21. Chapter 21
Chapter twenty-one
Maddox
Me and my big mouth. This wasn’t how I wanted Jinx to find out. I feel like an ass as I watch her standing there, her hair dripping water onto the floor, a towel haphazardly wrapped around her body, and a small pool of water starting to form around her feet.
She looks between Ash and Ace. “That asshole that has been stalking me for months has been your dad this entire time?”
“Trust me, I was shocked too,” Ashton tells her.
“Where is he?”
Atticus turns to me. “We had Wilde take care of him.”
“I don’t understand any of this. Why did he do it?” She pulls her towel closer to her body.
“Come sit, please. We don’t have answers for you.”
She shakes her head and backs away. “He said he had Dad’s heart; how would he know that? He showed me a box.”
Ashton moves closer but stops inches away from her when she backs away more. “I don’t know, Jinx. I’m just as confused as you. I haven’t seen that prick since I was a kid. Mom made sure that he never came around. That’s why I don’t understand him coming around now and going after you. He shouldn’t even know who you are.”
“The things he said and did.”
“I know, and trust me, he’ll pay for what he did. You have my word. Wilde has him locked up, and he can’t escape. I need some answers from him also.” Atticus stands next to his brother.
“You don’t think he killed my dad, do you?” she asked. A tremor shook her lips as she whipped a tear away.
The room grows deathly quiet. I never thought of that; my suspicions have always been with Serena or Roan, and I’ll always believe that. But now that she mentioned it, it does seem odd that he would know where her Dad’s heart would be, and why would he know that? Not the fact that someone would take an organ out of a human. That’s a question for a different day.
“Jinx, I swear we had nothing to do with the death of your dad.” I try to reassure her, but I don’t even know if it’s enough.
“Can I have a few minutes to myself?”
“You never have to ask,” Ashton tells her.
She gives a little nod, then spins around and heads back into the bedroom. I move away from the couch to where the guys are standing.
“We need to call Wilde and figure this shit out now. Wherever he has your dad, we need to get over there now and have a chat with the prick.”
“No shit. Nothing makes any sense anymore, and I don’t like it. Why, after all these years, come after us, and why choose Jinx? I need some answers before I lose my goddamn mind.” Ashton walks into the kitchen, opening a cupboard door only to slam it shut.
“We could call Mother and ask her.”
Ashton swings around, glaring at Atticus. “Are you fucking stupid? That’s asking for a can of worms to be opened. She’ll want to know everything, and it’s none of her fucking business.”
“I would have to agree with Ash. Serena doesn’t need to know shit, and to be honest, what if she’s in on all of this?”
“If Mom were in on this, I would be amazed she could devise such a plan. And why, after all these years, would she talk to the sperm donor? What would she get out of it? She was married to one hell of a guy.”
Atticus rolls his eyes. “She’s a fucking idiot, so who the fuck knows what she’s been planning this entire time.”
I pull my phone out and send a text to Wilde, telling him we need to have a chat with the cunt. He sends back a message right away telling us where he’s at. I laugh at the location, considering Wilde doesn’t know this school.
“What?” Atticus asks.
“Wilde has your dad locked up in the old administration building.”
“How the fuck did he find that place?”
I don’t put anything past Wilde, but seeing how he got both of us out of that rehab without being caught still amazes me. It makes me wonder what Wilde did while he was out of rehab. I shrug at the guys because I can’t answer that question. Even I haven’t been to the old administration building, so who the fuck knows how he found it.
“Can we go somewhere?” Jinx asks when she emerges from the bedroom. She’s rockin' black leggings and a hoodie, with her hair thrown up in a messy bun. Her beauty shines no matter what she wears.
“Where did you need to go?”
“The school basement. That’s where I was taken from.”
“Are you kidding me? We checked the basement; it’s nothing but the laundry.” Atticus runs his hand through his blond hair, frowning.
“Atticus is right. Is there another basement that we didn’t know about? Ashton asks, looking lost. “I heard stories of a cult and would’ve been worried if they did laundry as a task.”
I look at them like they are idiots. “Why wouldn’t this school have a basement? It’s old as dirt.”
“Don’t fucking start. We were going out of our minds trying to find her; you wouldn’t understand.” Atticus steps closer to me, poking me in the chest.
Another reminder that I wasn’t here. I’ll never live that down.
“Okay, boys, that’s enough. The basement isn’t accessible anyway, so I don’t blame you for not trying. Either way, you did find me, and I’m safe. But please, can we go? I need to see something.”
“Are you sure you’re feeling better?” Ash taps his stomach.
“I’m good. I swear.”
For some reason, I don’t believe her. She hides her pain too well, so she doesn’t burden us, especially when she knows if I’ve been struggling more than usual. I’m trying my hardest not to fall into the deep end, but knowing what I know, it’s a real battle not to go out and grab a drink.
“Alright, let’s go. I ran into Spencer earlier; I’m sure he’ll want to stop by later since he never came.” Atticus said, looking at Jinx.
“Can I use your phone? I’ll text him.”
Atticus digs his phone out and hands it to her. “Was he upset when you talked to him?”
“Would you be if your best friend was kidnapped and you weren’t there for them?”
“You don’t have to be a dick about it, I was only asking.” Her fingers fly across the screen of the phone.
“I’m not being a dick, but if he’s your best friend, maybe have some compassion for the guy.”
Her head snaps up, and Ashton runs over and wraps his arms around her before she can say anything else. “Okay, that’s enough. Emotions are still running high, and before you both say something you can’t take back, we should go.”
“I wouldn’t regret the words that left my mouth.”
“Jinx, that’s enough,” Ashton growls.
I head for the door before I get in the middle of that bullshit. It’s bad enough that I let shit slip; I won’t say anything about Jinx and Spencer. I step into the hall, and Wilde is leaning against my door down the hall. When he sees me, he pushes off and heads toward me.
“What’s the plan?”
“Jinx wants to head to the school basement. You tagging along?”
He shrugs. “Might as well, I have nothing else to do.”
“What are your plans now that you're out?”
“Maddy, I don’t plan shit. I’ll go wherever I can and pray that I survive another day. That’s all I can hope for.”
“I hear ya on that. You can stay in my dorm for as long as you need.”
He raises a brow. “Won’t the dean have something to say about that?”
“Don’t worry about him. I have connections, and it’s about time I started cashing in on them. And this fucking school owes me.”
“Maddox Van Daren, are you using me now?”
I turn around and see Jinx standing there with a smile on her face.
“No, baby, never.” I pull her into my chest and lean my lips to her ear. “But anytime I can, I will,” I whisper. I lower my hand to her ass and squeeze it.
“You better watch it, or we won’t make it very far.”
“Heal first, sex later.”
“You two are unreal.” Ashton grabs Jinx and hauls her down the hallway.
I can’t help but laugh. We all want to be with Jinx, but our patience isn’t there. It doesn’t feel like she’s been back for one day, but I need to remind myself of that. Just because she’s handsy doesn’t mean she’s ready mentally. I can only hope that her spirit isn’t broken by this.
As we leave the dorm, we trail behind Jinx through the courtyard, attracting quite a few curious looks from passersby. I mean, it's not exactly common to see a bunch of dudes walking behind a girl without causing a scene. When you have a guy like Cam walking around, you're somewhat used to seeing it. We walk up the stairs, and Jinx pauses.
“Maybe I can’t do this.”
Atticus places his hand over hers and reaches for the door. “You can. You have all of us behind you. Nothing will happen. I promise.” Together, they open the main door and step inside.
“How fancy is this school?” Wilde asks when he notices the checkered flooring.
“Fuckin’ fancy,” Ashton says. “Be prepared for a bunch of snobs, and don’t start a fight because we can’t get you out of anything.”
“What he said.” I wait until everyone is inside before turning around. Like, I figured someone was watching us. Cam watches with Liam, Shane, and Emery at his side. Whatever they have planned, I don’t like it.
I feel like it's been forever since I set foot in this school. I’m still pissed with the entire Von situation; nothing has been resolved with that yet, and with my luck, he’ll still press charges. I can only hope that he pulls his head out of his ass soon. Jinx takes us down a set of stairs, past a few offices. I’ve never been down before, and when she stops at a dark wooden door, she goes pale.
“He isn’t down here for sure?” She turns and looks at Wilde, a line of worry materializing between her eyebrows.
“I swear he’s still in the old administration building.”
She goes to the door and pulls the handle. The door lets out a loud squeak as it swings open, sending a blast of chilly air toward us. I stare into complete darkness and find it hard to believe she did this alone the first time. Atticus turns his flashlight on his phone and shines it down a set of stairs.
“Where the fuck did he take you?”
“To hell, Mad.”