Chapter 13 #2
“No shit.” He took a sip of his beer, his eyes still on me. “They run you over or what?” he asked as he set his drink down.
“Yeah, actually.”
“Jesus. I’m sorry.”
“Yeah, me too.”
He leaned in a little closer, his leg brushing against mine. “What kind of car if you don’t mind me asking?”
“A Corvette.”
He shook his head. “Should have guessed. Assholes all of them.”
I don’t know why but that got another laugh out of me.
The guy grinned and started to say something else when one of the bouncers came over and tapped on his shoulder.
The guy twisted around to look at him and the bouncer gestured for him to step away.
I watched him get real close and talk in his ear, his hand gripping the man’s shoulder.
He was larger and at least an inch taller.
The man I had been talking to stiffened.
His eyes dragged over to a corner of the lounge where a group sat.
I followed his gaze and saw who he was staring at.
Leslie sat with a few of his biker friends, drinking whiskey.
He wasn’t looking our way but appeared to be listening in on someone else talking.
Still, I knew better. My stomach twisted as I watched him.
I glanced back over to the bouncer, watching him pat the guy’s shoulder, directing him somewhere else. Somewhere away from me.
The man glanced at me, and I saw a nervous look in his eyes. He nodded his head then turned and walked away.
As I lost him in the crowd, I looked back at Leslie. He was side-eyeing me now as his friends continued to talk.
I glared back at him for a moment before downing my drink. Setting the can on the counter I stalked to the entrance of the club and walked out into the courtyard.
The night had cooled down considerably. Crickets chirped nearby and I could see part of the moon behind the clouds. There were still a few cars left, and several bikes parked. A small group smoked nearby, otherwise the courtyard was empty.
I walked to the center and stopped, wrapping my arms around my chest. I stared at the cars, including a Mustang that looked similar to the one that had driven over me almost a year ago.
“Must be triggering.”
I nearly jumped at the voice. I looked around and caught Leslie standing behind me, blocking out the light of the club. His hands were in his pockets as he stood there watching me. How he was so silent still unnerved me.
I caught his gaze then quickly looked away. I told him and his brother about the accident months ago back at the church. Lez had said something similar back then too. “Funny, it doesn’t make me feel much of anything now,” I said. “I don’t dwell on the event more than I have to.”
“Seems like a good idea.”
I hugged myself a little tighter. “You didn’t have to send that guy away. It wasn’t like I was interested. We were just talking.”
He didn’t say anything at first. I heard him move closer until he was standing beside me. “He was interested though and a guy like that doesn’t take no for an answer.”
I snorted. “How would you know?”
“Because he’s a friend of a friend and you hear stories. He also jerks off to feet or so I’m told. Always suspicious of those types.”
I rolled my eyes. “Please.”
“And maybe I just didn’t like how he looked at you.”
“And how did he look at me?”
Leslie glared at me, the slightest hint of a smile on his face. A look similar to the one he’d given me back at the dive bar. “I think you know that look,” he said softly. “I think you’ve encountered it more than a few times.”
I stared back at him. “Maybe.”
“I heard Dom showed you around a little.”
“He did. Just the club though.”
“Good.” He started to walk toward the other side of the building. I stared at his back until he stopped and turned to me. “You coming?”
I glanced at the building. Unlike the club, there were fewer lights to be seen and it looked more abandoned. It reminded me of the church in that way, with half of it in ruin.
What was it with these people and partially unlivable places?
My gaze returned to him, feeling uncertain. “Maybe I’ll wait for Dom,” I said.
His expression changed and I caught the disappointment in his eyes. “Still mad about the other night, huh?”
“You know it’s more than just that.”
He nodded. “Right. Guess I should have expected that.” He rubbed a hand over his face. “Too late to say sorry and move on?”
“It is when you say it like that,” I snapped.
He dropped his hand. I swear his eyes glowed in the dark.
The intensity in his glare made me shiver.
“Okay,” he breathed. He walked back over to me.
“How about this then, I’m not sorry for what I did.
I’m not. I did what I felt I had to for us fucked up kids.
I would have done anything to give me and Dom the vengeance that we deserved.
You and Eve were caught up in it and that sucks.
I didn’t trust Eve, and by extension, I couldn’t trust you. No matter how much I wanted to.”
Anger instantly washed over me. “You made me think I could trust you.”
“And you shouldn’t have.”
“You’re right, it was really stupid.”
He paused, peering out across the courtyard as if thinking.
“I don’t regret what I did,” he said after a moment.
“Not if it meant killing those fuckers at Severfalls and stopping them from ever hurting anyone again. But you know, even as I planted myself in front of you that night and had my gun in my hand…I still felt sick.” He laughed softly as if what he was saying was absolutely crazy.
“Not because I was afraid of what I had to do but because I knew what I was losing. I couldn’t get rid of that feeling no matter what.
I knew I’d lose…” He stopped. I waited. He shook his head.
“Shit, I’m not good at this,” he mumbled.
I stepped closer and forced his gaze on mine. “I’m listening,” I said.
He studied me and seemed to relax. “I’ve seen and been through a lot of fucked up shit.
Some things I can never escape. A lot of things I had to cope with.
Other things I was able to get over. That night I got through Severfalls just fine.
Blood and fire and all.” He paused again as if finding it hard to speak.
“But coming back from what happened and seeing you sobbing on the floor still haunts me. It really does. Seeing what I had to do. Getting into Severfalls and killing was the easy part. Breaking you…” His jaw clenched tight, his expression faltering. “Breaking you was the hardest.”
The silence between us was like nothing I’d ever felt. I had no words at first. All the emotions started to flood me and I couldn’t tell one from the other.
Something in my gaze must have made him uncomfortable because he shifted, looking away.
“So, yeah, can’t change what happened. I get that.
Hate me like you want, I won’t say I still don’t deserve it.
But maybe just for now we put the past aside.
Let me help find your sister and keep you safe until we get her back. ”
I swallowed, wishing my throat didn’t feel so tight. I put my hand out and he looked down at it. “Alright,” I whispered. “Truce. I’ll let it go. For now.”
His eyes flicked up to me and he smiled. He took my hand, but instead of shaking it, he held it. We stayed that way for a moment until he started pulling me toward the building opposite. “Good. Let me give you the VIP tour now.”
“Oh, okay,” I said, almost stumbling to keep up.
“Your legs still sore? Need me to carry you?”
“I-I’m fine,” I stuttered.
“You sure, princess?”
“Yes,” I said, giving him a warning glare.
It was hard not to see how his face lit up, like an excited little boy. He pulled me inside and I followed.
The first room he pulled me into was some kind of gaming room, like the kind I’d seen in my cousin’s basement with bare walls and cold cement floor.
There was a faded red couch sitting in front of a large projector screen with a PlayStation hooked up underneath it.
A poker table sat to one side, along with a loveseat, and numerous fold-up chairs, all facing the screen.
A couple dart boards hung to one wall and a mini fridge and a small bar sat opposite.
“Nothing fancy yet, still need to work on the lights and repaint the walls,” Leslie said, still beaming. “Maybe give the room some kind of theme, get better furniture. I’ve got a few ideas written down somewhere.”
I stood in the middle of the room, peering around. “So basically, your man cave.”
He smirked. “Yeah, basically.” He walked over to the refrigerator and opened it, taking out two bottles of Dos Equis.
He popped the caps off with the end of a blade from his pocket before offering me one.
I took it, murmuring my thanks. As I brought the bottle to my lips, I noticed on the end table by the couch a makeshift steering wheel attached to a dash and a pair of pedals. Both were hooked up to the PlayStation.
“Don’t get enough racing in real life, huh?” I pointed to them.
He shrugged. “Can’t always practice on the streets. Gets more use in the winter.”
I nodded. My eyes drifted over to the rack of games to one wall. “It makes sense.”
“What does?”
“I kind of had a feeling you were a big gamer nerd.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“And something tells me you’re not.”
I pursed my lips. “I had a Gameboy as a kid, that’s about it. I played sports when I got older so didn’t get into a lot of video games.”
He leaned against the couch. “It wasn’t soccer, was it?”
I gave him a tight smile. “No. Softball.”
He grunted, taking a drink.
“I did try skateboarding for a summer. Stopped playing sports when I got to college. Only one game I got real good at in university was—”
“Please, don’t say beer pong.”
I laughed. “Okay. Besides drinking games, I happen to be a foosball champion. Two years in a row.”
“They had foosball championships?”
“That’s right.”
“And you call me a nerd, Jesus. And you got a medal for that and everything?”
“Sure did.”