Supernatural Boarding School #2 - A Touch of Red ✅

Chapter 48

When I stormed outside, I spotted Benjamin right away. He was leaning casually against the brick building of the left wing of the school, his hair wet from the drizzle. It was amazing how my family could produce so many good-looking people who either suffered from insanity or were simply insufferable. My grandfather, my dad, Dylan, Ben... It made me wonder who else was out there. Should I find them? Did I even want to know?

"Niece," Benjamin greeted me. He stepped forward to kiss me on the cheek and chuckled when I ducked and tried to hit him. His strong grip on my wrist hurt like hell, but I didn't let on that he was causing me pain.

"What are you still doing around here?" I spat. "Haven't you done enough so far?" I had to pause to catch my breath. "You got me and Eros into a world of trouble. You may not care about me very much, but I know you care about Eros for some reason. You being here is only causing him inconvenience and stress."

"Is that what he tells you?" Ben chuckled. "Or is that what you think, what you feel?"

I gritted my teeth. This guy knew far too well how to get underneath my skin. "You didn't answer my question. What are you still doing here?"

"You didn't expect me to stay in Florida with a bunch of old people when I've got this whole happy family up here in Missouri, now did you?" He crooked a smile and winked at Dylan, who was standing beside me, his body rigid. His grip on my wrist lessened somewhat, but he jerked me back when I tried to get free. "Not so fast, niece. I think it's about time we get to know each other better."

"What are you gonna do?" I hissed, getting ready to knee him straight in the groin – my signature move. "Kiss another one of your newfound family members?"

"That was not one of my smarter moves, I agree." Benjamin easily sidestepped my leg moving up to hurt him. "Would you believe me if I told you I'm trying to make up for my mistakes?"

That response drew me up short. As much as I hated to admit it, his face bore an expression of honesty that was hard to ignore.

"No," I said anyway, refusing to let him get to me that easily.

He laughed. "You're a horrible liar, niece." With that, he let go of me and took a step back.

I glanced back at Dylan, unsure what to make of this. He shrugged, obviously just as confused. Ben was waiting patiently for me to respond in any way, but I wasn't sure what would be the best move. At least when he was being obnoxious, I could keep sneering without further thought.

"Wait a minute," I mumbled, finally figuring out why his remorse didn't make sense. "Dylan just told me you're threatening to spill the beans to Carl. Where does that fit into your whole story?"

Ben bowed his head. "Yeah... I needed to get you out here so I could talk to you and this was the easiest way I knew how to do so. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the best way to draw you out is to use your friends." He winked when he saw my sour face. "Besides, you're funny when you're mad. Something else we don't have in common – I'm downright scary when I get fired up."

"Don't pride yourself on being so different from Dem," Dylan cut in, his voice tight. "You seem to share her love for incredibly boring speeches that don't even seem to have a point."

Ben laughed. "I gather dry humor runs in the family. Too bad Dem here doesn't seem to share our more likable Hollow treats."

"How about we cut the crap?" I proposed, getting tired of this whole back-and-forth that was – like Dylan has rudely stated – rather pointless. "If you're not gonna rat Dylan out, than what are you still doing here?"