by JA Huss
We are all quiet the rest of the drive back into the neighborhood. Ivy gets interested in the quaint downtown, but she doesn’t say anything else.
When I pull up in front of the Milkshake Mansion, she claps her hands together in glee.
“What the fuck is that?” Nolan asks, craning his neck towards the window so he can see the monstrous Santa Claus in the front yard.
I roll my eyes as I cut the engine. “Don’t ask, man. It’s a long story.”
We all pile out of the car. Nolan wrestles with the suitcases in the back seat while I get the last one out of the trunk. And then we open the picket-fence gate and walk up the path to the massive front porch. It takes us another minute to force the luggage into compliance at the top of the stairs.
I raise my hand to knock on the door, but it opens before I can even make contact.
Ariel is there, coffee cup in hand. Still in her Denver Broncos pajamas, smiling like she ate a canary.
“What?” I ask, pushing past her as I drag a suitcase behind me.
And then I see why she’s smiling.
Because Katya is sitting at the kitchen table with a coffee cup in her hand too. She smiles at me.
“Your friend stopped by, Oliver. Says she’s an old friend. Says the two of you just hooked up for the first time in many years last night. Says you have quite a history together.”
I look at Ivy. Then Nolan.
I am fucking busted.
Chapter Eighteen - KATYA
I stare at Oliver. This is the moment of truth. “Hey,” I say, unsure how he’s gonna react to me being here at his sister’s house.
“What the f—” He scrubs a hand down his face and takes a breath before starting again. “What are you doing here, Kat?”
I set my coffee cup down and stand up from the table. “After you left I had to go home. My sister comes by in the mornings and we have coffee…”
“Katya?” Oliver asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“Anyway, I was sitting there in the coffee shop just shooting the shit with her, and the news came on.” I look at all the men standing there. Mr. Perfect and Ellie. The newly arrived Mr. Romantic and Ivy. Mr. Corporate and Victoria, who scares the shit out of me, if I’m being honest. Because she’s looking at me like I’m bad news, man. Bad news. And Mr. Mysterious and Oliver’s baby sister, Cindy.
They are all here. Just like they’re supposed to be.
“And some news show had footage of this mob shootout back in Brooklyn about a month ago. And then they were flashing images of you—” I point to Mr. Romantic. “Your hotel or whatever, out in California. And they linked that to some shooting on Martha’s Vineyard.”
“Fuck,” Mysterious says, wiping a hand down his face and walking over to the bar.. We all watch him grab a bottle off the top shelf and pour himself a drink.
“And I’m starting to get the feeling that all these things are connected.”
“Why do you care?” Ariel asks. “Not to be a bitch—” But let’s be real here, Ariel Shrike is a major bitch. She’s definitely part of the leadership of whatever these people have going on. “But why would you suddenly appear in my brother’s life after…” She looks at Oliver. “How many years, Oliver?”
“Four,” he says. His tone is low and sad.
“Four years?” Ariel asks. “And you come back, all this shit is going down, and now you’ve suddenly decided that you have all the answers. I find it highly suspicious.”
“I agree,” Victoria says.
“What the fuck is happening?” Ivy asks. “Is she one of them?”
“One of who?” I ask.
“Don’t play coy with us,” Ellie says. “Why are you here and what do you want?”
“You guys,” Oliver says, interrupting.
But Mr. Corporate puts up a hand and looks straight at Oliver. “Let her talk, Oliver. I have a feeling I know where this is going.”
I squint my eyes at him.
“I know you,” he says to me. “I’ve seen your face before.”
He cannot possibly remember…
“You were…”
“Holy fuck,” Victoria Arias says. And I see the recognition in her eyes. “You were there,” she says, pointing at me. “You were there at Hederman’s Bar having lunch when that whole thing went down with Lucio Gori Junior.”
“I never had a chance to thank you,” I say, looking Victoria Arias straight in the face.
“Thank me for what?” she snaps.
“For getting rid of the asshole who did this to my neck.” And then I pull the collar of my hoodie down and reveal the scar across my throat.
Chapter Nineteen - OLIVER
She’s lying. I’m not sure about which part of that story rings false, exactly. But Kat is lying. I join Pax over at the bar and he hands me the drink he was just about to pour down his throat, and makes another one.
I down it in one gulp.
She’s lying. She’s fucking lying.
“What?” Ellie and Ivy are on their feet, trying to get a closer look. I glance over at Corporate and I read him like a book. He’s staring at her like… like she’s lying. He notices me and shakes his head.
“Hey, West?” Pax asks. “Can I see you for a second?” I watch Kat’s expression. “Outside?” Pax adds. And even though Kat should be focused on Ivy and Ellie, both of whom are asking a million questions about that scar on her neck, she’s looking at Corporate.
She’s lying. And it has something to do with West’s comment about recognizing her.
“Oliver?” Pax calls as he and West make for the door. “Come here for a second.”
Katya’s attention suddenly turns to me. “Be right back,” I say, following West and Pax out the back door.
When we’re safely behind the garage Pax says, “OK, Corporate, spill. What the fuck is happening here? Obviously Oliver is keeping secrets and can’t be trusted, so just get it out.”
I don’t even protest. Because I was keeping secrets.
“I know her, man. I’ve seen her at my house.”
“What fucking house?” Pax asks.
“My parents’ house.”
We stare at West.
“When?” Pax asks.
“Long time ago. Years.”
“How many years?” I ask, my voice low.
“Ten? Before the shit went down.”
“She’s only twenty-two, West—”
“I know. She was just a little girl. But I know it was her. I know it. My mom introduced us.”
Pax sighs loudly. “Why the fuck would your mother introduce you to an eleven-year-old girl?”
“You don’t even want to know.”
I grab West by the shirt collar and pull his face right up next to mine. “I really do, Corporate. I really fucking do.”
West shoves me in the chest, making me let go of his shirt. “What the fuck, asshole? Don’t kill the messenger, you dick. It’s not my fault her parents were scum.”
“If her parents were scum, why were they at your house?” Pax asks.
“Because—” Tori is leaning on the side of the garage only a few feet away. “They tried to arrange a marriage. Didn’t they, Weston?”
“What?” Pax asks.
“I recognize her too,” Tori says. “And not just from the bar. She was one of us.”
“Us?” I ask.
“Gori’s girls.”
I might be sick. How did we get here?
“I asked you straight up,” Nolan says, coming around the corner like he’s gonna kick my ass. “Straight the fuck up if you had anyone back from the past and you lied, you motherfucking dick. I left my home and came here, with my pregnant wife, because you assholes said it was safe. And now what do I find out? You delivered me to the fucking devil. Like a goddamned gift.”
“Just hold on,” Mac says, suddenly between me and Nolan. “Come on, OK?” He’s looking at Nolan.
“Did you leave my wife in there alone with that Silver bitch?” Nolan a
sks Mac.
“Ariel’s in there,” Tori says. “She’s fine.”
“Just hold up, you guys,” I say, trying to calm everyone down. “She’s not part of the Silver Society.”
“How the fuck do you know?” Tori asks. “I mean, really, Oliver. How the fuck do you know that?”
I take a deep breath and let it out. “I just do.” I really want to tell them the rest. All of it. But I haven’t even told Katya yet and shouldn’t she be the first to know what I’ve been doing? What my part is in all this?
“Great,” Nolan says, throwing up his hand. “He just does. I’m so glad we got that sorted. Mr. Match says it’s true, so it must be true.”
“Oliver,” Pax says calmly. “I get it. You must like this girl or you wouldn’t keep her a secret. But we have to be practical here. She’s your… your ghost.”
“Ghost?” I laugh.
“Ariel made the word up last week. Whatever you want to call her, she’s it.”
“So Ellie’s your ghost?” I ask Mac. “And Ivy is yours? And Tori is yours? And Cindy?” I laugh as I look at Pax. “They’re not the enemy, you assholes. None of the girls are the enemy. And besides, only Tori and Katya were girls from the past.”
“Exactly, Oliver,” Victoria says. “God, you are so stupid. I was one of those Gori girls, but I escaped. She didn’t escape.”
“She did,” I say. “You don’t know anything about her.”
“Neither do you,” Tori snaps back.
“I know a helluva lot more than you do. Which makes me the expert.”
“I want your story,” Nolan says.
“What—”
“Don’t play with me, Shrike,” Nolan says. “I’m not in the mood. I want to know what you were doing that night all the shit hit the fan back in college ten years ago, and I want to know it right now.”
“I’d like to know that myself,” Mac adds. “I’d like to know why you took the heat for Allen-slash-Brutus that night, Oliver. Because you and I both know he was there when that girl was and you weren’t. You didn’t show up until later.”
Fuck. I expected this. I knew I’d have to give them something. But I’m definitely not ready to do that now.
“Come on,” Pax says, putting a friendly hand on my shoulder. “It’s time, Oliver. It’s time to come clean. Just tell us what happened that night. You have to be the final piece of the puzzle.”
I look at Pax. Then Mac. Then West and finally my gaze lands on Nolan. “I saw my sister that night.”
“Cindy?” Tori asks.
“No,” I say, looking straight at Pax. “Rory.”
“I thought she was dead?” Tori asks.
“So did I. But I saw her. I know I saw her. Allen was there and he was being weird. I mean, the guy was weird. I think we can all agree on that. No one in the house liked him. But the girl disappeared in a crowd. And Allen, for whatever reason, was stuck to me while I searched. Like he was helping… but he wasn’t helping. Like he was watching me.”
“I’m not really following,” Mac says. “What’s this have to do with telling the police you were there instead of Allen?”
I look at each of them. Wondering what they’ll think of me when the whole truth comes out. Then decide I have no choice because there’s no denying what’s happening right now. The Silver Society are coming for us. We are in the middle of the game and the only way out that doesn’t include lots and lots of prison time is winning.
“I think that was Rory. I’m gonna say that right now. But I don’t think she was there for me.”
“Why was she there?” Tori asks.
“I don’t know.” I really don’t know. “But Allen was there, and he saw me, and he said, ‘The cops are gonna show up later. You’re gonna say you were with her.’ And before you ask me who ‘her’ is, I can only guess it was the girl who made the accusations. But in my head I kinda associated it with Rory. ‘I was with Rory.’ Allen continued. He said, ‘They will be looking for five people and you’re one of them, Shrike. Because if I end up being one of them, that girl you just saw is dead for real.’”
“And you agreed,” Pax says.
I nod. “I didn’t even know what was going on. The cops came up to me and started asking if I was with her. And I just said, ‘Yeah.’ That’s the only thing I ever said to them. ‘Yeah. I was with her.’”
Chapter Twenty - KATYA
“So,” Ariel says, taking a seat at the kitchen table next to me.
“So,” I say back.
“You’re kinda young,” Ivy says.
“Right?” Cindy laughs. “Wow, I’m so glad you’re practically jailbait.”
“Cindy,” Ariel says, a note of irritation in her voice.
“What? I’m tired of being around all you old people. And Ivy’s preggo, so she’s no fun. No offense, Ivy.”
“I get it,” Ivy says, taking the seat across from me.
I’m starting to feel a little cornered. I didn’t think they’d be so intimidating.
“I’m sensing that there’s more to your story here. Kat, is it? Oliver likes to call you Kat?”
“Kat is fine,” I say, straightening my spine. “And yeah. I mean what’s happened to me in the past eleven years can’t be summed up in one conversation. Obviously.”
“Uh-huh,” Ariel says.
“Stop it, Ari.” Cindy is pointing her finger at her sister. “I mean it. She came to us for help. Don’t chase her away.”
Ariel barely acknowledges Cindy. Instead she looks me straight in the eyes. “Is that why you came? For help? You think… what? We’re all in this together?”
“We could be,” I say.
“Uh-huh,” she says again. “Lucio Gori Junior. He did that to your neck.”
“It’s awful,” Ivy says. “I can’t even imagine. I’m really not used to all this excitement. I’m just a boring girl who decided to seduce Mr. Romantic one day. So, honey”—she reaches across the table and takes my hand in hers, gives it a squeeze—“if you need help I’m on your side.”
Well, that’s nice. “Thank you,” I say.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Ivy.” We all turn to look at Ariel. “She’s Oliver’s ghost.”
“I’m not a ghost. I’m an ex… girlfriend.”
Ariel screws up her face. “Oliver doesn’t have girlfriends.”
“Well, we dated for like six months four years ago. I think that counts.”
“Oh, my God,” Ivy says, counting on her fingers. “Were you underage? That’s kinda hot.”
“It’s stupid, is what it is,” Ariel says. “Like my brother needs that kind of attention?”
“He’s my brother too,” Cindy says. “I think it’s hot. I started stalking Paxton when I was thirteen.”
“You’re sick,” Ariel says.
Cindy just nods her head. “Damn right. And he’s just as sick as me. We’re peas in a pod.”
“I just think it proves how much Oliver likes her,” Ivy says. “I mean, to take a risk like that? After… you know.” She sighs and closes her eyes for a moment before opening them back up and saying, “Nolan took a risk like that for me too. I think it’s sweet.”
“Mac took a risk with me too.” Ellie was looking out the front window during this conversation. Like she was lost in thought. But now she comes over to the table. “And really, if any of us are a ghost, it’s probably Tori. Her and West’s story. Jesus. Talk about drama.”
“I don’t think it’s sweet,” Ariel says. “I think they’re a bunch of dumbasses who think with their cocks.”
“That too,” Cindy says. “But they’re our cock-thinking dumbasses.”
“Welp,” Ellie says. “We might as well get started on the plan while we wait for Tori to come back inside.”
“She’s not part of the plan,” Ariel says.
“Oh, I think she is,” Ellie says. “If she knew Lucio Gori Junior, then she knows Lucio Gori Senior, Ariel. She can be the bait.”
“Bait?” I ask.
“Not really,” I say, letting the answer come out without thinking.
“See,” Ellie says, taking the seat next to Ariel at the table and folding her hands in her lap. “She’s perfect. She’s exactly who we need.”
Ariel sighs, still staring at me. “I don’t trust you.”
I stand up. “Look… maybe it was a mistake to come here. Just tell Oliver I had to go to work. And I need a day to myself to think.”
Cindy grabs my arm so quick, I startle. “Sorry,” she says, letting go. “But wait. You can’t just walk out now. My sister isn’t someone who trusts people easily, that’s all. Meet us tomorrow. We can all have a good long think and then see the situation with new eyes.”
“Good idea,” Ivy says. “I’m sure whatever the men are doing outside will require a nice long think as well. At the very least we need enough time to stop them from going forward with whatever stupid plan they come up with next.”
“Ain’t that the truth.” Ellie laughs. She looks at me. “We’ve decided to cut them out of this little problem we find ourselves in and take the reins.”
“Men.” Cindy sighs. “They really are a bunch of cock-thinking dumbasses.”
I consider their offer for a second. It would be nice to have people on my side. And these girls all seem capable in their own ways. I mean, five more people to help me dig my way out of this fucking hole I’m in? How could I say no to that?
“OK,” I say. “I’ll meet you tomorrow.”
“We can have coffee at the theater,” Ariel says.
“How about we don’t go to the FoCo Theater?” Cindy says. “The last thing we need is Sparrow sticking her nose into things.”
Everyone looks at Ariel for an answer. “Fine. We have an old building on Mason Street just behind Shrike Bikes. My dad’s been renovating it for years, but he hardly ever goes over there. And he’s so busy preparing for the Zombie Run this weekend, he won’t be there tomorrow for sure. How about noon?”
