Chapter 25 Rhea
I’m pushing bins closed and washing paintbrushes in the back of the classroom when two sets of footsteps barge in and the door slams shut. Before I can announce myself, Garth’s voice snaps through the room—angry, hushed..
“What the hell did you tell them? Why am I in trouble?” he snaps. “It’s your stupid friend making up lies!”
“You know they aren’t lies,” Daisy’s voice comes next, and I freeze. “You’re in trouble because you’re a jerk.”
“Shut up,” he groans, “Lori keeps telling people I forced myself on her, and it’s bullshit. Carly is all up in knots, and it’s your stupid friend's fault. If she would just tell everyone the truth, none of this would be happening!”
“Maybe you should tell the truth!” Daisy gets louder, and I smile—until a tiny squeak cuts through it. “Let go of me, Garth, or I’ll rearrange your teeth.”
I clap my hand over my mouth to stop the laugh that bubbles up at her clapback because I know it’s all Kaia. She would be so proud.
“Garth.” I step out from the washing station, my gaze dropping to his hand locked around her arm. “She asked nicely.”
“That wasn’t nice. And she started it.” He lets go and backs away two steps.
“In here, that won’t work—and you know it,” I say, and he swallows hard. “What’s going on? And I don’t want an excuse.”
“Daisy and Lori are harassing me,” Garth clips—too quick, too confident.
“How?” I ask him, begging him to expand on it.
“Lori’s obsessed with me! She thinks she’s my girlfriend, and she’s turning into a stalker!” Garth raises his voice as I walk toward them. I nod to Daisy so she takes a couple of steps back from him.
“Doesn’t sound like Lori?” I say, confused. “Can you expand on that?”
Garth groans. “This is bullshit!”
“Language, please,” I warn him, “and if you’re having issues with Lori, we can schedule a meeting with both your parents to discuss them.”
“No!” Garth is quick to shut me down. “I just want her to stop!”
“Here’s what we're going to do,” I uncross my arms and lean back against my desk. “You’re going to leave Daisy and Lori alone,” I say. He opens his mouth to argue. “And that includes making sure Carly does, too—until the meeting with Daisy’s parents.”
“That’s unfair, this isn’t my fault!” He whines, and it takes everything in me not to laugh. You’re all the same when caught, what horrible learned behavior.
“Well, from what I can see, you’re in my classroom, and if I find out that you hurt Ms. Black in any capacity, even the tiniest bruise, Garth.
I will make sure that the meeting is about your aggressive behavior toward female students.
” I remind him who the teacher is, and he presses his lips into a thin line.
“My dad will deal with you,” he threatens, and I finally can’t restrain myself. I laugh.
“Get to class, Mr. Robertson, before you say something that lands you in detention for the rest of the school year.”
“Ms. D,” he whines.
“It’s Ms. Drake, and I gave you an instruction.”
Garth stares me down a beat longer before throwing Daisy a dirty look and disappearing from the art room.
“Are you okay?” I ask Daisy the second he’s gone.
“Yeah, he’s a loser. I could take him,” she says, squaring her shoulders like she means it, and her confidence makes me smile.
“Listen.” I wait until she looks at me. “I know these things aren’t solved by adults, no matter what happens in that meeting. Garth probably isn’t going to stop, and neither is Carly. But this room is a safe zone, so instead of fighting him…”
“Come here.” She finishes my sentence, nodding once. “Okay.”
“Thank you, I don’t need you suspended because he’s a little douchebag.” I flick the bottom of her chin with my finger, and she smiles at me.
“Language, Ms. D,” she says quietly, mocking me with that soft expression before adjusting her bag "thank you," she adds as she shuffles out the door to her next class.
By the time lunch rolls around, Kaia barges through my door with an evil grin on her pretty face.
I needed that mischief today more than ever.
“Putting all vegetables on a sub should be illegal, Reaper.” Kaia stands in front of my desk with a wrap of her own and in her paramedic uniform.
“Did you put tomatoes on this?” I ask her, opening it up to double-check.
“Don’t insult me,” she snaps and slides onto the desk across from me. “You have to be quick. I left the new guy in the rig, and I don’t wanna give him the ‘baby in a hot car’ treatment, this early into our working relationship.”
“Right,” I say, as if that’s the most reasonable thing that’s come out of her mouth before.
“Daisy got hauled into the office. She’s been scrapping with this asshole of a kid for two months over something that happened with Lori.” I stop to pick off a banana pepper and toss it between my teeth.
“The best friend?” Kaia asks, nibbling on her wrap.
“Yeah, and Garth Robertson.”
Kaia snorts, “Did you see Ricky’s new campaign for a ‘Better Harbor’?
” she asks me. Harbor has been a mess and usually I'm not one to get involved but it's been effecting our lives too, teacher funding, the budgets for the paramedics and hospitals, they're even gunning for Cosy's shelter…
It's exhausting having to fight for our town against people who are supposed to make it feel like home. Ever since the trial concluded, it's been a constant string of old white men making promises they can’t keep. I don’t trust any of them to protect Harbor; our little town deserves better.
“Yeah, pretty sure he’s still hoping that his butt buddy, Charles Shore, is going to get off scot-free and ride in on a white horse to save his mayorship,” I groan. “Anyways, I can’t do anything about it, not without getting fired.”
“Oh, please,” Kaia giggles—like I’ve just handed her a stack of cash and told her not to spend it all in one place. “Hold on.” She stops me, pulling out her cellphone, calling someone, and putting it on speaker between us. “Boonie,” she purrs when the line connects. “Reaper needs our help.”
“Yeah, Bright just stormed through the kitchen like he wanted to burn down the whole town. What the hell happened?” he asks over the sound of the Hollow in the background.
“Go outside, you nitwit. We can’t hear you,” Kaia orders, and like he could read her mind, the back door slammed louder on the other end of the phone.
“Garth Robertson—”
“Fucking Ricky’s kid!” Boone cuts me off with a loud gag noise.
“Focus,” I laugh, because I’m not any better, and Kaia rolls her eyes as if she didn’t just do the same thing when his name was mentioned.
“He’s been taunting and harassing Daisy, but the school can’t do anything about it because of who he is and because she’s been retaliating how and when she can. ”
“That’s my girl,” Boone hums. “What do you need from us?”
“I mean…” I look up at Kaia.
“A conversation, we can have a conversation with Ricky about all of this,” Boone cuts off Kaia’s devious thoughts without even being able to see her. “Kai,” he warns. “A conversation,” Boone repeats—like saying it twice will stop Kaia’s brain from spinning.
“Sure,” she says, but it’s clear she has other plans in mind.
“He’s the mayor, we can’t just beat the shit out of him,” Boone warns her.
“You can’t,” she scoffs. “Jail time will only help my reputation.”
“Not funny,” I say to her, and she smiles wickedly. Between the three of us, Kaia is the least likely to spend any time in jail. Christian would have her out so fast her head would spin, but it’s the thought that counts.
“A little funny,” she whispers and takes another bite of her lunch. “So like what? We just go down there and talk to the guy?” She asks.
“Yeah, and we bring the shipment of eggs I just got delivered,” Boone laughs.
“Stop flirting with me, Boonie,” Kaia’s voice goes low and teasing.
“Never,” he responds quickly.
“Have you seen my brother?” Brighton drops a case of beer on the bartop and eyes me like he already knows the answer. “He’s been M.I.A. since lunch, and I can’t get him on his cell.”
“No clue.” I shrug my shoulders, adjusting the way the shirt falls over one side. “Maybe he’s just taking a much-needed break from the Hollow.”
“Okay. Now I know you know something,” Brighton growls and points a finger at me. “What did you do, Hellcat?” His voice gets all husky and deep like he’s trying to whisper, but it still comes out as a gruff shout.
“I didn’t do anything.” I avoid eye contact, but my phone rings in my back pocket, and I look down at it with a grimace.
“Who is it?” He asks, leaning over the counter to see the screen. “Does that say Harbor Police?” he snaps.
“Maybe…” I back away from the bar and out of his reach as I answer the phone. “Hello?” I answer it, keeping my eye on Brighton, when he’s mad, the Hollow shirt threatens to tear at the seams around his throat and biceps, and I should be scared. Instead, I’m an idiot—horny, desperate, and doomed.
“Reaper, I need a favor.”
“Kaia?” I practically yelp. “Where are you?”
“Lockup.” She tries to stifle the laugh, but it escapes anyway. “You should be honored. You’re my one phone call. I didn’t even call Christian.” She tries to sweet-talk me.
I watch as Brighton pulls his phone out next and scowls at me. His face contorts, and it’s pretty obvious he’s talking to Boone because I can hear him in the background of Kaia’s phone call, trying to explain himself.
“Will you come get me?” she asks over the commotion. Brighton hangs up faster than I do, and I know I’m in trouble.
“If Brighton doesn’t murder me for getting you both thrown in jail, sure. Be right there,” I whine and hang up the phone. “Listen…”
“Get in the truck,” Brighton snaps, already moving. I follow, and he opens the door for me, waiting until I’m inside to slam it with strange precision before getting into the driver's seat.
One quick Google search tells me exactly why they’re in jail. “Um,” I squeak.
“What?” He breaks his eye contact with the road to look at me.
I swallow the nerves and start to read. “Two unknown assailants egg the mayor’s house after a heated debate on the front lawn.”
“They did what?” Brighton slams on the brakes at the red light, and I slide forward on my seat.
“Put your seatbelt on,” he clips, and I don’t hesitate to follow instructions.
“I shouldn’t have gotten you involved,” he says quickly.
“And you shouldn’t have gotten them involved. This was my problem. My Daisy.”
My face scrunches at the possessive nonsense of it.
“What now?” Brighton questions as he pulls into the police station.
“Daisy isn’t just yours,” I say quietly, and climb from the truck without listening to what he has to say.
I understand that he’s her dad, so by blood, Daisy is his, but he’s wrong, which doesn’t happen often.
Daisy belongs to a village, and offensively, he believes differently.
Even if it’s a moment of lashing out because he’s pissed off with me.
The officer at the counter has us sign some paperwork, and Brighton pulls out his wallet to pay for the bail. She leaves us in silence for nearly twenty minutes as Brighton stares at the large no access door waiting for his brother.
“I’m sorry,” I say quietly, squaring my shoulders. He opens his mouth to say something when the door clicks open with a loud buzz, and the two criminals wander through.
Kaia’s sporting a nasty bruised cheek and wearing an oversized t-shirt that is clearly Boone’s because he’s in a dirty black tank top and looks much more pleased with himself than Brighton.
“You brought him?” Kaia whines. “Now we’re going to be in trouble!”
“You got thrown in jail, Kaia. You were already in trouble,” Brighton snips. “What were you thinking?”
“Probably shouldn’t admit to anything inside the police station,” Boone whistles and throws his arm around Kaia before parading out the front doors.
Once we’re in the parking lot, Brighton asks again and pops the tail on his truck.
“Up.” He pats the tailgate, and Kaia obeys without hesitation.
In true fashion, he has a first aid kit in the emergency duffle and grabs her by the chin to look at the cut on her cheek.
“Explain. Now,” he barks.
“Turns out the reason Garth is a shit head is that it runs in the family. Ricky wasn’t very remorseful about his son's actions. He assaulted Lori.” Boone leans against the truck and watches his brother carefully as he cleans the cut.
"He admitted that?" I ask.
"Sort of," Kaia tries to look at me and Brighton turns her face back to him. "He referred to it as a private misunderstanding and that boys will be boys."
“So you punched the mayor?” Brighton growls.
“Kaia punched the mayor,” he corrects, and Kaia smiles brightly. “I punched his security officer,” he admits.
“What did you say to him?” I ask them both.
“Well, after we egged his Mercedes—” Kaia starts, and Brighton tightens his grip on her face.
“Ow.” She snaps, and he lets her go. “He came out hot and denied his son's involvement in anything that Lori is claiming. Which means something bad happened, but after he was punched it loosened up his jaw muscles. Boone reminded him how much of a motormouth I am. And that if he pressed charges, I’d make sure that everyone knew what kind of person his son is.”
“Turns out Garth is on his last strike,” Boone says, angling Kaia’s face with a finger under her chin as Brighton backs away. “He’s being sent to boarding school at the end of the semester.” He inspects the cut, and his eyes meet mine. “Problem solved.”
“So why did they throw you in jail?” Brighton asks.
“For show. Can’t punch the mayor without consequences, Brighty,” Kaia purrs.
“Don’t call me that,” he grumbles. “And get in the truck.”
Boone helps Kaia down, and they wander around to climb into the back together as Brighton closes the back with a loud slam.
“Thank you,” he says, wetting his bottom lip like it costs him. I don’t say anything back because I’m still upset with his nonsense, but I let him open the passenger door for me, and this time he doesn’t close it in anger.