Chapters 17-24Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of sexual content, emotional abuse, child abuse, death by suicide, death, and graphic violence.
Chapter 17 Summary: “Creighton”
The morning after the semifinal fight, Landon wakes Creighton by kicking him out of bed. Creighton confronts his cousin about stalling on information they agreed to exchange. Landon deflects, comparing life to a chessboard where all pieces must be positioned correctly before revealing anything. Creighton directly asks if Landon orchestrated the fire at the Heathens’ compound. Landon hints he could have falsified events, mentioning that the Serpents are being blamed. Furious, Creighton grabs him by the collar and warns him never to endanger Annika again. Landon remains calm, warning Creighton against trying such a move twice. Creighton internally reaffirms his claim over Annika, recalling their intimacy the previous night and the possessiveness it stirred in him. Landon advises Creighton to stay away from Annika and her family, then asks if he wants to join the Elites. Creighton refuses.
After Landon leaves, Creighton checks his phone and realizes Annika has not texted in two hours. Landon sends him a screenshot from Remi’s Instagram showing Annika at a club with his arm around her shoulders. Enraged, Creighton demands the address, drives to the club, and finds Annika dancing with Ava and Remi. He shoves Remi aside, grabs Annika, and publicly declares she is his. After their friends reveal they know about their date, Creighton corrects them to dates, plural, and warns Remi and Brandon not to touch her. He kisses her roughly in front of their stunned friends, then drags her out of the club.
Chapter 18 Summary: “Annika”
Annika reflects that she went to the club because she was upset, believing Creighton had forgotten her 18th birthday. During the tense car ride to the Elites’ compound, Creighton glares at her in silence. Once in his bedroom, he locks the door and slams her against the wall, demanding to know why she went out with Remi and Brandon. When she hesitates to answer, he spanks her. She confesses that she was hurt when he said he had plans on her birthday, unaware that those plans involved her.
Creighton reveals his plans were with her all along, then calls her a bad girl for provoking him. He rips her dress, ties her wrists and ankles to the bed, and blindfolds her. He uses a toy and riding crop, which she enjoys. After removing her blindfold, Creighton begins intercourse, realizing during it that she is a virgin. She reassures him it is acceptable with him. He cuts the ropes and continues, initially gentle but growing rougher at her encouragement. As she drifts to sleep, she thinks she hears him whisper “happy birthday.”
Chapter 19 Summary: “Creighton”
Creighton reflects on his need for control and how Annika has dismantled his defenses, admitting he cannot let her go despite knowing he will eventually destroy her. While she sleeps, he prepares a bath, cleans the blood from her thighs, and applies ointment to the welts he left on her body. He carries her to the tub and wakes her. She notices the pink-purple diamond necklace around her neck, which he confirms is her birthday gift.
He washes her hair, and they discuss her virginity and his sexual history. He reveals he has been tested and has not had penetrative sex in months because inflicting pain usually suffices. When Annika questions the lack of a condom, he admits he forgot to use one with her, breaking his usual habit. When she mentions watching porn, he becomes territorial and orders her to stop. She asks about his large spider tattoo, and he tells her the traumatic story of his childhood: his father’s scandal and death, his mother’s alcoholism and abuse, and her suicide attempt by hanging while trying to kill him with gas. His three-year-old mind perceived the hanging body as a giant spider.
Annika cries and embraces him, wanting to share his pain. Angered by her sympathy, Creighton rejects her, insisting that boy is dead and his only parents are Aiden and Elsa King. She warns that if he keeps pushing her away, she will not return. He gives her an ultimatum: leave or endure another brutal session. She stays, and he pulls her onto his lap.
Chapter 20 Summary: “Annika”
Annika wakes to Tiger, a cat Creighton adopted from the shelter, licking her face. She is sore from the previous night and notices Creighton’s emotional distance after sharing his past. Wearing his hoodie, she searches for cat food and encounters Eli, who intimidates Tiger with a look. Eli warns her not to hurt Creighton or choose her brother over him. Annika stands her ground, asserting she will not leave. Seeking more context on his past, she asks Eli when Creighton got the spider tattoo. Eli confirms it was in high school and speculates that his sadism likely stems from his trauma.
She finds Creighton, Remi, and Brandon in the kitchen attempting to bake a cake. When Remi touches Annika’s shoulder, Creighton twists his arm and throws him against a wall, declaring no one is allowed to touch her. Eli and Brandon tease him for being possessive. Creighton drags Annika back to his room, reprimanding her for walking around in only his hoodie. He reveals Tiger was meant to be her second birthday present, then instructs her to kneel and inserts a purple butt plug, ordering her to wear it two hours daily as training. After giving her sweatpants to wear, they rejoin the others for breakfast. Annika reflects on Creighton’s loyalty to his friends and her deepening feelings for him.
Chapter 21 Summary: “Creighton”
A week after Annika’s birthday, Creighton takes her to the movie theater. He reflects on his constant need to touch her and how considerate she is of his aversion to crowds. He tells her he is not uncomfortable in crowds when he is with her. After the film, he caresses her bare stomach as they walk. When she asks what she is to him, he replies she is his and that he never wanted to keep his previous playthings.
Annika proposes dividing responsibilities in their relationship: She will handle social planning and talking to people, while he can be her protector. She asks him to communicate his feelings more, and he agrees to try. She offers to cook for him, and he hides his reluctance to spare her feelings. When she calls him her favorite, he clarifies he is territorial, not jealous. Annika mentions plans with her friends, but Creighton gives her an ultimatum to come to his place instead. She receives a text from Harry with a photo of him and Creighton. Annika sends a possessive reply, and Creighton points out her hypocrisy. He reassures her she is the only one he wants, then describes how he will have sex with her. She agrees to go home with him.
Chapter 22 Summary: “Annika”
Two weeks after her birthday, Annika attends a pub celebration for Remi’s basketball victory with their friend group. She reflects on neglecting her friends to spend time with Creighton. He stares at her intensely and possessively throughout the evening. When the girls complain about his monopolization of her time, Creighton defends her by exposing their hypocrisies, deflecting their teasing. He leaves to take a call from Landon.
Remi sits with Annika and thanks her for helping Creighton open up. As Remi holds her hands, the butt plug vibrator activates. Realizing Creighton saw the contact and is controlling the toy remotely, Annika flees to the parking lot. Creighton intercepts her, pulls her into his car, and confronts her for allowing another man to touch her. They have rough, passionate sex in the backseat.
Afterward, she asks him to take her to his place, but he stops at a grocery store. They discuss their families, and he reveals his adoptive mother has a heart condition. He tells Annika she will not be forced into marriage because she has him now, and he agrees to be her boyfriend. They kiss passionately in an aisle. Jeremy suddenly appears and yanks Annika away from Creighton.
Chapter 23 Summary: “Creighton”
Jeremy confronts Creighton for touching his sister, but Creighton confirms they are together. Jeremy lunges at him, but Annika jumps between them, pleading for them to stop. Jeremy drags Annika toward the exit. Creighton starts to follow, but Annika mouths for him to trust her. He texts her, giving her one day to resolve the situation with her brother before he intervenes his way.
That night, Creighton cannot sleep. He participates in the group chat and surprises everyone by defending Remi from teasing. Eli enters his room, concerned by his unusual behavior. Creighton explains what happened with Jeremy. Eli advises him to trust Annika but offers to help raid the Heathens’ compound if needed. Eli lists all the ways Creighton is clearly bewitched by Annika. Creighton admits she fills the hollowness inside him. He reveals he will never be over his past and is determined to avenge his three-year-old self.
Creighton explains his information deal with Landon is about finding his biological parents, revealing Landon has already found clues that he was born in New York City. Official records were wiped, likely by their family, so Landon’s methods are his only option. Eli warns him not to trust Landon but reluctantly accepts his resolve, proposing they force Landon to reveal what he knows.
Chapter 24 Summary: “Annika”
Jeremy confines Annika to the Heathens’ compound. She confronts him, standing up for herself and defending Creighton against suspicions that he orchestrated the compound fire. She refuses to live by Jeremy’s black-and-white worldview, declares she loves Creighton, and demands the freedom to make her own decisions. Jeremy proposes a deal: He will back off if their father, Adrian, investigates and approves of Creighton. Annika agrees.
The next day, they drive to the Volkov family home. Yan, a trusted guard and family friend, greets them warmly. Their mother, Lenochka, embraces Annika with overwhelming affection. The family, including guards Yan and Kolya and head maid Olga, shares a large, happy dinner. Adrian is intimidating but loving, though he refuses Annika wine. During the meal, Jeremy objects whenever Annika gets close to revealing her relationship, as they had agreed she would talk to their father about it the following day.
Later, Annika lies in bed looking at photos of Creighton on her phone. Her text to him remains unread. Lenochka enters with pastries and sees the photo of Creighton. She drops the tray, her face draining of color. For the first time in Annika’s life, her mother looks as though she has seen a ghost.
Chapters 17-24 Analysis
The consummation of Annika and Creighton’s relationship in these chapters develops the themes of dark romance and the exploration of taboo desire, focusing on The Interplay of Pain, Pleasure, and Emotional Intimacy. The physical escalation on Annika’s 18th birthday occurs through a structured sadomasochistic encounter involving ropes, a blindfold, and a crop. This orchestrated pain allows her to bypass societal conditioning and explore her authentic desires, linking physical submission to psychological liberation. The intensity of the physical encounter gives way to emotional vulnerability during the subsequent aftercare. As Creighton bathes her and applies ointment to her welts, the dynamic shifts from dominance to nurturing. This progression—from intense physical discipline to gentle caretaking—demonstrates how BDSM frameworks can function as a mechanism for characters to bypass emotional defenses and forge deep psychological connections. The aftercare ritual establishes that their relationship extends beyond pain to encompass care and tenderness.
This newfound intimacy creates a space for Creighton to articulate his repressed childhood trauma, which the narrative anchors to the motif of the spider tattoo. Creighton explains that the ink represents the night his biological mother attempted a “murder-suicide”; to his three-year-old mind, her hanging body resembled “a giant spider hanging from the ceiling” (231). The tattoo externalizes his unresolved internal conflict and reveals the origins of his violent tendencies. By permanently marking his body with the symbol of this conflict, Creighton attempts to assert dominance over his past victimization. His admission suggests that his sadism is a coping mechanism; by meticulously controlling the infliction of pain in his sexual relationships, he commands the element that once rendered him powerless. Annika’s empathetic response further solidifies their bond, illustrating how shared trauma functions as a foundational pillar in their relationship. Creighton’s search for his biological origins, aided by Landon, emphasizes that the past depicted by the tattoo remains an active, destabilizing force that drives his present actions.
As their dynamic formalizes, the motif of the color purple examines the boundaries of their arrangement. Creighton gifts Annika a pink-purple diamond necklace, acknowledging her aesthetic, and later introduces a purple sex toys in addition to continuing to use her nickname “little purple.” The color purple transitions from a representation of Annika’s autonomy to an instrument of Creighton’s territorial dominance, crystallizing the theme of Consent as a Continuous Negotiation of Power. He makes her wear one of these toys while Annika is with friends, thus shifting their private dynamic into a public sphere. Creighton’s public assertion of control highlights the friction between Annika’s submission and her personal boundaries. Their ensuing sexual encounter in the car serves to reaffirm their power dynamic after he confronts her for allowing another man to touch her. While Annika consistently agrees to his physical control, such incidents demonstrate that her submission remains an active choice, continually tested by Creighton’s possessiveness rather than being a passive surrender. These moments of tension reveal the fragility of their negotiated agreement when Creighton’s jealousy threatens to override her established boundaries.
Annika’s relational negotiations with Creighton are mirrored by her conflict with her family, bringing The Struggle for Autonomy In Controlling Relationships to the forefront. After Jeremy discovers her with Creighton, he confines her to the Heathens’ compound. This action reflects the story’s social context, where women are often treated as strategic assets within powerful syndicates. Suspecting Creighton of orchestrating the compound fire—a key point of inter-university rivalry—Jeremy views Annika’s romantic choices as potential institutional threats. Rejecting her brother’s rigid worldview, Annika challenges his authority and demands the freedom to make her own decisions. She leverages Jeremy’s overprotectiveness into a compromise: securing their father’s approval of the relationship. The resulting family dinner reinforces the inescapable reach of her Mafia lineage. When her mother sees a photograph of Creighton and drops a tray in shock, her visceral reaction suggests that Annika’s quest for autonomy is inextricably linked to her family’s hidden history, complicating her attempt to separate personal desires from familial obligations. This revelation foreshadows that Annika’s relationship may be entangled with her family’s past in ways she cannot yet comprehend.
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