The Cruel World Read online

  Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Friday, December 1

  Saturday, December 2

  Sunday, December 3

  Monday, December 4

  Tuesday, December 5

  Wednesday, December 6

  Friday, December 8

  Saturday, December 9

  Monday, December 11

  Tuesday, December 12

  Wednesday, December 13

  Thursday, December 14

  Friday, December 15

  Saturday, December 16

  Monday December 18

  Tuesday, December 19

  Monday, January 15

  Author's Note

  More Books by Scarlett

  Find Me Online

  The Cruel World

  Spy Academy: The Royals #2

  Scarlett Haven

  Copyright © 2020 Scarlett Haven

  http://scarletthaven.net

  All rights reserved.

  Cover by Paradise Cover Designs

  Edited by Eva Fernandez

  Beta read by Lydia King and Jessica Feeney

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, places, events, or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

  Friday, December 1

  Reunited.

  I wipe my sweaty palms on the front of my dress and I get out of the black SUV. Grabbing my suitcase from the back, I wave to the driver to let him know he’s free to go.

  I stop for a moment, letting the sun soak into my skin. The smell of salt water is in the air and it’s so calming. I’ve missed this.

  Thanksgiving break was… well, not very fun when your family hates you. But my mother insisted I come home this year. And by ‘home,’ I mean I was forced to spend my Thanksgiving break in Alaska. Why my parents chose to go on vacation there during the coldest time of the year, I will never know.

  Pushing forward, I march toward the elevator, not wanting to drag my large suitcase up seven flights of stairs. I hit the button for my floor, my heart fluttering anxiously.

  What will coming home be like? Will the guys still be happy with me, like they were before? Or will the break cause things to change? Maybe they hate me again.

  Kal’s plane landed about an hour before mine did, so he should be already back here. He and I were the only ones who went home for the holiday. Alek, West, and Ian stayed here. Part of me wishes I could’ve stayed here with them. Maybe then I wouldn’t be feeling so anxious about my homecoming.

  The elevator doors open on the seventh floor. I take a deep breath before wheeling my large suitcase onto the balcony hallway.

  It’s so nice here today—nearly eighty degrees. It’s too cool to swim now, but the weather is perfect for sitting outside. The weather in Alaska was miserable. It snowed the entire time we were there. It’s like my mom chose Alaska simply because she knows I hate the cold, but she hates the cold too. I swear, I will never understand that woman.

  When I get to the door, I start to stick my key into the lock, but it swings open before I get the chance.

  “Roxy!” I’m enveloped in a pair of arms.

  “I missed you, Kal.” I hug him back.

  He picks me up spinning me around. “Let’s never be apart again.”

  I giggle, relieved that things aren’t weird like I thought they might be.

  Kal sits me down and I look up at a scowling face.

  “I missed you too, West.” I wrap my arms around him and he stiffens for a moment before hugging me back.

  Yeah, things haven’t changed at all. West is still the same brooding, moody guy I know and love.

  As soon as West lets go of me, Alek pulls me into his arms, squeezing me tight against him.

  “You missed me most, right?” Alek asks, his Russian accent is strong, but he’s really starting to sound more American hanging out with us.

  “Keep dreaming, Alek,” Kal says. “She missed me the most.”

  I pull back from Alek and spot Ian. He’s standing close by with his hands in his pockets. I know he won’t initiate a hug, so I walk over and wrap my arms around him. He hugs me back.

  “Missed you, Roxy,” Ian says.

  “Yeah, yeah,” West grumbles. “We all missed Princess. Can we stop with the hugs already?”

  Kal chuckles. “Why did nobody hug me when I came in? It’s like you didn’t miss me at all.”

  Alek slaps Kal on the back. “I would miss you more if you looked like her.”

  “Yeah, I see your point.” Kal nods, glancing over at me with a huge smile on his face.

  I roll my eyes. “I thought we agreed to never talk about how I look again?”

  Kal slips his arm around my shoulder, escorting me toward the living room. I notice that there is now a new oversize chair sitting in the space.

  I look over my shoulder at West, grinning at him.

  I know this was him—he’s the one who ruined my favorite chair and this is his way of making it up to me. Instead of letting Kal pull me to the couch, I move from under his arm and fall into the oversized chair.

  Ah, so comfy.

  “Thank you, West.”

  West surprises me by sitting down beside me in the chair. It’s definitely big enough for two people, but we’re snug. He puts his arm around me to make extra space.

  “No fair. I wanted to sit by Roxy.” Kal pouts at he sits down on the couch.

  Alek plops down beside him, putting his arm around him. “It’s okay, Kal. I’ll keep your company.”

  Kal shrugs Alek’s arm off.

  Ian makes his way over on his crutches. He sits down on the other side of Alek, remaining quiet as normal. He still has a cast on his leg and probably will for another month and a half.

  I frown, feeling guilty as I look at him. It’s technically my fault he broke his leg—well, mine and West’s. We were the ones who were fighting and knocked him down a hill.

  “How was your Thanksgiving break?” Kal inquires.

  I shrug, not wanting to answer.

  The guys know that I spent a whole week with my parents, and they know exactly what my parents are like. Well, more specifically, my mother. The week was long and not at all fun, that’s for sure.

  “I’d much rather hear about your break.” I lean back further as West’s arm tightens around me. “You got to spend a week in freaking Hawaii. I’m jealous.”

  A wide grin breaks out on his face. “It was magnificent. My mom is an excellent cook. I spent my days on the beach and my nights stuffing my face with homemade food. It was awesome.”

  That does sound awesome.

  I sigh, wishing I could’ve gone with him.

  “Next time, we all go with Kal,” Alek grumbles, his eyebrows turned down, making him look particularly grumpy. “Maybe then we’ll get to eat some good food.”

  I raise a brow. “What happened while we were gone?”

  “West burned the turkey.” Ian frowns. “And the mashed potatoes. How do you burn mashed potatoes?”

  I turn to West, raising an eyebrow.

  He shrugs. “What? I’m not used to the whole Thanksgiving thing. It’s not like I ever had turkey growing up. Besides, I ordered Chinese food to make up for it.”

  “I’m so sick of Chinese food,” Alek complains.

  I laugh, shaking my head. “Well, I’m afraid I wouldn’t be any help. I have no idea how to cook a turkey.”

  Alek grunts. “What good is it to have a girl on the team if she can’t even cook.”

  I huff. “Alek Vasiliev, I know you did not just say that to me.”

  Kal and Ian snicker.

  “It feels so good to have the t
eam reunited,” West says, laughing.

  I laugh too, only because I know Alek was joking. At least, he better have been joking.

  “You’re Russian. You don’t even celebrate American Thanksgiving.” I cross my arms over my chest.

  Alek shrugs. “Maybe not, but I do like food.”

  Don’t we all.

  “I want to hear about your Thanksgiving, Princess,” West says.

  I push a piece of hair behind my ear. “Uh, not a lot to tell. It snowed literally every day while I was in Alaska. If my parents wanted to torture me by making me spend a week with them, why couldn’t it have been somewhere warm, like Bora Bora? That is the kind of torture I could get behind.”

  West chuckles. “Maybe we’ll get a case there so your dream can come true.”

  “Forget that,” Alek says. “We’ll go there for our next vacation. I don’t want to work while I’m there. And I want to stay in one of those hut things over the water.”

  That does sound nice.

  “Were your parents nice?” West asks.

  I frown, not liking that he keeps bringing the conversation back to my time away from them. “I can’t believe you just used the word parents and nice in the same sentence. No, my parents definitely weren’t nice.” I pause. “Well, I guess my dad was okay. But you know how my mom is.”

  My mom did skip out on dinner one night, claiming that I was giving her a migraine. Dad and I went out to dinner by ourselves and it was kind of nice. When we got back to the room, Mom was soaking in the tub, halfway through a bottle of champagne.

  “I’m not letting you go anymore.” West’s tone is final, not giving me room to argue.

  I’d rather not go, if I’m being honest. It was miserable and I missed the guys too much. But I know if I wouldn’t have gone, Kal never would’ve gone to see his family in Hawaii. He hadn’t seen them in over three years and I wanted him to be able to go. I know he misses his family a lot.

  Kal is one of the lucky ones who actually has good parents. I’m very jealous of the fact.

  My stomach growls. “What’s for lunch? I haven’t eaten in way too long.”

  Mostly because I skipped dinner last night, wanting a break from my mother.

  “Anything but Chinese and pizza,” Alek mumbles.

  I chuckle, standing up from the oversize chair. “Let’s go out.”

  Everybody quickly jumps up.

  Why do I get the feeling Ian, Alek, and West didn’t leave the condo one time while Kal and I were gone?

  The Royal Games.

  We go out to our favorite restaurant in the next town over. It’s right where the river and ocean meet. Cruise ships sail out of the port and you can see the huge ships from the restaurant. If you go there in the evening, you can actually watch the ships leave, which is pretty cool, but today we just went for lunch.

  I realize now that I was worried for nothing when I came back—the guys aren’t ever going to go back to the way they were before. They’re not going to start being mean to me again. Our trip to the woods bonded us in ways I never thought possible. We’re a team—a family. Nothing can tear us apart.

  On the drive home, Kal and Alek actually fight over who gets to sit beside me. In the end, Alek wins, since Kal got to sit by me on the way there. I think they’re crazy, but it’s better than them fighting over who has to sit by me. In the beginning, nobody wanted to be beside me. When I mention it, Alek laughs, putting his arm around me.

  “Roxy, we all wanted to sit by you, we just didn’t want to admit it out loud.”

  I wish somebody would’ve told me that because it would’ve made my time a lot more enjoyable. I guess I still can’t fathom why these guys like me—it’s absolutely insane.

  When we get back to the condo, Alek tries to put his arm around me, but Kal knocks his arm off, putting his around me instead. West rolls his eyes dramatically as Alek grabs Kal and the two of them begin to playfully fight.

  “See what you started.” West narrows his eyes at me.

  “Me?” I raise an eyebrow. “You know as well as I do that I can’t control those boys.”

  “Men,” Kal corrects as he and Alek run up behind us.

  “You might look like men, but you act like boys,” I counter.

  West and Ian laugh.

  We veto the stairs and take the elevator for Ian’s sake. I feel bad for him, hobbling around on one leg like he is. West grabs the mail while we wait for the elevator. Once on, I decide it’s probably a good thing we’re on the elevator because Kal and Alek can’t seem to stop fighting with one another. Even if it is ‘playful’ fighting, they’re still really rough.

  West walks ahead of us as the elevator doors open. A few feet from our condo, he stops abruptly. Since I’m busy watching Kal and Alek, I don’t notice that he stopped and I run into the back of him, nearly falling over. I would’ve fallen over if Kal hadn’t caught me.

  He laughs. “How can somebody who trains as much as you do still be so clumsy?”

  I stick my tongue out at him, not amused.

  “What’s up, West?” Alek asks, taking a step up behind West.

  It’s then that I notice he’s looking at a gold letter, much like the one I got when I was invited to join The Royals. I step up on the other side of him. In his hands is an invitation, but not one to join The Royals.

  You are cordially invited to attend this year’s Royal Games.

  I look at the paper, wondering what The Royal Games are.

  The guys are all silent, so I am left to just wonder.

  “We have to beat them this year.” Kal’s voice is harsher than I’ve ever heard it before, so I look at him and see his nostrils flaring.

  “Beat who? I’m confused,” I say.

  But they ignore me.

  “We will,” West says firmly.

  “How? We’re down a man,” Alek points out.

  West glances at Ian, who’s face is bright red. It isn’t until I see how tightly he’s gripping his crutches that I realize he’s angry.

  Ian looks up at me. “What about Roxy?”

  “I’m still confused,” I remind them.

  All four guys look at me.

  West nods. “She could do.”

  I could do?

  “They won’t expect her to be as good as she is because she’s new,” Kal says.

  “We can have extra training sessions,” Alek adds.

  I let out an exasperated sigh, wishing somebody would explain to me what is going on.

  West looks around abruptly. “We should take this inside. We don’t want anybody to overhear.”

  Now I’m even more confused.

  What is going on with these guys? And what are The Royal Games?

  Without a choice, I follow the guys inside. West sits down in the oversized chair, directly in the middle of it, so I glare at him and he scoots over, giving me a little space for me.

  “It’s my chair,” I tell him, as I squeeze in beside him.

  He smirks. “Do we need to christen the chair, Roxy?”

  I smack his arm, ignoring how much my stomach flutters at the idea. I’d very much like to make out with West in this chair, but then I feel jealous of the girl who he did ruin my old chair with.

  Of course, that was before the kiss that West and I shared.

  Not wanting to think about kissing West anymore, I push a piece of hair behind my ear. “Somebody needs to explain to me what The Royal Games are.”

  Kal sits down on the edge of the couch, looking at me. “The Royal Games are a competition for just The Royals. Basically, it’s a way to prove that our team is the best team.”

  “And let me guess, you guys dominated last year,” I say.

  The guys hesitate.

  “Not exactly.” Alek sits by Kal, giving West a pointed look.

  “I might’ve punched a guy last year and got us disqualified,” West mumbles so low that I’m sure only I can hear. I’m the only one who needs to hear anyway—the rest of the guys know.
<
br />   “Why am I not surprised?” I grin at West, shaking my head. “You are impulsive.”

  He narrows his eyes. “The guy deserved it.”

  “Oh, I have no doubt,” I joke. “I’m sure you were completely innocent and didn’t do anything to provoke the guy or anything of the sort. It was probably self defense.”

  West chuckles. “Okay, fine. Maybe I did act impulsively, but this guy is the worst kind of human.”

  “I second that,” Ian says. “Usually I give people the benefit of the doubt, especially Spy School Royals, but this guy was pretty obnoxious.”

  If Ian is saying it, maybe it’s true.

  “The guys from our rival team won.” Alek frowns. “Man, I hate those guys.”

  “We have to win this year.” Kal looks over at Ian. “But it’s going to be hard with a team member down.”

  “We can do this,” I say. “We may be one man down, but you guys have me now. I can help. And these games seem kind of fun.”

  “They are.” Ian frowns, leaning forward. “It sucks that I have to sit them out this year.”

  “So, all the games are physical?” I ask.

  West nods. “And mental, but they require both.”

  My stomach is in knots with excitement. The Royal Games sound like they’re going to be a blast. I can’t wait to go—it sounds like it’s going to be fun.

  “When does it start?” I ask.

  “We leave on December eleventh,” Kal answers.

  That means I have ten days to train. It doesn’t sound like a long time, but I know I can do this.

  I’m a Royal. I can do anything.

  “Why have you never heard of The Royal Games before?” Ian cocks his head, looking over at me. “Your parents are Royals. I figured you went every year.”

  I shrug. “My parents don’t tell me anything. I’m surprised I even know about The Royals.”

  Except my mom wanted to rub it in my face that she’s the best.

  Of course, my mom didn’t get invited to The Royals until after she had graduated. I think she was nineteen when she got her invitation. I bet it eats her up that I was invited a year earlier than her.