“Fuck you, Ivy,” he says but lets go of my arm. I didn’t expect him to, and again, like when he slapped me, I wonder if he’s nervous about leaving a mark. Nervous the man who “chose” me will be pissed off. Because although technically, as head of household, Abel could choose to beat me to within an inch of my life, at least as far as The Society is concerned, he is mindful of leaving a mark.

My mind goes back to Santiago De La Rosa. My husband-to-be.

I know him. I even met him once. Actually, I’ve seen him on a few occasions. I only spoke with him once, though. I’m not sure he noticed me apart from the day in my father’s study.

But that was before the accident.

No, not accident. Incident.

I wonder why a founding family member would choose me for his bride. Is it because his options have diminished, considering? I’m not privy to many details. All I know is he’s become a sort of recluse and has remained holed up in his estate ever since that night.

I stop at the bottom of the stairs. The De La Rosa family is one of the original families who founded The Society. Imperium Valens Invictum. Strong unconquered power. It’s a little arrogant if you ask me. Obnoxious even. But it’s an organization that spans the world over, a secret society. Exclusive. Elusive. And dangerous.

The families that make up The Society are powerful. Heads of state, leaders in every sector of government. Medical experts. Scientists. Professors. Church leaders. And, of course, the lower castes, like my own family, who do their bidding.

The De La Rosa family is at the very top of the food chain. They’re like royalty within The Society.

There are thirteen founding families. I remember it because when I’d studied the history, I’d thought how fitting the number thirteen. An unlucky number that seems to play again and again in my life.

I was thirteen when Hazel disappeared.

Thirteen when the society intervened, and I was forced to attend one of their schools.

Thirteen when I first met Santiago De La Rosa.

I remember that day. It was during my first week at the all-girls Catholic school I’d been forced to attend. It’s not like I’d had a lot of friends at the public school I went to before, but at the new school, I was treated like the lowest of the low. All it took was one girl to spread the word of who I was. How and why I’d even been accepted into the exclusive school only daughters of the higher echelon attended.