Broken Wings (Dark Legacy #1)(65)

Eddy’s gaze shifted to their table then, and when she came back to me, her face held understanding and sympathy. Then, like the best fucking friend ever, she threw her sandwich down as well and declared that she needed a burger. We were up, moving through the cafeteria, and I didn’t turn my head once to see if the guys noticed. “They’re going to follow us,” I said urgently the moment we were out of the door.

Eddy nodded, and before I could say another word, she grabbed my wrist and we were sprinting. With bruised ribs.

“Come on, girl,” she said in a breathless laugh. “Pick up the pace.”

I groaned, almost stumbling over a slightly uneven surface. “I’m injured!” Thank fuck I’d swapped the heels out for sneakers though.

Somehow we didn’t die, making it to the parking lot before anyone ran us down. Eddy’s car beeped before we even reached it, and we slid inside. I held my side, feeling the tenderness of my ribs, but I was pretty sure I hadn’t done too much damage. Eddy peeled out in a screech of tires on pavement, and then we were zooming away from the school and heading into the main part of the town. Since I’d arrived here, I’d never gone any further than the school, so I was actually interested in taking it all in.

“It’s small, but the elders of Delta like it that way,” Eddy explained as we stopped at a red light. “They control everyone in the town, and no one gets up in their business.”

They were going to be so pissed that I’d taken off without one of them. Tension pressed on my chest at the thought of what would happen when they caught up with me. “Maybe we shouldn’t be doing this?” I said in a breathless whisper.

Eddy eyed me with a strange look on her face. “Too late to chicken out now.”

Reaching out to grab the “oh shit” handle, I sighed. “It’s dangerous to be around me. I shouldn’t be risking your life like this, even if I’m cool with risking my own.”

“Everyone knows I’m a Langham,” Eddy said, sounding completely unconcerned. “Danger follows our family around. I’m not in any more just because we’re together.”

I wasn’t sure I believed that, but I felt somewhat better.

Eddy pulled into what looked like a miniature mall.

“Center Court,” she said, shifting into park and opening her door. “It’s small, but it has some wicked designer stores. Half this town is rich thanks to Delta.”

When we got inside, I realized that small did not equal lame. It was fancy, like marble floor with gold inlaid patterns-similar to the Delta mansions—chandeliers, leather couches, and security on all entrances. “Wow,” I said softly, trying to take it all in. “Kinda wish I had a credit card now.”

Eddy threw her head back and laughed. “You’re literally the daughter of one of the richest people in the world, and you don’t have a credit card.”

I shrugged. “Catherine doesn’t want me having any freedoms. Money is a freedom I might use to escape her.”

She didn’t say anything, but I knew Eddy was thinking the same thing as me. There was no escape.

Passing the fancy stores, we ended up in the food area, and I wasn’t even surprised to see tablecloths on the tables, with cutlery and wine glasses. In the middle of a friggin mall food court.

“Pick your poison,” Eddy said, waving a hand around.

There were multiple choices, and we settled on Italian. Deciding to split a pizza and salad between us.

“You want wine?” Eddy asked.

I blinked. “We’re not even eighteen, let alone twenty-one.”

She shrugged. “Age is just a number, and here no one asks for numbers.”

“Sure,” I said, deciding I might as well. I’d pretty much decided I was too scared to venture back to school today and face the wrath of the guys, so getting wasted seemed like a decent alternative.

Eddy squealed before she jumped up and returned a moment later with a bottle of Moscato in an ice bucket. “Figured we’d start on the light stuff and see how we go.”

I already had my glass in hand, because I was ready to let loose. Eddy filled both of our glasses almost to the top, and just when I was about to take my first sip, a flash caught my eye. It was a brief illumination, but I thought the guy sitting at a table across from us had just taken a photo of us. I couldn’t see any camera though, and he was focused on a menu in front of him. A dark suspicion took root in my stomach as I watched him for a moment longer.

“Do you know that guy, Eddy?” I asked, inclining my head in his direction.

I couldn’t really see much about him outside of the dark jacket and blond hair, but he was creeping me out.

Eddy stared for a few moments before shaking her head. “Never seen him before; don’t think he’s local.”

My uneasy feeling increased.

“Fuck,” Eddy said, distracting me from the dude.

“What?” I looked around and almost died when I saw them.

Beck was in the center, Dylan and Evan were on either side, and their pissed off faces were very obvious for all to see. The three of them were heading right for our table, and even Eddy looked pale as they closed in.

“Should we run?” I whispered.

She shook her head. “No, that will only make it worse.”

I believed her. Reaching out, I wrapped my hand around the knife there, even though I knew there was no way I could use it on any of them. For some reason, it made me feel better though.