Page 20 of Pucked Around and Found Out

I push to my feet, ignoring the way my legs shake, and stand directly in front of her. We're matched in height. She tries to stare me down, tries to make me flinch.

It's useless.

I've faced off against Xaden Devlin and survived. This bureaucrat in designer heels doesn't intimidate me.

I look her up and down, slowly, deliberately, and allow my unimpressed expression to settle over my features like a mask.

I want this bitch to know she's on my list now.

“When you look at me, you see some poor girl who got her heart broken. Lost her friends. Had her world turned upside down.” A smirk ghosts over my lips. “What you don't see is the girl that was handed a shitty stick and still came out on top. So you see, Deputy Director. You. Don't. Know. Me.”

The smug smile vanishes from her hideous face.

“You tried to use Kellan. Forced him into a corner and profited from his misery. You even tried to wrangle Cas into your bullshit.”

Her eyes widen slightly, shocked that I knew about Caspian.

Good. Let her wonder what else I know.

“Here's a little secret for you,” I lean in closer, my voice dropping to something dangerous. “I read all the files Kellan gave me. But what you didn't know is that he had one on you, Deputy Director Fiona Williams.”

Outrage explodes across her face like a grenade detonating.

John scrambles to his feet, preparing to intervene, but something tells me he won't. He's too terrified of his boss to actually stand up to her.

I smile, taunting the bitch further.

She strikes out and slaps me across the face.

The crack echoes through the room. Pain explodes across my cheek, sharp and hot.

I slowly turn back to face her, fighting every instinct to hold my stinging skin. I won't give her the satisfaction.

“Director!” John shouts, but she ignores him completely.

She pushes into me until we're chest to chest, invading my space, trying to intimidate me with proximity.

“You'll give me those files,” she hisses.

“Make me,” I spit back through gritted teeth.

“I have agents raiding your dorm room right now.”

A laugh bursts from me, harsh, bitter, completely devoid of humor.

“Here's the thing, you say you know everything about me? Then you should know I have friends who've taught me things.” I meet her furious gaze without flinching. “I would never keep those files on me or in my room. Plus, I know you're bluffing because Kellan would have told you I don't live on campus anymore.”

Her jaw clenches so hard I can hear her teeth grinding.

“You will regret making an enemy out of me,” she promises, her voice low and venomous.

I harden my features, matching her scowl with one of my own.

“No. You will regret making me your enemy.” The words come out deadly calm. “I have nothing left to lose. You saw that in those photos you shoved in my face. I'm nothing if not resourceful, and believe me, I'll make my father and brother look like amateurs compared to what I have planned for you.”

Something shifts inside me as I say it.

Not the words themselves, I mean every syllable but the sound of them in my own voice. The particular quality of the certainty behind them. I have been saying versions of this since I walked back into Somerset and not once have I fully believed it. I have been performing bravery while carrying hope like a hidden wound, waiting for something to fix itself, waiting for Xaden to see me, waiting for Masen to explain, waiting for some version of the world I grew up in to reassemble around me.