53. Mack
Mack
“Tonight is the night!” I whoop with a grin, pulling on my dark shirt as we stand in the living room, preparing for the festivities.
And boy, do I mean festivities. Fake kidnappings. Dragging unsuspecting victims into the darkest cave system they’ve ever seen, and scaring the ever-living shit out of them?
It’s exciting. Dick-rising. Best night of my fucking life.
And best of all?
I can’t wait to get my grubby hands on Oliver fucking Davenport.
Me and him? Yeah, we got beef. Major fucking beef.
Because I know that little fucker is responsible for trashing the treehouse.
Do I have proof? Fuck no. Which is disappointing, to say the least. JJ, the brainiac, was supposed to find me something.
Anything! But he hasn’t had the time. Or the want.
Honestly, it seems like he has a hard-on for the guy.
I mean, come on. Tutoring? When in the hell has JJ done that?
Answer—never.
Only now with Oliver.
Something is happening between them, and I haven’t been able to put my finger on it. Not yet, at least. Tonight, though? I’ll get every fucking answer I’ve been seeking.
Still, I wonder why JJ is doing it. To get closer to the guy?
To find out information on the little fucker?
If that’s the case, then he’s failing spectacularly because he hasn’t told us shit.
Any time we ask, he says Oliver is innocent and that we should leave him alone.
Not the answer I want. I need all the juicy details on the guy.
But JJ is leaving me hanging. Even Hux wants answers, considering what the little fuckhead did to Amanda.
Not that he cares about his so-called fiancée. But still.
Something is up with Oliver Davenport. Something suspicious. So, I’ll take it into my own reckless hands and scare the information out of Oliver. It’s a win-win for all of us. It’s better to be in the know, anyway.
So, buck up, Oliver Davenport. You’re my bitch tonight, and I’m your fucking daddy now.
A giddiness shivers through me as Hux and JJ talk amongst themselves, sending me worried looks.
I'll be fine, Mom and Dad. Thank you very much.
They're so damn concerned I'm going to end up getting someone hurt.
Or worse—killed. But I won't. Never again will I unintentionally hurt someone with my own two hands.
Well, outside the Coliseum ring, anyway.
That's the only place I unleash all the pent-up rage that collects inside me.
Sure, I can be a menace everywhere else, but I had enough violence and neglect in my childhood while living with my careless mother and her numerous worthless boyfriends to last me a lifetime.
“We should head out soon. We’re meeting everyone in the cemetery to debrief and lay down the rules. Again,” JJ huffs with annoyance.
“Better to be safe than fucking sorry,” Hux grumbles.
“Knowing all these idiots, they’ll injure someone and have to take them to the hospital.
Franco will have their asses. Better to remind them for the fiftieth time than not do it.
” He runs a hand down his face as they continue to talk, but I ignore them.
Discreetly, I pull my phone out of my pocket and send Rocket, one of our newest members, a quick message confirming our little switcheroo.
Earlier, we were all assigned a person to kidnap and drag to the caves.
Originally, I had Simon, Oliver’s roommate.
And Rocket? Oh, well, he had Oliver. So with one text demanding we switch people, he gave in.
Not that he had a choice. I am one of his leaders, after all. He can’t fight me.
Hux sends me a worried look. “Are you even listening to us? You aren’t going to imitate Dexter Morgan all night, are you?”
“That would be very concerning,” JJ, the damn traitor, chimes in with worry, too.
I blink several times. “No! If I were, I would have said ‘Tonight is the night’ in an ominous tone while actively stalking my victim with knock-out meds in a damn syringe. Although I did wrap the basement in plastic. So, don’t go down there or you’ll get a fun surprise.
” I grin, gesturing to the basement I haven’t touched.
I love poking the Hux bear. He’s so damn easy to rile up these days. And for me, it’s all the entertainment I need.
Hux stiffens, looking toward the basement with a frown.
“No hurting anyone, Mack. I swear to God, if a recruit comes back with a bruise of any sort, I’m fucking you up.
And if you’ve seriously touched the basement, I’m strapping you to the fucking metal table and driving the knife into your heart Dexter style.
” He narrows his eyes, filled with anger at me, watching as my grin spreads across my face.
I rue the day I binge-watched that show with him. I take it back, universe.
I roll my eyes. “You have so much faith in me, I swear. I’ll be a good little boy tonight while I’m dragging my victim out of his room.
I’ll make sure the sweet little cherub doesn’t bump their head or trip over their feet.
Fuck. You take the fun out of this. Besides, how rude of you to assume I’d actually kill anyone in the basement.
That shit is reserved for you.” I quickly flip the grumpy bastard off.
JJ snorts, shaking his head as he ties his black tennis shoes.
At least he has a sense of humor these days.
Hux, on the other hand, is the biggest grump I’ve ever met.
But he wasn’t always that way. Nah. He was once a happy guy.
Well, sometimes at least. Never like this.
Never so boring with a stick up his ass.
All he does is mope, listen to loud music in his room, and mope some more.
What a bummer.
Tonight should be the best night of the year.
Yet, here he is lecturing me on the logistics of everyone’s safety tonight.
Hux shakes his head like a disappointed dad.
“You know why I’m warning you. The last time you did something stupid, you ended up in jail, and Franco didn’t give a fuck and let you rot.
I’m only looking out for you, Mack. I don’t want to worry about you being in jail or in a ditch or anywhere else, but here at home. ”
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I get it, okay? I’m a fuck up.
All the time. I’m reckless. Stupid. But you know what?
Fuck this. I won’t bruise or maim anyone.
Too much. Is it too much to ask to want to scare the living shit out of Oliver?
Where’s the fun in being his mommy and gently dragging him out of bed as I whisper sweet words that everything will be okay? There is no fun in that.
So, tonight, I’m going to scare him.
Just a wee bit.
Just enough to cajole fun confessions from his lying lips and get to the bottom of his coming here.
He’s too suspect in my damn book. Even at our group project sessions.
There’s something about him that has my spidey senses tingling all over.
It’s like I possibly know him, or something.
But nah. I’ve never seen the fucker a day in my life.
“Fucking Theo. You know that was bullshit. He jumped us! I was protecting JJ and myself, thank you very much. I hope that dickbag is miserable in his fancy office Franco bought for him.” I frown, adjusting my shirt again, eager to get the hell out of this house and meet the rest of the guys at the cemetery.
“He does have a point,” JJ finally pipes up. “Theo jumped us out of nowhere. He was a sore loser.” JJ’s nose wrinkles as he adjusts his shirt. “It was bullshit that he threatened to sue Franco and was immediately paid off for his efforts, all while Mack stayed in jail. He only got a few stitches.”
“I knew I liked you the best,” I tease.
“Theo played the system,” Hux says, blowing out a breath.
“I know he fucked us over, and Franco let him, but that’s in the past.” Yeah, he says it’s in the past, but he still holds the incident over my head to keep me in line.
Asshole. “We all have our assignments. The guys have theirs, too.” He brings out his phone and checks the time.
“It’s about time we go and do this. Let’s bring out our newest recruits and show them what the Franco Syndicate is made of. ”
“Let’s fucking do this!” I howl, throwing my head back with excitement.
“Let’s get this done,” Hux agrees, and dare I say it, he actually smiles.
“He smiles!” I quip with a smirk as he flips me off and walks through the front door without looking back.
JJ saddles up to me as we walk side by side, heading toward the cemetery together.
“I know what you’re going to do,” JJ says, shoving his hands into his pockets. “And all I can ask is that you not attempt to kill him. I know you think he destroyed the tree house.” He side-eyes me now through the darkness, taking in my blank expression. “But you’re barking up the wrong tree.”
“No clue what you’re talking about,” I sarcastically say, waving him off. “Besides, you told me you had no leads on who did that.”
“I don’t. But I know it wasn’t Oliver,” he says with a shrug, averting his eyes.
Liar.
“Right. You’re so convincing. You only say that because your dick is hard for the guy. For whatever reason,” I huff.
Jesus Christ, Jasper Jones blushes as the words leave my mouth and looks away from me.
My jaw falls open, but I don’t judge. We haven’t seen anyone since Liv died, and if Oliver is JJ’s cup of tea, then so be it.
But I’m still in shock that his cheeks are red and he’s stumbling over his feet.
What surprises me more is that he’s considering it.
Actually thinking about being with someone else.
For as long as I live, my dick will never rise for another person. Only Olivia. My girl.
Fuck.
My heart squeezes in my chest at the thought of her.
Sometimes I like to imagine what it would be like if she were still here with us and going through these initiations alongside us.
Of course, Franco doesn’t want girls in his damn ranks, so she’d be outside of this, anyway.
It’s a boys’ club, after all. Whatever. I could have put a wig on her, given her baggy clothes, and she would have fit right in.
Then, she never would have been left behind.
Ever. Every mission we did. She’d be right beside us.
“I swear to God, JJ. If you bring that fucker home and expect me to play nice,” I huff, crossing my arms. “Actually, do bring him over, then we can interrogate him together. Then, you can make it up to him.” I shudder at the thought of my sworn enemy in bed with my best friend.
“I mean, you do you. Whatever.” I shrug, only aggravated at the fact he’s possibly dipping his…
Ah, no. No, thank you. I don’t want to think about that.
Oliver is the enemy right now, and I can’t make nice with him until I know he didn’t fuck with Olivia’s things.
“Macklyn. Jesus! It’s not that,” he chastises, stopping me in the midst of the quiet campus. “I’m serious. It wasn’t Oliver. He didn’t do it.”
“Why? Because you know him so well?” I huff, giving him a pointed look until his eyes dart away.
So much for not giving away his feelings like Franco taught us.
Fucker. “And where is your proof? You’re always bitching about receipts and video evidence and this and that, blah blah blah.
” I hold out my hand and wiggle my fingers, waiting for him to drop his so-called evidence into my hand.
“I saw that fucker coming out of the woods after it happened. With my own two eyes. Not some rando on the street telling me what they saw. I saw him. Walking. Out of the woods. After it happened. He was the only one around. I only have a few important questions for him. That’s all. ” I shrug.
“Mack,” he says in a strained voice, catching me off guard. “Promise me you won’t hurt him in any way. You…” He shakes his head. “You’ll regret hurting him if you do.”
Regret? Fat fucking chance. There won’t be an ounce of regret in this fucking body after I’m done asking Oliver all the important questions.
“Glad to see you think so highly of me and my violent ways,” I scoff, taking a step back from him.
“I’d never hurt the kid. We’re having a nice talk.
That’s it. If I wanted to hurt him, I’d call him out at the fucking Coliseum again.
Although it seems the fucker is too afraid to show his face there again. ”
JJ snorts. “What after he obliterated Brutus?”
“Shut up,” I groan. “I’ll be fine. Oliver Davenport will be safe and sound by the time I bring him into the caves.”
Safe and sound, yes. Rattled? I sure fucking hope so. That asshole has no idea what’s coming to him.