Thirty-Two
The Backyard That Looked Absolutely Stunning
Chloe spent the evening at a dinner party her parents were throwing for some city officials. She had grown used to pretending to listen and smile at these things if she didn’t want her father to come to her after it was over. On the inside, though, she was keeping her mind elsewhere, thinking about her encounter with Amo earlier. This time, when she thought of him, no thoughts of the devil came to her, and his dark eyes no longer reminded her of evil black ones.
Elle had been her only friend in years, yet within a week, she felt like she might have gained new ones in Nero, Amo, and Vincent. Yes, it scared her—they scared her—but they were also the best things to happen to Elle and her since their high school year had started. Now all that needed to happen was for Elle to take Nero back.
It was hard for her to believe he had gone out on her, especially after today when he had done nothing but follow them around a few feet back, making sure they were okay. Something was nagging at the back of her mind that it hadn’t been what it had looked like. He’s clearly in love with her …
Excusing herself with her father’s permission, she went to take a break from it all to get a moment’s peace and recharge.
Rinnng.
Chloe answered her cell the moment she saw Elle’s name. It was going to help her get a distraction.
“Hey.”
A male voice came over, instead. “Hey, Chloe.”
“Nero?” Immediately, her nerves were shot. Something wasn’t right.
“Elle is fine”—he cleared his throat—“but she was attacked on the way to work. I got her to my house where my doctor is taking care of her. She just suffered a concussion and needs to be monitored through the night.”
“I-I—” It was hard for her to even think.
“I promise you she will be okay. I was hoping you would cover for her and tell her parents she is spending the night with yo—”
“I want to see her.”
Nero paused. “Okay, I’ll send you the address.”
Chloe hung up then ran through the house to grab her keys. She slipped out the house, hoping no one would notice her disappearance. It didn’t matter to her if they did or if her father would take it out on her; she had to make sure Elle was okay.
When will it all stop? When will Elle quit getting hurt? When will we just be free?
The house looked immaculate as she went up to the door. If it weren’t for Elle being there, she wouldn’t have been able to do this.
Lightly, she knocked on the door, not expecting the person on the other side.
“W-why are you here?”
Amo practically took up the whole doorframe until he moved out of the way for her to come in. “I came to make sure Elle was okay. Vincent came, too.”
Chloe slowly entered, careful to squeeze by Amo. When the door came to a close behind her, her heart stuttered.
“You can wait in the other room for her. She’ll be down in a minute.”
As she looked around the impressive foyer, the grand, wrought-iron staircase stood out the most.
“I’ll wait here.” She couldn’t help wringing her hands. Worrying about Elle was the only thing she could do on the way over. Not only was she already nervous, but she wanted to be here when she came down.
It’s all my fault. The only reason Elle ever got hurt was because of her. If she hadn’t needed her as a shield at school, she would be in public school and wouldn’t be working in a diner downtown. She’d be… safe.
Nodding his head, Amo looked like he was about to head off, but then he stopped.
“I promise you, Chloe, she’s going to be fine. We won’t let her or you get hurt anymore.”
Her heart tugged at that moment as she looked into his eyes. She could tell he meant every word.
“Thank you, Amo.”
This time, after he nodded, he left the room and her to her thoughts.
Nero came down the stairs soon after, nodding his head at her just like Amo had done before leaving the room.
Finally, when Elle came down the huge staircase, a little part of her calmed. She looked okay considering what had happened. Then again, Elle was tough and unfortunately used to these things.
Elle quickly noticed her attire of a black, long-sleeved, Peplum dress with black tights and heels. “You didn’t leave until it was over, did you?”
Chloe could see the look on Elle’s face, showing she was worried that her father was going to make her pay for it. Wanting so badly to lie, she knew there wasn’t much of a point because Elle could always tell. Solemnly, she shook her head.
“I’m okay. Thankfully, Nero was there, and that’s all that matters.” Elle smiled, letting her know she really was all right.
Still unable to find words, she nodded.
Elle decided changing the subject might help. “Do you think Mom will believe I’m spending the night over at your house?”
“I-I don’t know.”
“What about if I told her we have a project due tomorrow?”
Chloe could feel the tension start to leave her body. “It might work.”
“Come in here a second.” Nero’s loud voice echoed throughout the house.
His yelling certainly broke the tension between them. Looking at each other, they wanted to laugh at the fact that Nero had decided to yell then just to tell them to come here.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to relax. She’s safe now.
Chloe spent the rest of the evening with Elle at Nero’s house. They were introduced to Maria, Nero’s sister who was in college. She was surprisingly really nice and drop dead gorgeous. They weren’t exactly used to being around a girl who didn’t want to kill them, so it took a bit for Chloe to warm up enough to talk to her.
Not knowing whether it was the dinner party from before or the new environment of being at Nero’s house, Chloe desperately needed to take a breather. The second she had entered the spacious living room, she had seen a hint of the backyard that looked absolutely stunning. It called to her, made her itch to want to see it for an unknown reason.
“Do you think Nero would mind if I walked out there?” she asked, deciding to take the opportunity of the pizzas arriving for distraction.
“No, he shouldn’t.” Elle knew that was the only way she would survive any social function. “Go on.” She smiled in encouragement.
Chloe walked to the back door and placed her hand on the doorknob. She had been waiting for this all night. Quietly, she slipped out, closing the door behind her. Then, turning around, her breath was taken away by the sight.
There was only one word to describe it: magical.
Thirty-Three
He Was No Man. He Was the Boogieman
Present Day
The smell of him was what woke her from her long slumber. She hadn’t awakened once, still covering herself and clutching Amo’s jacket throughout the night. It was the best sleep she had gotten in years, making her wonder if his jacket had …
She sat up quickly and pulled the material away from her body, placing it on her bed. She found herself staring at it for several minutes, trying to fully remember how she had ended up with it.
The sleepy daze wore off, directing her eyes to her blank white wall, bringing the memory of last night alive …
Pop. Pop.
The quietest gunshot greeted her ears, trailed by a door squeaking open.
Stay still, little girl …
Mind going blank, she had no recollection of how she had ended up in the bathtub.
Elle’s crying voice seemed so far away as she got in the tub beside her. “Nero, someone’s h-here. I think they have a gun.”
Or it’ll just hurt worse…
The sound of the door breaking in was the last sound she thought she was ever going to hear.
I’ve come for you …
Crack.
The sound of broken bones greeted her ears as a baseball bat slammed down onto a lim
p body.
Snap.
Another flash of the bat making contact with the man’s leg, the man who lay practically lifeless on the floor.
He raised the bat once more, pausing only to look her in the eyes. An evil pair of blue-green eyes stared back at her, making her blood run cold. She watched his hands grip the neck of the bat with a force so intense she was positive it was going to shatter before the bat was brought down for its final time.
Crunch.
As she watched the man inhale the air around him, he looked crazed, his appearance disheveled. Then he slicked his overgrown hair back in place, and you could see the slight smile come to his lips.
“Chloe,” Amo’s voice quietly appeared, trying to bring her back. His jacket was carefully draped over her shoulders after he managed to talk her out of the bathroom. “Let’s get you home.”
Coming closer to the evil, blue-green eyes, she gripped the jacket for dear life.
Violence calmed the man before her. He lived off torture, feeding himself by causing pain to others. He had wanted her to see him, see what he was capable of, see who he truly was.
Lucca was his name, but he was no man.
He was the boogieman.
She had only witnessed that in one other being in her life: the devil.
Thirty-Four
When I Leave
After that day, it brought back too many memories, and she then found herself in the same haunting place after she had been kidnapped in freshman year. Since then, she only ever hung out with Elle and Amo. And throughout the summer, she had found herself decreasing the amount she spent with them… More… And more…
It’s going to make it easier on them… for when I leave.
Thirty-Five
When You’re Sitting In California, and I’m Missing You
“Chloe, please! Just one dance!” Elle yelled at her over the blasting music.
Chloe violently shook her head as she sat uncomfortably at the high top table with the loud-ass music in her ears. She wondered how in the world she had let Elle talk her into coming to Poison on her birthday.
“You promised me you would go out for your birthday!”
Oh, yeah, I did. She guilt me into it.
Vincent’s girlfriend, Lake—yes, the world is still on its axis—screamed over the music. “Come on, Chloe, you ditched us practically all summer!”
That wasn’t completely true; she just didn’t hang out with them all at once anymore, especially at Nero and Vincent’s new apartments downtown. The last time she had hung out with them there, a gunman had almost killed them.
“Go dance. I’ll be fine!” Chloe yelled at them. This place wasn’t for a girl like her.
She watched her friends roll their eyes before they grabbed their boyfriends up and took them to the dancefloor.
Watching Elle with Nero, she finally found a sort of peace within a part of her. She had hated herself so much for so long over how she had treated Elle. Chloe would never forgive herself for it, but the one thing she had done right was that she had always rooted for Nero. After all these years of Elle being a hero, it was time she found someone to be her armor.
Elle never needed a hero. Elle would never quit being one, either. But what she did need was help. Every great hero needed some type of shield to protect them. Nero was her perfect match, and that was one thing Chloe had seen from day one.
She’s going to be happier without me.
Whereas Elle was the hero saving her day in and day out, Chloe was the weak, little victim who only brought pain to her. Chloe was still broken beyond repair, and as long as she stayed here, Elle would continue to try to fix her.
For once in her life, she needed to be the hero for Elle so she could live a life free of Chloe. And for once, she needed to be the hero for herself and leave her family and this city behind with all its bad memories so she could find peace.
Amo came up behind her, setting a bottle of water down in front of her. “You’ll regret it, you know.”
“Regret what?” She smiled at him, pretending to be happy.
Amo scooted in as close to her as he could without touching her so she could hear him. “When you’re sitting in California, missing Elle, you’ll regret that you didn’t go dance with her once.”
Looking back at her best friend, she saw that Elle looked so free.
“She looks happy right now. I’ll always remember watching her dance, and that’s good enough for me.”
The next song was louder than the last, making Amo lean down to whisper in her ear. “Will you dance with me, then?”
His breath was warm as it touched her skin, his body just a few inches away. It was the closest he had ever been to her, making the hairs stand up on the back of her neck.
“When you’re sitting in California, and I’m missing you, I’ll regret that I didn’t get to dance with you once.”
Chloe looked over into his dark eyes that carried a hidden sparkle and felt a tug at her heart. Amo had managed to crawl his way into a place in her heart in such a short amount of time of being friends. He never failed to make her laugh; he always tried to make her as comfortable as possible; and the best part about him was he never forced her to tell him anything. He accepted her for who she was and didn’t want her to meet her demons, always making sure she was as happy as she could be with him.
Amo moved just an inch closer. “Please … for me?”
She didn’t know how to say no to him in that moment, didn’t know how she could possibly turn down something that looked so meaningful to him. I’ll regret it, too.
Before she could change her mind, she nodded. The look that crossed his face would be what she always remembered every time she thought of him.
Standing up, Amo led the way. Thankfully, it was almost closing time, so everyone was mostly gone, and the dancefloor had plenty of space for her.
“Yay!” Elle yelled when she nervously joined them on the dancefloor.
Saying she was nervous was an understatement as she awkwardly tried to dance with them. When she looked ready to walk off, Amo’s pleading eyes were the only things that kept her in place.
Come on, this is one of the last times you get to have fun with them. She pepped talked herself into trying again and made herself try to let go for one night. Finally, when they all started dancing silly like you would see at a wedding, she relaxed enough to get into it.
It was honestly the most fun she had ever had, enjoying every second of them collectively singing horribly and dancing ridiculously.
“This is the last song of the night!” the DJ came over the microphone after a song ended.
“Boo!” They all called out, not wanting it to end.
As they danced to the last song, Nero pulled Elle in closer while Vincent pulled Lake in closer for a final dance. Chloe was tired and about to walk off to go retrieve her water, but Amo stopped her.
“It’s the last one, and I want my own dance to remember when you’re at Stanford.” He came in closer to her.
I really wish he would quit saying that. She couldn’t say no to him whenever he did that.
The adrenaline from dancing was still pumping through her, so she stayed to finish the final dance. Trying her best to dance one on one with him was hard, though, considering they weren’t touching each other.
Amo got in closer to her, putting very little space between them, turning the dance serious. Chloe’s heart pumped so hard she thought it was going to come out of her chest. Somehow, though, she managed to sway her hips to the beat.
Staring up at him, she saw something different come alive in him. It looked like Amo was going to come in closer … But then the music stopped.
“I knew you could do it. Wasn’t that so much fun, Chloe!” Elle interrupted whatever was happening between them, and it wasn’t hard to miss the unhappy reaction from Amo.
Heart still pumping, she looked over to Elle, hopefully managing some sort of a smile. “Yeah, that was fun.”
&
nbsp; Leaving the lounge, Chloe said her good-byes to Elle, Nero, Lake, and Vincent as they wished her a final happy birthday.
“I’ll walk you to your car,” Amo told her when she went to say good-bye to him.
“Okay.” Her voice sounded breathy from all the dancing.
Walking to her car together, she could feel the tension build again between them until she reached her car.
“Thank you for dancing with me.” He looked down at her, grinning. “You’re not so bad.”
Chloe couldn’t help laughing. “Oh, thanks. You weren’t as terrible as I thought you would be, either.”
He laughed back. “Well, I had fun, and when you leave me to go to Stanford—”
“I am not leaving you. Don’t say it like that!”
Amo stepped in closer to her. “So you’re not leaving, then?”
“Well …” She thought about her words carefully. “Yes, but it’s not like I want to.”
“Then don’t.”
“You know I have to, Amo …” He makes it sound so easy. “What I meant was that I don’t want to leave Elle …” Her voice trailed off to find the courage for her next words. “Or you.”
His tall frame leaned down to meet her short one. “Are you going to miss me?”
With his face so close to hers, she felt her heart begin to pound again. It took her a minute to find the words, and when she did, they came out breathy again. “Of course.”
All she could hear was the pounding of her heart getting louder and louder in her ears.
Unable to pull her eyes away, she realized what she had seen in them on the dancefloor: hunger.
Amo’s face came slowly closer to hers, and the pounding only grew louder, faster as she held her breath. His lips were so close to hers, yet right before they came crashing down, Chloe found her breath and turned her face away.
Chloe (Made Men #3) Page 13
