I watch in what can only be described as syrupy slow-motion as Chase falls down the steps and lands on his leg at just the right angle to send a splintering cracking sound through the air.
I stand here, frozen at the top of the steps as Warren and Sterling run down to help Chase. I’m not frozen with shock at his fall, I’m rooted in place with shock over the fact that there had been a split second as I was watching it happen, where I could have reached out to help him—but I didn’t.
I don’t even know why I hesitated.
Maybe I really have turned into the monster that Alaska and Clark feared that I would become.
Warren and Sterling are helping to load Chase up onto one of the chairs. He winces in pain and it’s fairly obvious he’s definitely broken his leg.
Guilt falls over me like a poisonous waterfall.
This is going to bench him and keep him from being able to continue with his athletic scholarship. This fall—one that I could have prevented—is going to steal the most important thing from the most pure of the three boys I care for.
My moment’s hesitation, a hesitation that Chase didn’t show when trying to help me, might have a long-lasting negative impact on his life.
I stand still, completely unable to move, as one of the faculty members calls for an ambulance, while someone else grabs ice from the champagne bucket.
Just when I think things can’t possibly get any worse than Warren casting me aside, and Chase breaking an actual limb—it does.
Bridget seals the horrible moment with one more revelation.
“Well,” she says with a smugness that seems terribly inappropriate considering the moment at hand. “I guess since you’re all here and everything is out in the open, now is as good a time as any to tell you that the baby, my baby belongs to Sterling.”
“What?” I ask in shock. I turn to Sterling in disbelief. “I thought the two of you were never actually together.”
Bridget laughs and my nerves are already so on-edge that the shrill sound of her laughter makes me jump.
“Is that what he told you?” she asks, mocking my lack of insight on the situation. “Oh, we were together all right, more than once.”
Sterling doesn’t even try to deny it. I guess I’m not the only one who’s been lying.
And I guess it doesn’t matter.
Everything is ruined anyway.
And it’s all my fault.
How on earth am I supposed to survive another term here at Ridgecrest now?
A Note From The Author
Thank you for reading Her Spite, the second book in The Forgotten Elites. The next (and final) book in the series, Her Wrath, is releasing late April, and can be found on Amazon here.
If you enjoyed Her Spite, please consider leaving a review on Amazon.
One important note—this series is meant to be a work of fiction and is not meant to glorify abuse or bullying. If you or someone you know is a victim of this kind of behavior, please consider reaching out for help:
https://www.stompoutbullying.org
https://www.stopbullying.gov
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255)
Xoxo,
Eden
Also by Eden Beck
Feral Mates
Alpha Rejected
Alpha Rising
Alpha Returned
The Forgotten Elites
Her Shame
Her Spite
Her Wrath
Wicked Brotherhood
Bitter
Hateful
Wretched
Wolfish
Wolf Bonded
Wolf Broken
Wolf Bargain
Hawthorne Holy Trinity
Dirty Liars
Dirty Fraud
Dirty Revenge
