The Hundredth Lie

1.

Jace Sterling was taken by his worst enemy. I went alone to trade myself for him.

After they'd had their fun, they dumped me down a hillside. From a roadside bar, I heard howls of laughter.

Oh my God, she fell for it again! This is too good!

Through a crack in the window, I saw my boyfriend and his so-called enemy. Arms draped over each other. No trace of a feud.

"Ninety-seven times. Three more and we hit an even hundred. Then we stop."

"She had it coming. She refused to testify for Tessa. Just watched her get expelled. Her whole future, destroyed. Tessa is Jace's baby sister. Anyone who hurts her, Jace makes them wish they were dead. That's why he faked the whole relationship. Too bad. No more games now."

I bit down on my lip. I refused to let myself sob.

So my desperate, all-in love was just their entertainment.

***

The hand I'd raised to push the door froze in mid-air.

Voices still drifted out. Taunting. Mixed with recordings of my own screams.

"Look at her now. Not a single patch of good skin left except her face. All those expensive creams she slathered on every day. Worthless. We still messed her up."

"Good thing Jace said to keep her face. He didn't want to throw up looking at her. Otherwise that would be gone too."

"Hey, you think if she found out this 'worst enemy' is actually Jace's real cousin, she'd lose her mind? What if next time we try something even wilder, likeD"

"Enough."

A cold voice cut them off. I heard a lighter click.

"Don't do anything too disgusting. She's still my girlfriend, at least on paper. Did any of you think about how I'd feel?"

"Alright, alright, my bad, Jace. Relax. We'll keep it tame."

No groveling apology. Just lazy laughter and a few half-hearted agreements.

I bit my lip until I tasted blood.

Before they spotted me, I dragged myself toward the road.

Everyone who saw me looked horrified. A little girl screamed.

The California sun beat down. Vicious. I used to love this kind of heat.

I remembered feeling it on the track for the first time. Right before I met him.

Now that sunlight hit every bruise like a spotlight. It hurt.

Jace and I met on an afternoon exactly like this.

I was an intern for the racing team. Logging telemetry data.

A black Ford Mustang stopped in front of me. The door opened. A tall man pulled off his helmet. He glanced at my name tag and grinned.

"New here?"

I nodded. Nervous.

"Yeah."

He tucked his helmet under his arm. His eyes flicked to the water bottle in my hand.

"I'm dying of thirst. Can I have a sip?"

I blinked. Nodded without thinking.

He thanked me. Handed me his helmet. Unscrewed the cap and drank.

I watched a bead of water slide down his throat.

Something twisted in my stomach. I suddenly found my clipboard fascinating. Stared at it. Didn't dare look up.

The helmet was gone from my arms. He smiled and thanked me again.

Someone called him from across the track. He turned to leave. Then looked back.

"What's your name?"

"Ryan."

His grin widened.

"Cool name."

He walked away fast. I heard my own heart pounding.

Back then, I thought it was sweet. I had no idea I'd already walked into a trap custom-built for me.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

When I opened my eyes again, the racetrack was gone. Nothing but an endless stretch of highway.

Three days without food or water. My already unsteady heart finally gave out.

I clutched my chest. Stumbled. Fell. My vision went dark.

Before I blacked out completely, a sharp voice cut through, moving closer.

2.

When my eyes fluttered open, I met Jace's worried gaze.

"Ryan! You're awake!"

"God, Ryan. I'm sorry. I should have come sooner. This is all my fault."

"Trust me. I won't let that bastard get away with this."

I should have given him a round of applause for that performance.

I slowly pulled my hand from his. Shook my head. My voice was barely a whisper.

"It's fine."

He saw my mood was off. He asked carefully.

"Ryan, why were you walking so far down the highway all alone? There was a bar on the side of the road. Why didn't you go in for help?"

I kept my voice flat.

"Was there? I didn't see it. There was blood all over my face. I could barely see the road."

Jace exhaled quietly. He grabbed a glass of warm water and a few pills from the side table.

"Here. The doctor said you need to take these as soon as you wake up."

He eased me up from the bed. Fed me gently.

"How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?"

I looked down at myself wrapped in bandages. Shook my head. A wave of exhaustion hit me.

"I just want to sleep again."

Jace stroked my hair. Lowered me back down.

"Okay. Call me if you need anything."

Exhaustion pulled me under. Before my eyes closed, I saw Jace walk out.

Click.

He seemed to have locked the door from the outside.

I woke up burning.

The room spun. My whole body was on fire.

I stumbled out of bed. Ripped the IV needle out of my hand on instinct. Rushed toward the bathroom.

I couldn't open the door. I ran to the main door. Locked.

In a daze, I stripped off my clothes piece by piece, desperate to ease the heat. It was so unbearable. Tears streamed down my face.

"Please... someone help me... I can't take this..."

Howls of laughter erupted outside.

"Jace! She actually took everything off!"

"Oh my God, look at her. Crawling around on the floor like some junkie on an overdose. I'm recording this for Tessa."

I clenched my fists. My body trembled. My heart felt like it had been dropped into ice water. I could barely breathe.

Even the pills they fed me were part of their revenge.

I curled up in the corner. My ears locked onto the sounds outside the door.

Jace's leather shoes clicked down the hallway. The group's laughter and chatter faded with him.

"Tessa just texted. She wants to go live. Jace, next time let's do a real-time feed for her?"

Jace laughed and kicked the guy. "Mess around all you want. But if someone actually dies, you gonna do my prison time for me?"

My nails dug into my palms. The bandages I'd torn at pulled against raw wounds. Sweat and pain stung.

The nurse call button cord had been cut. I dragged my shaking legs to the window. Second floor.

The glass showed my reflection. Hair plastered to a bruised forehead. Skin flushed a terrifying red.

What they gave me wasn't medicine. It was the kind of stuff they use at frat parties to get girls out of their minds.

I grabbed the metal IV stand. Slammed it into the window. The glass cracked. No alarm. This old hospital still had single-pane windows, not safety glass. I swung again. Twice more. It shattered. Shards sliced my arm. Blood ran down my wrist.

"What the fuck! That crazy bitch is going to jump!"

Chaos erupted outside the door.

Cold wind hit me. I stepped onto the windowsill, barefoot.

Jace kicked the door open. His face went pale.

"Ryan!"

I turned. Met all their stunned stares.

3.

Jace rushed at me. He threw his jacket over my head. Shut out my vision. Pulled me off the windowsill and into his arms.

I struggled. A whimper kept spilling out.

"Let go... I'm so hot... Jace, I can't take it!"

He shoved me under the blankets. Wrapped me tight.

His voice dropped. Gentle. Coaxing.

"Don't be scared, Ryan. Just hold on."

Several footsteps rushed toward me. Doctors surrounded me. Asked what happened.

Jace paused for half a second. Then his voice came out cold as a scalpel.

"Someone laced her medication."

I heard a doctor suck in a sharp breath. He barked orders for a sedative.

In the haze, someone pulled my arm out from under the blanket. A needle went in.

The fire inside me slowly died. I stopped fighting.

They wheeled me off for a full workup. The results were bad.

The doctor said the accidental dose did significant damage to my nervous system.

Without proper recovery, I could face cognitive impairment down the line.

The room fell dead silent. The air itself felt frozen.

Jace stood there. The person truly responsible. Rigid. Disbelieving.

I watched him quietly.

"Jace, who did you piss off so badly they'd do this to me?"

He lowered his head. Avoided my eyes. Grabbed a towel and wiped the sweat from my forehead.

"I'm sorry..."

I turned away from his touch. Silent refusal. Silent blame.

Maybe he actually felt guilty.

A moment later, he dragged a doctor in front of me by the collar.

The man's face was pure terror. His eyes darted between us.

"Wh-what's going on?"

Jace didn't even look at me. His voice was surgical steel.

"He told me he was giving you vitamin pills."

"I didn't know he got his hands on that kind of substance."

He pulled out his phone. Dialed.

"Dad. I need the legal team. Something happened. Someone spiked her medication. I want to press charges. Attempted murder. Grievous bodily harm."

The man's face drained of all color. Watching him realize his life was over before Jace even lifted a finger. A different kind of cruelty.

My body shook. I couldn't stop it.

This was the first time I'd seen Jace handle something like this. So cold. So efficient.

He hung up. Wiped his hands clean with the towel. Turned to me.

"This idiot screwed up. It won't happen again."

"From now on, I'll handle everything for you personally."

He wasn't serving justice for Ryan. He was cutting off a liability. A fool who messed up and could bring trouble to the Sterling name.

I nodded numbly. I never thought he'd actually sacrifice one of his so-called brothers.

I only found out after we started dating. He wasn't just a pro racer. He was the heir to Sterling Properties. All the people around him were friends from the racing scene. Track days. Mod shops. This hospital was one of his family's holdings.

Silence swallowed the room.

Jace's phone rang.

The pain in his expression smoothed out the second he saw the caller ID.

He answered. Tessa Grant's sugary voice spilled through the speaker.

"Where are you? I miss you so much."

His face changed. Instantly.

4.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught him glance at me. I looked back. Confused.

Jace let out a breath. Stalked toward the door.

I followed, careful. Pressed my ear against the wood. Hoping to catch their new plan.

I did.

"Jace, your anniversary with Ryan is coming up, right? Let's do something exciting."

"Yeah, you're about to get engaged to her anyway. Use the anniversary as an excuse. Bring her to the track. Let her watch you marry someone else. That moment will be legendary."

"Exactly. We're doing the ceremony on the track, right? Put a few guests in separate cars for a track experience. Put her in one alone. After the vows, her brakes fail."

"Holy shit. Everyone will see her heading straight off the track. A girl like her? She'll pass out from terror."

Jace's voice went cold.

"No. I don't agree."

Someone sounded confused.

"Why not? Engagement and revenge all in one. Tessa gets to watch her most hated person get destroyed on her happiest day. How happy do you think she'd be?"

"Jace, you already went too far today. Beat up one of our own just to keep that woman happy. Tessa cried all night. Said you don't love her anymore. If you say no now, what if she refuses to marry you? What then?"

Tessa's sob cut through.

"You promised you'd do anything for me!"

Jace was silent for a long moment.

"...Fine. I'll do it. Stop crying."

They finished planning. Jace's footsteps moved away. I didn't know where he went.

I dragged myself back to the bed. Collapsed against the headboard. Smiled bitterly.

I saw her name again. My lips trembled. I finally broke down and cried.

I cried for about three minutes.

Then I wiped my face. Called her back.

When she picked up, I only said one thing.

"Mom. I'm going to destroy them. I need your help."

Silence stretched on the other end.

Then she said okay.

The anniversary arrived fast.

As planned, they brought me to the track. Sat me alone inside a race car.

I was too quiet. Jace leaned in.

"You okay? Feeling sick or anything?"

I shook my head. Asked him instead.

"Why are there so many people here? Looks like some kind of ceremony."

Jace pressed his lips together. Then just stroked my hair.

"It's my surprise for you."

He walked away. I watched his back. A smile finally touched my lips.

Jace. I gave you one last chance. You threw it away yourself.

I started going over the car. Mechanical engineering major. Racing engineering minor. I knew every inch of a race car's guts. Just as I thought. Someone had tampered with the brake line.

I let out a cold laugh. Pulled the tool kit from my pocket. I fixed the brake. Then I set up a delayed trigger near the fuel tank. Once I was far enough away, this car would become a fireball.

Once I was done, I looked up.

Their engagement setup was extravagant. I saw plenty of familiar faces throwing pitying looks my way.

So they all knew about the plan.

Just as Tessa wanted, she appeared in her wedding-style gown. Clinging to Jace's arm. Floating in front of everyone.

The scornful stares hit me. I heard that familiar howling laughter again.

"Look at her. She looks like death!"

"She deserves it! You refused to help Tessa. Now you pay!"

I played dumb. I watched them press the remote. My car lurched forward.

Once I was out of sight, I steered calmly. Parked at the hidden curve. The extraction vehicle Mom had arranged was already waiting. I jumped out. Got into a black SUV.

We pulled back to a safe distance. Behind us, the race car erupted in a massive pillar of fire.

As far as they were concerned, I died in an accident they caused.