He barked out a laugh, his nose colliding with my neck before he whispered in my ear. “I need you as a human shield.”
I swallowed back the ache in my throat. “So Italian royalty lives, and the Russian whore dies?”
It was out before I could stop it.
Dante didn’t as much as flinch when his cruel smile dipped toward my face. “Finally admitting how you spread your legs for the enemy.”
I casually reached my arms around his waist, my fingers stretched toward the knife I knew he always kept in his pocket. I used my body, went to that place I swore I’d never go to again.
This was survival.
Nothing more.
When my body arched up toward his, his eyebrow lifted in a mocking gesture that gave me pause. “It’s in my backpack, nice try though, if I didn’t already know how much you hated me, I’d almost believe I could slam you against the wall, lift up that plaid little skirt and make you—”
He stopped talking then.
I barely had time to register what was happening, before five guys very slowly made their way toward us.
Talking around us stopped.
Dante pulled me into him, hiding us near the shade of the building as he watched over my head. Anyone looking at us would think we were getting ready to make out rather than slit each other’s throats.
“Whatever you do,” Dante breathed down my neck. “Don’t look over your shoulder.”
I exhaled a shaky breath as he pulled me tighter against him, his cologne hit my nostrils making me feel weak for thinking how nice he smelled, how strong he felt, how much of a lie it really was.
Talking started again.
Dante slowly pushed me away just in time for one of the five guys to turn, and give him a mocking bow in front of at least a hundred people.
As if Dante knew he was going to challenge him, he smirked and stepped out of the shadows — but not before shoving me back against the wall as if to say stay — and approached him.
Gasps sounded around me.
“What the hell is he doing?” someone whispered. “You don’t approach them, you don’t talk to them!”
I rolled my eyes. All five of the guys had stopped by then.
Each of them was at least six feet in height, two had blond hair, and the other three had sandy brown hair.
Sure, they were fit.
But all I saw were Eagle Elite uniforms.
And then one started taking off his jacket.
He rolled up his sleeve, slowly, inch by inch, as if he was afraid of getting a bloodstain.
And on his forearm.
A crown.
With three bloody stars above it.
CHAPTER FIVE
Dante
“I KNOW YOU.” The guy spoke with a slight accent. “Weren’t you the charity case the Abandonatos took in last year?”
I shrugged, keeping my rage in check. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
“You’re new.” His brown eyes were flat, cold. “So I’ll give you a pass, but next time you speak without being spoken to, I’m going to have to teach you a lesson.”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed.
So hard I had tears in my eyes.
The guy stiffened.
“What’s your name, man?” I crossed my arms.
“None of your damn business.” He spat at my feet, a bit of liquid came into contact with my boot. I sighed and stared down at the wet spot.
“Those are my favorite boots,” I said in a hollow voice. “They’re original Win’s.” One of the only benefits of being close to Chase was his connections to the fashion world, and my favorite boots.
“I don’t give a fuck if they have the blood of your dead whore back there.” He pointed at El. “You don’t speak unless spoken to.”
One of the guys behind him snickered then said, “Apologize.”
“Finally, someone’s making sense,” I muttered. “Go ahead, I’ll wait.”
The guy shoved me. “He meant you, dumbass!”
“Don’t. Touch. Me.” I clenched my fists.
He sneered at me. “I’ll do whatever the hell I want.”
I cracked my right thumb.
Then my left.
Well, so much for not getting into detention.
I swung just as he ducked and tried to punch me in the stomach. I dodged his punch and kneed him in the gut then swung my backpack to the ground and started using his face as a punching bag.
My knuckles split. Again.
Blood mixed with sweat just like this morning.
One of the other guys charged me from behind.
I picked him up off my back and slammed his body into the concrete; his head fell back with a crack.
Another one of the guys charged.
And then it was three against one.
Yeah, this was going to hurt.
Searing pain hit me in the chest before I fell back against the sidewalk only to have a boot kick at my chest, down, down, down.
“Stop!” A female voice sounded.
The kicking continued.
And then I was getting pulled to my feet by the guy who’d just been kicking me. “Tell me, did you get the message? Don’t speak to us.”
I smiled a bloody smile and went to that place, the place Chase told me only to go when I absolutely needed to prove something.
To win.
I cocked my head to the side, and slammed it against his, then muttered, “Message received.”
The last two guys stared me down then looked at their friends and slowly helped them to their feet.
“Anyone else?” I wiped the blood caking my mouth with the sleeve of my now dirty white button-down shirt just in time for El to jerk me away from the growing crowd.
She wasn’t fast enough.
In fact, all she did was pull me in the direction of a man who looked like he’d seen better years.
He was older.
Short.
And agitated.
“Mr. Abandonato.” The minute he said my name the place around me fell quiet. It was my introduction, so I let the fear of people around me settle in.
“He’s an Abandonato?” someone whispered.
The guy groaning on the ground behind me spat, “Italian scum.”
“Russian dick face,” I said under my breath.
“Let’s go.” He sighed and then looked over at El. “You too, Miss—”
“Petrov,” I supplied, outing her in front of everyone.
One would think the dean was going to pass out.
He didn’t.
Instead, he paled.
Yeah, I just bet he wished he’d put a shit ton of vodka in his coffee this morning.
CHAPTER SIX
Dante
“THANKS FOR NOTHING,” I said under my breath as we walked side by side toward the admin building.
El glared. “You mean for keeping your windpipe from getting crushed? You’re welcome.”
I sighed. “It was part of the plan, I had it handled.”
“You were letting them beat you!”
“Exactly,” I said, adopting a bored tone. “Can’t show all my cards all at once you know… every game has its strategy.”
She said nothing.
We took the elevator to the dean’s office just in time for his secretary to nearly run into the dean. She looked ready to puke, her hair was pulled back into a tight bun, and her lips were pressed together in a firm line like she was about to give him some really bad news. “They’re here.”
“All of them?” he asked, his voice shaking.
She gave him a quick nod then looked at me and El, her expression thunderous before she sat down at her desk and started typing away on her sleek metallic MacBook Pro.