Guilty Secrets (Campus Love and Murder Sorority Eyes Romance Book 1) (8 page)

"Um, yes, a little bit more than I anticipated after last night's athletics."

Mai giggled.

Brad returned his coffee cup to the table and stood. "Got a training session before lectures."

He left the kitchen.

Mai seemed agitated for a moment then her natural smile returned. She turned to me.

"We didn't hear you come home last night. So I guess the protection came in handy after all?"

I shrugged. "Nothing happened."

She seemed puzzled. "You mean he didn't get on his knees and beg to see you again?"

I shrugged again and made my excuses to go shower.

I turned to see Mai following me down the corridor.

She whispered, "Robyn, about last night."

I swallowed hard and held my breath.

"Thing is, Robyn, me and Brad."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"Mean to what?"

"Oh, I... nothing."

"Thing is, Robyn, officially Brad's still seeing Charity. She has no idea. And if she did, well... she has a temper."

"I noticed."

"So when you see her, if you could act like you don't know anything, I'll be forever in your debt."

"When am I ever likely to see Charity again?"

"Are you kidding? After yesterday, she'll be all over you. You're her pet project."

"Her project?"

"To get you laid. It's all over her social media profiles. She thinks of it as a personal social service responsibility of the rich to help the poor. She calls it, giving back to the community."

I flushed hot. "Oh. So that's why she was so helpful yesterday?"

"She's gone all missionary over it, I'm afraid. But it was win, win, for you both, no?"

I sighed. "I'll be late."

I showered quickly, knowing I had to follow Brad. I returned to the kitchen and found Mai alone. Crying.

"Are you OK?"

She wiped her eyes and acted like nothing was wrong.

"Mai, you want me to call Brad?"

She shook her head. "He's got his fencing team practice."

"Fencing?"

"He's on the Olympic team. Epee, foil and saber."

"Impressive."

"That’s how we met."

"You fence?"

"I used to be on the team." She rubbed her wrist. "I was never quite the same after an injury. Charity won my place."

Tears welled up in her eyes again. "Brad spends more time with his team mates than he does with me. I hardly ever see him."

This gave me an idea. "Don't suppose you'd like to give me a lesson? At least you'd see Brad."

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

So I blew off my first lecture with Professor Davina Cole for the chance to learn more about the elusive Brad.

Mai and I arrived at the spectacular state of the art building that was the Kublai Khan Center of Excellence for Sports Science.

As we changed into tight fitting white fencing uniforms, Mai eulogized about how exhilarating the new sports complex was. I didn't quite understand what she meant until we ventured out into the indoor sports arena.

The walls of the arena were glass and nothing more than a two feet high safety barrier. Beyond them were diving boards above pools.

I felt like I was floating on a lily pond. There seemed dotted about like lilies, a different giant glass bowl for each individual sport.

I took one step onto the floor and as I glanced downward, my stomach leapt into my mouth and my head began to swim.

The floor was entirely translucent. Mai explained it was some kind of state of the art high tensile strength glass. Below us, swimmers raced in lanes across an Olympic size pool.

Mai stroked my shoulder. "Don't look down and you'll be fine."

I nodded. Less than certain.

Mai pointed out Brad training on one of multiple strips some fourteen meters long and just two meters wide. Brad was dressed all in white, with a wire mesh and dark tinted Plexiglass mask.

"Who's the best?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Jason Drake is the reigning champion, but I think Brad has the edge."

Mai reeled off the male members of the fencing team using her own special and unique method of categorization.

"You're looking at seven sons of industrial magnets, six sons of bankers, five rock star brats, four crown princes, three sons of media billionaires, two political dynasties and a Hollywood mogul's offspring. How's that for stuffing your Christmas stocking?"

I stared at her with a slack jaw. "You forgot the partridge in a pear tree."

"What?"

"Never mind. What about the girl's team?"

"A variation on the theme."

"You're saying they inherit the world one day."

"You bet your cute ass, Robyn. They are the zero point one percent. The ruling class. When these boys sneeze somewhere in the world suffers an earthquake."

As we stretched, Mai pointed out the piste and explained that the last two meters of each end were hash-marked to warn each fencer they were about to go off piste and lose that point. There was a further two meters on each end designed as a run off. I resisted the lemming-like fascination with the edge and kept my eyes firmly on Brad's sculptured ass.

The piste was marked in the center with an en garde line. Brad stood apart from his opponent by four meters. They bowed to each other and saluted with their swords.

Mai began explaining the rules of a bout and how to score points, but I wasn't listening. Brad moved as graceful as a gazelle, skipping, bouncing, feinting, twisting his body into impossible angles and whipping his blade through the air as if he were fly-fishing on ice. His athleticism mesmerized me.

As he teetered on the edge of the danger zone, with his opponent pressing a deadly advantage, I couldn't help but recall the night before when Brad exerted his rippling muscles with equal skill and dexterity. And most of all, a passionate, animal intensity. No matter how good his opponent was for every thrust of the blade, there was an equal reaction, a parry and riposte.

I felt the return of last night's familiar shameful and moist stirrings between my legs.

He deflected the most furious attacks with consummate ease. It led me to wonder if Brad, with his masterful sense of control, anticipating every possible attack was indeed at the heart of the mystery of Madison's disappearance.

Brad won his match. Both fencers removed their masks. Brad's opponent was a tall, dark haired, square jawed young man with a small scar like a half moon beneath one eye.

They spotted us and both swaggered over to say Hello. This prompted other matches to spontaneously end as everyone wanted to meet Mai's new friend.

He took my hand, bowed and kissed it. "Drake, Jason Drake."

Before I could react to his smoothness, I was surrounded by athletic young men, laughing and joking, but beneath their veneer of comradeship I sensed they all shared an animal cunning and intensity that dwelt in their eyes. It was then I suspected I stood with the Knights of Kimberley. Now, all I had to do was infiltrate their court and learn their secrets.

Brad touched my shoulder. "We're having a Frat party tonight. How about you and Mai come?"

"Can she use a blade?"

"I turned to see Charity, dressed in a tight white fencing uniform and swishing a sword through the air. The tip of her blade just close enough to make me think she could take out one eye if I so much as breathed in her presence.

Brad growled, "Quit fooling around, Charity."

She tossed her hair over one shoulder and quickly tied it into a bun. "I have the right to vet your guests, don't I?"

He shrugged. "It's hardly one of your parents' swanky dinner parties. We only serve beer."

"Nevertheless, I reserve the right to see what potential invitees are made of."

She turned back to me. "I challenge you, my virgin cherry girl, to a duel."

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

I stood four meters away and facing Charity on our piste. Her epee sliced through the air with all the glee of a psychopath on a day release outing from her secure wing. Undeterred, I swished my blade in response. I nearly sliced off my nose and stopped to untangle the blade from my hair.

As Mai fixed a wire to the back of my silver lame jacket and connected it to the electronic scoring lights, she whispered in my ear. "Sorry about this."

"Why? It's not your fault."

Mai shrugged. "Actually it is."

I shot her a quizzical look.

"Charity suspects Brad is having an affair."

Suddenly I got her meaning. "She thinks I'm the one?"

Mai bit her lip. "You're ready. Just keep your distance when she charges you."

I made the mistake of glancing at the far end of the piste and the perilous drop into the pool below.

"What do you mean by charges at me?"

"You'll be fine."

Brad came over and checked my connection. "Charity offers her body too much."

"Your love life is none of my business."

"What? I'm saying she presents a target."

"Oh."

"It's a trick, Robyn. Don't fall for it. Force her to make the first move and then counter around the outside. She won't expect that. Also, her front foot is lazy. You can pick up easy points from her big toe."

He shot me a quizzical look. "Robyn, does any of that make any sense?"

I shrugged. "What are the rules, again?"

His eyes widened and he took a deep breath. "OK, Robyn. You take turns to poke each other with the pointy end of the sharp stick. One poke scores one point. I restart the fight after each successful score. First to fifteen. Got it?"

I nodded.

I glanced nervously at Charity. She shot me an evil look.

I turned back to Brad. "Why are you helping me?"

"Mai says you're keeping my secret. Thanks. Besides... Charity deserves everything that's coming to her."

Charity shouted over, "I haven't got all day to kick your ass, cherry girl."

Brad caught my trembling gaze and whispered, "This is your chance to break the habit."

"What habit?"

"Every time we meet, you end up getting wet."

He had no idea.

Brad winked at me and walked off piste.

We put on our masks and saluted with our swords.

Brad was our referee. He shouted, "En-garde!"

We adopted the en garde position by bending our knees and holding our blade points towards the opponent.

Brad then shouted, "Fence!"

Neither I nor Charity made a move. Not because I was following Brad's tactical advice, but because I was frozen to the spot as my eyes fixated on the swimming pool below.

Charity tossed her head from side to side. I could hear her snorting with impatience.

"Come on, you little fool. Attack me!"

"You first."

She growled and stepped forward. Leading with her front foot she slapped the floor in a sort of skipping motion, bringing both feet together, but never crossing them. Her lead foot slapped the glass floor repeatedly as if baiting me.

Our blades danced around each other, but never touched.

With a cry of impatience, Charity lunged at me. Without thinking, my blade came up and parried her attack. By the rules, it was my turn. She couldn't attack again until I took my turn to attack.

"Come on you little Cherry turd, riposte."

I hesitated.

Her snorts sounded like erupting volcanoes.

Eventually, I straightened my sword arm.

"At last!"

Charity parried my blade and circled hers around mine, before straightening her sword arm and scraping her blade along my shaft. She then rammed the tip of her blade at my eyes.

Instinctively, I leapt backwards as I disengaged our blades. She charged on as I stopped suddenly and straightened my arm. Charity ran into my tip, forcing my blade to buckle in the middle.

My light box lit up green.

Brad pointed at me and shouted, "One point."

I dropped my arm and the blade sprang back into shape.

Charity stamped the floor and screamed.

Brad ignored her tantrum and shouted, "En-garde!"

We both assumed the position. The tips of our blades, not quite touching, but hovering around each other with electric frisson.

Charity hissed, "I'm going to run my blade right up through your tiny cherry."

"Fence!"

Charity screamed, raised her sword above her head and charged at me. I felt my eyes widen as I sprinted backwards, away from that charging bull.

I heard Mai cry out, "The edge!"

All too aware that the end of the piste was fast approaching, I waited until the last possible fraction of a second. When I was sure I had not an inch to spare, I stamped my rear foot and crouched low as I straightened out my sword arm. Hoping Charity would run onto my blade.

Charity had anticipated that of course and threw herself high into the air. She whipped her blade around her head like she was fly-fishing and brought it down on me.

Without thinking, my blade met hers and made an awful scraping noise as it parried her blade away. I flicked the blade around the outside of her sword arm, but she was too agile and beat it away.

With rage in her eyes, she leapt up at me again. She whipped her blade around and jabbed the tip at my eyes.

I stuck out my blade, as she lunged down on top of me. I flicked my wrist as if turning a skipping rope. My blade encircled hers and trapped it. My arm dropped into a sudden arc and the blade tip plowed deep into her front foot. Pinning her to the floor.

Charity's lunge propelled her onward. She tripped over my blade and rolled. I heard a scream and turned on the balls of my feet to see Charity tumble over the low barrier and plunge some twenty feet into the pool below.

Everyone ran to the barrier. I ripped off my mask and leaned over. I held my breath until at last Charity surfaced. She looked up and shook a fist at me.

She then punched the water as two life guards dived into the pool and hurriedly swam to her.

As the first reached her, she punched him hard in the face and swam to the side.

I straightened up and caught the horrified look on Mai's face. Brad pushed through the crowd who had by now surrounded me.

He shook my shoulders, fixed me with an intense gaze and said, "Where in Hell did you learn to fence?"