Chapter 26
CHAPTER 26
LILIANA
I gnacio the Dickhead Reyes follows us to the restaurant, and then adds an extra chair at our table so his large body can squish in.
“You’re working on my last nerve,” I mutter. “Why are you ruining this for us?”
“In order to be able to keep myself from imagining really shitty things, I have to be able to keep her in my sight,” Ignacio says, the color high in his cheeks.
Is he… blushing? Oh shit. This is a rare sighting in the wild.
“Are you really ‘seeing’ me dead when you close your eyes?” Rachelle asks seriously.
I love how after everything, there’s still compassion inside of her. He doesn’t deserve it, but I love that they didn’t break it.
“Yes, and not just when I’m trying to sleep,” he says unblinkingly. “Does that make me crazy?”
The waitress walks up before Rachelle can answer, and we order our drinks and food. Once she leaves, Rachelle sighs as she gazes at Ignatio’s waiting face.
“Oh my sweet summer child,” she mutters. “When you see me, what do you think, Ignacio?”
“I hate that you call me Ignacio,” he says, grimacing. “I think only teachers call me that out loud and people I don’t know. Or even my dad when he’s mad at me. I see someone who’s stronger than she should be, who refuses to back down even when she doesn’t have the tools to defend herself. I see someone who is gorgeous, intelligent, and full of pain. How you walk around if you feel anything like the guilt I do now.”
“I don’t do things I need to feel guilty about,” she says. “I live a life I’m proud of, for however long I’m here for.”
Nacio and I both wrack our fingers through our hair in pain. I know I fucking hate when she talks like this. It’s fatalistic, and I’m very superstitious, which means it feels as if she’s borrowing trouble.
“Don’t talk like that,” Nacio begs. “It’s like you know?—”
“The bet ends when I’m dead,” Rachelle says heavily. Her finger taps on the table without her realizing it, as if she hears music no one else hears. She does this when she’s stressed, but I never mention it.
Rachelle is grounding herself, which means she needs whatever comfort this gives her.
“I know that, and so does everyone else who understands the way the Kings work,” she says. “To say anything else would be a lie. I can’t outrun it, as is evident by the fact that you’re here.”
“I don’t want you hurt anymore,” he rasps. “The words I wrote on your skin were a test. Jared wanted to see if I was loyal to them or not.”
“Congratulations. You passed his dumb test. You’ve only been friends your entire stupid life,” I remind him. “Why would he feel the need to do that?”
“You’re under my skin, Rachelle,” he mutters. “If they’re honest, you’re under theirs too, but I’m the one who is here so I’ll leave them out of this. I look for you in the hallways at school to see how you’re doing, see if anyone is fucking with you. At home, I wish we could hang out together, so I push myself into your personal space.”
“He blew up my phone after what they did,” I admit. “I think they should still all take a giant leap off a cliff together, though.”
“Is that because you want her for yourself?” Nacio asks.
“No, I want the best for my girl. If a person with a cock were to theoretically be that, then fine,” I say. “Rachelle has a giant heart.”
“I’m also a mess,” she says. “Cocks trigger me.”
“Only because they’re idiots,” I confirm.
“I know I’ve managed to fuck this all up,” he says. “I was really pissed off when you moved here, Rachelle. Then my dad was all of a sudden marrying your mom and it felt like he was moving too fast. So I decided you were the enemy, and I passed that information on to Jared.”
“He decided to draw first blood,” I say slowly, trying to remember the rumors that go around about the Kings.
“We don’t call it that, and she didn’t bleed, but yes,” Nacio says, wincing. “He marked you as ours to fuck with, until we decided we were done.”
“Which means you deserve the visual lies in your head,” she says, looking away. “If the future rolls on a continuous loop in your head, maybe you’ll think twice when it’s set to happen.”
“That’s the thing. I don’t want you to die. Fuck the bet. I need your light in my world. The rest of them will come around, and I know it’ll be a shit show when it happens,” he says. “You’re too good of a person to die at our hands. I won’t participate in it.”
“They don’t know that,” I say, feeling disgusted.
“They don’t. If they did, things would get worse. I wouldn’t be able to protect you or give you a heads up before something goes down,” he says desperately.
“So you’re going to secretly help me?” Rachelle asks, looking back at him in confusion.
“Did you catch feelings?” I ask. This is what I was hoping for, but it’s too little, too late. He was part of doing the unthinkable, and it’s too recent for him to think she’d agree.
“Yeah,” he grunts.
“Let me swoon,” she says sarcastically. “Go away, Ignacio.”
She emphasizes the use of his full name, much to his dislike.
“I will not,” he says. “Why did you cut your hair?
“It’s mine. I have the right to do whatever I want to it, even buzz it all off,” she says.
“Of course you do, but that wasn’t the question,” he adds.
“I needed a change,” she says. “Less hair means I feel lighter.”
“Is this the idea that you release trauma when you cut your hair?” he asks.
He’s smarter than I give him credit for.
“Are you going to make fun of me for something so arbitrary making me feel better?” Rachelle asks drolly.
“Never,” he says. “I’ve watched you categorically shut things down. I know life is hard, techniques aren’t always sure fire, but anything that makes you feel in control, I’m here for. None of the bullshit that happened on your birthday was right, Rachelle. I’m sorry any of it happened.”
“Day late and a dollar short, Ignacio,” she mutters.
“Why are you even telling her any of this?” I ask. “Other than using her as a lifeline to remind yourself that you and your friends didn’t kill her?”
“I fucked up, didn’t give you a chance, Rachelle, and I want a do-over,” he says so quickly my girl blinks at him slowly.
I don’t think she believes she properly heard him. I’m still having the same issue myself.
“Get the fuck out of here,” she whispers. I think she’s keeping her voice low on purpose. Otherwise, she’ll begin to scream and never stop. “You don’t deserve a do-over, Ignacio. Stop ruining my day.”
“You can have some space for now,” he allows, getting up. “I can’t promise to leave though.”
Finding another table not far from us, he sits slowly down, flagging down the waitress to let her know he was moving tables.
“He’s such an arrogant ass,” Rachelle grumbles.
As he puts his chin on his fist to gaze at us from across the room, I have to admit that he appears to be more of a puppy dog than arrogant. He fucked up though, which means he has to show us how he means to make amends.
Things are very complicated because he is still a King, and there’s always the possibility that he’s being untruthful.
“He is, but he’s far enough away that we can pretend he doesn’t exist. Focus on me and no one else,” I tell her.
Pulling her eyes away from Nacio, she nods as the food arrives. Even watching her eat her French fries is sexy.
“Now, what do we want to do for our last day?” I ask her.
I had planned to go to the Tillamook Lighthouse today, but I don’t know if she’ll want to. We also have one last night here, yet I’m dreading the idea of staying while Ignacio lurks. It’ll be easier to just leave tonight, I think.
“We should do the lighthouse,” she says decisively. “I’d love to get some photos there. Do you mind if we head back tonight? I just?—”
“I was thinking the same,” I sigh.
We did some exploring of the tide pools, recreation sites, and another section of the beach that has these really cool caves, but I didn’t want to overdo it. The last few experiences with hiking haven’t been the best, I don’t want to scare her.
“Do you mind?” she asks hesitantly.
“I don’t,” I say. “If he can find us, I’m a little worried someone else could. Let’s enjoy the day, and then head home.”
After finishing our meal, I still pay with cash because I don’t want to borrow trouble. Glancing over, I notice that Ignacio is doing the same. I guess he’s not completely useless. He follows us out of the restaurant, while I bury my annoyance.
“It’s not too far that we can’t walk, is it?” Rachelle asks, biting her lip. I can tell she’s trying to ignore him as much as we are.
“As much as I’d prefer to walk, let’s drive,” I suggest. “We can walk for dessert before we come back to pack.”
We found this really delicious bakery Rachelle and I fell in love with. I need my fix before we go home.
“I probably need to see Barrett when we get back,” Rachelle says, surprising me. “I’ve been in my bubble here, but going home means possible nightmares and anxiety.”
“You don’t seem very excited to see him,” I say, confused.
“I’m worried about how he’ll react about what happened in the woods,” she says. “Backtracking my steps, seeing where I may have been able to make a different choice. I’m already beating myself up enough about not simply hiding and running back to you immediately. None of this would have happened otherwise.”
“You trusted the guys to do what they said they would,” I remind her. “There’s no way you could predict the future, and Barrett can’t ask you to. If necessary, say that to him.”
Blowing out a breath, she nods, getting quiet. Something tells me she’s imagining what that conversation would look like in her head. I don’t mind the silence at all.
Unlocking the car as we arrive at the rental, I notice the way Nacio goes to an SUV parked down the street. The boy is making castration look real good right now. I don’t care how pretty his dick is.
Dropping into my car, I search behind my seat for my camera so Rachelle can take photos. It’s something I wanted to give her for her birthday, but presents clearly overwhelm her. This way, she’ll be able to take and develop any really good photos she captures. I want to frame them and put a few up in my bedroom.
“Alright, let’s do this,” I say, closing my door as I turn to face Rachelle.
Forcing a smile, she nods.
“Is he ruining the vibe?” I ask her. “I’ll fry his nuts for you, baby.”
A surprised look comes over her face as she laughs. “I wasn’t expecting that,” she says, shaking her head. “Why do I feel as if he’d drop his pants and offer his dick up to the experience?”
The fact that her mind went there makes me snicker as I turn on the car and pull it into reverse.
“It’s because you’re completely right,” I say, grinning as I drive. “Why are the crazy ones obsessed with you, baby?”
“Ugh, are they really though?” she asks, shaking her head as the ghost of a smile remains on her lips.
Yes, they are. I’m unapologetically one of them.
* * *
IGNACIO
I’m officially her stalker. I really am cursed to see her dead whenever I close my eyes. I know what her ultimate fate is with the Kings, how we’re supposed to get away with murder as our entrance into their society. I was only doing this because I was jealous of her entry into our family.
And because I’ve been secretly attracted to her since the first time I met her. Dad had me meet Rachelle and Julia the day they moved in. There was a small moving truck, and I met her in the hallway when she was familiarizing herself with her new bedroom. I treated her like shit that day too.
I pretended to be nice at dinner, and then called the guys to vent. That’s how the plan to make her pay for slithering into my life started. I wish I could take it all back, but there’s no such thing as a do-over in life.
The entire day, I follow the girls at a distance, watching how the two of them love each other and interact. A pain in my chest settles, making it difficult to breathe. I fucked everything up, because I want them both, and neither of them can let me in after everything.
Rachelle is gazing up at the lighthouse as she takes photos of it as the waves crash against the rock. We hiked up to get close to it, and Lili made sure the entire time she wouldn’t fall. My stepsister has found a stamina for hiking that she didn’t have before.
I’m sure she’s trying to make sure she’s caught less unawares next time. Unfortunately, the Kings rarely play the same ace twice. They’ll find another way to fuck with her, hurt, or embarrass her. Things will simply be ramping up from here.
Realizing I’m speaking of them as an entity outside of myself, I swallow thickly as I walk closer to her. I don’t want to startle her, and Lili moves to the side to take a photo on her phone of her photographing the lighthouse.
I make sure I won’t ruin her shot before making myself known to Rachelle.
“Hey,” I say softly, though the word is pulled away by the wind.
“Your presence is noted,” she says coldly.
Ah, I think I’d rather her be angry than cold. The knife that stabs me from those words would leave me bleeding if they could.
“I will show you that I’m sorry every day,” I tell her.
“Secretly, maybe. At school, you’ll what? Trip me so I’ll fall? Get me to fail my classes again? Or laugh if Jared, Elijah, or Theo ever catch me up at the tower as they threaten to throw me out of it? Wouldn’t that be a silly way to die? It would fulfill the bet,” she rasps.
“Goddamn your mind is dark,” I breathe.
“Pretty much,” she sighs. Lili is giving us a little space, but I wouldn’t put it past her to kick my ass if I make the wrong move. “There’s only a month until school starts up again. I just started thinking about how there’s no hiding from the bullshit that’ll inevitably go with it.”
“It’s not bullshit if you know it’s coming for you,” Lili mutters, coming to join us. “Summer feels bittersweet because it’s the calm before the storm. There’s only so much hiding away Rachelle and I can do.”
“The guys aren’t welcome at the house, so they’ll never step foot through the gates again,” I remind them. “It’s just school that will be the issue. I’m going to be clingy, full disclosure.”
“I’m not dead yet,” Rachelle says darkly. “Unless you can tell the future, tell your thoughts to go fuck themselves.”
“Cute,” I smirk. “Is that what you tell yours?”
“Sometimes,” she sighs. “Others, the voices just get too loud, and make too much sense. The second you let them win, it’s harder to tell them no.”
Swallowing hard, I turn her to face me, my fingers gently sliding through her silky hair. I don’t pull, I just rub her temple with my thumb. Her hands lower the camera in her hands until the strap around her neck holds it, and I gaze into her blue-green eyes.
They remind me of water where the sky meets it on the horizon.
“I don’t believe that,” I say, my voice cracking as my throat goes dry. “It takes more courage sure, but you tell them to fuck off just fine, baby girl. I don’t think the problem will be going back to business as usual when school starts again. Want to know what will be?”
“Shoot,” she says. Her pupils appear huge as she gazes at me, everything about her tiny frame making her seem delicate and breakable.
“Not burning shit down when things are normal,” I say. “Things got out of hand, and I had to face what it’ll look like if you did die. I don’t accept it, Rachelle. Not for a moment. I’m claiming you as mine, you don’t have the option to refuse. Fuck, you’re both mine.”
“Greedy bastard,” Lili murmurs.
“When you have it all, the things that can’t be bought mean more,” I say.
All the while, Rachelle tries to figure me out as she looks up at me.
Good luck on that. I think I’ve lost the plot myself.