Soft hands moved over mine, and when I gazed up, December was facing the room.
“This might be out there and I don’t know where all you guys have already searched, but,” she started, then found my eyes, “have you checked your father’s vault? You know, the one at the jewelry store?”
Blinking, my eyes narrowed. “Dad’s vault? How do you know about that?”
I admit we hadn’t checked it, his customers’ valuables in there, and though he had his own, he kept the real good stuff overseas in international bank vaults all over the world. We’d have checked those, but doing so was basically impossible without his authorization.
December chewed her lip a little. “Ramses had my Kept necklace there,” she said, making my stomach sour. “Back when we told everyone we were dating, I went down there and got it. Your dad was there that day and took me into the vault to get it. Ramses couldn’t do it. He’d just been to the woods that night.”
Because we’d hazed him, all of this fucking darkness. I just wanted to be rid of it. I gripped her hands, and LJ touched my shoulder.
“We haven’t checked your dad’s vault, Royal,” he said. “Hadn’t thought to.”
“She knows about all this two seconds, and she’s already helping.” A smile from Knight, a rare occurrence indeed. He tipped a chin at Jax. “Your cousin Benjamin still work at the jewelry store?”
December grimaced for some reason. “That guy’s your cousin? He was such a douche that day at the store.”
“Uh, second cousin.” Jax raised his hands. “And yeah, why?”
“See if you can get his keys,” I said, Knight and I of the same mind. “They’d be easier to get than my dad’s.”
It wouldn’t be impossible but definitely easier if he plucked them off his cousin. My father would notice right away, and we didn’t want to risk him finding out.
“But how can we get in there after that?” December shifted her gaze between us. “Your dad had to take me down. He said only he had access to the vault and the box itself took his fingerprint to open.”
“The boxes take four prints actually,” I said. “And only the same have access to the vault.”
December’s lips parted, and I brushed hair out of her face.
“Only a Prinze can get down there,” I said to her. “My mom. My sister, my dad, and me.”
Nine
December
The ride back to Maywood Heights was a quick one. If anything, it was only made a smidgen longer by Jax, who not only chose to ride back to town and school with us but made Royal’s life a living hell by singing to every song that graced the radio. Frankly, I found the whole thing hilarious, a glimmer of joy in the fucked-up-ness that was about to go down the moment we returned home. We planned to visit the jewelry store sometime after school, and that’s when this whole thing would begin again.
Royal took the ride home in good stride, his arm around me while he drove, and I think the only reason he did put up with Jax was because he found that glimmer too. He wanted that lightness, the opposite of the dark that was about to take us all away again. Since we checked out so early, we’d been able to get on the road and ultimately, home before school began. I checked in with Dad right as we pulled up into the Windsor Preparatory parking lot. The academy was filled to the brim with students and poshness, all in their school uniforms. We were in ours too, something we’d packed, and the boys had changed as well before leaving the hotel.
“You made it in okay?” Dad actually checked in with me, hella serious I guess with his forty-eight-hour deadline. He’d wanted to make sure I arrived at school the way I said I would, and since I had, I attempted to chill him the fuck out. “December, did you hear me?”
Apparently, my attempt at chill was friggin’ shitty, and I lifted a hand to Royal to wait. He’d started to head toward the old, brick building filling up with students. Knight and LJ had tailed us the entire time back into the city, flanking my boyfriend, but they all stopped when Royal halted them. Royal tilted his head. “Everything okay?”
I covered my phone. “Yeah, just Dad freaking out,” I said, waving the group on. “It’ll take a second.”
But me waving them on wasn’t happening, the force of boys standing their ground. In the end, they came back, and I guess I wasn’t surprised. Too much had simply happened for them to leave me alone. They all stood there while my dad let in on me, but eventually, Royal dismissed his men in waiting when it really started to be a long time. He gave the boys fist pounds before slinging an arm around my waist and waiting. His scent immediately surrounded me as he rested his chin on my shoulder, possessive. I had a feeling that’s just how things were about to be.
I sighed into the phone, my dad doing his own possessive thing for some weird reason. “I’m fine, Dad. I made it home. I’m about to head into school.”
A few more moments and Royal lifted his watch, tapping at the time. We really didn’t have a lot of it before the class warning bells hit, and I understood that.
“I gotta get to class,” I urged into the line. “I’m right outside.”
“I understand that, but I’m not done yet. In fact, put me on FaceTime.”
Thrown, I blanched. “What?”
“I said put me on FaceTime, December, and I’m not joking.”
So obviously
