King of Corium (Corium University Trilogy 1)

Whereas I’ll do everything I can to pretend mine don’t exist while still doing my best to maintain a relationship with my sister, Scarlet.

I drop into my seat, and Ren takes the seat beside me as the roar of the engine fills the space.

It’s only a short flight to the secluded area that used to be an old military base before recently being turned into a high-tech university. The place is so classified there are no pictures of it anywhere online. My father, of course, helped with the funding. Yet another reminder that going here is nothing more than a false sense of escapism. Still, to me, it is better than nothing.

I let my eyes fall closed with a sigh, the weight on my chest already lessening with each breath I take. The darkness inside me, however, swirls, building slowly. For months, nightmares have plagued me, making it hard for me to sleep at night. I let out a yawn and sink my head back into the headrest. I try not to think of how fucked up my life has become in the past year, how much of a lie it’s all been, or worse, how much I’ve lost, we’ve lost. Shoving it all to the back of my mind, I allow myself to shut down. I must doze off because a short while later, I blink my eyes open and find Ren leaning across my seat to look out the small window at something off in the distance.

“How long have I been out?” I yell over the loud roar of the engine, shifting forward in my seat.

“Long enough for me to realize just how in the middle of nowhere this place is. If you wanted to commit murder and get away with it, this would be the place to do it.”

“What are you talking about?” I ask, brow furrowed.

Ren points out the window, and I lean forward to see what the hell he’s looking at. I scan the area below us. Hundreds of miles of trees stretch from where we are and in every direction. There are no roads, no houses, just nothingness until I notice what looks to be an old fortress, half-built into the side of a snow-covered mountain.

From the little bit of research I was able to do on this place, I know it used to be a castle, left behind from when the Russians owned this land before the United States took it over in the late 1800s. I never could’ve guessed it was this isolated, though. Then again, that’s probably for the better if you’re housing the offspring of thousands of criminals.

“Whose idea was it to build a fucking university out here?” I ask the question out loud without realizing it.

“I’m pretty sure someone who wants to torture us. It’s the only sign of life I’ve seen this whole flight.”

My father told me the place was secluded, but I would never have anticipated this. Ren is right; we’re in the middle of nowhere. Most colleges are huge structures, elaborate and expensive-looking, drawing the attention of every graduating student like a beacon, but this place looks like an abandoned castle. Of course, that’s by design. A single road seemingly appears out of nowhere and winds up the mountainside, and a large stone wall separates the outside from the inside.

“We’re preparing to land.” The pilot’s voice comes over the intercom system.

“You ready?” Ren asks.

I turn in my seat, the finality of it all finally sinking in. I’m finally free, or at least a little bit free. I grin, knowing that at this place, my darkest desires and needs can be brought to light. Here I won’t have to hide the pain. I won’t have to pretend to exist. Anyone who gets in my way will become a target.

I suck a ragged breath into my lungs, my chest suddenly feeling lighter.

“I’m ready, but I doubt this place is ready for us.”

“Probably not.” Ren gives me an equally dark smile.

The lower we get, the better the view of the university becomes. I realize how massive the place is when we finally land and exit the helicopter. The structures that seemed so small are larger than they appeared so high up. My heart starts to race in my chest, the sound thundering in my ears.

From the helipad, we walk down a small path that leads into a tunnel, and the fact that this place was rebuilt to be a military base becomes readily apparent. After a short walk, we end up at an enormous door that looks as if it could withstand a direct bomb blast. Several checkpoints and guardhouses lead up to the entrance, and everyone gives us a chin nod as we walk by.

Rumor has it, the government had big plans for this place. Using and expanding on the underground tunnels already built, they were ready to move their troops in. They were less than happy when the founding members bought it right out from under their noses.