Page 120 of Noxious Boys (Groveton College)

Bennett hums as though in thought, “Lynx said something similar,” he pauses, sniffing with disgust, “I suppose you could fuck up the other side of his face to match what your brother did.”

My eyes tighten,it’s not enough.

“We aren’t killing someone in a hospital, Flynn, use your brain,” he rumbles lowly, tutting at me like I’m an irritation.

I sigh, staring up at the ceiling, praying for fucking patience, knife burning a hole in my pocket, I blow out a breath, “Whatever, start talking.”

I stalk toward the bed, stare at his peaceful fucking face, bruised, fractured cheekbone, purples and blues and yellows a wild bloom over his skin.

Licking my lips, I glance up at Bennett, a smile curving my mouth that has him shaking his head, and then I slap my palm across Chris’ face, pinching his nose closed.

He jolts, groaning as I squeeze his fucked up face. His fingers twitching but his arms are on some sort of fucking stilt contraption, holding his arms up and away from his body.

“Hello, Chris,” I hiss, bending down, leaning into him so we’re eye to eye, still crushing his face with my palm, the side of my hand pressing on the bridge of his broken nose. “If you’d like to live to see another miserable fucking day, you’re going to be real silent while you listen, then you’re going to answer all of my brother’s questions.” I turn away from him, smiling ferally at Bennett. Locking my eyes back on Chris’s, I lick my lips, catching the back of my hand with the tip of my tongue. “In fact,” I breathe, cocking my head, “I think you’re going to sing like a fucking canary.” I flick my eyes between his wide, watery ones. “Aren’t you?” Using my grip on his face, I forcefully nod his head, yanking it back and forth. “Yeah?” I urge, my nose pressing against my knuckles over his face.

He nods on his own then, kicking his legs because I know he’s running out of oxygen, and I love it, the way I can practically taste it on the air.

“I’m going to release your face now, and you,” I say lowly, “you are going to be very fucking silent. Understood?”

He nods again, a desperate plea in the motion of his head. I pinch his nose harder, just for good measure, his eyes squeezing shut in pain, a tear rolling down his cheek, and then I release him, and he does exactly as I expect.

He screams.

And I, I punch him so hard in the side of the head that I hear something crack.

“Flynn,” Bennett snaps, stepping closer, and I narrow my eyes on him.

“Chill,” I whisper, and he frowns harder, grabbing my wrist and yanking me away, taking my place at the bedside, leaving me to pace at the end of it.

He slaps the side of Chris’ face, the little fuck groaning as he comes to, and I want to rip his tongue out of his head. Bennett wipes his hand down the thigh of his pants like he’d really rather not have to touch this fuckwit ever again.

But that’s okay, because I’m itching to.

“Your father, Chris,” Bennett says, hands coming to the thick plastic railing on the side of the bed, fingers curling over it, he squeezes it tight, veins rippling beneath his olive tanned skin. “He works with a man called Carrington. Michael Carrington.”

Chris really wants to die, because the idiot rolls his eyes like the self-entitled little rich prick that he is, but Bennett doesn’t give a fuck, he keeps talking, obviously already knowing everything…

“Your father used Carrington to move money between business accounts, funneling money back to your dad while making sure it all left an overly obvious paper trail that would point right to Jason Adams Construction company instead. Correct?”

“How do you know tha-” Chris starts, paling as Bennett steamrolls over him, ignoring him completely.

My gaze flickers over Bennett, his posture straight but relaxed, as though he didn’t actually know this, he just knew this boy would be dumb enough to confirm his suspicions after spending all day and most of the night making calls, connecting dots.

It’s what he does, that’s why Bennett is the leader.

It’s why we follow him.

That, and we love him.

I frown, my heart thudding harder and harder as Bennett keeps talking and talking and lead sinks into the pit of my stomach as I take it all in. What he’s saying, what it means.

It’s only when I knock Chris out, twist his ankle at a one-eighty degree angle and spit on him for good measure. That I look to my brother, our leader, as he races us towards the airport, and know that he’d do anything for Poppy, just like he would for us.

Chapter 48

LYNX

It takes too long to get to England.

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