CHAPTER 54: 54-THE SWEET TALK

Clementine:

"Hey, open the door!" I yelled. But then I had to quiet down because I didn’t want the lurker to come and punish me. They were so weird, sometimes they’d just point a gun at someone. They even had laser guns, and I’d heard they could shock people. There were even incidents where Crusaders had been hit by them. And I did not want that to happen.

I guessed they wanted me to scream and draw the attention of the lurkers, to get shocked or struck by one of their weapons. So I decided not to. What they were forgetting was that I could pick locks. I grabbed a pin from my hair and opened the lock. As I stormed in and slammed the door shut, I saw them sitting in their beds separately, with Ian still at the study table, writing.

They were so arrogant. Every fucking time something happened, they would start bullying me, as if they were looking for excuses to take their frustration out on me. And this time, they seemed like they had a valid reason to do so. So I was going to burst their bubble and make them feel guilty for their mistreatment toward me.

"Who did that?" I asked, standing with my fists clenched.

"Huh?" I yelled, "Come on, tell me who did that. Huh? You call yourself Alpha? Attacking me from behind? Face me. Tell me who did that!" I demanded, loud and clear. I was not going to back down. I’d had enough.

Yorick leaned back, hands on the bed behind him, supporting his body while staring at me, deadpan. Troy was leaning to the side, his elbow resting on the pillow, with his other hand gripping his wrist tightly. He was shaking one leg slightly, the knee pointed upward on the bed while he sat on his side.

And then there was Haiden. He was still standing next to the window, eyes clenched.

"I did," he said, not ashamed of anything.

Ian started chuckling, probably because he found it funny. I guess Ian just liked it when others mistreated me and I got all riled up. He probably laughed because he thought I believed they’d be too scared to come forward. But when they didn’t, it kind of gave Ian satisfaction.

"Really? All that because you couldn’t go home?" I asked.

Then Ian slowly threw his pen on the table and turned around. He rested one hand on the back of his seat as he turned fully to face me, almost like a warning not to bring it up because they would get angry again.

"Now let me tell you, they were never going to send you home. You hear me?" I shouted.

"Oh, come on. That was—"

Before Haiden could interrupt me again, I shut him down, showing him my palm. I could tell he was not happy I did that, but I did not give a fuck. I would say whatever I had to say without being interrupted. And even if they tried to cut me off, I would still keep screaming my truth.

"When they took me down to the basement, they gave me a choice. Either die or live and become a Crusader," I hissed, watching them only move their eyes to look at each other. Ian, however, stood up, arms crossed.

"That is not what they told us," he said.

"Of course they didn’t. They told me in brief detail what they would do to us if we didn’t listen," I said, still hissing, my throat dry from so much anger.

"Why didn’t you tell us that back when they were there?" Troy complained.

"Oh yeah, and get myself in trouble? Unlike you alphas, I use my brain," I hissed. "I don’t think with my dick like you all. I pick my options right. If I had said anything or tried to expose them in front of you, they would have taken the deal back." I watched as they slowly got up and stood around me.

"What did you get from betraying us?" Troy asked.

"I am not the only one who got blessed with the deal. I helped you all survive a death penalty," I hissed.

And then I began to explain to them what exactly happened in the basement.

Flashback:

So Miss Rue took me to the basement and sat me down in the same spot she had before. I instantly remembered how the last time I tried to get their help, it wasn’t very helpful. But I kept that in the back of my mind.

Miss Rue sat across the table from me, staring. "Clementine, I did not expect you to come with them. I must say, that was pretty disappointing to me," she started, not in her usual cheery tone but in a very sad and disappointed one.

"I appreciate that you have such high hopes for me, Miss Rue, but let me tell you something in case you don’t know. I was not brought here of my own will. I wasn’t convinced this was my only way to live. I was dragged here in my sleep, from my bedroom, from my comfortable bed. I never got a chance to choose. I know others didn’t either, but at some point, they convinced themselves they were okay with it. I wasn’t. I was brought here, thrown in a cage, tortured with wolfsbane, and then tossed into the dorms. So you should have expected me to be on their side when it comes to quitting," I said, trying to be honest with her. I wouldn’t let anybody make me feel guilty about what I want to do with my life.

"I appreciate your honesty, Clementine, and yes, I have checked your records. But the way you slayed that faun made me believe maybe you realized your potential. Maybe you’re finally accepting this as your life. You are an alpha warrior," she said, smiling and using her hands a lot, her elbows resting on the table.