James taps against the glass, pointing toward the house. I give him a tight smile before turning toward the direction he wants me to take, only to spin around all the way before sprinting down the driveway toward the road.

My feet pound against the pavement as I run like my life depends on it. Pushing my legs as fast as I can go, I race toward freedom while the sound of the engine revving up behind me breathes new panic into me. My lungs burn, and my muscles ache, but none of that stops me from forcing my body to keep running.

Unfortunately, it’s not enough.

Before I ever reach the driveway, James’s car speeds past me, just to come to a sudden halt in front of me. The car is barely in park when the door pops open, and an angry James heads toward me. I dig my heels into the ground and stop a few feet in front of him.

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t just try to run from me,” he sneers. “Don’t be stupid, Leni. I’m trying to be nice here, but if you behave like a brat, I will treat you like one.” Just like in the hallway, his voice has no amount of humanity. It’s almost like he has a split personality. I don’t have to be an expert to know that this side of James is dangerous, unpredictable, and utterly terrifying.

I thought things were bad with my stepbrothers, but something tells me the worst of it has yet to come. For everything the guys have done to me, I’m still more scared of James.

I was too blind to see it before, but now I’m certain James is the biggest monster of all.

CHAPTER 22

“Hello! Where is the rest of my family?” James’s lighthearted question echoes through the house, bringing to mind nothing more than a sense of doom. At least to me. He walks past me down the hall, and for a second, I think I can run upstairs to my room. That idea dies a quick death for two reasons. One, I imagine the door is still locked, so I won’t be able to get in.

Two, James notices I’m not following him and turns, giving me one of those wide smiles I now know hides something very dark. He’s even darker than his sons. “Come on. I would like to have the three of you together.”

I don’t even know what that means, exactly, but there’s an undercurrent in his voice that tells me it can’t be anything good. He’s loving this, that much is clear, smiling brilliantly as he strolls into the kitchen where his sons are making protein shakes in the blender.