I squeeze my eyes shut, crying out, and Ayden lifts me over his lap to his other side, trying to shield me.
“Hiding her won’t protect either of you. Once I put a bullet in your head, I’ll put one in hers. Scratch that, first I’ll test out that tight little pussy of hers, and then I’ll put a bullet between her eyes.” Muz doesn’t look like he is bluffing. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone look more convincing in my life. “There are a few lines there for the both of you, have them, or eat lead brother.”
Ayden’s chest is rising and falling quickly, his heavy breathing filling the room. He’s scared, and there’s no way out.
“Okay, okay. I’ll have some… um, sugar?” Muz chuckles at my obvious lack of drug knowledge, but it doesn’t deter me, and I move to stand to get it over and done with. What’s the worst that can happen? I get high and stop feeling so scared? Maybe I have fun? Or perhaps it kills me. If that’s the case, I think I’d prefer to die from the drugs rather than the bullet Muz has in his gun for me.
“No!” Ayden’s hand shoots out, pulling me back down. His shout quietens the room, and Muz raises his brows.
“No?”
“Leave her out of this man. She has a medical condition. This shit might kill her.” Ayden’s lie sounds convincing, but Muz doesn’t give two shits. He takes a moment to consider Ayden’s words.
“Either you both have two lines each, or you have all four yourself.”
Ayden stills, having a stare-off with Muz.
I pull at his sleeve, “Ayden, it's fine. I’ll just do it.”
He spins to glare at me, “Like fuck you will!”
Ayden stands, taking a few steps towards the coffee table, and falls to his knees, looking down at the white powder in front of him. I have no idea what’s going through his head, but I know doing this will kill him on the inside. We haven’t spoken much about the addiction he had before coming to Fox Pines, but I can see how torn he is right now, and my heart breaks into a million pieces for him.
I stand abruptly, “Ayden, I’ll have some too!”
Ayden doesn’t look at me but takes a deep breath in, his eyes still locked on the white lines of whatever the hell it is on the tray. He shakes his head, his hands clasping tight onto the sides of the coffee table, turning his knuckles white.
He speaks then, at first I don’t think it’s him because the voice is in a tone that I don’t recognise. “Butch, take my girl outside.”
“What?” I cry and go to step towards Ayden.
Muz turns the gun back on me, and I freeze in place as a big guy that looks like a bouncer steps up to me from the side of the room, looking down at me, oozing all sorts of scary.
“Go with Butch, Lexi.” Ayden’s voice is flat—defeated.
The big guy, Butch, grabs my upper arm and leads me towards the doors. I try to pull away, but this guy is like a brick wall, and I can’t budge free from his hold.
As he forcefully pulls me out the door, I turn back in time to see Ayden throw his head back, his eyes rolling into the back of his head in ecstasy, his beautiful nose coated in white powder.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Rough hands push me through the back door into a large courtyard. When I turn to go back inside, a massive wall of scary arse Butch stands in the way glaring at me with his arms folded over his chest.
Arsehole!
I want to cry and scream in panic and frustration. Why did Ayden do that? Why did he turn to ice and have me kicked out? Okay, so I get it. He’s trying to protect me, I know that, but it doesn’t mean I’m not pissed at him for treating me like that. Now I’m outside in the backyard of the house party, a party that I don’t know another single soul, while he is in that room snorting drugs up his beautiful nose.
Four lines! Four fucking lines! That’s a lot. I’m almost positive it’s too much. FUCK!
I gag. This time I know I’m going to be sick. Turning, I rush towards the bushes by the back door, heaving uncontrollably as I throw up. A deep rumble comes from Butch as he says something like “disgusting bitch” before stepping back into the house and closing the door. There aren’t many people back here, but there is enough to fill me with embarrassment as I try to control the horrendous act of throwing up in public. No one comes to my aid, and when I finally finish, I make sure my mouth is clean by using the only thing I can, my sleeve. Ew!
I need to get Ayden out of here! I need to find a way back inside so I can get to my guy. Looking around, I notice the courtyard wraps around the east side of the house, so I follow the yard around to the un-lit area. An eight-foot brick wall lines this side of the yard, which joins on to the garage. Squinting through the shadows, I make out a small access door into the garage. Bingo!
Rushing forward, I turn the handle and internally do a happy dance when I find the door unlocked. Moving quickly into the dark garage, I follow the light spilling from under another door. I move without thinking of anything but getting to Ayden. What if four lines is too much, and he overdoses and dies?
Fuck that! He’s not leaving me, goddamn it! Not when I just found him!
The door opens into a butler’s pantry lined with shelves of alcohol, and I swipe a bottle of vodka on my way through to use as a weapon, or maybe just to blend in with the others partying inside. Entering the kitchen, I see Butch’s broad back over by the door he pushed me out of. He’s talking with a few girls, one of whom is rubbing herself up against him like she’s a damn cat. Good work, catgirl, distract him for me!
Heading in the opposite direction of Butch, I end up in the party's eye. The music is too loud, and sweaty bodies jump and thrash on the makeshift dance floor as I try to push myself through the crowd. After getting nudged and elbowed repeatedly, I manage to weave my way through to the other side. Peering around the corner that leads to the room I left Ayden in, I see it’s not going to be so easy to get back in as there’s another man standing guard by the door. My heart sinks. How am I ever going to get back in that room to Ayden?
I need help. I can’t do this by myself. I reach for my back pocket, finding it empty. Fuck! Muz took my phone. The last I saw of it was in the glove compartment of his car. I need to get my phone. If I can get someone to come and help me, then Ayden should be okay. Right?
The need to get my phone drives me forward, and I push my way through the crowd towards the front door. Once I’m free, I run, still carrying the bottle of vodka in my hand, rushing across the road to the car we arrived in. I tug on the door handle, but it’s locked, of course. Fuck!
Panic and desperation have its claws deep in me now, so I don’t give it a second thought when I throw the bottle of vodka hard at the side window of the car. The bottle shatters, splashing vodka everywhere over the shiny blue car, but unfortunately, the window holds strong, and a few people standing on the front lawn look over at me. Shit, shit, shit. I start crying, feeling helpless, my hands fisting in my hair, a frustrated scream silently lodged in my throat. Think, Lexi, think!
The jagged edge of a rock protruding out of a nearby garden catches my eye. Stepping into the garden of a stranger’s house, I pull the rock out of the bark, testing its weight in my hand. Satisfied that it will do some damage, I turn back to the car and throw it.
The loud sound of the smashing window surprises me, my mind briefly flicking back to the night I broke into the school with Travis. So much has happened between then and now. That night was nearly two weeks ago. Back then, it was just me fighting against the evil in my world, all alone. But my life changed from the day Ayden Mitchell walked into it, and I haven’t been alone since.
The concerned voices of the onlookers remind me of my goal. Moving forward, I nick my arm on the small shards of glass as I reach in through the window and open the glove compartment.
Yes, our phones are still there!
Taking both phones, I bolt over to the other side of the street to stand in the shadows just a few doors down from the party and call Peter. He answers after two rings.
“P-Peter!”
“Lexi? What’s wrong?”
“These guys, they grabbed us. Took us to a party and forced Ayden to do drugs.”
“Christ! Where are you?” Peter’s tone of authority is reassuring, and I know I’ve done the right thing by calling him. Ayden will probably be angry that I called him, but I don’t care. He can be mad all he wants because there’s no way I’m letting him risk his life.
“I don’t know exactly where we are. Somewhere near Brunswick, I think.”
“Can you check your phone map for your location?”
“Oh, yes.” I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. I pull my phone away and open the map app. “I’m going to text it through now. Hang on.” I type in the location and hit send.
“Got it,” Peter confirms a moment later, and then I can hear him speaking to someone else in the background. Andrea, most likely. “Okay, Lexi. Are you with Ayden now?”
“No,” I cry again, “He’s in the house where the party is, in a room in the back. They kicked me out.” I can hear Peter moving as I speak. I hope he can get here quickly.
“Do you know any of the guy’s names that took you?”
“Muz. He’s the main one.”
“Shit!” Peter curses and then relays that to whoever is with him. “Do you know any other names?”
“Uh, a guy called Butch kicked me out. There’s a chick called Candy. I don’t know; I don’t know any others!”
“Lexi Honey, it's Andrea. It will be okay. We are on our way; Peter is using my phone to call reinforcements. We will be there in about fifteen to twenty minutes.”
Hearing Andrea’s voice calms me. She isn’t panicking. Why isn’t she panicking? Her son is in a strange house, snorting drugs!
“You there, Lexi?” Andrea asks.
“Yes, sorry. I’m scared. I need to go back to Ayden, but I’m scared that Muz will shoot me.”
“He has a gun?” Peter’s angry voice comes down the line. I must be on the speaker.
“Yes. He had it pointed at my head. That’s why Ayden snorted the drugs. There were too many lines, though. He wouldn’t let me have any. That’s why they kicked me out.”
“For fuck's sake, I’m going to kill that fucking little bastard!”
“Mr Mitchell, it’s not Ayden’s fault.” Why is he angry at Ayden? I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone as angry as Peter is in this moment. It’s scary as hell. I’ll have to remember never to piss him off.
“I’m not angry at Ayden, Lexi,” Peter growls.
“Peter, calm down. Ringo will make sure Muz pays for this.” Ringo? Who the hell is Andrea talking about now?
“Lexi honey, how many lines of powder did Ayden have?” I realise that Andrea’s calmness is probably because I’m talking to Nurse Andrea right now.
“There were four lines. Muz wanted us to have two each, but Ayden told him I couldn’t have any, and Muz said that Ayden had to have all four if I didn’t have my share.” I choke on a sob, “That’s like a lot, right? Too much?”
“Yeah, honey, it is a lot. Is there any chance you can go back and find him?”
“Andrea, no. You heard what she said. Muz had a gun pointed at her head. Her going back in could set him off.”
“I need eyes on him, Peter. What if he’s overdosing already?”
I’m moving before Andrea has even finished talking, knowing not only that she is right, and I need to be there with him to help him, but I also can’t stand being away from him any longer.
“I have to go, Andrea. I’m going to find him. Once I’m with him, I’ll call you back.”
“Wait! No!”
I hang up on Andrea and storm up the steps of the house. Anger consumes me, taking over my fear and pushing me forward with determination. Fuck this Muz guy and his gun! He will have to shoot me in the head if he wants to stop me from getting to Ayden! I am sick of arseholes trying to control me with violence, trying to make me do things I don’t want to do. No fucking more!
People see me coming and scatter out of the way. I must look like a crazed bitch right now, but I don’t care. I am a crazed bitch, and anyone who gets in my way is going to wish they hadn’t.
Big thoughts from a small girl Lexi! The thought makes me smirk.
Yep, I have lost my mind.
No one is guarding the back room now, so I open the door and burst in. Two guys are lounging on chairs facing Ayden with a look of ecstasy spread across their faces, and Candy is on Ayden’s lap, grinding her arse against him. Bitch!
I see red. Lurching forward, I grab a fistful of her fake blonde hair and pull hard, ripping her off Ayden’s lap with such force that she flies back and crashes into the two guys, sending them all to the floor.
“Stay the fuck away from him!” The roar of my voice is unrecognisable, and I love it. I feel confident power zapping through my veins, and the need to inflict pain on all of these arseholes is at the forefront of my mind. It should scare me at how easily I could cause harm to them without feeling guilty about it. I’m not scared, though, because right in this moment, I’m someone else. Someone dark and twisted and fearless. My chest heaves and my heart is nearly beating through my rib cage, ready to rip free of my body. Strength and madness dominate me, so this Candy bitch better not try to come at me, or shit is going to go down.
“Ouch, you cow that hurt!” Candy stands from the tangle of limbs she’s in, rubbing at the back of her head.
“It wasn’t meant to fucking tickle!” I hiss.
“Leexxxxi baabby.” Ayden slurs, trying to sit forward, but he can’t seem to lift his body. His slurred voice almost breaks the crazy bitch attitude I have going on right now. My poor Ayden.
“I wasn’t going to do anything! I was just giving him a little dance just like Muz told me to.” Candy pleads her case, standing there unaware that her skirt has gathered up around her waist. The guys are still on the floor and are now drooling over the view of her bare arse, which is basically in their faces.
“You can come sit on my cock, Candy,” one idiot says, and they both chuckle like it’s the best joke they’ve ever heard. Dickheads!
“Fuck, Muz!” I growl, “Do you have to do everything that dick says?”
“Well, duh! Unless I want him to blow my head off with that gun of his, then yes, I do.” Candy looks torn for a moment. Almost as if she wishes she didn’t have to do what Muz demands. It doesn’t last, though. “You should just go already. No one wants you here.”
“I want herrr hereeee.” I turn back to Ayden’s slurred voice and take in his face. His lids are mostly closed, his normally blue eyes now almost black peeking through before they roll into the back of his head as he tries to pry them open. He’s wearing a slight grin, if that’s what you can call it, lifting one side of his mouth while the other side is slack. My heart hurts just seeing him like this.
“Commme sittt on my cockkkk.”
I know it’s the drugs talking, but his crude words bite, cracking my heart open. I move to him, ignoring the snickers of the other two idiots, and grab his hand. It feels cold and clammy.
“Ayden, you need to stand up so we can leave.”
“Bitch you ain’t going anywhere until that last line has been snorted up your nose or his.” Candy points down to the tray that still has one line left on it.
“Fine,” I shrug, walking over to the tray. Candy’s eyes widened. The dumb bitch thinks I’m going to snort it, so her reaction is priceless when I flip the tray over, kicking up a small cloud of white powder.
Candy gasps, and when I look at her, she resembles a fish, opening and closing her mouth repeatedly.
“Damn, girl, I would have had that line if I knew you were going to waste it.” One idiot says, sitting up on the floor while his mate lays star fished, looking up to the ceiling.
“That’s it!” Candy stomps her foot. Like actually stomps it. “I’m telling Muz.” She turns with her lips pouting, and that stupid skirt still bunched around her waist. If I
were a better person, I would fix her clothes for her. But I’m not, so she can go to hell and walk right out that door looking like the whore she is.
The moment she disappears out the door, I know I only have a minute or two to try to get Ayden out of here before Muz comes back to shoot me in the head.
“Ayden, come on, we have to go.” I try to pull him up, but he’s dead weight. “Ayden, try to stand, please.”
“Nahhh. Stayyy hereee.” He waves me off right before his head tips to the side, and his eyes close.
“Ayden?” Shit, shit, shit! He’s out like a light. Or dead. Fuck, I don’t know.
Panicked and desperate, I slap his face. That results in a quiet groan from Ayden.
“Wake the fuck up, Ayden!” I yell in his face becoming frantic as I take in my beautiful guy slumped back on the disgusting orange couch.
“Looks like your shit out of the lucky pretty girl.”
I spin, hearing Muz behind me. Candy is in the doorway looking like a smug bitch, and I’m tempted to go smack the look off her face, however, Muz catches my attention. The look in his eyes is all too familiar, and for a moment, I think it's Mike standing before me. Predators, when they think they are winning, are so transparent, like they can no longer hide or control their restraint. The fact that I know this makes my tummy churn. I should never have been put in such situations to know this. Now is not the time to feel sorry for myself, though. Now is the time to fight.
Muz is right. I’m shit out of luck. Ayden is passed out, or worse, and I have no one here who is likely to go against Muz and his crew.
“Stay away.” I hiss, keeping my chin up trying to come across as the crazed bitch I was minutes before. I probably look ridiculous.
“Hmmm, no, I don’t think I will. A pretty girl like you needs some breaking in, and I’m definitely in the mood to break you in.”
Muz steps towards me, and I instinctively shoot forward, latching onto an empty beer bottle on the table and smash it against the edge.
Heavy (Heavy Hearts Book 1) Page 28
