sure.
Bruce would probably get home before I do and then demand for an answer. He'll probably use violence to get them but the idea didn't unsettle me as I thought it would.
As I was walking, not knowing where to go, my phone rang. I pulled out my phone and already knew who it was.
Caine was the only person who called me.
I didn't even want to check my notifications because I knew there were messages and missed calls. I didn't hesitate to answer him.
The line was quiet and we were both mute. I sighed and spoke up.
"I'm sorry," the guilt ate me alive. The apology wasn't only because I didn't meet him today, but because I didn't respond to his messages and for not telling him what's happening with me. I knew he knew there was something going on with me, with the way I've been behaving lately I'm sure he suspected something.
"Please don't apologize. You're allowed to be busy, and you shouldn't feel forced to visit me-"
"Forced?" I stopped walking and almost choked at his choice of words. "No, I don't feel forced to visit you. Caine, don't be dramatic. And yes, I should apologize because it wasn't fair." I told him, and I heard him sigh.
"I didn't think you'd pick up. Is everything okay with you?" He asked quietly almost as if he wasn't sure if he should ask this question and it gutted me to think he felt this way. However, that didn't stop me from telling him lies.
"Yes, everything's fine." I said and even though he couldn't see me I knew he knew I was lying but he didn't confront me about it.
"Oh," he replied and I gripped my phone.
Since when have we stopped trusting each other?
The question didn't escape my mind, and it lingered even after we hung up.