Page 54 of Fated Obsessions

“Nothing,” Leland grated out and crossed his arms over his chest. “Nothing at all.”

“Yeah?” Bryce glanced over his shoulder at me then, but I refused to look at him.

Although he wasn’t violent like Leland, he didn’t have to be in order to get his way. He didn’t have to be in order to be a bastard. Bryce had power and manipulation working on his side. Leland liked to use brute strength and force to get his way.

Both these men were evil in their own way, and I found myself taking another step back, and one more. Leland narrowed his eyes at me.

“I told you to leave her alone,” Bryce addressed Leland but stared at me as he said it. When I didn’t meet his gaze, he faced forward again.

“We were just taking a walk. Talking.”

Bryce let a long pause stretch out before he spoke again. “Yeah? That how you got those scratches down your face? From just talking?”

Leland’s face turned redder, and his lips thinned. “How about you mind your fucking business and keep it moving along, Bryce? Don’t you have more rules to make for the Pit?”

There was this thick, heavy silence that stretched as the two men stared at each other, and then Leland let out a vile curse, looked around Bryce’s shoulder to give me a nasty grin and wink, and said, “I’ll see you later, Emma.” He turned to leave, but I still felt the tension. I still felt that disgust and stickiness cover me like a second skin.

Bryce turned to face me fully and watched me with gray eyes I’d seen locked on me far too many times. I just wanted to get away from him. From Leland. From everyone. I had no connections to the Pit, none except for Tilly. She was the only one who gave a shit about me. She was the only one who never expected something in return from me.

But she was outgoing, sociable. She made friends with others, had connections. She was all I had, but it almost didn’t seem like enough. I still felt so distant and void inside.

“Why don’t you come with me, and I’ll get you a drink?”

I shook my head. “I don’t have extra tokens for that.” Exhaustion suddenly weighed heavily on me, which had nothing to do with being woken up in the middle of the night by my would-be attacker.

“How about a drink on me? I’ll get you one of Harold’s boozers.” Bryce smiled, but it didn’t come off as genuine or sincere. It came off as a little bit aggressive, a little creepy, like he wanted to push that homemade brew into me so I’d be more forthcoming.

He was used to getting what he wanted. Except with me.

I shook my head again. “Thanks, but I could really just use some fresh air.” I shouldn’t ask him for anything, yet I was bringing up going outside, knowing Bryce would be the only one who could get me access past the guards this time of night.

“It’s late.”

“I know.”

He exhaled and ran a hand over the back of his head, looking behind him at where Leland had long since disappeared. “You need some fresh air?” He looked back at me, and I nodded.

A long moment of this weird silence stretched out, one where he just watched me as if he were working out some kind of plan in his head. It set off all kinds of warning bells inside me, but before I could say never mind, he cleared his throat and nodded.“Okay, come on then.”

He gestured for me to follow him, and I did, in silence. I could’ve seen myself liking Bryce if he wasn’t a power-hungry asshole. And although he was nothing like Leland, not a sadistic bastard, he had no qualms about using people to get what he wanted.

I followed several steps behind him, my focus trained straight ahead even though I couldn’t see much past Bryce’s big body. We made a few turns, walked a long while more, and then he slowed as we neared one of the back entrances to the Pit.

I could see one of the guards up ahead, the makeshift door he guarded made from the thick, almost stone-like wood that grew from the gnarly, crazy-looking trees that surrounded the encampment.

Bryce and the guard spoke in low tones, and then I watched some kind of exchange happen as he reached into his pocket, pulled something out, and handed it to the guard. I really shouldn’t be making deals like this, because no doubt Bryce would want something in return. But I needed some space, fresh air. Silence. And right now I felt desperate.

And then the guard was pulling open the heavy door and allowing us entrance to the outside. Bryce looked at me and inclined his head toward the exit, and I followed behind him once again.

Once we were outside, the door was closed behind us, sealing us out from the safety of the tunnels and caverns. I shivered as I looked into the sky, expecting to see a massive dragon flying overhead.

During the day, the temperature outside was stifling because of the dual suns, and although it was now night and dark, the massive moon in the sky couldn’t ease the stifling temperatures much.

I took several steps forward and tipped my head back, staring at the large moon in the sky. It was massive, so monstrous it was like a single eye staring down at the world and casting this eerie silver glow along the land. I didn’t know how long I stood there, but once again I felt like I was being watched. I blinked back to the present and glanced over my shoulder to see Bryce leaning against the scarred door, his gaze locked on me. He had his arms crossed over his chest, and I shivered again even though it wasn’t cold.

“Thank you for taking me outside.” He didn’t say anything in response, and I wanted to look away but couldn’t. “Do you think… Do you think I could have a couple of minutes alone out here?”

“It’s not safe, especially alone and without the security of the suns.”