Chapter 53 – Rainstorm
Sam's POV
The storm started just as curfew hit.
At first it was just a soft tapping against the windows, easy to ignore. But within minutes, the sky split open. Sheets of rain hammered the roof, thunder rolled across the campus, and the wind howled like it wanted to rip the dorms apart.
I’d planned to stay in my room—safe, quiet, hidden. But Declan’s late-night summons had ruined that plan. One of his boys had shown up at the door with a smug grin and a message: “Boss wants to see you.”
I should’ve said no. I wanted to. But saying no to Declan Ward was asking for a death sentence.
So now I was trudging across campus, rain soaking through my hoodie, mud splashing up my jeans. The pathlights barely cut through the downpour. Every step felt heavier, like the storm wanted to swallow me whole.
“Sam!”
I spun, water dripping into my eyes. Elias was jogging up the path, already drenched. His dark shirt clung to him, plastered against muscles I had no business noticing.
“What are you doing out here?” he demanded, grabbing my arm.
I pulled free, my skin burning where he’d touched me. “Declan called for me.”
His face twisted. “And you’re just going to go? In this?” He gestured at the storm.
“You think I can ignore him?” I shot back.
“Yes!” Elias shouted over the thunder. “You don’t owe him anything.”
I laughed bitterly, shoving wet hair from my face. “That’s easy for you to say. You’re not the one he’s watching.”
His jaw tightened, rain dripping from his lashes. “He’s watching all of us. That doesn’t mean you walk straight into the lion’s den.”
“I can handle it,” I said, though my voice shook more than I wanted.
Elias stepped closer, his chest rising and falling. The rain had soaked him completely, every line of his body outlined in lightning flashes. He looked dangerous, untouchable. And yet his voice—when it came again—was softer.
“No, you can’t,” he said. “Not alone.”
My throat went tight. “Why do you care so much?”
His eyes locked on mine. “Because I can’t stop.”
For a second, the storm seemed to fade. All I heard was my pulse pounding in my ears.
Lightning lit up his face, every sharp angle, every drop of water rolling down his skin. He was too close, too intense.
“Elias…” I whispered.
He took another step forward, closing the last of the distance. “You drive me insane, Sam. Do you know that?”
I swallowed hard. “You already told me.”
“And it’s still true.” His voice was low, almost a growl. “Every time I think I’ve figured you out, you slip away again. And it makes me want—” He cut himself off, biting down hard on the words.
“Want what?” My question was barely audible.
His hand shot up, gripping my jaw gently, forcing me to look at him. His touch was warm despite the freezing rain. “Don’t make me say it,” he whispered.
My breath hitched. The storm raged around us, but all I could feel was him—his hand, his heat, his nearness.
“I’m not afraid,” I whispered.
His thumb brushed my cheekbone. “You should be.”
The space between us shrank until there was nothing left but breath, rain, and a heat that shouldn’t exist in the middle of a storm.
I thought he was going to kiss me. God, I wanted him to.
But instead, his forehead pressed against mine. His voice was a ragged whisper. “You’re hiding something. And one day, I’m going to find out what.”
The words hit me harder than the thunder. My chest tightened, panic surging. He was too close to the truth—closer than anyone had ever been.
I pulled back suddenly, breaking the contact. “We should go,” I said quickly, turning away so he couldn’t see my face. “Declan’s waiting.”
Elias’s hand caught mine. I froze.
“Let him wait,” Elias said. His voice was dark, protective, almost dangerous. “If you go to him like this, soaked to the bone, he’ll eat you alive.”
“I don’t have a choice,” I argued, my voice cracking.
“You always have a choice,” he said fiercely. “Even if you don’t believe it.”
The way he said it made my heart ache. Because deep down, I wanted to believe him. I wanted to think I wasn’t trapped. That I wasn’t already in too deep.
But the memory of my sister’s face—her laughter, her screams—burned behind my eyes. I wasn’t here for myself. I was here for her.
“I can’t,” I whispered, pulling my hand from his grip.
He stared at me, rain dripping down his face, and for once he didn’t try to stop me. His eyes, though—they followed me. Piercing. Searching.
I turned away, forcing myself to keep moving toward Declan’s dorm, even as every step away from Elias felt heavier than the storm itself.
The rain swallowed me, but I couldn’t escape the heat of Elias’s touch still burning on my skin.
And then, just as I reached the door to Declan’s dorm, a hand shot out of the shadows—grabbing me by the wrist.
My heart slammed into my throat.
It wasn’t Elias this time.