The Ritual (L.O.R.D.S., #1)

by Shantel Tessier

Social media makes you think you have all this freedom, but you don’t. Not really. You’re stuck behind a device watching others live out their dreams. You post selfies of fake smiles and expensive clothes, hoping that someone will envy you. Reassure you just how good you have it. All the while hating your life. “Smile, dear, you never know who is watching you,” my mother always tells me.

“I’ve always been a selfish person, Blake. Willing to do whatever it takes to get where I want to be. And out of all the things I’ve done, you are by far the greatest reward for my selfishness.”