Cruel King: A Dark New Adult Romance (Royal Elite)

A pawn isn’t supposed to play the king’s game.

Monday is my eighteenth birthday.

I’m not celebrating. I stopped celebrating my birthdays after Mum’s death.

Her funeral was on my birthday.

And my day starts like a funeral.

Instead of sneaking off, as usual, I find Dad waiting right outside my room.

I had to have breakfast with the ‘family’ and face Victoria’s snobbish face and Nicole’s glares.

I have a wild guess that she’s the one who slipped the ‘stay away, bitch’ note under my door last night.

Not that I care who she sleeps with.

After the agonising breakfast with Victoria jabbing her fingers in my wound about missing the museum exhibition, I finally head to the door.

I texted Dan to pick me up since Levi has disappeared for the entire weekend.

Well, not exactly disappear. The team went to Kent and returned with a draw. The spirits weren’t so good according to Dan.

Unlike his previous away games, Levi didn’t send his usual taunting, yet seductive texts. He didn’t talk dirty to me then ask if I were blushing.

Not that I wanted him to text me. I’m still mad as hell about the scene he caused on Friday. However, I couldn’t help thinking about what Aiden said. Levi and I need to talk — after he stops being a dick.

Still, I can’t help the void I felt. Since the day Levi barged into my life uninvited, we haven’t spent two days without seeing each other. He’s been slowly creeping into becoming a constant and his absence feels strange.

Okay, I might have tried to stalk him on social media, but he made that hard, considering he doesn’t use them.

Aiden does have an Instagram account. The only thing he posted over the weekend is a black and white picture of a queen’s chesspiece fallen against a blank board. The description: Long Live the Queen.

Dan wasn’t so helpful either. He posted a selfie with Ronan, Xander and three girls stuffed between them.

He found his real tribe with Ronan and Xander. They’re like his spirit animals when it comes to partying and girls.

Once I get to the park, I get out my sketchpad and try to capture a beautiful scene of an elderly couple walking with a toddler, but I can’t get the lines right.

My mind is filled with my routine in the park these past few days. I’ve gotten used to running alongside Levi. It feels funny to be here all alone now.

Dan sends a text that he’s right outside.

As soon as I get into the car, the first thing I notice is the stone-cold expression. Dan is the fun type who doesn’t let anything bring him down. He’s the joker, the player, and the party animal.

I can count the number of times I’ve seen him so serious.

Even his uniform is dishevelled as if he were just kicked out of bed.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, carefully. “Did something happen at home?”

He shakes his head. “You didn’t check Snapchat?”

“I don’t have Snapchat.”

“Oh, right.” As if possible, his frown deepens. “Astrid, you know I love you, right? I’m here for you no matter what.”

Okay, shit is really hitting the fan if he’s using my name.

“You’re scaring me, Dan. What the hell is going on?”

“Okay, yeah.” He retrieves his phone with hesitant fingers. “This means nothing, okay? It’ll blow over soon.”

“Show me already!”

He continues hiding his phone, but I snatch it from his grip. A gasp falls from my lips when I see the collage of two pictures.

In one picture, my legs are wide open, my head is thrown back, eyes shut, and my mouth is in an ‘O’.

Levi’s face between my legs is all dark and blurred, it’s impossible to recognise him.

That day at Ronan’s party.

The second picture is taken from the side. I’m against Levi’s car with his hand between my legs.

Once again, Levi and even his car are blurred.

The caption is: Royal Elite’s slut is taking more jobs.

My cheeks burn and tears blur in my eyes as I face Dan who’s watching me with the same furrowed brows. “Everyone at school saw these, didn’t they?”

He winces and I get the answer I need.

“It’s nothing, Astrid. Don’t let it get to you.”

So what if the entire school saw my orgasm face or me being manhandled?

So what if this goes viral and ruins my entire freaking future?

I’m shaking, teeth almost chattering as if I’m coming down with a cold. Tears stream down my cheeks, but I don’t feel them. I don’t feel the shame.

I’m turning numb like after Mum’s accident.

Shock. That’s what Dr Edmonds called it.

“Come here, you.” Dan gathers me in a hug and I sob into his shoulder as the phone falls to my lap.

“W-what if Dad finds out? He hates me already.”

“Stop thinking about him or anyone. Fuck whoever did this, okay? Don’t let them bring you down.”

I try, I really try to, but as soon as we get into school, it’s a complete shit show.

Everyone seems to have eyes for me. I think I’m strong, but I’m not when half the school hates me and the other half judges me.

“Slut.”

“Bitch.”

“Whore.”

Similar murmurs break everywhere I go, despite Dan’s glares. If he weren’t by my side, they would’ve attacked me full on.

“Hey, Danny!” A senior calls. “Pass over the slut once you’re done, would you?”

Dan swings at him with his hand in a fist. I pull him back at the last second, tears blurring in my eyes.

I won’t cry. I will not cry.

“I’ll go home,” I tell Dan.

Dan’s been working so hard to have the score for engineering in Cambridge. I don’t want him to get in trouble because of me. And that’s exactly what will happen if someone else provokes him.

He clutches my shoulder. “Are you going to let them submit you into feeling weak?”

“Well, it’s not like I can stop this from going viral or go back in time and stop it from happening…” I trail off.

You might think you have a choice, but you don’t. You will bow to me.

Levi’s words explode into my brain like destructive firecrackers.

It’s not a coincidence that he was blurred while my face was clear for the entire school to see.

This can’t be happening.

No.

No.

I fly out of the school with tears blurring my vision and my heart breaking into a million pieces.