Sweet Retribution (Rydeville High Elite #3)(2)

But first things first.

I need to get back out there and marry my newest enemy.

Then I’ve got to convince him and my father that I’m fully in.

That Kai is in my past.

And Charlie and the elite are my future.

Because infiltrating their world is the only way the plan will succeed.

I flush the toilet—purely for Maurio’s benefit—and carefully wash my hands, smiling at my reflection as I visualize how this will go down.

By the time I’m through with him, my father will definitely wish I’d never been born.





Sounds of commotion drift out into the hallway from the burgundy room as we make our way toward it. My lips curve up at the corners as I wonder if the cavalry has arrived.

I don’t know how long my father has had Kai, but the last I knew, he was traveling to New York with Jackson and Sawyer, so it’s not inconceivable to think they were there when he was ambushed.

There’s no way they wouldn’t come for him, because those three guys are more akin to brothers. If something is going down, I’d wager it’s Sawyer and Jackson to the rescue.

The smile falls off my lips as I contemplate a different scenario. One where my father hurt or killed Kai’s two best friends, and rampant fear careens around my chest as my heart beats wildly behind my ribcage.

If he hurt them, I’ll—

“Hold back, Ms. Abigail,” Maurio says, cutting off my thoughts. He whips his gun out, pushing me back with his other hand. “Stay here and wait for me to return.” Without waiting for my reply, he races toward the door, barreling inside.

I frown as I listen to the choking, coughing sounds trickling out into the hallway. A gun shot rings out, followed by a loud thud, and my heart rate spikes to coronary-inducing levels. I run toward the door, plowing into someone coming out of the room just as I reach it. The force of the impact sends me tumbling to the ground, and one of my heels flies off, skittering along the polished hardwood floor. Before the door shuts, I look into the room, spotting Maurio lying prone on the ground.

A scream rips from my mouth as a man wearing a scary mask looms over me. The mask is made of black rubber, and it completely covers his face. The glass lens hiding his eyes is tinted black, so I can’t see who it is. His body is buff, encased in a black form-fitting shirt, black cargo pants, and black boots. A gun belt is strapped to his trim waist with a gun securely enclosed in the pocket.

I scoot backward along the hall as he extends his arm toward me.

In one fast movement, he unbuckles the mask, pushing it up over his head.

A string of expletives leaves my mouth as Jackson shoots me one of his trademark shit-eating grins. “Sorry, beautiful. Forgot I was wearing the mask.” A large purple bruise paints his left cheek, and a cut on his lip is encrusted and sore-looking.

I kick off my one remaining heel, scrambling to my bare feet. “If you weren’t here on a rescue mission, I’d knee you in the balls for scaring the hell out of me like that.”

He pulls me into his arms, his cocky grin dropping off his face. “You okay?”

I shuck out of his hold. “I’m fine. But Kai isn’t.”

Jackson’s eyes burn red. “I noticed.” He cracks his knuckles. “I thought we’d get our chance to end your father today, but he ran off before the sleeping gas could take effect.”

My eyes bug out of my head as I look over his shoulder at the closed door, wondering what the fuck has gone down. “Sleeping gas?”

Jackson nods. “We didn’t want to risk you, Drew, or Kai getting injured in a shootout, so we used the tunnel to get into the house, and we injected sleeping gas through the vents in the room,” he explains.

“I heard a gunshot. Did someone die?”

“That asshole guard come rushing in with his gun. He shot at us, but the bullet embedded in the wall. He didn’t have time to hurt anyone else, because the sleeping gas took effect then, knocking him out.”

The door flies open a second time, and someone else comes out. He’s also wearing a mask and the same black attire. I peek into the room, clamping a hand over my mouth as I count the prone bodies on the floor. Another few guys wearing masks roam the room, guns out and ready as they prod the unconscious forms with their booted feet.

The new arrival shoves a mask at me. “Put that on,” Sawyer says, pushing his mask up on top of his head. His nose is swollen, and he has a large bruise on the side of his jaw. “We need to get out of here asap. Your father took off and even though this was prearranged with Atticus Anderson it doesn’t mean he won’t come back with reinforcements.”

“Wait? What?” I say, taking the mask but making no move to put it on. “My father knew about this? Agreed to it? Why the fuck would he do that if he needs me to marry Charlie?” I’m totally confused.

Sawyer shakes his head. “Atticus made a deal so he could get Kai out, but—”

“What kind of deal? I thought they hated one another?” I ask, gripping onto Sawyer’s arm.

Sawyer glances up and down the hallway. “Your dad needs to make this conflict with Atticus go away because it’s damaging his reputation. With the Parkhurst vote only a few months away he can’t risk it so he told him he’d give him back his company, his property, the money he took from him, and smooth the way for him to return to the elite and Parkhurst, in exchange for Atticus dropping his lawsuits, retracting his statements, and keeping Kai away from you.”