Tempting Raven (Curse of the Vampire Queen #1)(6)

"Maybe I'm early," I mumble to myself.

Just then, I hear a giggle, followed by a door slamming.

I whirl around, panic rushing through me as I note the door is now shut. I rush over and try the doorknob, hoping maybe the wind blew it shut. When the door opens, relief washes through me.

It was just the wind.

A beat later, I hear music flowing from downstairs, causing puzzlement to web through me. Did I read the invitation wrong? Is the party downstairs?

I step forward to go check and, smack, I walk straight into an invisible wall.

I trip back, rubbing my forehead.

"What the hell?" I grumble, staring at the doorway.

The only way to put up an invisible wall is to have a witch put up a protection charm. But no one in our house hangs out with witches. Well, except for Rhyland. He has a couple of female admirers-his words, not mine-who are witches. That means he may have asked one of them to charm the doorway  …

Reality sinks in. This was a trap. Another one of my sister and her friends' setups. The invite was a lie. The blood oath was a lie.

As if sensing my thoughts, Rhyland, Kingsley, and Nadine materialize in the middle of the stairway. Kingsley has his arm draped around Nadine, something he does a lot, though they've never dated. Although, rumor around school is they fool around whenever they get bored with whoever they are currently dating.

Nadine is wearing her infamous sneer while Kingsley smirks and Rhyland looks bored. That's normal for him and doesn't mean he didn't play a part in this trap. He did. He always does. And I know he was the one who got the witch to put the charm up.



       
         
       
        

Fucking asshole.

"I can't believe you fell for it." Nadine grins like an evil  …  well, vampire. "I really thought you'd have gotten a bit smarter by now. Guess I was wrong."

"Lucky for us, she's still stupid." Kingsley's grin matches Nadine's.

Rhyland remains silent as he studies me with a blank expression, as if he isn't thinking about anything. Although, his head is tilted to the side, so something must be going on upstairs in that pretty head of his, right?

"Why?" I manage to get out evenly. The worst thing I could do right now is cry.

Nadine's smirk magnifies as she slips out from underneath Kingsley's arm. "Aw, you want to know why you're not invited to my party?" She pouts out her lip. "That's so cute."

Kingsley coughs in his hand. "Definitely not cute."

Rhyland almost smiles. Well, either that or he has a twitchy mouth, which I guess he sort of does sometimes.

"I guess I could tell you why," Nadine continues. "I mean, it's the least I can do since you're going to be trapped up here all weekend." She sounds anything but sincere. "I locked you up here because I don't want you ruining my glamorous party with your freaky pastiness. I mean, I know we're vampires, but you're seriously one step away from being a ghost."

I roll my eyes, pretending to be more unbothered than I really am. "A ghost? That's the best you can come up with. Wow, you must be going soft on me."

Her lips twitch in annoyance, but she quickly shakes the irritation off and plasters on a smile. "Have fun being up here all alone, listening to everyone else have fun without you. Then again, you should be used to it by now." She turns to leave, tracing her fingers along Rhyland's chest. "Thanks for getting that witch to put the charm up, gorgeous. You're right; it was a way better idea than mine."

He nods and then his gaze collides with mine.

A spark zaps through me, hot and scorching. I don't know what it is. Maybe stray magic from the invisible wall charm. Or perhaps Rhyland was blessed with a rare power. I don't really care, and apparently, he doesn't either as he backs away down the stairs.

He feels nothing.

He doesn't care that I am locked up.

That I am hurting.

Why would he? He never cared before, so why start now?

What really puts confusion swirling in my brain is that I care. I care that he doesn't care. Such a stupid thing to do. I need to get over it.

With one final emotionless stare, Rhyland yanks his eyes off me and descends down the stairs.

I decide I hate the three of them in that moment. A hatred that grows over the years and blossoms into sheer and utter loathing. 





3





After hearing that Kingsley and Rhyland would be here tonight, I was hoping I'd snooze for at least twenty-four hours. Unfortunately, vampires aren't much for sleeping, and I wake up an hour later, dripping in sweat with the worst headache ever. I'd be totally bummed out, except Effie sends me a message almost the instant I open my eyes.