in, because Will had ripped all the buttons off of my other shirt last night. I still had pants, but I shouldn’t turn down clothes. They were what I was on the hunt for right now, after all.
I hesitated a moment and then pulled the chair away from the door and opened it. Rory stood there—a towel wrapped around his waist and hair disheveled with a stack of clothes in his fist.
He stared at me, unblinking, and heat coursed under my skin, remembering last night and what went down in the drawing room. I’d been so angry after Will left, I’d thrown a vase, fixed my clothes, and stormed out of there, more aggravated that I wanted to go ask him to finish, and I almost did. Being with him was just as good as that night on the bus, and it took every last drop of pride to drag my ass into a cold shower before I stooped to begging him for sex.
God, how I would’ve loved to never be reminded of how good he felt.
I snatched the clothes from Rory.
“Cut them if you want,” he told me, gesturing to the black pants. “They’re probably too long for you.”
“Thanks.”
I stood there, forcing myself to make eye contact, and he made no move to leave as he watched me.
The silence stretched between us.
“I’m going to head into the steam room for a bit, and then Micah and I are going hunting today,” he said, clearing his throat. “We might take Will. I suggest you come with us or stay in here with the door secured.”
It would only be Aydin and Taylor in the house with me? Not ideal, but with less eyes, I could explore.
And siphon supplies, maybe.
“I’ll stay,” I replied. “How long will you be gone?”
“Hours.” He looked me up and down. “If you need food, get it now.”
I nodded, and he just kept standing there. His pale eyes had this midnight blue circle around the pupil that made his stare pierce and made the hair on my arms rise.
I swallowed. “So, are you… like a…like a serial killer, then?”
He grinned. “Are you afraid?”
“Are you going to tell me I shouldn’t be?”
He shook his head. “No.”
He walked away without elaborating, and I watched him for a moment before diving back into my room and shutting the door, securing the chair underneath the knob again.
Ugh. I had felt something off about him, and while I still didn’t feel like he was evil, he was definitely capable of a lot. He premeditated the murders of seven people. It sounded like there was more to the story, but if he could do it once, he could do it again.
Taylor was right about that. They were all here for a reason, and none of them were my friends.
I slipped off the shirt and boxers I’d slept in, and pulled on one of his white T-shirts before cutting his black pants at the knee and pulling them on, too. I rolled them at the waist so they wouldn’t fall down, and slid on my sneakers, double-knotting them.
Cleaning my glasses, I slipped them on my face and ran a comb through my hair before brushing my teeth. I wasn’t sure where the soaps, shampoos, and hygiene shit came from, but it was in here when I came into the room last night, still packaged and brand new. I wished whoever got me this stuff had cared to supply me with some underwear and another bra.
As soon as Micah and Rory left later, I’d sneak into their room and steal a hoodie.
Leaving the room, I looked around me, rain starting to hit the windows as the gray sky loomed outside, and I jogged down the stairs, heading into the kitchen.
I had bread, cheese, a couple pieces of fruit, and some granola. I’d figure out how to get it out of the kitchen cabinet I had it stored in, but I also needed water.
Approaching the kitchen, I peered inside, seeing it dark, lit only by the light over the stove as I headed around the island, toward the back door, and keeping my eyes peeled around me.
I opened the cabinet and reached behind the stew pot, feeling the cheesecloth bundle still safe and sound.
I smiled.
Now for some water. I took an apple out of the basket on the counter and started eating it as I searched the cabinets for some kind of canteen or water bottle, finally finding some stainless steel tumblers with lids.
I pulled one out