Chapter 19
Ali
Choking on tears and snot, I held on to my sister. After the chaos of the night, I was running on adrenaline only. I was still in shock that we’d made it out of that damn warehouse alive.
“Yeah, okay,” Bentley snorted, as skeptical as the rest of us. “Who the hell are you again? Abi never said.”
I was drawing a blank on the girl who had guided us out of the mayhem inside the warehouse like she ran a freaking army.
There was blood on her, not nearly as much as there was on Sixx, but enough to let me know she had gotten up close and personal with a few people.
At one point, she’d had a gun, which had mysteriously disappeared after we’d found a safe-ish place to collect ourselves.
“Ah, he’s so cute,” Abi’s new friend giggled, her eyes shifting from Sixx to my cousin. “Being adorable runs in the family, I see. But Daddy would never let me keep this one.”
“Fuck’s sake,” Abi hissed to herself, her fingers biting into me reflexively. From the tension rolling off her, I had to wonder how close she was with the brunette.
“No offense, gorgeous, but I doubt you can be of much assistance. Unless you plan on sucking someone’s cock to get those pictures.
Or maybe you can fuck your way through the long list of gang members who run this fine establishment.
” Bentley was in prick mode, the factory reset he adopted when he was anxious.
I wanted to hug him, promise him we were safe now and there was no need for him to be an asshole.
But I wasn’t confident that we were safe.
“Shut up, Bentley,” Abi warned him, and I shot him a pleading look that he didn’t see because he was shifting his gaze from the newcomer to the empty space behind us, keeping a cautious watch for danger.
This girl was giving off some weird vibes, and my sister was not particularly happy to see her. Even as sick as she’d been only minutes before, she was radiating conflicting emotions every other breath.
“You mouthing off isn’t going to do anything but get you a bullet in your head,” Abi bit out.
“I’m not scared of some—”
“Well, you fucking should be,” Abi exploded as she released me and turned to confront Bentley.
I’d seen her pissed off plenty of times; hell, she and Hayat had once been put in handcuffs because of a fight that had involved a skateboard and a boy from Maddie’s high school who was calling her awful names.
But this was a different level of anger, laced with so much pain, I felt a pang echo inside my chest.
My fault.
“You all could have gotten hurt tonight. Now we only have one option to fix it. I just hope you’re all prepared to face the consequences of your decisions.
” She turned away from Bentley and faced her new friend.
Her shoulders straightened, her chin tipped at an angle that I’d always thought was regal.
It lasted for all of five seconds before she wrapped her arms around herself, hugging her stomach, suddenly looking vulnerable.
“What will it cost for you to make this all go away?”
Startled, I gaped at my sister. There was no way. Bentley was right. This chick couldn’t fix anything. The damage was too severe. I’d put everyone I loved in danger, and now Sixx was going to be abducted by the freaking PCC or whatever gang Lunatic worked for.
“Hmm, let me see.” New Girl said coyly, tapping her finger to her chin.
“Sammy.” Abi was back to using that warning tone, reminding me so much of Mom I wanted to cry.
“Fine. I want the chance to explain what happened and my reasons for my actions.”
Abi frowned then blinked several times at Sammy’s answer. “That’s all? You will get the pictures of my sister. Deal with the pervy teacher who has been harassing her. And sort out the whole fight club situation with Sixx?”
That was a long list to have to fix. All my fuckups. My fault.
Sammy lifted a shoulder, appearing just as vulnerable as my sister. “I mean, my brother is going to have to assist me.”
Abi jerked as if she’d been stabbed. What the fuck was that about? I tried to watch her closer.
“But yeah,” Sammy continued. “We can take care of all your sister’s problems.”
“What’s the catch?” Hayat asked, moving to stand beside Abi.
“I already told you what I want in return.” Her gaze softened, affection filling her eyes as she looked at Abi. “I know it’s a big ask. I can throw in a few extra favors for later down the road if it makes any difference.”
Sixx stepped forward, putting himself closer to Abi and mostly blocking me from view.
I started to reach for him, wanting to touch him, hug him—just feel his skin beneath my fingertips—but then I remembered that he had stopped himself from touching me earlier.
He’d never done that before. I was one of the few exceptions to his touch aversion. Or I used to be.
Wrapping my arms around myself, I tried to fight the burn of hurt. My fault. This was another consequence I needed to face.
“No way you can do all that,” he told Sammy. “What do I have to do?”
Peeking around him, I saw her wave her hand, unbothered. Dismissive. “You’ve already caused enough trouble. Worry about what you’re going to tell Mommy and Daddy about your busted hands. I’ll take care of the rest.”
“But only if Abi listens to you explain…what exactly?” His voice sounded as skeptical as I felt.
“That’s between us,” Sammy said coolly.
Sixx grabbed Abi’s arms, turning her to face him. I sucked in a breath. Oh, so he had no trouble touching my sister. Okay.
“I don’t know who this chick is, but don’t do it. I can take care of this myself. So what if I have to do a few more fights. It’s what I’m good at, Abi. It’s… Why is your lip bleeding?” He touched his thumb carefully to her lip, which made her flinch. “Fuck, when did that happen?”
I stepped closer, inspecting her. Abi’s face looked like she’d been the one in a fight. Even in the low light, I could see how one side of her face was already swelling and bruised.
“Don’t worry about my face,” she dismissed. “And no, you are not participating in more fights. You’re sixteen, Sixx. I’m not going to let you ruin your life.”
“Abi, I’m so sorry,” I choked out, absorbing yet another one of the consequences of my poor decision-making. “I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”
She shushed me, gently grasping my face between her chilly hands. “I know you didn’t. None of it’s your fault. But for fuck’s sake, if anything like this happens again, promise me you’ll tell me.”
Fighting another sob, I nodded, unable to voice the promise. With a heavy sigh, Abi hugged me close. I buried my face against her shoulder, clinging to her.
“What’s it going to be?” Sammy called out after a moment, causing Abi to stiffen. “This is a one-time offer.”
“Fine,” she seethed. “You can talk, and I’ll listen.”
Sammy clapped her hands together, giggling in a way that put goose bumps on my arms. She was weird as fuck. People had died tonight. We’d nearly been casualties ourselves. And she was dancing around like a little girl who had gotten her way. She was definitely a little unhinged.
“After you help my sister and Sixx,” Abi amended, which didn’t deter Sammy’s joy.
“Deal! No takesies-backsies.”
Hayat grunted, her aquamarine eyes bouncing from Sammy to my sister before she took charge again. “We still need to figure out what we’re doing about Sixx’s hands.”
“I know a doctor who makes house calls,” Sammy offered.
“Fuck,” Abi muttered. “Fine. Let’s go. Bentley, where’s your car?”
“A few more blocks over. Tried to get as close as possible, but ended up circling back and parking closer to Sixx.” He fished his keys out of his pocket. “You can take mine. I’ll ride with Sixx and Ali.”
“No way,” Hayat snapped, snatching the key fob from him. “Ali is coming with Abi and me. So is Evan. Sammy can ride with you and Sixx.”
“I have my own car,” Sammy tossed out. “I would prefer if Abi rides with me.”
Hayat, Sixx, and Bentley all growled at her, and she just giggled at them. “So damn cute.”
“I’m going with Sixx and Bentley.” Abi and Hayat both started to argue, but I was already walking in the direction of where I remembered seeing Sixx’s car.
“Ali—”
“I’m going with Sixx,” I repeated, cutting Evan off. Yeah, no. I couldn’t even stand to hear his voice, let alone share an enclosed space with him. “And Bentley if he wants to ride with us.”
“Let’s go,” Bentley murmured quietly, falling into step beside me.
“Go straight to our house,” Abi called after us. “If you’re not there when we arrive, I’m sending Sammy to hunt you down.”
Bentley snorted. “Who the fuck even is that chick?”
“No clue,” I muttered, distracted when I felt Sixx right behind me. He still wasn’t touching me, but he was close enough I could feel his heat.
I’d take what I could get.