Chapter 14
M yles
The call went to voicemail for the second time, and a cold dread settled into my stomach. I paced outside and could feel the guys’ eyes on me. Ren wasn’t the type to buck against the rules and leave the property, but no one had seen her.
“She didn’t answer. I don’t get it. Where did she go, and why would she leave?”
“Could she have snuck off with Ivy or Chantry,” Theo asked, but I shook my head no.
“Already asked, and they haven’t seen her. If something happened to her….” My phone dinged, and I sucked in a deep breath as I stared at the message from Ren.
R: Omw, be there in a few.
Snowflake Catcher: Where did you go?
There was a long pause before the little response bubbles popped up.
R: Blake’s house.
I wasn’t expecting that answer. I looked up at the guys. “That’s her. She went with Blake to your house, Theo.” His eyebrows shot up. Obviously, he wasn’t expecting that answer either. First, Blake was using, and now this? What the fuck was going on with him, and how did it tie to Ren?
“He took her off property? How did he get her off,” Nash asked, and my hand clenched as the thought of Ren screaming Blake’s name entered my head.
I glared at him. “Nice choice of wording, asshole.”
Nash smirked. “Unintentional for once, but I guess it’s possible knowing Blake. I mean, the guy makes me look like I don’t sleep around, and we all know that’s bullshit.” I glared at him.
“Yer supposed to make me feel better, fucking news flash. This is not better,” I said, and the three of them chuckled, but I didn’t find this amusing.
“Alright, fine, how about this? I doubt she’d tell you where she was if she’d snuck off to fuck him. There are plenty of places to do it right here on property where no one would see,” Nash added, and Liam laughed.
“Ya know, I think ya need to read a manual on emotional support or how to be a friend in crisis mode ‘cause ya kinda suck at it.” Nash rolled his eyes and leaned against one of the lamp posts that lined the path.
“Fuck, I’m only stating facts, and besides, it just doesn’t seem her style.
I’d have already fucked her ten times by now if it was.
” My mouth fell open. Now my stomach was in more knots than before Nash tried to help.
“What? Don’t look at me like that. I’m just saying I’ve tried, and that girl has a very firm, ‘Get the fuck away from me’ policy. ”
“May I point out that this may have nothing to do with sex? Just because that is where your and Nash’s head would automatically go doesn’t mean everyone thinks with what is between their legs,” Theo piped in, and I was finally happy to have a voice of reason.
“We know my brother is hiding more than his sudden drug use, and he refuses to talk to us. There is the possibility he felt comfortable opening up to someone who is not us. Someone less likely to use our years of bias against him. I, for one, hope that she can get him to share what is going on because the group doesn’t feel right with Blake on the outside. ”
“True. I don’t think I like this caring shite, it’s fuckin’ stressful,” I mumbled.
“Then stop caring about her. Easy,” Nash said. I couldn’t
“You can ask them for yourself. Here they come,” Liam piped up, and I turned to see Blake’s car pulling into a parking space.
They were taking forever to get out of the vehicle, and I was on the move.
I marched for the car, not waiting any longer.
My agitation overrode the initial fear, but as soon as I looked at my Snowflake’s face, I knew something was wrong. Fuck.
“Are ya okay,” I asked, wrapping her up in a hug as I glared at Blake.
Ren hugged me back, and a little of the terror I’d felt when I couldn’t find her eased. I didn’t like the fact that she was on lockdown or the mysteries still surrounding her.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Ren said. “Ella made us a nice lunch.” She was tense in my arms, and her voice betrayed her that she was hiding something, but what?
Nash stormed past me and pushed Blake hard enough that he stumbled back into his car. “What the fuck was that for?”
“Did you drive high?” Nash got into Blake’s face until they were nose to nose. I knew he was looking at his eyes.
Blake took us all by surprise when he pushed Nash back and glared at him. “Get out of my face, man. I’m no longer answering to you. You kicked me out, remember? So you don’t get a say over anything I do anymore.”
Nash smirked as he looked down at his chest and then back up at Blake. “Don’t give me a reason to make this harder on you, Blake. I will, and you won’t like what I come up with if I feel threatened. Answer the question, did you drive Ren around high?”
Blake crossed his arms and glared at Nash. “No, I didn’t. I haven’t touched anything for a couple days.”
“You shouldn’t be touching it at all. Maybe I need to lock your ass up in my father’s playroom for a little while.” Blake’s eyes went wide.
“Enough, the two of ya need to calm down,” I said. Moving away from Ren, I stood between them as they squared off.
“You two are friends. Can’t you have one civil conversation so you can get back on the same page?” Ren pulled on Blake’s arm, but he turned his angry stare down to her. The tension was building by the second.
“Nash doesn’t know how to be a friend unless it involves controlling their every action,” Blake said.
“The first mistake you make, he cuts you loose and throws you away. Isn’t that right, Nash?
I became too much of a hassle for you to deal with, so I was no longer needed.
That’s not a friend. That’s a boss. An asshole one at that. ”
I glared at Blake. “Not helping,” I said as Liam joined and grabbed Nash from going offside. Theo laid a hand on his brother’s shoulder, but Blake pulled away.
“What? It’s true,” Blake said. “We’ve been friends since before I can remember. I fuck up once, and instead of talking to me, you ambush me and then kick me out of your life altogether. Fuck you. I don’t need friends like that.”
“You know why we have such strict rules about lying, using, and trust. You broke all of them. You’re the one who lied to me for months.
You could’ve brought everything we’ve worked for crumbling down around us and had me barred from the one thing that brings me any peace.
One wrong calculation or surprise test, and you would’ve been caught.
Then, we all would’ve been penalized. My rep would’ve been ruined forever in the competition world.
Then again, maybe you don’t give a fuck about that because you don’t have to go home to a father who would crush your face in, but I do,” Nash said as he strained against my grip.
“Wanna swap places for a while? I’d love to have a great night’s sleep and a mommy who made me lunch. ”
Everyone sucked in a breath, our eyes going between the two. Ren looked shocked and sad as her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. This was the first time that Nash had openly said anything about what his father did to him and not just a flat statement of ‘I’m going to kill him one day.’
“You’re right. I don’t have your prick of a father as my family.
But the moment that clock clicks to midnight on my eighteenth birthday, I become his toy to abuse.
What is he going to make me do for the greater good of the families, Nash?
What will he do to me if I refuse to be part of the sick shit he likes?
Will he kill my family? Torture me? Kill someone I love? ”
I cringed as Nash’s face darkened. That was a blow way below the belt.
“Enough, you two shouldn’t be talking about any of this on school property. You don’t know who is listening,” Liam said.
Nash relaxed a little, but what Liam said only seemed to amp him up more.
Everything Blake had done was so out of character—the nervousness and jitters, the bouts of paranoia and aggression.
It made me want to kick myself for not seeing the signs sooner.
There was a massive red flag waving in my face, and I looked right through it.
I’d seen many people have a complete personality lobotomy on coke, but Blake was the last person I would’ve ever guessed would start using.
“Don’t you get it, Blake? I kicked you out for your own good,” Nash said, and Blake’s brows drew together.
“Fuck off, you didn’t do it for me,” Blake said, and Ren pulled on his arm harder as he balled his hand into a fist.
“I did. Are you trying to tell me that you’ll be fine doing what we do with the product,” Nash asked.
“That is such a small part of what we do. You could’ve just removed me from that detail if you didn’t trust me to handle shit anymore,” Blake argued.
“But how do I trust you at all when you not only stole but you lied to my face when I asked you a direct question?” We all fell silent as some guys walked past and got into their car. “How do I trust you to do anything?”
“I told you I’d stop,” Blake growled.
“The two of you are acting like idiots,” Theo said as he rolled his eyes.
He gave Nash the weight of his arrogant stare.
“You’re way over the top and need to cool off.
As for you, Blake, I honestly think you want Nash to beat you into the ground because somewhere inside of you, you feel you deserve it.
But you don’t. You made a massive mistake, and we will find a way to help you and fix this. ”
There was a moment when Blake looked like he would back down, and then he smirked at his brother.
“Maybe you’re right. I certainly deserve it for what I did today,” Blake said, and Ren’s face paled.
“Blake, not the time,” Ren said, but he ignored her and looked at me instead.
“I kissed her,” he said, and I forgot all about holding onto Nash as I faced Blake.
“What?” The wind blowing around us was the only thing you could hear as we stared off.
“Well shit, I didn’t see that coming. Good on you, Princess.” Nash chuckled. “And you call me the asshole? That’s funny.”
“Shut it, Nash,” Ren said, but Nash smiled wider.