Wicked Lies by Mae Doyle
Chapter 1
Whoever said that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger is full of shit. I mean, seriously. I guess that they’re kinda right in that I didn’t die in the car accident, and the titanium plates on my broken ribs did help them heal faster, but still.
I would argue that getting in that car accident didn’t really make me stronger. Physically? Sure, you can now hit me in the ribs all you want and they’ll never break. Never. But emotionally and mentally? Yeah, that’s a hard no. I’m pretty sure that I’m weaker now than I was before.
Before I lost my dad.
“Rose, are you sure that you’re going to be okay here?” My mom leaned over to me to look out my window at the school we’d just pulled up to. Well, school isn’t really the right word. Taylor Prep is a behemoth. It doesn’t look like any school I’d ever seen before, and that’s not just because of the way the kids were dressed.
No, Taylor Prep definitely looks like a school for super villains out of a comic book. It’s perched high on a hill that our old beater almost didn’t make it up and has a huge gate all around the grounds. We had to stop and get flagged through by security, which took five minutes because mom was so frazzled that she couldn’t find her driver’s license at first.
That meant that there was a long line of cars waiting behind us by the time we finally made it through, but just like the school itself, these cars looked like something from a story. Pretty sure I recognized BMWs and Lamborghinis, but most of the cars I’d never seen before, which makes sense, because these kids and I lived a totally different life.
Not only have I never seen a school like Taylor Prep before, but I’d never really seen any school up close and personal. My mom had homeschooled me from the time I was born, but when my dad died in the accident then she knew that she’d have to go back to work.
Neither one of us were thrilled about the arrangement, but I have to admit that being in school with other kids my own age had a certain excitement to it, especially since I’d never really made close friends. In fact, the only reason I had a cell phone was to be able to keep in touch with my mom if something happened. There wasn’t anyone back home waiting to hear from me. It was just me and my mom and now…well, now it was just me.
“I’m going to be fine, mom.” I tried to keep my voice as strong and steady as possible, even though I felt like I was going to throw up. The last thing that I wanted was for my mom to turn the car around and head back down the winding driveway without me, but that’s exactly what had to happen. I signed up for this, not because I wanted to be sequestered away from my mom with a bunch of rich students, but because it was what my dad wanted.
Even thinking about my dad made me cry, and I sniffed hard while looking out the window. My mom, to her benefit, did her best to pretend that she didn’t hear me, although we both knew that she was on the verge of tears, too. We both were, especially since it had only been a month since we lost him.
Before I could say anything else to her, though, a student strolled up to the car and pulled on my handle. I unlocked the door and let him swing it open, but before I could get out, my jaw was on the ground. I don’t know that I’d ever seen someone who looked like him before. He wore low-slung jeans and a dark sweater than clung to his body and showed off all of his muscles. His face was chiselled and strong, and underneath a mop of dark brown hair, his bright blue eyes bored into me. I knew immediately that I could easily get lost in those blue orbs, and I sat and stared for a moment.
“You okay?” His voice cut into my reverie, and I shook my head, my cheeks flaming. “Did you need help getting out?” He allowed his eyes to rake over me and I wished more than anything that I had worn something at least a little sexy. Leave it to me, though, to wear baggy jeans and an old t-shirt on move in day. Taylor Prep was supposed to have uniforms ready for us in our rooms, so I didn’t put a lot of thought into my outfit.
Now I wished that I had.
“Yeah, I’m good.” Carefully, I grabbed my right leg and swung it out of my car, trying to ignore the pain that shot up into my back and the way my mom hissed behind me with displeasure. I knew that I should wait and get some help, but there was no way I wanted to wait and get help in front of this guy. This…god.
He watched in silence as I swung my left leg out and then stood. Grabbing the door, I was able to slowly stretch out and get my feet under me. Physical therapy had been an utter nightmare. I hated every second of it, and when Taylor Prep called to let me know that I had been accepted, I was all too happy to leave my therapist in the past. Maybe I was a little rash, though. The pain in my legs throbbed and I had to force a smile.
We stood so close to each other that I could catch a scent of him. He smelled like something deep and musky, and I instantly wondered what type of cologne he wore. It was probably really expensive, and organically sourced, fair trade stuff. The type of stuff that I couldn’t afford before dad died, but probably could now, if only I had access to the money he left me.
“You okay?” The guy glanced past me into the car at my mom. Turning around, I saw her shrug a little, and my face burned. Instead of answering him, I bent down and grabbed my backpack, swinging it around to land it on my back, but before I could slip my arms through it, he took it from me. “Why don’t I carry this for you? We have staff who will help you get moved in, so you won’t have to try to navigate the stairs.”
Stairs?I thought that I’d be on the first floor here, but looking again at the imposing building behind the guy, I could see that the old buildings had multiple floors. No, it looked like I was going to be doing a lot of walking and stair climbing here. Shaking my head, I turn to the guy. The god. Whatever. “I’m Rose. Thanks for your help.”
“You look like you could use it.” He snapped his fingers and an older man in a black suit immediately appeared at his side. “Rose here needs a little extra help getting to her room. Grab the bags from the bag of the car and let’s go.”
I didn’t realize at first that he meant for me to follow him, too, but he whirled around and started walking away from the car. Panic squeezed my heart and I turned around, leaning into the side of our car. “Mom, I love you,” I whispered, reaching out and taking her hand. “I’ll be fine, I promise. Thanks…thanks for letting me do this.”
“I’m just a phone call away. I love you too, sweetie.” I could tell that she was dying to get out of the car and hug me, but I’d made her promise not to make a scene once we got here, so she got all of her tears out when we left the house. Smiling at her one more time, I shut the door and started after the guy with my backpack. He was moving quickly, and I had to struggle to catch up.
“Hey!” My voice got lost in the chatter of other students, so I tried again. “Hey! Wait up!” I hated having to ask him to wait on me, but I knew that I didn’t have a choice. If I wanted to make sure that I knew where I was going and didn’t lose my backpack then I needed him to slow down. My legs already burned, but I tried to ignore it and push on faster after him. There was no way that I was going to get left out here in the middle of the quad while he strolled off with my stuff.
His head whipped around and he slowed, waiting for me to catch up. “Sorry about that. Move-in day is fast-paced, and you have to make sure you can keep up.” He let his eyes rake down my body again, and I felt my muscles stiffen as he looked at me. “I didn’t realize you’d be going so slow.”
Surprised, I glanced up into his face. His bright eyes were locked on mine but now they seemed cooler and more distant. Where was the nice guy who was so friendly at the car? “I’m sorry, I’m coming as fast as I can, but I just need a little more time than some other people. If you slow down a little, I’m sure I can keep up.” Flashing him a winning, smile, I hope that that will smooth it over.
His face darkens a little. “We don’t slow down at Taylor Prep, did you not read the info on the website?” When I shook my head, he frowned and continued. “You have to pick it up, Rose, if you think that you’re going to make it here, or you’ll be one of the first cut.”
“Cut? What do you mean?” Thinking hard, I try to remember if I saw anything on the website or in the information packet that the school sent about students being cut. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He scoffs and turns away, clearly finished with the conversation. I hoped that he would say more, but he started walking again, so I struggled to keep up.
Even as we walked, I made sure to look around. Most of the students here seemed to know exactly where they were going and had staff following them with their luggage. A few, like me, looked a little lost, but their school guides seemed to be a bit friendlier. I knew that they were mostly freshmen. Taylor Prep didn’t usually accept students in their junior year, like me, but they’d made an exception. Only because I could pay their ridiculous fees.
Shaking my head, I resolve to figure out what this guy was talking about later. Right then, though, all I could do was keep my head on a swivel and keep looking around me as we walked. The building was impressive, but the gardens and quad around it school itself were meticulously kept and gorgeous. We walked along a path through a flowerbed and under a huge black iron arch before we got into the main quad. Above us were the words Ab Ordine Libertas.
“What does that mean?” Even though I knew that I would regret it later, I spurred myself on, finally managing to catch up with the guy and my backpack. “On the arch up there. What’s that Latin mean?”
“You don’t know Latin?” He slowed down and glanced at me, wrinkling his nose. “How in the world did you get in here, anyway? What are you good at?”
Good at? “Good at?” I think fast, and hard. “Well, I used to be amazing at tennis, but I haven’t been on the courts in a while.” His blue eyes are locked on me, making it hard for me to think. Students swell and push around us on their way to the dorm. “I sing,” I tell him, finally. “I had to sing for my application here, and the headmaster said that when I finish therapy that I can try out for the tennis team.”
For a while, he doesn’t speak. “I’ll see you on the courts, then.” Without another word, he turns away, but I suddenly remember where I’ve seen him before.
Of course!He was all over the Taylor Prep website for being captain of the tennis team. I’d definitely spent more time than was necessary staring at his picture and drooling over the way he looked, but tennis garb and what he had on now were so different that I just didn’t recognize him.
Even though I knew that I probably wouldn’t be able to remember, I spent the rest of the walk to the dorm trying to come up with his name. He swerved at the elevator and started up the stairs, so I bit my lower lip and followed him.
I didn’t know what he thought of me or why we seemed to be off to such a rocky start, but I was determined that I wasn’t going to stick out here. Not for the wrong reasons, anyway, and if that meant climbing these damn stairs every single day, then I would. My therapist would be proud, if nothing else, and maybe I’d get back on the court again faster.
The thought of facing him on the tennis court made me shiver, but at least it was a goal worth working towards. By the time I made it to my room, he’d already dropped my backpack inside the door and the staff member with my bags was waiting inside.
“Would you like help unpacking, Miss Bennett?” He looked nice enough, but the thought of him searching through my suitcase and pulling out my underwear was too much.
“No, I’ve got it, thank you. Do you know where…um, that guy went?” He raised an eyebrow at me before answering.
“Mr. Broylin? I imagine he went to help another student to their room. It’s part of his job here this morning. Now, if there’s nothing else that you need, I’ll do the same.” He turned and walked to the door, but I interrupted him leaving.
“I’m sorry, I’m just a little overwhelmed.” The smile that I gave him always seemed to make people warm up to me, but he doesn’t seem fazed. Okay, maybe people here are immune to my charm. “Do you know if I have a schedule or anything that I should be following?”
“It’s on your bed.” He pointed and then left, shutting the door behind him, before I could ask him anything else. Turning, I saw that he was right. There was a packet of information and a bottle of water on my bed. Hobbling over to it, I sat down and picked up the packet to start leafing through it. In the very back was a schedule of events for the day. Running my finger down it, I saw that I was free for a few hours, which meant that I would have time to unpack and maybe even take a shower. The thought of hot water running over my sore legs sounded like heaven, but I stretched out, enjoying my soft mattress.
Maybe just a nap, I thought, and that was the last thing I remembered for a while.
