Unknown:Yes, u r
I was about to text backand tell whoever this person was to go eat a dick, but my phone pinged again, and the message stole my breath.
Unknown:Something 2 consider (attachment)
When I opened the attachment, it was a dossier on me and my family. I frantically scrolled through the contents and found detailed information about my father, mother, brother, me, and even my grandparents. The damn thing also had ‘Page 1 of 20’ on the bottom, so this wasn’t even all of it. Whoever this person was, they had afulldossier on me and my family.
My fingers shook as I typed out a reply.
Me:Who is this?!!
“Let me see,” Laney saidas she reached for my phone. As soon as she saw the texts, she let out a small gasp of surprise. “Oh, God.”
My eyessearched hers. “What is this, Laney? What do you know?” I wasn’t blind to the touch of hysteria in my voice, either.
Laney handed me back my phone, but I ignored the next notification ping and focused on her. “I…I need you to just listen, okay?”
Inodded, not entirely certain that I wanted to listen to what she had to say, but I couldn’t ignore how someone had all that information on my family. The text message felt like a threat, and I wasn’t one to sit back and let my family be threatened.
“Now, before you…please, don’t get upset with me when I tell you this, Rylee,” Laney continued. “I was sworn to secrecy.”
“Then why are you telling me now?”
“Because since you’re involved now-”
“Involved inwhat?”I could feel myself getting angry.
“What do you know about secret societies?” she asked, shocking the ever-lovin’ shit out of me.
I blinked and shook my head. “That they only exist in the movies, and that they’re stupid.” Laney looked like she didn’t appreciate my answer, but what the hell?
“Well…I’m pretty sure you’ve just been invited to one. The Order of the Cronus,” she said, and I had no idea what she was talking about.
“What?”
She let out a deep sigh. “The Order of the Cronus is a secret society, much like in the movies. And every year, there’s an initiation for the senior graduating class.”
I was still confused. “And what the hell has that got to do with me?”
“Each member issupposed to pick a female from their same graduating class to…uh, support them in the success of their final year in school,” she explained. “The details are outlined during the initiation, but if the girls agree, they basically become their partner or…something.”
I wasn’tsure if I believed all this, but that text was real. “What’s in it for the girls?”
“Upon graduation, you’re handed whatever you want towards the success of your future,” she answered, and I could feel my eyes bug out. “Say, for instance, I wanted to go to law school after this, okay?” I nodded. “The organization will pay for the rest of my education, plus set me up in whichever law firm I want to work at, once I pass the bar.”
This couldn’t be real.
“What?”I asked, aware that I kept repeating myself.
Laney nodded her head. “So, the objective is for each initiate to succeed at his very best. The organization is very old school and traditional. They believe that…well, in order for a man to succeed at his very best, he needs a woman to stand by him.”
“What ifa girl says no?” I asked.“Cana girl say no?”
She shook her head. “I don’tthink any girl ever has.” Her head jerked towards my phone. “But I’m guessingthat’swhat happens if you try to say no.”
I eyed her. “How do you know all this, Laney?”
She winced.“I’m one of the girls chosen for this year,” she confessed.