“I’m sorry,” Ado says.
His eyes are half dead and mostly sad.
I remove my hand and he starts to cough.
I leave my room and as I walk down the hall, I move door to door, pounding my fist, letting everyone know it’s time to go.
Because if we didn’t collect this debt, we’d all be buried alive - literally.
Les and Taz take the lead for me.
This fucking asshole Nick really doesn’t think his shit stinks at all.
He’s just casually hanging on the couch, playing a fucking football video game, with some pretty girl curled up on his chest.
Well… that’s what he was doing…
The second Taz kicks down the door, Nick jumps up, tossing his girl to the floor.
He throws the controller at us.
That’s when Raf appears in the kitchen doorway.
One punch sends Nick stumbling back.
Les and Taz both pounce, taking him to the ground.
His girl starts to scream.
I snap my fingers at Aric and point to her.
Aric scoops her up and covers her mouth with his hand. He whispers to her that Nick is a bad dude and is about to get really hurt. But we are not there to hurt her.
I know Aric has plenty more to say and there’s a nine-out-of-ten chance that she’ll end up in his bed, and that’s fine with me.
My focus is on Nick.
Les and Taz move away and Nick is fighting to get back to his feet.
I throw one right uppercut and it sends him falling back into the wall.
That is the punch that finally opens his face.
He stands against the wall, mouth bleeding.
He looks at me and opens his mouth.
I shake my head.
We’re not ready to talk yet.
He shuts his eyes and I swing again.
My knuckles smash off the side of his face.
He turns.
I punch him a few times in the ribs, gut, and back, just for the fuck of it.
I step back and run my hand through my hair.
Then I nod to Raf.
He takes his turn, leaving Nick on the floor as a pile of goo.
This big, fucking, football player and he can’t even throw a punch.
I look back at Aric.
I nod.
Aric shakes his head.
He’s got his arm around the girl and that’s his prize for the night.
He’s not interested in punching Nick.
I’m good with that.
I bend my knees. “At least fucking fight next time. I’d respect you a little more.”
Taz grabs for Nick’s jeans and digs through them.
“No cash,” Nick says.
“Fuck you,” I say.
“Pockets are empty, bro,” Taz says.
“Trash the place until we get paid,” I say.
Les picks the flat screen TV up off of the stand and swings it like a baseball bat against the wall.
“I’m not going to stop,” I say to Nick.
Taz flips the table. Les grabs the video game system and breaks that.
Finally, Nick gives in.
“Kitchen!” he yells.
“Where?” I ask.
“Top drawer next to the fridge,” he says. “It’s all my money. Please don’t…”
I hit him again in the mouth.
That shuts him up.
I walk into the kitchen and open the drawer.
It’s full of cash, condoms, and a knife.
I look at Ado. “This the knife?”
Ado nods.
I hand Ado the knife. “Jam the fucking thing through his hand. Make sure he knows to never pull a knife on you again.”
Ado’s hands start to shake.
He leaves the kitchen.
“Go with him,” I say to Taz.
It’s just me and Les in the kitchen.
“You figure… a grand?” Les asks.
“Easily,” I say. “Leave him a twenty though. So he can get a pizza. Some comfort food.”
Les laughs. “That’s a good idea. He’ll never-”
There’s a loud scream.
I lift an eyebrow. “He actually did it. Fuck.”
I grab all the cash out of the drawer and go into the living room.
Nick is on the floor, screaming in pain.
The knife is sticking out of the back of his hand.
“Where’s Ado and Taz?” I ask Aric.
“Ado went to throw up,” Aric says.
“I’m going to be sick,” the girl says to Aric.
“Come with me then,” Aric says. “I know just the medicine you need.”
He and the girl leave first.
Les and Raf are next.
I look down at Nick. “Your price just doubled, motherfucker. Your next delivery is at the same time and place. If you don’t have my money, I’m going to use a knife to cut something off of you. Might be a finger. Might be your tongue. Might be your cock. Who knows. Have a good night. And try not to think about Aric fucking your girlfriend senseless.”
Outside, Ado has his hands on his knees, gasping for air.
“Fucking hell, man,” Taz says. “It was a knife. A hand. Who cares?”
“I felt things moving,” Ado says. “Like tendons and muscle and… oh…”
Ado gags and then pukes all over the sidewalk.
I light up a cigarette and check the time.
“Les, I’m out,” I say to him. “You got this?”
“We’re good,” he says.
I dig the cash out of my back pocket and give it to him.
I have just enough time to swing by my place and grab a shower.
And then I get my alone time with Jolie.
8
I park in my usual place and can see that the skatepark is still very much alive.
At night is when shit can get a little crazy.
Truthfully, it’s the time of the day when the pills get traded for needles. And that’s just a line that I’m not interested in ever crossing.
I see Hanky sitting on a railing, barefoot, smoking something that isn’t a cigarette.
There are two speakers playing different songs.
I see flickers of light and know whoever is there is partying down in the halfpipe.
None of that shit is my business though.
I’m not here to break skulls.
I’m not here to sell anything.
I’m not here to collect on any debts.
When Hanky sees me, he jumps off the railing. His right leg shoots out like a baby animal trying to stand for the first time.
He’s wobbly and ready to fall.
If he thinks I’m going to help him he’s out of his fucking mind.
I’m not sure how he keeps himself from falling, but he does.
“Mac,” he says.
“Not here for this,” I say.
“They’re putting on a show.”
“Who is?”
“Bombers,” he says. His voice is robotic. He’s there but he’s really not. “They have lights on their bikes and shit. It’s going to be so fucking trippy.”
“I’m sure,” I say. “Are you feeling okay?”
“I feel free, Mac. I feel free.”
I walk by Hanky and shake my head.
I jump the railing and look down to the ocean.
There were still some of Van and Clay’s crew down there.
They partied all night. They surfed in the dark. They felt it was their job to protect the beach.
Again, not my business.
I look around and know it’s already after nine.
Even if it’s nine-oh-one, it’s after nine.
I can’t sit still for a second so I take a walk.
There’s always a backup plan with me though.
If Jolie bails on me, I’ve got other means of getting attention for the night.
I walk the beach in the dark, in the silence of my own thoughts, a
nd I realize I haven’t done this in a long time.
Shit has been crazy since they tossed me over to the other part of BC.
And I fully want to keep it that way.
Why slow down?
Why…
I stop walking and look off into the distance.
It’s like she’s rising from the darkness.
This sweet, innocent angel coming toward me.
Fuck, maybe she’s the worst thing that will ever happen to me.
Maybe she’ll ruin my life, bring me to my knees, destroy everything I worked so hard to build.
That doesn’t scare me one bit.
It’s Jolie.
Walking toward me.
When she sees me, she stops walking.
Where the fuck does this end up going, sweetie?
She’s in the same hoodie and short shorts as earlier when I saw her.
As she starts walking toward me again, the breeze tries to play with her hair. She quickly reaches for it and pushes it back.
I marvel at every move she makes.
What I can see of her, I memorize. What I can’t see, I theorize in my mind.
All the places to touch. To kiss.
Finding the secret sweet spots that she doesn’t even know exist on her body yet.
Or maybe the spots she does know about but she’s too shy to say something.
Or… she just hasn’t met the right guy.
Me, I’m the right guy.
Yeah, chances are I’m going to send you home with a broken heart. But you’ll be smiling as you carry those pieces to your bed, to sit there and put them back together.
But tonight isn’t about breaking hearts.
So forget what I just said.
I open my arms and smile as Jolie gets closer.
She stops just out of my reach.
She stuffs her hands into the big front pocket of her hoodie.
I can just barely see the outline of her breasts as they push together.
So much more beauty hidden behind her clothes.
I grit my teeth and lower my arms.
“No hug?” I ask.
“I can’t believe I’m here,” she says.
“How did you pull it off?”
“I just showed up,” she says.
“No lies?”
“Lies?”
“Violet wasn’t up your ass about it?” I ask.
“You seem to like Violet,” Jolie says. “Maybe the wrong person showed up, Mac.”
I move closer to Jolie.
I touch her cheek with my thumb and shake my head. “No, sweetie. The right person showed up. Believe me.”
Her cheeks flushed, even in the dark.
Her lips look too kissable not to make a move.
I somehow convince myself not to go for a kiss just yet.
“I don’t need permission from anyone to do what I want,” she says.
“That’s good,” I say.
“I live alone, Mac. Okay?”
I nod. “Why are you telling me this?”
“I don’t know,” she says. She steps back. “I don’t…”
“Look, I just wanted a few minutes alone with you,” I say. “Without the noise. Just to say hey. Maybe get to know each other. No fucking around.”
“You sure about that?” Jolie asks.
“Positive.”
“Then tell me something about yourself.”
“Why don’t you tell me what you’ve heard,” I say. “Then I’ll tell you what’s real or not.”
Jolie swallows hard. She nods. “I, uh, I heard about this part of the beach many times. It never appealed to me. I don’t know if you know these parts, but up around the curve…”
“Oh, I know about it all,” I say. “Everyone calls it the curve because it bends the shitty parts away. Like this part. And all the pretty rich girls aren’t allowed down here. Because they might smoke something that makes them giggle. And they might get pregnant by some wild bad boys. Right? Isn’t that how the story goes?”
Jolie smiles. “Yeah. Something like that.”
“So you decided to come over here? Because of Violet?”
“There you go again with Violet,” Jolie says. “How about I just text her for you? She’d come down here. She’s kind of… I don’t know how to say it without sounding mean… but she likes to fool around.”
“And you don’t?”
“If I said no would you suddenly have a change of heart?” Jolie asks.
I laugh. “You have a little attitude, Jolie. I like it. But I can cut through that in a second.”
“Where’s your knife?” she teases.
I close in on her again.
Close enough to kiss her.
Close enough to smell her.
Her hair, skin, the desire that radiates from her… everything she won’t admit. Yet.
“You showed up, sweetie,” I say. “You want to know what it’s all about. What it’s like to be on the other side of things. You’re wildly rich. But so am I. I’m not some dirt ball jamming a needle into my arm to get a little escape in life. But I’m so far on the other side of what you know, you can’t imagine it. That’s why you’re here. You want to taste it. And you know that when you’re tasting it, I’ll have my arm wrapped around you, keeping you safe.”
Jolie looks ready to kiss me.
She’s the most beautiful girl I’ve ever met.
I can’t stop thinking it and I can’t stop seeing it.
“Okay, fine,” she says. “I showed up, Mac. I’m not sure why. And, yeah, I’m rich. Oh well. My parents have a lot of money. But I’ve also worked hard to be on my own. And I can do whatever I want. Whether it’s be here or leave right now. Violet wouldn’t stop talking about coming here. To check it out. I told her it was a bad idea. But sometimes with Violet you just have to give in. So I did.”
“And now you’re the one here.”
“She got scared.”
“You’re not scared?”
“No,” Jolie whispers.
I lean down and brush my lips to her ear. “You will be soon enough, sweetie.”
Spider has one goal in life.
To die in a horrible accident.
It’s all he dreams about and talks about. He comes up with the craziest tricks to do on his bike with the hope that he’ll fuck it up and kill himself.
It’s tough guy talk for sure, but in some fucked up cosmic way, I think by him living the worst in his mind, it makes it so he can do crazy shit without fear.
I only bring him up because he’s the one that starts the light show.
And when he pedals his bike and jumps up on the railing, back down, and goes down one of the halfpipes, Jolie lets out a quick gasp and her attention is stolen from me.
I turn my head and there’s five more bikes doing the same thing.
They have their little routine they do.
Like fucking cheerleaders, you know?
It’s kind of cool to see them with lights on their bikes.
It’s a show.
But what the fuck do I care?
Jolie stares and smiles.
“That’s cool,” she whispers.
I stand next to her.
This wasn’t the night I had in mind.
But fair enough.
“You like that shit?” I ask her.
“Yeah. You don’t?”
“I had other plans for us.”
She looks at me. “Like what?”
“I’ll show you,” I say. “You have to come for a ride with me.”
“What?”
I smile. “You don’t trust me?”
I touch her hand and she pulls away. “Mac…”
“Okay,” I say. “Watch the show. It’ll fall apart soon. Once the shit hits them.”
“What does that mean?”
“They’re all fucked out of their minds, sweetie,” I say.
“Drunk?”
I gently touch Jolie’s elbow and lift her arm. With my ri
ght hand I put my pointer and middle fingers to her wrist. I slowly climb them up her arm. Her skin tightens with goosebumps as I work my way to the bend in her arm. I tapped my pointer finger there a few times until she pulled her arm away.
“Are you serious?” she asks.
“This isn’t some rich part of life,” I say to her. “But don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe. Nobody will talk to you or bother you.”
She looks to the bike bombers again and they’re putting on their light show.
She bites her bottom lip.
Now she’s wondering what’s real, fake, safe or not.
Her hand then touches mine.
She slides her hand into mine and I hold her hand tight.
We stand in silence for a minute or two.
“Want to get out of here now?” I whisper to her.
“Please,” she says.
“I want to show you something, sweetie. Just trust me.”
“Okay, Mac, I trust you.”
I hold her hand and walk to the skateboard part of the park.
Hanky is standing there, staring at the lights, swaying back and forth.
He’s so far out of his mind he won’t even remember me being there.
I walk Jolie to my car and pause.
“Where’s your car?” I ask her.
“Parked far away,” she says.
“Okay.”
“You don’t think someone will mess with it, do you?” she asks.
“If they do, I’ll break their neck for you,” I say.
She laughs.
I don’t laugh.
I’m serious.
She gets into my car and I hurry to peel out and get away from the skatepark.
I go up to the curve and slam on the brakes and cut the wheel.
The back end of my car spins around and Jolie lets out a cry.
I reach across the seat and touch her bare leg.
I hit the gas pedal again and the engine is so fucking quiet but so fucking fast.
It’s stealthy. Like me.
“Scared yet?” I ask her.
“If you’re going to do stupid stuff and get me killed then I want to go home,” she says.
“I just had to turn around.”
Jolie puts her hand to mine.
There’s a two second hesitation before she moves my hand off her leg.
Meaning she wants my hand there.
She’s fighting the voices that are pleading with her to get out of my car and get home where it’s safe.
Mess You Up (Brooks Crest Book 1) Page 7
