Chapter 3

Alex' s apartment was small, tidy, reeking of antiseptic.

He opened the door, and his face hardened when he saw me.

Soaked, shivering, a mess.

"What do you want, Elara?" he asked, no warmth in his voice.

He didn't invite me in.

"I..." I started, but my teeth were chattering too much.

"Seraphina's back," he said, a strange, almost possessive note in his voice. "We're celebrating. She's finally feeling better."

Celebrating. Of course.

His phone rang. He glanced at it. Ethan.

"What is it, Ethan?" Alex answered, his tone shifting to concern.

He listened, his eyes darting to me.

"She tried what? The tree? And the bridge? Jesus."

He hung up, looking at me with a new kind of contempt.

"Manipulative," Alex spat. "Just like everyone said. You're trying to guilt-trip everyone. Pathetic attempts for attention."

He saw the small decorative plant on his windowsill. Bright red berries.

I knew them. Nightshade. Toxic.

He wouldn't help me. He wouldn't even let me freeze.

In one quick movement, before he could react, I grabbed a handful of the berries and shoved them into my mouth, swallowing them whole.

The taste was bitter, acrid.

Alex stared, his eyes wide with horror.

"Elara! What did you do?"

He grabbed me, fingers forcing their way into my mouth, trying to make me spit them out.

I clenched my jaw, but he was stronger.

He dragged me to the bathroom, forced me over the toilet.

"Vomit! Now!" he yelled, his medical training kicking in despite his anger.

He made me drink salt water, then his fingers were down my throat again.

I retched, the berries coming up, burning.

He held me there until he was sure I was empty.

Then he pushed me away, and I slumped against the tiled wall.

"You're weak," he said, his voice shaking with a mix of anger and something else. Fear?

"Our family, we have strength. You just want to cause pain. Can't you accept that Pres and Seraphina are happy? That they deserve to be? Why do you have to ruin everything?"

The doorbell rang. Sharp, insistent.

Alex went to answer it, leaving me on the cold bathroom floor.

A campus security officer. Sent by Pres Ashford.

"We're looking for Elara Vance," the officer said. "Seraphina Bellweather is missing. She planned a surprise for everyone tonight, and she never showed up."

Alex' s head snapped towards me.

His eyes, cold and accusatory. "What did you do to her?"