Ruthless Empire (Royal Elite 6)

Today, though, I won’t stay and watch. I need to gather a few things from home and flee to Mum’s before he returns.

I’m about to get into my car when a shadow creeps up behind me. I startle, turning around.

“Hey, Silver.” Adam smiles at me. His eyes are bloodshot and his shoulders seem tense underneath the uniform. A waft of alcohol comes from him.

The hell is he doing here?

I haven’t received a text from him in more than a week, and he’s been keeping his distance at school, so I thought he finally got himself together.

I don’t like the look on his face. Not one bit.

“Hey, Adam.” I try to sound distracted, even though I’m on the verge of a panic attack. “I’m in a hurry so —”

He grips my arm so hard, I smother a squeal. “Why the fuck do you always do that?”

I try to wiggle free, but his hold is like steel, fingers digging into my flesh. “Adam, let me go. You’re hurting me.”

“Hurting you.” He barks out a laugh. “You know how to be hurt, Silver? Because you’ve been stomping on my heart over and over again.”

Shit. Shit.

Swallowing, I watch my surroundings, searching for help. There’s no one here — of course.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Adam.”

“You mean you pretend you don’t know.” His other hand caresses my chin. “You know, I’ve been in love with you for such a long time, but you keep playing hard to get. I’ve done everything for you. When that bitch Kimberly was bothering you, I mock-confessed to her and spilt paint on her head. I’ve done everything to protect you.”

My mouth hangs open.

He’s a psycho. I can’t believe he did that to Kim because of me. She was hurt so badly, it pushed her into a Nazi-style diet that’s been sucking the life out of her.

There’s no telling what he’ll do to me. God, I should’ve told Papa about those texts since I first got them. Why did I have to fill my emotional gap with them? Just how stupid could I be?

“Go out with me, Silver.” He smiles like a maniac. “You and I are meant to be.”

I squirm away from him, pushing back against the car and wrapping a hand around my baby.

“Back off. Don’t mistake my silence for weakness.”

“Do you know how long I’ve dreamt about this?”

My insides are about to liquefy with terror, but I keep the harsh tone I learnt from Mum. “Back off or I swear —”

“Shh, shut up. Shut the fuck up.” He jams his fist at the roof of the car beside my head.

My eyes widen as I try to keep my calm. I’m Sebastian Queens and Cynthia Davis’s daughter. I will not break.

Taking a deep inhale, I speak in a slightly cracked voice, despite my attempts to keep it neutral, “Adam. If you don’t stop, I’ll tell —”

“Shut the fuck up, Silver.” He punches the car again.

“What’s going on here?”

I release a breath as someone approaches us. Elsa. I’ve never been happier to see her in my entire life.

“Fuck off, bitch. This is none of your business,” Adam snarls at her.

“Silver?” she asks me carefully.