And I don’t know how to fix that anymore. I don’t know how to make my parents—or anyone else—see the light when they believe they’re already seeing it.

Ryan will never be punished for his crimes unless one of his victims press charges. And with Ryan’s connections, the likelihood of him actually suffering any consequences are low. Ryan’s smart enough not to hit them in public, and he knows how to scare them into silence. He cares more about his reputation than the woman he’s abusing.

I had pleaded with Alison to press charges—to try. It didn’t matter that I promised her my protection, she was still too scared to speak against Ryan. In the end, nothing came of it and I created a divide in the family. Mom and Dad hold nothing against me, firmly believing that I was naive and was spun into Alison’s wicked web.

But there’s an underlying tension in the air during family dinners. Deep down, they know I still believe Alison and that bothers them.

“Then what do you suggest we do, Mako?” Alison snaps, bringing me back to the conversation. “Let him abuse girls as he sees fit? What if he kills someone? We would have known what he’s doing and did nothing about it. That—that’s so fucking wrong and you know it!” She ends her sentence in near hysteria.

I bang my head against the headrest.

“I don’t know, Ali. I really don’t. Right now, I’m going to focus on River. Whatever comes after, I’ll figure that out when I get there.”

Five

river

“RIDDLE ME THIS, RIVER. How much force does it take before a bone breaks?” a voice says from behind me. Chills rush over my skin when that deep voice infiltrates my ears. I pause mid-step, nearly tripping over my feet when my foot comes back down clumsily. Immediately, I’m frustrated. I hate that he caught me off guard and I hate that he now knows he did.

Reluctantly and with a massive amount of irritation, I turn to find Mako, which only heightens my bad mood when I see how sinfully delicious he looks. He’s dressed in black jeans and a black tee shirt, brightening his colorful tattoos. I want to study them closer, ask why he got each and every one of them. You can learn a lot about a person just from their tattoos. But I would never ask—I have as much interest in getting to know Mako as I do getting to know the shark. They’re both perfectly capable of eating me alive.

The gears in my head are turning overtime as I try to figure out how the hell he found me and why he found me. There’s no way Mako goes to school here. He looks too old—definitely older than Ryan.

The stalker raises an eyebrow when I continue to stare dumbly. Shaking myself, I feel blood rise to my cheeks.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, my tone accusing and harsh now that he caught me checking him out.

Who am I kidding, it would’ve been harsh regardless.

I had just walked out of my psych class and was heading towards my favorite donut shop. I’m only a block away. It’s not good for my body, and Ryan would be pissed if I gained weight, but I’m especially hungry today.

At least until Mako showed up. Now, my appetite has vanished completely. Actually, I feel a little sick.

He smiles. “Getting a donut.”

Without my permission, my eyes track down his body. He doesn’t look like he eats donuts.

“Right,” I say doubtfully, and then turn to walk towards the donut shop. I eat donuts. I’m not a liar like he is.

He falls in step behind me, and my blood heats and chills all at once. A cold, nervous sweat breaks across my brow, even though it’s eighty degrees out.

What if Ryan sees us? He could easily drive by. The donut shop is only a few blocks from his work. If Ryan spotted Mako walking next to me, there’s no telling how he’d react. He loves me and doesn’t want me around bad influences. One look at Mako, and it’s easy to see he falls under that category.

“You can’t walk next to me,” I snap, rushing my steps forward. His long legs eat up the little distance I gained in a matter of seconds.

“Why not?” he asks, though it sounds like he already knows the answer. It sounds like he’s testing me.

“Because I don’t like you.”

He hums. “So, are you going to answer me? How much force does it take before a bone breaks?”

“I don’t know. You’d have to stalk someone with an anatomy degree,” I answer briskly, still attempting to quicken my pace. All I’m accomplishing is getting a workout in before I gorge on sugar and calories.

“I’ll tell you the answer. It’s not about the force, it’s about their angle of attack. If you’re smart and have a good angle, you can break someone without any effort at all.”

I stop, and Mako doesn’t miss a beat. He stops next to me, his heat crowding in on me until I’m in danger of a heat stroke. His energy feels like I’m being attacked by a solar flare.

I turn to him, my eyes narrowed. Anger pulses through me in bright heat waves. If he looked close enough, he’d see it thrumming in my neck.

Tags: H.D. Carlton Dark
Source: readsnovelonline.net