18. Screamer
SCREAMER
He won’t get away with this.
“This is all my fault.”
After Roxie read the note, she leaned against me, seeking comfort. I’m not sure she realizes she even did it, but I’m not about to point it out. I know we should call the cops, or at the very least, Shuffle, and yet… Here we sit on the side of the road, neither of us taking out our cell phones.
“Stop,” I command. “You can’t blame yourself.”
She pushes away and glares at me over her shoulder.
“If not for me, Saint wouldn’t be dead. I could’ve gone anywhere, but I chose to come back to Marble Falls.
If I hadn’t, Saint would be home, waiting on Rae to get home from work.
Pretty sure that’s the very definition of being able to blame myself. ”
Bursting into tears, Roxie tries to stand but can’t.
“You didn’t cause this wreck,” I tell her.
She sniffles. “Jace is here for me. Why didn’t he just come for me? First the texts, and now this? What the fuck will he do next?”
“Texts?”
She reaches into her jacket pocket, pulls out her cell, taps on the screen, and then flips it for me to read. “I got them after you dropped me off the other day.”
As I read the messages, I see red. “So, it was Jace at the diner,” I say matter-of-factly.
“I guess so.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Roxie blanches at the accusation in my tone. “Because I never thought anything would come of it. I mean, if he was gonna hurt me, wouldn’t he do that instead of sending me texts and…” Her eyes fall to Saint. “And this?”
“Jesus fucking Christ, sweetheart,” I snap. “He beat you, the one person he should’ve cherished and treated like a goddamn queen. If he’s capable of that, he’s capable of anything.”
“Don’t yell at me,” she hisses.
I take a deep breath to calm my emotions. “I’m sorry,” I say, getting to my feet and pulling her to hers. “I didn’t mean to yell at you.”
Roxie brushes dust from her jeans before straightening and wiping the wetness from her face.
“I gotta go. I need to call Shuffle, and I need to tell Rae.” Her voice cracks, so she takes a deep breath.
“The police need to be called so they can investigate. I’m sure I’ll need to help plan a funeral.
And I should probably call my friends to warn them.
If Jace did this, they aren’t safe, especially if he finds out they helped me get away. Oh, shit, what if he alre?—”
“Roxie!” She presses her lips together at my shout.
“What you need to do is slow down and breathe. One thing at a time, okay?” She nods absently.
“First, I’m going to text Crow and ask him to have Addison meet us at the Soulless Kings’ clubhouse.
She’s his old lady and the law around here and can help.
Then we’re going to get the hell out of here. We’re sitting ducks out in the open.”
“What about Shuffle and Rae?”
“You can call your brother from my place. Right now, I don’t think it’s a good idea to be near LTMC property. Jace probably already knows the location, and you being there is just inviting trouble.”
“You’re right,” she agrees. “I’m not ready to tell him everything yet, anyway.”
“I’m not sure you can keep your secrets for much longer, sweetheart. Not now that a club brother is dead.”
Roxie drops her head and stares at the ground. “Saint didn’t deserve this.”
“No, he didn’t. But again, it’s not your fault.” I put two fingers under her chin and force her to look me in the eyes. “He won’t get away with this, I promise.”
After a few seconds, she nods, and I lower my arm. Taking my cell out of my cut, I pull up the texting app.
Me: Meet me at the clubhouse, bring Addi, 911
Almost immediately, my phone pings with a response.
Crow: Done. Church?
Me: Definitely
I return my phone to my pocket. “C’mon, Roxie,” I say, pulling her attention away from Saint.
“I don’t want to leave him,” she says, sniffling back tears.
“We don’t have a choice. We have to go.”
Squaring her shoulders, she turns on her heel and walks to her bike. I follow, and the ride to the clubhouse seems to take an eternity. As soon as she and I step inside, Crow and Addison, his old lady, are there to greet us.
Crow looks down at my hands, and his expression hardens when he sees the blood. “What the fuck happened?”
I glance down. “It’s not mine.”
“Whose is it?” Addison asks.
“It’s Saint’s,” Roxie replies stoically before I can. “H-he’s dead.”
“Hey, Ember!” Crow shouts to Ghost’s old lady. “Take Roxie and help her get cleaned up.”
Ember rushes across the room and smiles at Roxie. “Hi. How ‘bout we find you some clean clothes, hmm?”
“Um…” She glances at me as if to ask permission, and when I nod, she continues. “Yeah, okay. But I, um, need to call my brother.”
“Let Ember help you first,” Crow states, his tone calm. “Then you can call Shuffle.”
Ember puts her arm around Roxie and leads her out of the main area. As soon as they’re out of sight, I let my rage take over.
“I’m gonna fucking kill him,” I snarl.
“Kill who?” my president asks.
“Her fiancé.”
Crow sighs. “I have a feeling you’ve got a lot to catch us up on. C’mon, we’ll talk in church.” When I don’t follow him, he glances over his shoulder. “She’ll be fine, Screamer. Ember’s got her.”
Forcing myself to regulate my breathing and erratic heartbeat, I jerk a nod.
“She better be.”