The Mafia's Heir

Chapter 3

Twelve hours.

That's how long it's been since Ryder was over at my house. Five since my best friends ditched me and had a whole posse of girls muttering threats as they passed me in the halls. Ryder had decided to come back to school to finish out the second half of his senior year. I didn't think that was a good idea at all. Dad was a little pissed that Ryder had the guts to say that he wouldn't marry me. I was ecstatic. Who knew that Ryder wasn't interested in me too?

Anyway, I ended up in the principal's office around the end of first lunch. I didn't know what I had done. Neither did Ryder. He wasn't worrying about it much, considering that he had just gotten back to school. There was possibly no way he could get into trouble. I beg to differ. There was so much he could get into trouble for. Some many people he could get into trouble with.

"Where's Andi and Denise? I heard you still hung with them," Ryder said as he sat down at the table. I glared at him. "After so many years, you still hang with the Whore Queens."

"...Hm. I guess I was the only one who didn't notice anything," I muttered. "You see, I told them that you and I were planning to get married. I always tell them everything, but Andi got pissed and called me a man-stealer. Denise just agreed. They dumped me here after arguing with me in front of everyone about how I was just a lonely whore. Seems to me that they were just covering up their insecurities."

"It took you three and a half years to figure that out?"

"You could say that I'm a bit of an airhead."

"I could have told you that."

Ryder's friends chuckled and sat down around him. Where did they come from? Their eyes contained both pity and amusement. Most of them had known me just as long as I had known Ryder. Only about three of them would actually talk to me. If not out of boredom, then just to have a friendly conversation.

"Yeah..." I chucked a cold fry at one of the boys. He playfully glared at me and shook his head. "I knew they were the whores...I just tended to hang with them more, because daddy thought they were good girls. He banned me from hanging with Zach. I also told him about it and his parents aren't going to help me at all."

"Of course they wouldn't. I have two very powerful parents who know how to make rival families fall. If he does anything...let's just say that he'll never see a good life again. As will most of these kids if they do anything to interfere."

"Is that a threat?"

"Of course it is. I won't promise that I'll do it, but they'll regret life decisions."

I finally got what he was up to. Not only would he have anyone who was against our marriage killed, but he was willing to marry me at any cost. I thought we were on some level of understanding. I don't want to get married at all. I just want to live my life and be the crazy girl everyone thinks I am.

"I really hate you right now," I snapped. "You can't just go around telling people you'll kill them if they hate that we're getting married. I don't want to marry you, but at least make the situation better than it is now. You have no sense of reason, Ryder."

"I do too have a sense of reason. What could I possibly be doing that's making the situation worse than it already is?" he asked.

"Nothing. I'll be going now. Don't follow me."

I got up from the lunch table and stormed out of the cafeteria. It would have been great if people would just listen to my opinion for once and stop thinking that they're the only people in the world whose opinion mattered. I had feelings too. It's not like I was going to mess up everything by saying no. What if I knew what was best for me?