Striker: A Dark Bully Romance (Redwood Rebels Book 1)

by Rachel Leigh

  Completely ignoring me, he continues to talk to Talon, “Can you tell me where Zed was on Halloween night?”

  “Easy. He was with us. We had a party right here at my house.”

  He looks at me with his pen still pressed to the paper. “You can attest to this, Ms. Thorn?” When I nod, he continues writing.

  “Can you tell us why you need to know where Zed was?” I ask, warranting another glare from Talon.

  Officer Klein closes his notebook and sticks it into the pocket on the front of his uniform. “Josh’s sister mentioned that she may have seen someone matching Zed’s description driving his car that night. She gave a couple names of possible guys. Zed was one of them. Thanks for clearing it up.” He gives a nod and walks to his car.

  We both watch as he gets in his car and does a U-turn. I stand frozen until his brake lights let up, and he disappears out of the driveway.

  Releasing the breath that I was holding, I bend over with my palms pressed to my knees. “Holy shit.”

  When Talon wraps his arms around me and stands me up, I collapse into his arms. He holds me for what feels like minutes, though it’s only seconds. Pulling back, he tucks a stray strand of my hair behind my ear. “You did good.”

  I close my eyes and bite my lip, hoping and praying that this was our only visit from Officer Klein.

  “Hey.” He cups my face in his hands. His touch feels warm, comforting, and like something I might actually want. “It’s gonna be ok.” He blinks slowly, trying like hell to give me the comfort that I need. It looks painful for him. Like he’s fighting some inner demon who wants him to push me away; yet, he doesn’t. He stands here exposing a vulnerable side that I don’t think the world has ever seen. A side that I didn’t even know existed.

  His eyes widen. Surprising himself at his momentary lapse of treachery. He tries so hard to be stone cold, but little by little, I’m chipping away his layers of ice. Unfortunately, no matter what side of him I see, there is no happy ending. Talon doesn’t give a damn about me. All he cares about is making sure my lips stay sealed.

  14

  Without a word, I walk away.

  Something inside me does this weird like flicker, which I blame on not eating today. As if there is a string attached from her to me, I turn my head around, feeling the pull of her eyes on me. She stands there looking all innocent, and I want to scream at the top of my lungs that she’s not. So loud that maybe I’ll actually believe it. She’s an attention-crazed, spoiled rich brat. She’s got Daddy’s money, her mom’s hot as hell looks, and her brother’s holier than thou attitude. She’s no angel. She uses her body to tease the fuck out of men, just to get high on their want for her. But the truth is, they don’t want her—they want her body.

  She’s the only one to blame for the mess she’s in. If she would have kept her legs shut and her life private, I would have never even targeted her, and I would have never tasted her. I’d give anything to rid myself of this uncontrollable desire to explore every inch of her body and uncover every single scar inside.

  She’s a weapon! Get her out of your fucking head!

  I slam the door shut so hard that the ten-foot painting of Gothic City rattles on the wall and threatens to fall down. I push it upwards and set it back in place, before the door swings back open. Without even taking my eyes off the painting, I know it’s her. I can smell her. It’s like my scent has found home on her body, and I’ve marked her as mine. Yet, somehow, she also lingers in my clothes and my hair and my cologne. Masking every inch of me, no matter how hard I try to wash her off. I can’t rid myself of her, even if I wanted to. Even if there was another way.

  But there’s not. It has to be this way.

  She has to be sacrificed so that I can have somewhat of a normal life. Whatever normal is.

  “You ok?” she asks. Like we didn’t just get questioned by the police. As if she didn’t just invade a part of me that has been closed off to humanity. Part of me that I didn’t even know existed, and I’m still not convinced it does.

  Why can’t I look at her the same way I did before this?

  Yell at her. Call her a bitch. Do something to show that I still have the upper hand.

  “Just hungry. You want something?”

  Yeah, sure. Feed her. That’s really putting her in her place.

  “Nah, I think I’m gonna lie down for a bit before the party starts.” She walks away, and with every step, I fight not to shadow her. To go up there and get in her head and rattle shit around just to get a rise out of her—though, it would likely be a fall, my fall.

  “Dude. What the fuck?” Lars bellows, as he and Tommy come trudging down the hall from the kitchen. “What the hell were the cops doing here?”

  I pull open the door and don’t see their vehicles out front. “Where’d you two come from?”

  “We parked at Zed’s and walked.” He swats Tommy’s shoulder. “This asshole was too scared to drive up after we saw the flashing lights.”

  Waving my hand through the air, I brush it off as no big deal. “They were just wondering where Zed was on Halloween. It’s all good. They have other people to question. We’re little fish on their radar.”

  “You’re downplaying this too much. I know you’ve got your own shit going on, but don’t get too comfortable. We still need to be on our toes,” Lars says.

  “It’s fine. Quit stressing so much, you’re just gonna get Zed all worked up again.”

  “Yeah, well, Zed has come unleashed. He’s pissed off that you’re sheltering this girl like a lost puppy,” Lars says, as Tommy flops down on the couch.

  “Good. He’s been getting on my last nerve lately.” I look at Tommy, who’s just standing there listening. “What’s with him?” I ask Lars. Tommy has been particularly quiet since this whole plan took afloat and it’s unnerving.

  Lars rolls his eyes. “Don’t worry about him. He actually thinks she is a lost puppy.”

  Tommy finally speaks up. “I just don’t think she deserves this shit. You’re tempting a lion, and she’s the bait.”

  “Don’t go getting soft on me, Chambers. We talked about this, and if you think for a second that you’ll be her knight in shining armor, you’re dead wrong.”

  Taking a seat on the couch, Tommy pulls a black sharpie out of his pocket. “You’re the fucking devil. You and Zed both.” He seethes as he begins marking up his white canvas shoe that’s crossed over his leg.

  “Damnit, you two. Is that all any of you guys do anymore is fucking fight?” Lars shouts.

  I change the subject quickly. “Back to Zed. He’s a problem. I feel like he’s losing control. I’m pretty sure he’s got a thing for this girl.”

  “Yeah. We’re pretty fucking aware of that. But it sounds like you do, too,” Tommy chimes in.

  I flip him off, neither confirming nor denying his claim.

  Lars taps his phone on. “Gimme the security password. You don’t have your phone. Someone needs to keep tabs on the house and on her.”

  He’s right. We have too much going on to let our guards down at this point. No one can be trusted, not even the three guys I call friends. The same guys who I made a pact with to face the in between together. Real times bring out true colors.

  “Redwoodrebels. All lowercase. Do not share it with Zed. Not until we know what he’s up to. Something tells me, it’s not good.”

  Lars tosses his hands out. “He’s our boy. He wouldn’t betray us for her.”

  My brows shoot up. “You’d be surprised.” If I almost thought she was worth it, Zed definitely thinks she is. Zed misconstrues love and hate. He loves the chase. He hates that he can’t catch her. In his eyes, his actions are plausible.

  We’re all playing Call of Duty in the rec room when Lars gets a call from his step-sister about some family emergency. He leaves and tells us he’ll be back for the party. There’s an abundant amount of tension sitting between Tommy and I, and I wanna reassure him that we’re cool, but the good thing about these guys is,
we don’t need words to show our loyalty. And the truth is, if I had to trust one of these guys with Marni, it would be Tommy. He has that empathy that most people do. He was raised by good people, and for the most part, he makes good choices, aside from running around with us since he was six years old, vandalizing private and public property with paint, and stealing glances at his dad’s wife.

  Grabbing the metal tin on the end table, I pull out a joint and spark it up. After a long drag, I pass it to Tommy in an attempt to break the ice. “You going to school tomorrow?” Smoke rolls out of my mouth and I cough on the last exhale.

  He smirks. “Guess we’ll see what the night brings.” Taking a drag, he passes it back to me then begins cursing at the game.

  Tommy is passive aggressive when it comes to our vile ways because he knows what a mess we all are. I’m pretty sure he pities our past and that’s why he’s always stuck by us and defended our actions.

  We continue to puff and pass and I use this opportunity to do a little digging. “Now that it’s just us, you ready to tell me why you’re so damn protective of her?”

  “I’m not protective of her. I just think you and Zed both have some seriously fucked up motives. I told you both that in front of her house and when you and Zed made the deal.”

  “Yet, you agreed to it?”

  “What choice did I have? We stick together, right? You’ll do the same for me when the time comes.” He looks over at me, and I nod in agreement.

  I’d absolutely do the same damn thing for him.

  Tommy drops the controller on the seat then sticks the roach end of the joint in the tin, before smothering it with the lid. “And why are you so protective over her? You sprouting the feels for this girl?”

  Laughter in the form of air blowing out of my nose has me shaking my head. “Not a chance in hell. You’ve seen her. She’s a handful. Besides, relationships aren’t my forte.”

  “Probably for the best. No girl would ever put up with your ass. Besides, she’s only temporary. When this is all said and done, she’ll never forgive any of us.”

  When it’s all said and done, she just might burn the fucking house down with all of us inside.

  15

  The party is in full swing, and it’s not even seven o’clock yet. I questioned whether or not we should even proceed, but Talon insisted that we carry on like normal. Anything else would raise suspicion. Partying is a normal thing in this house, so partying we are.

  Zed hasn’t been seen or heard from since we left my house, and even though I don’t give a shit about that jerk, I’m getting worried. Not for him, but for the rest of us. If Zed is on the cop’s radar that means they could start nosing around more often.

  Talon’s hand reaches around me with a red plastic cup. I take it from him and spin around to speak, but I’m rendered breathless when he stares back at me. His hair is flipped to one side and he’s wearing a white t-shirt that hugs tightly to his chest and a black leather jacket over it. The scent of the leather alone is intoxicating. Then there’s his eyes. I haven't even had a sip of my drink and I feel off-balance.

  “You plan on standing by this door all night?” He tips back his cup and takes a drink.

  I give the glass a sniff, and while it smells overpowering, it also smells really damn good. “Do I dare drink this?” I tease.

  “I didn’t drug it if that’s what you're insinuating. I prefer my woman to be active in bed rather than limp.”

  Against my better judgement, I take a sip. What are the chances that he would try and knock me out on the same night that I’m doing it to him? With my free hand, I pat the pocket of my jeans nonchalantly, just to make sure the pea-sized pills are still intact.

  “Just waiting for Shay. So go on, hang out with your friends and I’ll hang out with mine.”

  Tilting his head to the side, he tsks. “Nice try. But you’ll be by my side all night. You’re also sleeping in my room again. I don’t like you alone when people are getting drunk like this. I need to keep an eye on you.”

  “Seriously?” I huff. “Even after the run in with a cop out front, you still think I plan on snitching?”

  “I’m not sure that you haven’t already. You might not plan on telling the law, but I wouldn’t put it past you to talk to your friends. Speaking of, I know you went to Miners Park earlier today.”

  My stomach drops. “How do you know that?”

  “I know more than you think.” He winks. “Come on, I need another drink.”

  Stopping him with a hand on his shoulder, I quickly slam the contents of my cup. “Let me get it. I could use some more.”

  He raises a brow. “Since when do you do nice things for me?”

  “I don’t. Unless there’s something in it for me.” Complete and utter truth right there. I walk away and give him a glance over my shoulder then blow him a kiss. “Goodnight, Asshole,” I mutter under my breath.

  When I return to Talon with his drink, I give it a whirl to make sure the sleeping pills are fully dissolved. Mom used to take like three of these at a time and she was out cold within ten minutes, so I know two won’t kill him. He’ll just get a good night's sleep, which he could probably use.

  Handing him his drink, I hold mine up. “Cheers.” He bumps it back, and I watch him over the rim of my cup as he takes a drink. Trying not to be too obvious, I let my eyes dance around the party.

  “What the hell is this?” He smacks his lips together.

  My expression goes bleak. “Whatever they had mixed in that jungle juice bowl.” Plus a few extra shots of vodka, but I don’t tell him that.

  “Tastes like straight alcohol.” Yet, he still tips it back and takes another swig.

  “Probably was, knowing your friends.”

  The front door comes open, and Shay walks in, and it’s obvious she’s already been drinking before she got her. She’s with a couple of the girls from the cheer squad and I can’t help but feel a tinge of envy. I should be enjoying my senior year. I didn’t even make it to the end of the season family cheer banquet a couple days ago. Though, I wouldn’t have gone anyway, because I lack the family part.

  A few drinks later, I’m feeling pretty buzzed and far too brave for what I’m getting ready to do.

  I turn around and see Talon’s eyes half-closed with his chin to his chest. Tucking my arms under his, I guide him away before anyone notices his semi-comatose state.

  “What you….” he stutters, “What did you do to me?” His head continues to bobble around, and his full weight begins to feel heavy in my arms.

  “Guess you just can’t drink like you used to.” We make it halfway up the stairs before he begins to put more weight on me, and I fear that one wrong move will send us both crashing down.

  We finally reach the top of the stairs, and just as we round the corner, I hear Zed. “What’s going on up there?”

  Oh shit.

  Pushing Talon up against the wall, I hold him in place with one hand. Thankfully, he’s still got some strength in his legs. I peek around the corner and look down at Zed. He’s standing at the bottom of the steps in a solid black t-shirt and black jeans. His dark hair is flipped to the side and his eyes zero in on me. “Talon had a little too much to drink. I’m just helping him to bed.” I steal a glance at Talon whose eyes are completely closed.

  When I look back down the stairs, Zed is gone.

  That’s too fucking weird. Zed is constantly suspicious of everything that I do, yet now, he’s not even questioning me. Brushing it off, I lead Talon down the rest of the hallway.

  It suddenly hits me that I don’t know the password to get upstairs.

  My room is only three feet away, so I push open the door, and just as we step inside, Talon collapses to the floor. There is no way that I can get him on that bed and there’s really no point. He’s already asleep; what does he care if he’s comfortable or not?

  I go to leave the room but turn back around, and for a brief moment, my heart swells at the sight of Talon lying t
here—helpless and hopeless. His shirt is tugged up and an array of raised bumps stem out like branches of a tree. Skin colored with a hint of pink where the injuries healed. Beneath them are blotches of brown-colored skin that look like the remnants of a bad burn. He might do some monstrous things, but he’s not a monster. He’s had to endure so much pain in his short eighteen years of life. It’s no wonder that he looks at the world as a dark hole.

  Stepping out into the hall, I shut the door, press my back to it, and close my eyes.

  No regrets. Now is not the time.

  Thinking for a moment, I shake off the unwanted thoughts. It has to be this way. Even if a small part of me might be getting attached to a small part of Talon, he’s the reason that I’m in this constant state of worry. Because of him, there is evidence out there that could incriminate me in a murder. He’s also failing to divulge any information on Josh’s death. I still don’t know how or why he died. All I know is that I have to look after myself. Because, in the end, I only have myself.

  Shay is already three sheets to the wind, and she’s giving a lap dance to a sophomore. Grabbing her by the arm, I pull her away from making a big mistake. Though, you’d think I just ran over her puppy with the look she’s giving me.

  “Let go of me. I like that guy,” she snaps, and it’s all too strange being on this end of the dragging. I’ve been dragged around for the past couple days by these guys, and it feels good to take back a little control.

  Once we are away from the crowd, I release her arm. “Two words. Too young.”

  Completely changing the subject, she whines, “I miss my best friend. We used to talk every single day and now that you’re running around with these guys, you’re keeping things from me and it’s like I don’t even exist anymore.”

  “It’s been six days. Things are just really weird right now.” I pull her in for a hug and she doesn’t fight me off. “I promise, things will get back to normal.” That’s why I’m doing this. They have to get back to normal. I’m just unclear of what normal looks like anymore.