Parrish lingers for a moment but then nods, pausing with his hand on the doorknob.
“Lock this as soon as I leave and don’t open it unless you hear my voice, okay?”
“I can do that,” I agree, and he helps me find my feet when I slide off the edge of the sink, steadying me with his hands on my shoulders before taking off like a bat outta hell. I make sure the dead bolt slams shut behind him, and then I curl forward, putting my forehead against the inside of the door.
I can’t believe that just happened, I think, trying not to be sick. Now, at least, I understand what the utility knives were for.
“Goddamn it.” I shove back from the door and storm over to my book bag, yanking out my Maxine-phone to see if there are any messages from Chasm. Nothing. That’s when I start to panic, pacing back and forth across the tile floor as I place a call to his phone, wait, hang up, try again.
My anxiety rachets up, and I actually start to wonder if I’m having a PTSD reaction from when Parrish went missing. This is triggering as fuck, and I have no idea what to do about it. The minutes tick past, and lunch is more than half over before I hear a knock on the bathroom door.
“Dakota.”
It’s Parrish. I unlock the door and fling it open, eyes widening when I see Chasm just behind Parrish, his face bloodied up and his arm around Maxx’s shoulders.
“Found something for you,” Parrish murmurs, holding the door aside so that Chas can limp in. Maxx helps him while Parrish waits for them to pass, slams the door shut, and activates the lock.
“What happened to you?” I whisper as Chas’ eyes widen at the sight of me, naked and bloody under Parrish’s blazer.
“What happened to you?!” he chokes out, stumbling from Maxx’s grip to brush his thumb across one of the bloody wounds on the back of my hand. It’s shallow—they all are—but that doesn’t mean it isn’t aching and burning like a bitch. “Why are you naked?”
“Veronica and her friends cut her clothes off while livestreaming the entire mess.” Parrish sets a first aid kit down on the sink as Maxx’s green eyes flare with undisguised rage.
“You’re kidding me?” he asks as Parrish turns on the warm water and offers up a wad of paper towels so Chas can clean himself off. I snatch it from his hand and step forward, attempting to dab at Chas’ bloody lip. He grabs my wrist before I can even get started, frowning at me.
“Do not try to take care of me when you’re bleeding all over the fucking floor.”
I yank my wrist from him and narrow my eyes.
“Give me the paper towels,” I hiss, and his face gets all weird, and then he’s grabbing me in a huge hug and squeezing me tight. The blazer falls to the floor, and I don’t even care about it. My fingers grab the back of Chas’ blazer and hold on for dear life.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispers, kissing the side of my head and rubbing his cheek against me. “I’m so sorry, naekkeo.”
“What happened?” Parrish asks, his voice cold and almost businesslike. I can’t decide if it’s because he’s angry with the girls still, pissed off on Chasm’s behalf, or jealous of the way we’re touching. Maybe all of those things? But when Chas and I pull back from each other, and I glance Parrish’s way, there’s a touch of sadness in his eyes when he looks at me.
“I got jumped in the hall,” Chas says as Maxx moves over to stand beside me. I glance his way, and then suddenly realize how naked and vulnerable I am all of a sudden. Even more so when he reaches out and gently sweeps some of my tangled hair back, his hand trembling like he wants to hold me but isn’t sure if he can, if he’d be allowed to.
After a moment, his face hardens and then he’s just pulling me in for a hug. His body is so big, it envelops mine completely, and I love that. I love how cared for and precious I feel when the three of them are around. That, and how incredibly powerful I feel at the same time. It’s like, both sides of me, both sets of wants and needs, are valid.
“Who?” Parrish demands, stepping forward and grabbing the paper towels from Chasm’s hand. He cleans his best friend’s face off while I cuddle up against Maxx.
“Gavin, Antonio. Shit, I don’t even know. Some of our friends, Parrish.” Chasm winces as Parrish finishes wiping him down and then applies shiny ointment to his lip. “I took off, but they cornered me in a utility closet.”
“And then he called me,” Maxx adds, letting me go just long enough to collect some gauze and ointment from the first aid kit. Parrish watches him do it, his hands curling into fists and then releasing with seemingly great effort. He wants to tend to me, but he’s allowing Maxx to do it instead. “Sit.”
“Mr. Sports Medicine,” I murmur as I hop up onto the sink, still naked, still trapped in a small bathroom with three boys—all three of whom I’ve slept with at this point. Maxx hooks a cocky smile, but it’s laced with rage and barely restrained violence. When he takes my hand and starts to bandage my cut, his fingers are surprisingly gentle. “You came for Chasm?”
The thought warms my heart; the bromance between these three is real.
“I only had a second to make a call,” Chas says, putting weight on his ankle and wincing slightly. “They got my phone away from me, but at least it went through.”
“What happened when you got here, X?” Parrish clarifies, taking some Whitehall Prep merch out of a bag and bringing it over to me. Our gazes meet, and some of the harshness in his softens.
“They took off,” Maxx explains, his voice light, almost too light.
“Because they’re scared shitless of you.” Chasm leans back against the wall and then curses as he notices a tear in his shirt. He adjusts his blazer to cover the damage and shakes his head. “The bastards left, but they had to know we wouldn’t let this go.”
“They knew I was coming back,” Parrish agrees, waiting for Maxx to finish cleaning and bandaging the cuts on my chest and neck before he helps me into the sports bra and pullover sweater. Where the Best Shine Bright is scrawled across the front in black cursive.
Right.
The best.
Shining bright.
Mm-hmm.
My breath hitches as Maxx spreads my legs carefully and focuses on the cut there like it’s the only thing in the world that exists, like he isn’t close to the apex of my thighs, like he can’t feel my heat. He finishes up and Parrish offers me a pair of joggers.
I slip into them before accepting some sneakers and socks. Everything Parrish purchased for me seems to be the right size which makes me smile. Well, okay, so the shoes are maybe a size too large but that’s better than them being too small. Maybe that was the point?
“They knew, and they didn’t care.” Chasm heaves a sigh. “The girls have been wild without you, but the guys? This is the first time I’ve had to deal with anything like this.”
“The girls who attacked me”—I feel suddenly choked up and it takes several deep breaths for me to calm my nerves—“they were scared of Parrish. I mean, there were twelve of them and they still took off when he showed up.” I think on that for a moment, trying to push the feelings of humiliation aside. As much as I despise Justin, I’m going to ask him about this, about using Milk Carton to search for any videos of photos of me … “Because Parrish is still a Vanguard,” I say carefully, “and Chasm’s dad just got into bed with Justin Prior.”
“More Medina bullshit,” Maxx growls out, and we all pause as the bell rings to signal the end of lunch. “They know Parrish and Chas are like this.” He crosses his fingers together and then shakes his head. “Seems like a big risk to me—especially considering the guys have left you alone this whole time. Now they’re on the attack? The very day that Parrish is supposed to return to school?”
“Unless we’re thinking of these problems as originating from one source,” I suggest, bending down to grab my book bag and cringing at the pain that ripples through my body. All three boys look like they’re about to leap on me and carry me off for cuddles and hot tea or some shit. I ignore them, standing up straig
ht and letting out a long exhale. Doing well on my exams means seeing Maxine; I won’t allow anything to stop me from doing that—not even this. “But maybe we ought to consider opposing forces?”
“Meaning what, exactly?” Parrish queries, but I don’t know yet. I’m just not fucking sure.
“No idea,” I admit, glancing back at Chasm. He pushes up from the wall, takes a tentative step, and then exhales sharply. It hurts, but he’ll survive. Same with me.
But I’m not just going to let this go; I can’t.
Does Justin know that? Did he arrange this? Or is it something more than that?
“Let’s stay together, walk each other to class one by one, and then Maxx can wait for us in the library or something?” I give him a hopeful smile that he returns with a reluctant one of his own.
“My visitor’s pass is good all week; Ms. Miyamoto thinks Parrish needs emotional support right now.”
“Lucky me,” Parrish grumbles, taking my hand as Maxx hauls Chas’ arm over his shoulder for support, and we head out the door.
“After school,” I start, but Chasm’s already scoffing and scowling at me. He knows before I even think up a clever euphemism what I’m trying to say here. Lumen. Her note. The hedge maze. Because I haven’t forgotten about my girlfriends just yet.
“No, Little Sister. Absolutely not. You have nothing important to do after school except go home.”
But I do. Lumen gave me a note in secret which means one thing: she knows she’s being watched.
That’s a telling clue all on its own, now isn’t it?
It’s hard to focus during my exam—especially after accepting a dress code violation with grace—but that’s not unexpected. I got my ass kicked; I’m cut up all over; my naked form might be splashed across the internet. I’m too afraid to look; I don’t want to see. For now, I just have to focus on this.
If I need to score well on these tests to see my sister, then that’s what I’m damn well going to do.
During break, I stay in the classroom and text the boys—just not about the possibility of me being nude online. I don’t want to know until after I’m done with this damn test. Instead, we keep our conversation absurdly light, almost fluffy.
We could all use a bit of fluffy right now.
After I finish my test, I wait just inside the classroom for Maxx. He’s been in the library for hours now, but he appears within minutes of me sending a quick text his way. The sight of his large, muscular form filling the doorway brings me peace.
It occurs to me that he’s not anymore immune to being attacked by the students here than anyone else—especially since his family isn’t rich. But I guess the bulging biceps and the dangerous glint in his eye is enough protection for now.
“How did it go?” he asks, and I shrug, wince, remind myself not to shrug for a while.
“It went well … I think.” I bite my lip as we approach Chasm’s classroom. It’s next door to Parrish’s, thankfully, so it’s a one-stop boy shop.
“You make me proud, naekkeo?” Chasm asks as he joins us, and then he, too, cringes slightly, glancing over at Parrish. The Prince of Sloths sighs heavily.
“You’re annoying me, but you also got beat up today. Don’t test my good will.” Parrish softens the words with the barest hint of a smile, and then all the boys come to a halt as I continue down the hall when we should rightfully hook a turn toward the parking garage. “Where on earth do you think you’re going?”
“Firstly, Chas, I really do hope I made you proud. Also … I have something to do before we leave.”
Maxx gives me a harsh look because he knows exactly what it is that I’m up to. Chas and Parrish, too.
Chasm frowns hard, moves down to his locker, and opens it up. I dump my book bag—with both phones tucked into it—inside. The boys do the same, and I take off toward the hedge maze.
“Excuse me, Gamer Girl,” Parrish growls, grabbing me by the arm. “After the day you and Chasm have had, you now want to go down to the fucking hedge maze? Where there are no cameras? This sounds like a really, really stupid idea to me.” He keeps his voice low, flicking his attention up to the camera mounted near the ceiling.
“And if we’re going down there anyway—because this is Little Sister, and she always gets what she wants—we can’t go by such an obvious route. You said you wanted to go to the library? Justin will be watching, and it is … thataway.” Chas points in the opposite direction as Maxx crowds in close to our little group.
“What if we get ambushed down there? If there are enough of them, we’ll be in trouble.” X crosses his arms, looking resolute in his decision not to go down and meet with the queen of the school.
The thing is, I remember the look on her face when she heard that Veronica had tried to throw me over the wall in the courtyard. Lumen was surprised. She may have orchestrated the first attack on me, but not that one. Not this.
“Look, we have Parrish back,” I start, reaching out and taking his hand in mine. He narrows his eyes at me, but the edge of his mouth lifts in a slight smile. Every time I look at him, I’m reminded that we almost lost him, that he almost died, that I might never have held his hand like this ever again. “But that doesn’t mean this is over. Far from it. Justin will never let me go. Never. The way he looks at me …” I trail off and heave a huge sigh. “We need more clues, and we need more allies.”
Otherwise, I’m going to have to kill him.
That much I know for certain. But I really, really don’t want to think about that right now. Especially not after the day we’ve had.
“And you think Lumen could be this ally?” Maxx asks, quirking a brow. “Kota …”
“We’ve been over this already—more than once,” Chasm says, his lips twisting up in a slight sneer. The movement costs him, and he winces again. Guess I won’t be shrugging for a while, and he won’t be sneering. Too bad. He’s actually pretty cute when he makes that face. “You don’t make friends with people who beat you up.”
“I made friends with you and Parrish,” I quip back, and Chas gives me a flat stare in response. “What? You might not have physically attacked me, but your barbs hurt. Maxx was the only nice one.” He snorts at me, and I can see that we’re making progress. “Can you guys try to trust me on this one? I have good instincts: I promise.”
“If you’re wrong about this, I’m keeping you on a leash,” Parrish grumbles, dragging me along behind him. He pauses after a few steps to glance back at Maxx. “Actually, you’re the expert here: tell us where to go.”
“Any new cameras installed since I graduated?” X asks, but Chasm’s already shaking his head.
“Nope. Lead the way, Fred,” he says, and then pauses. “Or George. Either way, you know how to sneak around this place better than anyone.”
I grin at the Harry Potter reference as Maxx takes the lead.
He escorts us to the library and then winds us through the shelves in a roundabout pattern before pausing next to a large window. With a grunt, he shoves it up and out of the way, pushes the screen loose, and then climbs through. He reaches back a hand to help me out, and I take it, a thrill traveling through me as I think back to Friday night. He offered his hand then, and it ended up with us finding Parrish.
I’m taking this as a good sign, I think, hopping down and then cringing as pain ripples through my body. I’m going to be hurting for days, at the very least.
Parrish climbs out next, offering a hand for Chasm which he refuses to take. He jumps down and stumbles a bit, catching himself and swiping his palms on his blazer like he totally meant to do that.
“You’re a macho douche sometimes,” I mumble, and he smirks at me.
“Yeah, but you like it, so I guess that’s working out for me?” Chasm saunters past, and Parrish’s eyes track his movement before dropping to mine. He’s starting to see the relationship that I’ve built with Chas over the past few weeks, with X. But I can’t hide it. I won’t. That’d be a lie. I don’t know how we’re going to wo
rk this out, but I know that we will. The four of us make a good team.
Maxx guides us through the grass, heading diagonally toward the rear of the maze where the woods meet up with the manicured lawns. He abruptly changes course, making a hard right, and then drops down to crawl through a small, almost unnoticeable hole carved into the underside of the dense hedges.
I follow after him with Chasm and Parrish on my heels.
As soon as I emerge on the other side, I see Lumen.
She’s alone, dressed in her Whitehall uniform, and pacing a rut in the grass.
She pauses when she hears us, glancing over her shoulder, brown eyes widening. Maxx helps me to my feet as Lumen struggles to control her facial expression, twisting it into something wicked.
“Did you bring your phones?” she snaps, tossing her honeyed hair over one shoulder. “Want to film yourselves kicking my ass? It’d be a nice companion video to the one Veronica made earlier today.”
X actually moves forward like he might retaliate, and I grab onto his bicep.
“We don’t have our phones; you’re safe,” I say as Parrish and Chasm join us. Lumen’s gaze finds Parrish’s right away, and they end up staring at each other for an inordinate amount of time.
“I hear that we’ve been fucking since sophomore year?” Parrish asks with a caustic bite to his voice, and Lumen cringes. “Hilarious, considering we’ve never even kissed.”
“I’m sorry,” she groans, putting her hands over her face. “I’m so sorry. To all of you.” She drops her hands down and looks at me with such a pained expression that my heart breaks. “I didn’t want to do any of this. I didn’t have a choice.”
My breath catches at the rawness in her words … but none of the boys seem convinced.
“Pray tell, what would spur you into beating the shit out of my girlfriend?” Parrish asks dryly as Lumen looks him over like a ghost risen from the grave.
“I can’t believe you’re still alive,” she mumbles, and he grits his teeth.
“Speak up and quick. My patience is running thin.” He crosses his arms and stares her down as she ruffles up her blond hair and sucks in a huge breath.
Payback Princess (Lost Daughter of a Serial Killer Book 2) Page 59
