Liability

Chapter 45 - Rhys

Monday
September 24, 2018

There is a school assembly on Monday morning.

After the weekend... no, week Rhys had, listening to Pratt's bullshit about tragedy and loss of great talent and the importance of turning to the adults if they have problems is the last thing he wants to do. The newly enforced drug screenings are just the cherry on top of the stinking shit cake they have been served. The only thing missing is some well-intended advice on stranger danger and being impressionable youth trying to be cool in front of their peers.

It is a complete waste of time. What else could it be when the cause of the whole problem is standing three people ahead of him, looking like a picture-perfect broken victim as he leans against James' shoulder, head bowed in the pretense of shame.

Rhys' nails dig into his thighs, hard, not that the pinpricks of pain would be able to hold him back if he didn't know what is at stake. There will be no second chances if he fucks this up.

If they fuck it up.

Next to him, Thommy is practically vibrating with barely restrained violence and it makes Rhys wonder how they will be able to pretend they know nothing instead of grabbing Mark and beating him unconscious in one of the restrooms before dragging his ass over to Yarkost Tower and demanding their pound of flesh.

In reality, the how doesn't matter. No one cares whether they feel completely unprepared for what is expected of them. No one cares about the means they use as long as they aren't caught. What Alenyka cares about is that they are successful.

Failure is not an option.

He cannot say that part of him did not expect some super spy level preparation for their newly acquired mission despite logically knowing that thoughts like that were ridiculous. It was the teenage boy in him that wanted to be kitted with cutting-edge tech, have endless planning sessions in a war room, or last-minute training on handling weapons.

What happened was none of that and that's probably more maddening than anything else because it forces him to acknowledge that their worth is being tested. It doesn't matter how unfair that test is, they either pass it or will be left to rot as useless, expendable tools marked off as unfortunate collateral damage left behind by a budding psychopath.

Rhys cannot forget the way Alenyka's smile turned into a thin red slash back on Friday after Rhys and Thommy accepted her orders. It turned her expression sinister and way too much like what Rhys imagined a fae tricking someone into their fairy circle would look like.

Terrifying. Beautiful. Deadly.

Then the elevator doors opened and a woman stepped through them in the same kind of ridiculous heels Alenyka wore. She was dressed in a dark gray suit and white shirt with her glossy black hair pulled up in a high ponytail. Her face was severe, dark brown eyes cold and distrustful as they scanned the room, pausing on Rhys and Thommy minutely before landing on Alenyka.

"Right on time, Carmen," Alenyka said, her tone pleased in a way that made Rhys' mind conjure the image of supervillains with their evil plans set into motion. It drew his attention but not enough to turn away from the twitch of Carmen's lips that were painted a deep rust red. He couldn't decide what that tiny movement meant, she appeared like a wall of pure steel — impenetrable and unbending. "Now, none of that, zolotse, you will scare these sweet boys with your glare," Alenyka went on with a low chuckle that ended in a little sigh as if her expressions alone hadn't made Rhys' blood freeze. "You will have enough time to teach them to fear you. For now, just escort them to their appointment."

Carmen lifted one of her brows and Rhys had the feeling in a different setting she would have rolled her eyes. Instead, she looked down at him, assessing him and finding him lacking with a single sweep of her eyes even as the only words she addressed him with were, "Follow me." Then as an afterthought, "Your boyfriend, too."