Page 2 of Phantom Flower

I bumped his shoulder. “You’ll be fine.”

He let out a soft laugh, cheeks turning pink. God, he was adorable. Way too pure for this place.

We went to the cafeteria to grab iced coffees before class. We sat near the windows while Marco ranted about our economics professor.

Then the whole room suddenly went quiet.

Everyone started whispering. Heads turned toward the entrance. Some girls fixed their hair. Some guys sat up straighter like they were about to get inspected.

The Void Kings arrived.

Dimitri Morozov led them like a king entering his conquered kingdom. He was tall, with dark hair pushed back carelessly. His eyes were the color of frozen arctic seas, beautiful and utterly merciless.

Alexei Morozov flanked him on the left. He was the tallest of the three of them, built like a fucking wall.

Ilya Solovyov, the blond with angelic features that hid something demonic, smirked on the right. His golden hair caught the light like a false halo. He was the smallest in the group.

They were untouchable, the vicious core of Bloodburn’s underworld. They were the sons and heirs of the most powerful Russian mafia syndicate on the East Coast.

Marco shrank beside me right away. His shoulders curled in and his fingers went white around his cup. “Rei… don’t look,” he whispered. “Please.”

I should have listened.

Instead, my eyes locked on them.

A freshman was slammed against the wall, Dimitri’s hand around his throat. The kid’s feet were barely touching the floor as he choked out apologies.

“I-I didn’t mean… please—”

Alexei’s face was blank. Ilya chuckled and spun a silver knife between his fingers like it was a toy.

My blood boiled. I glared straight at them.

Marco yanked my sleeve. “Rei, stop.”

Too late.

Dimitri’s head turned. Those icy blue eyes found mine across the room. Something dark flickered in them. He looked interested… and pissed.

He let the freshman go. The kid dropped to the floor coughing. Then Dimitri started walking straight toward us. Alexei and Ilya followed.

The whole cafeteria went dead silent.

Dimitri stopped in front of our table.

“And why are you glaring?” he asked.

So he noticed.

Marco made a tiny scared sound beside me.

I lifted my chin and didn’t back down. “Because some of us are trying to exist without watching you three throw your pathetic power trip in everyone’s face. Let the kid breathe. Or is bullying freshmen the only way you can feel big?”

Everyone gasped.

Dimitri’s smile got wider. He leaned down, getting right in my space until I could smell his cologne. “You’ve got a mouth on you. That’s dangerous for a pretty little thing like you.”

Marco was shaking. His face had gone pale. I fucking hated it. Hated seeing my sunshine boy shrink because of some arrogant, psychotic bastard.