Savage Games: An Academy Bully Romance (Bastards of Boulder Cove Book 1) Read online

  Then there’s my side. A white, wood-framed twin bed with a gray sheet. On top of it are my neatly-pressed school uniforms. Aside from the bed, there’s only a four-drawer dresser and a simple, white study desk. Unfortunately, it will not get much better because my belongings are minimal.

  Bending at the waist, I pick up my larger bag and fling it onto the bed then pull out some of the mundane items I brought with me. A black-and-white skull tapestry to iron out and hang on the wall over my bed. A retro tabletop moon lamp. And some white string lights.

  “Once we get you settled in, I’ll give you a tour and show you where the bathroom and common room is. There’s a little kitchenette down the hall with a microwave and refrigerator. Put your name on everything,” she enunciates. “A few of the girls in this dormitory are royal bitches.”

  Well, she swears so there’s that.

  “So, where are you from?” Riley asks, as I pull my bedding out of one of my bags and fluff the black comforter on my bed, letting it drop flat.

  “Essex, here in Colorado. It’s about three hours away. You?”

  She pops a piece of gum in her mouth and rolls the wrapper with her fingers. “Really? I’m in Verdemont—Osto Chapter. About three hours from Essex.”

  “Small world.”

  “Very small.” Riley crisscrosses her legs and rests her hands in her lap. “Why’d you come during the final year? Why not junior year like everyone else?”

  I smooth my hand over my satin comforter before tossing my Nightmare Before Christmas throw pillows at the head of the bed. “It’s a long story. I never planned to come at all, but my parents were persistent.”

  “Why didn’t you plan to attend? This place helps to build who we will become. How could you willingly miss out on such a fundamental part of our future?”

  Don’t comment. Don’t react. Just keep your mouth shut.

  “I guess that’s why I’m here now. To embrace all that the Academy offers for my future as a Blue Blood.” I turn back around and throw up in my mouth for the second time since I arrived.

  “You’re about to get the full experience here. The grounds are breathtaking. Mountains, the river, endless trails. The only thing that could make it better is if we were in Falcons’ Nest. Their dorm rooms are much better than ours. Private bathrooms and an in-room kitchenette. But beggars can’t be choosers.”

  My parents mentioned not being able to get me better accommodations due to my late enrollment, but I’m perfectly fine without the added luxuries. One thing I swore I’d never become is an entitled brat.

  “Speaking of embracing. There’s a party tonight to kick off the new school year. You totes have to come.”

  Did she really just say totes?

  “So I’ve heard. Unfortunately, I already have plans tonight that involve me and my new book boyfriend.” I hold up my closed Kindle Paperwhite, then drop onto my freshly made bed.

  She frowns. “It wasn’t a question, really. Everyone attends.”

  I reach into my suitcase and pull out a family photo of me, Mom, and Dad at a ski resort in Aspen. That was a good day.

  “Which is exactly why I won’t.” I turn around to face her, feeling a tad guilty for being such a downer. “Look, Riley. You seem like a sweet girl and I think we’ll get along great, but I’m sort of a loner. Don’t take it personally. I’m awkward as fuck and put my foot in my mouth far too often. It’s best this way. I promise.”

  I leave out the fact that socializing with me in any way will only put a target on her back.

  “You’re still here, though. Which says a lot, considering last year I went through four roommates before they even unpacked…in one day.”

  My eyes pop wide open. “One day?”

  “Mmhmm. Apparently, I’m too much. Crazy, right? I mean, I like loud colors and have a high-pitched squeal, but that’s who I’ve always been. I’ve tried to change, but in the end, I decided to just be me.”

  That’s it. I’m officially a bitch.

  Bent over my bag of clothes, I exhale a heavy breath before I straighten my back. Slow steps lead me across the room to Riley’s bed, where I take a seat beside her. “I don’t like loud noises, large groups, or bright colors, but don’t change for anyone. Especially me.”

  Her mouth curls upward as she fidgets with the gum wrapper. “I hate the quiet, ripped jeans, the color black, and,” she glances at my side of the room, “freaky skulls. But I don’t think you should change either.”

  I smile back at her. “I think we’ll be just fine.”

  Her arms fly around my neck before I can react and I’m squeezed so hard, all the air expels from my lungs. “We’re going to be perfect.” She squeezes harder, and I could only be so lucky to pass out.

  “Okay. That’s enough.” I gasp for air. “That’s a big hug. Okay. You can let go now.”

  Riley releases her hold on me and we both laugh until the awkward moment is interrupted by a knock on the door.

  I jump off Riley’s bed and head back over to my side to finish unpacking my clothes, placing them in the drawers of my dresser.

  Riley peeps out the hole in the door, and mumbles, “Oh no.”

  “Who is it?” I ask, folding my black Seascape Snowboarding Club shirt and tucking it into the second drawer.

  I’m grabbing another shirt from my bag when Riley backs away from the door slowly. “Okay. Remain calm. Everything is fine.”

  I chuckle. “What are you going on about? Just open the door.”

  “Scarlett." Her tone is fretful. “It’s them. Or him. One of them. They’ve never come to my room. Why is he here?”

  She’s in full-blown panic mode and now clutching my arm as if I’m expected to save her from the monster in the hall.

  “Anyone here?” A masculine voice hovers outside the door.

  Knock. Knock. Knock.

  “What is the matter with you?” I chuckle again. “It’s just a boy.” I take a step toward the door, but Riley grabs my arm.

  “Not just any boy. It’s one of them—the Lawless.”

  Ah. Now I get it. One of the chosen ones everyone must fear. Screw that. I jerk my arm away from her, grinning as I cross the room and rip the door open.

  Face to face with one of my three enemies, I press my hand to the doorframe, not allowing him to enter, if that was his plan. “What the hell do you want?”

  “Scarlett!” Riley bellows, shuffling to my side. Her fingers are back to being wrapped around my arm as she smiles nervously at our guest. “Ignore her. She’s new.”

  Once again, I jerk my arm away from her and hold my stance, not intimidated whatsoever by this asshole’s presence.

  Standing in front of me is the infamous Jagger Cole. Drop-dead gorgeous, sun-kissed skin, and the lightest brown eyes I’ve ever seen. Seems he’s gotten some ink since I last saw him. He’s now sporting a full sleeve with various designs, all black with some red shading. He looks good. But he’s also one of the biggest douchebags in existence. He’s the type of guy who will suck you in with his good looks and charm, then spit you out and watch as everyone stomps all over you.

  “Well, well, well, I see you’ve found me.”

  “Good to see you again, Scar.”

  “It’s Scarlett. And I wish I could say the same, but I’d prefer a root canal over whatever conversation is about to be had.”

  Riley takes a step back, analyzing the situation.

  “Just came to welcome an old friend to the Academy. As a member of the Lawless, it’s my sworn obligation to befriend all that enter.”

  I spit out a laugh. “As if you even know what a friend is.”

  “I do. In fact, I happen to have two of the best. You remember them, right? Crew and Neo.”

  “Oh, I remember them all right. How could I forget? After all, you three jackasses are the reason I’m at this hellhole.”

  “Come on, babe.” His fingers brush across my cheek, but I swat his hand away, still bracing my right hand on the doorframe.

  “Don’t touch me!” I grit out. “And never call me be ‘babe’ again.”

  “Isn’t it time we put the past in the past? It’s a new day and I’m here with a peace offering.” His honey eyes slide down my body, landing on my chest. The corner of his lip lifts in a smirk, causing my stomach to stew with heat.

  I instantly drop my hand from the door and cross my arms over my chest, knowing that the hand-ripped V in my tee shirt shows more skin than I’d like him to see. “Thanks, but no thanks. Any offering from you comes with a price I’m not willing to pay.”

  “Do you two know each other?” Riley points between us, standing off to the side while taking all of this in.

  “No,” I spit out at the same time Jagger says, “Yes.”

  “They don’t know me at all. Not anymore.” I go to close the door, but Jagger presses his hand to it, stopping me from shutting it any farther.

  His fingers rake through his light-brown hair. “There’s a party tonight and your presence is required.”

  I swallow hard, trying to hold myself together. I will not let any of these boys get the best of me. “Oh yeah? By whom? You?”

  “By all the Lawless. Keep in mind, you’re on our turf now and what we want, we get.”

  Laughter climbs up my throat, spilling out more violently than I intended. “Well, you can tell the rest of the Lawless I said to suck my dick.”

  Jagger puffs out a breath, his eyes locked on mine. “You have a dick?”

  “Yes, I do.” I smirk. “Wanna see it?”

  He laughs menacingly. “Nah. I’ll just ask my good friend Crew to confirm. He should know.”

  My cheeks immediately flush with heat and a rage consumes me that I fear I won’t be able to control. “Get out!” I shove him from the doorway,
causing him to stumble into the hall. “And don’t come back unless you want said dick shoved up your ass.”

  “Oooh. That sounds fun. We’ll have to try it. Only, I’m a giver, not a receiver.”

  “Fuck you, Jagger. And tell your friends I said the same.”

  “I sure will, Scar.” His voice rises to a near shout. “I’ve got no doubt they’ll happily accept the fucking invitation.”

  “Ugh,” I huff, slamming the door shut as my blood reaches its boiling point, “God, he’s so infuriating.” My back presses against the wall and I close my eyes, willing myself to get a grip.

  I will not let them get the best of me.

  “Oh. My. God.” Riley drags out the words. My eyes open as she says, “We have so much to talk about.”

  I push myself off the wall and walk over to my bed, picking up my bathroom bag. I need to change the subject, and fast. “How about that tour?”

  “Are you sure you don’t need a minute to cool down and figure out how you’re going to get yourself out of this? Talking to a member of the Lawless like that…” She halts. “I’m afraid you just put a target on your back, Scarlett.”

  She seems genuinely worried, which is cute, considering she has no idea that these guys don’t scare me one bit.

  I straighten my back and place a forced smile on my face. “I’m not the least bit concerned. Bathroom? Please?”

  It’s obvious my downplay of the situation has her on edge. Regardless, she pulls the door back open slowly. Her head pops out first and she looks both ways before saying, “He’s gone.”

  “Ya know,” I begin as our feet pad down the hardwood of the hallway, “you shouldn’t be concerned either. They aren’t as badass as they want people to think they are. I mean, anyone can pull cruel pranks and treat people like shit. Doesn’t make them superior.”

  “No. But their position does. Prior to my attendance here, I may not have been as intimidated. But being a Rook during junior year was brutal.”

  “A Rook?” What the fuck is a Rook?

  Riley looks at me like I should know exactly what she’s talking about. “Come on. You have to know what junior year is like here. We all assumed maybe that’s why you skipped out and came in late.”

  My neck twists, brows squeezed together. “I’ve heard about the hierarchy ladder, but I didn’t think it was a big deal.”

  The hierarchy ladder is supposedly this secret thing among students that the Lawless enacts. Basically, they create cliques for the juniors and the seniors and are assholes to the newcomers. I never paid much attention because I wasn’t here for the first year.

  “Um. Yeah,” Riley drawls. “It’s absolutely real. The Ladder Games are savage, which is why most students forgo them. There are a few who choose to play because the stuff they made us do as Rooks was deplorable. For those who do, you play the games for a week, then get moved up to Punk status. It’s not much better, but it’s definitely not as bad as being a Rook. As long as you don’t massively screw up, you enter senior year as an Ace.”

  “Wait. What does that mean for me? I’m an Ace, right?”

  Riley shrugs her shoulders, her attention shifting to the girls’ showers as she points them out. There are a dozen small spaces, each separated by a white vinyl curtain. “Hot water doesn’t last long, so you’ll want to make your showers quick. And always wear shower shoes. I prefer Crocs, but it’s your choice.”

  Ignoring everything she says, I return to the topic of the ranks. “Tell me about these ranks. What exactly do Rooks, Punks, and Aces do?”

  Riley reaches into the pocket of her jean jacket and pulls out a bag of Skittles. Ripping off the top, she dumps a few in her hand, then pops them in her mouth. “Well,” she says, chomping on her candy, “Rooks are like slaves. It’s brutal. We cleaned up after all the parties. I’m talking vomit, feces, dirty condoms. Basically, whatever we’re told to do, we do it. It’s only for a month, though. As long as you don’t screw up, you’re automatically promoted to the next rank. Punks also cannot approach Aces and we’re pretty much the Lawless’s bitches. Whatever they want, we make it happen. Neo makes the smart Punks do all his schoolwork. Pretty sure the guy has never done a single assignment himself.”

  Riley offers me some Skittles, but I shake my head. “What a douchebag. This isn’t school. It’s a fucking prison.”

  “It sucks, but it doesn’t last forever. Senior year, we all started out as Aces, as long as we didn’t have any strikes against us the prior year. We have it made compared to the juniors.”

  “So, when do these ranks all take hold?”

  “Tonight. It’s the reason everyone must attend the Gathering. Including you.”

  “And what about you? Did you play the games?”

  Riley winces. “No way! I’d rather be someone’s bitch for a month than subject myself to that level of cruelty. People have literally died playing those games. Two, to be exact. Possibly three. One guy went missing, like, eighteen years ago, and was deemed dead, even though they never found a body.”

  “I have never heard of a more ridiculous thing in my life. Yet, I’m not surprised in the least. Those guys will do anything to empower themselves—even if it involves putting others’ lives at risk.”

  These aren’t just accidental deaths. If people died during the Ladder Games, that’s straight-up murder. the Lawless from all years here should be held responsible for putting on this horror-fest.

  “In their defense, it’s not just them. The games and ranks have been around for years. If I remember right, Neo’s great-grandfather set them in place.”

  “Of course he did, with all his sovereign bullshit.” Neo’s dad is the former mayor of Essex, and currently the state governor.

  Riley nods, dropping more Skittles into her hand before going into a bathroom stall. She closes the door, but I continue to talk while she pees.

  “Why didn’t my parents warn me about this?”

  Her voice rises, so I can hear her over the flushing toilet. “At the party tonight, the Lawless will do their welcome ceremony, at which they’ll explain the rules. They’ll also clarify that the ranks are not to be discussed outside of the Academy. The concern is that it will deter students from attending. They’ll give some bullshit story about how hierarchy is necessary to prepare us for our futures as Blue Bloods.”

  She comes out of the stall and washes her hands in one of the row of sinks.

  “Fucking A,” I spit out, “if I could go back in time and slap some sense into our ancestors, I’d smack them hard.”

  “It’s the price we pay for the safety net of our future.”

  “Screw that. I’d be perfectly content controlling my own damn future.”

  “Would you, though? Think about it, Scarlett. Not just the stability, but the protection. We have privileges that outsiders only dream of. A full ride to an accredited private university. No outside law enforcement. Financial stability. With the connections made from the Elders, we are untouchable. Our kids will be untouchable. I mean, do you really think Neo’s dad would have the position he does now without cushioning from the Society?”

  “Absolutely not. But there are other jobs. Normal people struggle for their success. This isn’t normal.”

  “Normal or not, it’s the way it is.”

  Jesus, they’ve corrupted Riley just like every other student in this place. If we're so safe, we wouldn’t have to worry about what the Lawless has planned for us. We wouldn’t be cleaning up their messes and doing their schoolwork for them. We are touchable—but only by them.

  Chapter

  Four

  CREW

  “How’d it go?” I ask, straddling the seat of my bike with my helmet dangling from my hand.

  Jagger shakes his head, teeth clenched. “She said to suck her dick.” He snatches his helmet off the handle of his Yamaha.

  “Sounds like something she’d say.”

  Gripping the handles, I speed up and burn out behind Jagger. He leads the way down the trail to our house. One of the many perks of being one of the Lawless is the privacy that comes with having our own place. A two-story house with a massive, finished basement, a gym, a big-ass kitchen, and our own bedrooms. Not to mention, our own rules.

  It’s good to be a king. The downside: it won't last forever. Once we graduate, we’re just your average Blue Bloods. Responsibility will kick in and we’ll have to earn our place as an Elder, just like every other family before us. Until then, I’ll sit on my throne alongside my boys while the students at Boulder Cove Academy earn their right to exist in our world.