Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 70489 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70489 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Dante and his family were going to do everything they could to protect me, but none of them were invincible, not even Dante.
I got off the bus at the Greek Village stop. Fortunately, a lot of other people got off with me. I walked to the Chi Rho house and hurried inside.
Was I really going to have the courage to walk out into the dark, acting like I wanted to take a run when I knew Ivanov was after me? We’d planned it so late on a weeknight that hardly anyone would be around. I would be vulnerable, and Ivanov would know it. I took a deep breath. I could do this. I had to. It was too late to back out now.
I texted Randall, Clyde, and Thomas and told them to meet me in my room because I had news. When they arrived, I let him know I’d gotten in touch with Mitch. I told him he was fine, that he’d had a bit of a breakdown over the whole situation with his family. He might not be back right away, but he was fine, and he would come back eventually. Dante and I had settled on that story since it seemed believable but wasn’t too far from the truth, just leaving out the kidnapping part.
When the guys left, I had hours to get through until go time. Each minute felt like a day. How was I going to make it until dark? How was I going to go through with this plan?
Somehow, I had to. For Dante. For his family. Because they deserved it. Sure, they might talk easily of killing people, but they’ve been kinder to me than anyone else in my life, and as far as I knew, everyone they’d gone after was far worse than they were. Ivanov needed to be eliminated. I didn’t trust the court system to bring him to justice. But I trusted Dante.
I managed to finish off a couple of simple homework assignments. I ate dinner and forced myself to hang out with some of the other guys until, finally, it was time.
My phone buzzed with a text from Dante, confirming he was in position. He let me know I would have him and Lorenzo and Remington’s brother Lancelot—plus Lance’s pet monkey—watching out for me, so nothing bad was going to happen to me. Maybe it wouldn’t, but I didn’t want Dante or any of his family getting hurt either.
I told the guys I needed to go study and went up to my room, where I changed into running shorts and a T-shirt. I headed down the back stairs and out the door.
Trying to pretend everything was normal, I did some stretches in the yard. This really wasn’t unusual. There was no reason for a guy to worry about running in the dark, was there? Not unless you knew about Ivanov.
I texted Dante to let him know I was heading out. He responded with a thumbs-up and a heart emoji.
There was so much I wanted to say to him, but I needed to get through this insane plan first.
It nearly killed me to keep myself at a brisk walk until I reached the path. Once there, I started to jog. There were a few lights around the lake, but they didn’t do much to illuminate the path. The further I got away from the frat, the darker it got.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and a shiver ran through me. Before I could turn around to look for Ivanov, I heard the footsteps. Someone was definitely following me.
Could it just be another student out for a run? I glanced over my shoulder, and I saw him, the same man who had followed me around campus. If he wasn’t Ivanov, he was still someone I should be afraid of because he’d followed me all day, and now he was here on a dark path with no one around.
I knew Dante and the others were out there. I was as safe as anyone could be when they’d put themselves out as bait, but I wasn’t as reassuring as I thought it would be when I volunteered to do this.
The man was getting closer. I deliberately kept my pace slow. I wasn’t trying to outrun him. Even though all my instincts screamed to do exactly that. I wish I could see Dante or any of the others, but they were as good at hiding as I expected them to be. Unless… What if they weren’t there? What if I were on my own?
No, Dante had assured me they were in position. I was going to be okay. Ivanov continued gaining on me until he was right behind me. I could feel his presence.
I looked over my shoulder as I would if he were any other runner coming up to pass me on the path.