Battling the Enemy

by M. E. Clayton

  The second the sales associate finished setting up my phone, it started chiming uncontrollably with notifications, missed calls, and message alerts.

  The first notification I saw was Ava’s text message begging me to call her ASAP, so I did. “Ava?”

  “Oh, my God, Delaney,” she cried breathlessly. “Where are you?”

  “I’m still in New Hampshire,” I told her. “I lost my phone and had to buy a new one. I just walked out of the store and I was about to order an Uber back to the hotel, but your text was urgent.”

  “So, you haven’t been online at all today?”

  “No,” I answered, suddenly nervous. “Even if I hadn’t lost my phone, I wouldn’t have answered it during the tour. That would have been rude.”

  I could hear Ava taking a deep breath over the phone, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. “Delaney,” she whispered desperately, “there’s a picture of you and Winston with both your parents at Dartmouth with a caption about new beginnings or something like that.”

  I could feel my lungs tighten up with the unbelievability of her words. “Ava,” I breathed, “Winston and his parents are here, that’s true, but there’s no picture. We didn’t take any pictures together.”

  “Delaney, what the hell are you doing there with Winston and his parents?” she asked incredulously.

  “I’m not here with them,” I stressed. “My parents ambushed me, trying to change my mind about marrying Winston. But there’s no-”

  “Delaney, pull up your social media feed,” she said, interrupting. “There’s a picture.”

  I quickly did what she suggested, and sure as shit, staring up at me was the picture we all took last year when we had all taken a trip to New York. I had mentioned wanting to go to Dartmouth back then, and to humor me, we’d gone to the campus and taken a group selfie.

  Scrambling to get back on the phone, I said, “Ava, that’s the picture from last year when we’d all gone to New York.”

  “Well, Winston posted it making it look like it’s from today,” she said sadly.

  “Fuck…” I muttered.

  “Delaney, you need to call Deke, and you need to call him now,” she groaned. “He’s going to be pissed, chick.”

  “I have my purse on me,” I said. “Every…everything else at the hotel can stay. It’s just clothes and stuff. I’m heading to the airport. I’m flying home now, okay.”

  “Text me when you’re getting ready to land, and I’ll pick you up,” she offered.

  I did the math; it was only seven pm here, so it was only four pm in California. If I could get a direct flight, I could be in California by nine, maybe ten. The hour drive to Sands Cove would land me at home no later than eleven. It was a Saturday night, so Deke was sure to still be up that late. I could get to him and explain how the picture was from last year.

  “Okay,” I told her. “Let me get an Uber and I’ll text you with my flight information once I get a ticket.”

  “Be careful, Delaney,” she replied. “Be careful but get here before Deke does something stupid.”

  “Yeah, okay,” I said before hanging up and ordering an Uber.

  As soon as the car pulled up, and I confirmed it was my driver, I directed him towards the nearest airport. In the backseat, I dialed Deke, and when he didn’t answer, I dialed him again. After the fourth time of him not answering, I sent him a text. I waited, and waited, but he never responded or called back.

  When I got to the airport, I had to put Deke on hold to get my ticket. And because The Good Lord was on my side, I managed to get a direct flight off a cancellation. It costs me-or rather, my parents-an arm and leg, but I didn’t care. I was feeling…uneasy, and I needed to get home.

  I had texted Ava my flight information, and after one last attempt to get a hold of Deke, I stowed away my phone and boarded my flight. To avoid being on the news as a missing persons or a runaway, I had sent off a quick text to my parents to let them know I caught a flight home. I wasn’t sure if they’d even see it, but I didn’t care. I knew now that they set me up and stole my phone. They wanted to make sure I wouldn’t see what Winston posted. They wanted to make sure it was up long enough to ruin me and Deke.

  But the joke was on them. This wouldn’t ruin anything between me and Deke because…well, we were in love. People in love didn’t choose the words and actions of others without listening to their partner first, right?

  Sure, that picture looked bad, but once I pull it up on my social media account and show him the first time it was posted, he’d see the manipulation tactic for what it was, right?

  Right?

  Once we were up in the air, I called Deke again, but this time when he didn’t answer, I left a message. I explained that, while the picture was real, it had been taken last year. I rambled on so much, the voicemail cut me off.

  The problem was that this was all my fault, and I knew it.

  It was my fault for still harboring the pathetic need to believe that my parents weren’t the same people who held me down and scarred my face for profit. While the latchkey kids of Sands Cove were used to absent parents, it didn’t necessarily mean we liked it that way. We were used to it, but that didn’t mean we were unfeeling and didn’t want loving parents.

  When my mother had agreed to a compromise, I knew, deep down, she had been up to something, but the hopeful part of me had convinced myself that her offer had been genuine. I knew better, but I had gone anyway. Deep down, I knew better, and I had to take responsibility for that.

  Sitting on the plane, I knew my life before I boarded was over. My parents would end up resorting to blackmail, and I knew I’d have to walk away with nothing to my name. After all, I was a legal adult. They were no longer obligated to care for me if I didn’t want to play by their rules.

  I thought about my bank account and how it was a joint account with their names on it. I was going to have to go into town and withdrawal as much as I could in the morning. Luckily for us, the financial foundation of Sands Cove was prominent enough that we had banks that were opened during the weekend.

  Also, lucky for me, because my parents didn’t want to deal with me, I was authorized to withdrawal as much as wanted. I was going to have to hit the bank first thing and buy a car next. The car I had now was in my parents’ names because they paid for the insurance.

  Holy Christ, I was going to have to find a job.

  I knew, even if Deke was upset with me, Ava would let me stay with her until I figured things out, but I was hoping it wouldn’t come to that. I had hundreds of thousands in my bank account, and while I couldn’t afford a house like I have now, I could easily afford a condo or something small in town. Sands Cove had a working-class population just like every other town in the world, and the people who made this town possible lived affordably in town. I could do that, too.

  I didn’t need…extra.

  I glanced at my phone and still saw nothing from Deke. The part that loved him hoped he was just partying and not checking his phone, thinking I was busy in New Hampshire with my parents. The part that loved him was hoping he was playing basketball with Ramsey and Liam. The part that loved him was hoping he was in an online battle with Ramsey and Liam for zombie domination.

  But the part of my brain that trumped love with logic told me he was avoiding my calls and messages. Common sense told me there was no way Deke could avoid his phone or social media long enough not to have seen the picture or see my texts.

  Common sense told me I was in deep shit.

  Chapter 31

  Deke~

  Delaney was texting and calling so much that I finally turned my phone off. I didn’t need it on anyway since the only people who I gave a fuck about were here with me.

  After Ramsey, Liam, and I had discussed the details of how we’d handle our assignments, we had convinced the girls I wasn’t psychotic, and we had all headed out to the day party at the cove. The girls hadn’t really been onboard, but what could they do? Wanting to make sure n
one of us ended up in prison, they had to follow.

  We had arrived around six o’clock because we had convened in Ramsey’s study and had done our research into the Reynolds and the Martins. It had taken longer than I had anticipated, but by the time we were done, we had everything we needed to ruin their lives as they knew it.

  Their debts and finances had been easy, but Ramsey had been able to dig up some dirt on Winston’s father. Apparently, he’s not as heterosexual as he pretended to be. And while there was nothing wrong with being gay, there was when you were married to a woman and you were cheating on her with twinks during your random travels.

  Winston had nothing on him other than he fucked anything that moved, but that didn’t matter. Delaney knew he fucked around, and she really hadn’t cared. Anything else he did was no worse than what the rest of us did, so he was a dead end.

  His mother had no skeletons, and from what we could gather on her, she was just stupid. She spent all her time shopping and…shopping.

  As for Delaney’s parents, we were able to find out her father was in debt, and not your average household debt, but in real debt. While they were wealthy, wealth was a relative term when you were placing half a million dollar bets on red. They were living on borrowed money, and he needed Delaney to marry Winston to secure his medical research and partner with Winston’s father’s pharmaceutical empire.

  Delaney’s mother was also screwing some dude who lived in Monte Carlo. Her dad used Monte Carlo as a cover for research when he was really gambling. And he didn’t care where his wife ran off to because he was too busy giving into the monster in his mind. Delaney’s mother didn’t mind the gambling because she was too busy spreading her legs for a guy half her age.

  All the while, they were going broke, and Delaney was none the wiser.

  As for Delaney, of course, there was nothing on her. No vices, no speeding tickets, not even a fucking B on her report card. Delaney Martin was everything she was perceived to be. She was studious, quiet, and weak.

  Oh, there were times when she flashed some fire, but I saw now that those times were more small sparks than real fire. If she had real fire in her, she wouldn’t have smiled for that fucking picture.

  When she first called, I hadn’t answered, and I hadn’t answered the second, third, fourth, or fifth time she called. I deleted her texts and voicemails as soon as my phone beeped with their notifications. I didn’t want to hear anything the weak bitch had to say. And, even if I had wanted to hear her excuses and explanations, I didn’t want to do it over the phone.

  And now, I was five beers and three shots in at the party, wondering just how far I was going to have to take this to forget Delaney’s betrayal. I figured I’d have to dip into the party favors before the end of the night in order to forget this fucked-up day, but I was okay with that. I’ve snorted up coke before for a lot less.

  We were all sitting on the boulder we usually hang out on when we’re partying at the cove. Sands Cove had an inlet where the beach was smattered with a bunch of different-sized boulders, and we usually made use of the boulders as tables and chairs.

  At often times beds, too.

  And it was while we were congregated around our boulder that Melissa sauntered up to me reminding me of the last time I attended a party here. “Hey, Deke,” she greeted, smiling. She gave everyone else a quick glance. “Hey, guys.”

  She was greeted with polite hellos, but you could tell the girls were super tense about her approach because they knew. They knew where this was going, and I couldn’t even summon enough love for them, at the moment, to care how hurt their feelings were going to be by the end of the night.

  Melissa returned her attention to me. “So, uhm, where’s Delaney?” she asked.

  I smirked, the alcohol helping to dull what I was really feeling. “In New Hampshire with her boyfriend,” I huffed. “They’re being in love and planning their future together.” Melissa looked confused, and I realized she wasn’t the type to appreciate sarcasm.

  “But…I thought you were her boyfriend?” she asked.

  The girls were going to hate me but fuck it. “Nope,” I replied, popping the ‘p’. “She was a challenge. I de-virginized and dirtied her, and now I’m done.” I could hear Emerson’s and Linnie’s gasps, but I wouldn’t look at them. Maybe it was chicken shit because I knew they’d forgive me eventually, but I didn’t look their way. I didn’t owe Delaney Martin a motherfucking thing.

  Melissa took that as an invitation to sit on my lap. “So, then…you’re free to…hang out?”

  Ignoring Melissa, Roselyn said, “Don’t do this, Deke.”

  I finally looked over at my friends and I focused on Linnie. “Don’t, what?” I smirked. “Don’t enjoy uncomplicated pussy?”

  She straightened her back and I could tell she wanted to rip into me, but we didn’t do that. We didn’t air our grievances for the masses. Our group was tight and private. Linnie would wait to yell at me later. I glanced over at Emerson, and her face was stoic; expressionless.

  I looked back at Melissa nestled on my lap and, admittedly, it felt wrong. She felt wrong in my arms, but I didn’t give a fuck. I needed to forget Delaney’s betrayal, and booze, drugs, and women were the only way to do that.

  Suddenly, there was a shift in the air.

  I could feel the change all around me. I glanced over at the group and they were all standing up, backs erect, faces serious, and chins up. There’s only one reason they’d be on guard like that.

  Winston and Delaney must be here.

  When I turned my head in the opposite direction, it wasn’t Winston and Delaney coming down the hill towards us, it was Delaney and Ava.

  I watched as their heads swiveled every which way, presumably looking for me, but I stayed seated with Melissa on my lab.

  Like hell I would run to her.

  When Delaney’s eyes finally landed on mine, her entire body stilled. I watched as she took in Melissa on my lap and I couldn’t have timed it more perfectly if I had tried. Ava was standing behind her, and when my eyes glanced her way, she looked furious.

  That’s rich.

  Delaney snapped out of her shock, and made her way down, but her steps were small and unsure. When she stopped in front of us, it was a full thirty seconds before she tore her eyes away from a smug-looking Melissa and looked at me. “I…I take it you didn’t read my texts?” she asked, her voice steadier than I thought it’d be. “You didn’t…listen to the voicemails?”

  My chin jutted out and my hands found their way to Melissa’s thighs. “No,” I replied, making sure my face and voice were void of any emotion, whatsoever.

  “Are you drunk?” she asked, her eyes narrowing a bit.

  “Not even close,” I answered, which was true. Delaney’s appearance sobered up whatever little buzz I had going.

  “Deke, I can expl-”

  I laughed, and it wasn’t a friendly laugh either. “Delaney, there’s nothing to explain,” I assured her. “A picture’s worth a thousand words, right?” Her brown eyes stared deeply into my green ones for a few tense seconds before she pulled a new-looking phone from her back pocket, fiddled with the screen, aimed it at me and Melissa, and snapped a picture. I watched as her fingers dance across the screen, presumably saving the photo.

  “What the fuck did you take that for?” I asked, my voice faltering a bit and letting the rage peek through.

  Delaney lifted her chin before saying, “Because you’re right. Because when you…when you find out you were wrong and call me to beg for forgiveness, that’s the first thing I’ll see. I’ll see that picture behind the phone ringing, and it’ll remind me not to answer your call.”

  Now that the rage had seeped through in my voice, it was hard to rein it all back in. My hands slid from the outside of Melissa’s thighs to in the inside, and since she was wearing shorts, my hands were splayed across her soft skin. “You’re out of your mind if you think I’m going to call you for anything when I have this available to
me.” I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but Delaney giving me a tight nod and walking away from me wasn’t it.

  However, she wasn’t going to get off that easily.

  Chapter 32

  Delaney~

  The pain was just like they sing about in sad love songs.

  It was consuming.

  Deke hadn’t even given me a chance to explain before moving on to another girl. Well, I guess going back to another girl would be more accurate. After all, he’s had Melissa before.

  I knew he was going to be pissed, but I really believed he’d hear me out first before appointing himself judge, jury, and executioner.

  I believed he loved me.

  And, Christ, I didn’t need that stupid picture of him and Melissa on my phone. I knew I’d never get the image of her on his lap with his hands wrapped around her thighs out of my head ever.

  When my plane had been getting ready to land, I had texted Ava, and true to her word, she had met me at the airport. As soon as I told her Deke wasn’t answering any of my texts or messages, she told me there was a party at the cove, and suggested we try there first. The only messaged I had received was from my Dad asking me what the hell I was thinking.

  I had ignored it.

  Ava had driven like a bat out of hell to get back to Sands Cove, and when we got to the cove, I had never imagined I find Deke with another girl.

  I pictured drunk. I pictured furious. I even pictured drugs.

  I never pictured another girl.

  And out of all the girls he could have been with, why did it have to be Melissa? I already had a mental picture of them together from that first night, I didn’t need a reminder of…how good they were together.

  The second my eyes locked onto his hands squeezing her thighs, I knew I wasn’t strong enough to do this. I turned and fled like a coward.

  Too bad I didn’t get far.

  Ava had been right next to me storming off back towards her car, but I was pulled up short from my left side by a hard, masculine hand. Deke whirled me around to face him, and in that move, I noticed the entire party had stopped what they were doing to witness the showdown between Deke Marlow and mousy, little Delaney Martin.