Page 27 of Out of My Flocking Mind

He grinned wider, like the money was some aphrodisiac. He didn’t have a trace of uncertainty, as though the idea of selling her something dangerous didn’t even scrape against his conscience. He reached into his own pocket, then pulled out a small baggy with a clear crystal substance and a sticker of a lion on the front.

Bingo.

I didn’t wait any longer before leaving my hiding spot. I mean, I was dealing with teenagers here—not hardened drug dealers. I didn’t need to be quite as careful as I might otherwise.

Not that I ever was.

In fact, a part of me heard Galen’s voice in my head, lecturing me about my bad choices.

Neither of the kids noticed my approach—they really weren’t equipped for doing shady-ass shit like this, were they?

I plucked the money from the girl’s hand and the baggy from the boy’s.

“What the fuck?” the boy asked, reaching out for the bag I’d stolen as though he might snatch it back.

I twisted, keeping it out of his hands and ignoring the fact that even as a teenager, he was a lot taller than I was.

The girl, at least, had the good sense to look afraid. Not that I’d hurt her, but the thought of someone ruining her perfect little life was more terrifying. I could almost see the way she thought about everyone finding out what she’d done, her parents getting pissed, all of it.

However, given the way she reacted, I doubted she’d done this before much. That made her pretty much useless for my purposes.

In fact, I had a feeling the longer she remained here, the better the chance of her fucking it up rather than helping. For that reason, I motioned to shoo her away.

“You’re just letting me go?” she asked.

“Unless you want to stay here and have me ask more questions?” I lifted the baggy, waving it to draw attention to the evidence that would not help her in the least.

She shook her head and hurried off just as fast as her little designer-jeans clad legs could carry her, leaving me and the boy alone.

“I knew that girl was a mistake,” the boy said and crossed his arms, looking put out by the entire ordeal. Even now, with the drugs in my hand, he didn’t seem worried.

“You want to know a secret? Don’t sell to girls who could play the lead in a teen drama. Never ends well.” I lifted the baggy toward the sun, watching the way the light poured through the crystals. They were clear, which twisted the sunlight until it came out in rainbows.

If I didn’t know exactly what this shit could do, the pretty sight might have dazzled me.

“So what now? Did you let her go because she has such a bright future?” The boy snorted. “Not the first time I get the blame for everything.”

I tore my gaze from the crystals to peer over at the boy. “Please. That girl will get knocked up by some rich boy and be unhappily married within a year of graduating—trust me. Besides, I’m not planning on turning you in, either.”

“Why not?” He narrowed his eyes, and his suspicion confirmed that the boy wasn’t stupid. Only an idiot would blindly trust someone in my position.

Especially because I still planned to use him to my own ends.

“Because I need some information from you.”

“What kind of information?”

I waved the bag at him. “Who supplies this to you?”

His mouth shut, as though he were afraid the name might escape through his lips and he couldn’t let that happen.

In addition to that, however, a spark of fear rested in those eyes. Clearly, he didn’t want to tangle with the person.

Given they evidently created a dangerous drug and used kids to sell it, it was probably pretty fair to be wary of someone with so few scruples.

He swallowed hard, then shook his head. “Sorry, but that information comes with way too high a price. I’d rather face another suspension than risk that.”

I flicked the baggy. “You sure about that? Because last I heard, this shit is pretty risky. The Minds don’t look too kindly on people who sell this.”

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