Page 251 of Out of Bounds

"Idroppedit." With stumbling steps back, I checked and double-checked the clean floors. "I dropped it in, I dropped it in. No—no.Shit, there’s no—no way. It’s gone. It’sgone. No, no,no—"

The receptionist grimaced.

Sucking in deep breaths, I yanked open the metal drawer. "How do you open the Bullshit Box?!"

"You don’t open it. It’s for clothing donations, it’s not a Walmart."

"I dropped it. I didn’t mean to. Please. I need it, I just need it back—"

With a slow shake of his head, the receptionist made a clear look of longing back to his desk. "We don’t have a way to open it."

"Somebody’s got to have a key—"

"I’m just a work-study temp."

"Somebody’sgot to have a key. You don’t get it, you don’t understand, I need—" I shook my head. It wasn’t like I would’ve never thrown it in. Of course I would’ve, I just…wasn’t ready. My lip wobbled, my voice cracked. "I need it. I need it back."

“I’ll text my boss but we really can’t open it.”

The receptionist returned to his desk and slowly, I took my place next to the Bullshit Box. It all worked out. I got rid of everything. That’s what I’d wanted.

I leaned against the wall and slumped to the floor.

I pulled my knees up and stared at the floor. If I was really quiet, nobody would stumble on this completely normal scene, and I could cry as much as I didn’t want to.

105

Ryan

Good News For Both Of You

The training center was unusually quiet after practice. Even the coffee shop only had a few stragglers. That’s what I could’ve been - a straggler. I never felt more out of my element in the same place I spent every day for the last two and a half years.

"Hey, captain! Boss! Boss captain!"

The shout echoed behind me and I nodded without looking behind. I didn’t want to talk to Adam. It was a chore to talk to anybody. Without a glance back, I walked into the elevator. Adam held his hand out and stopped the doors. He leaned in with a frown with King just a few feet behind him, coming close.

I sighed. “What is it?”

“Captain, we’ve got a problem.”

It was hard to give a shit about the problem but I took a long look between the guys. I couldn’t trust Adam not to be kidding about it but King had real concern on his face.

I frowned. “What is it?”

Adam gestured me over to the side of the wall and ran a hand through his hair. “So here’s the thing. I get a text from Zariah and it’s a blurry black and white photo. I thought it was one of those old as shit movies that she and Kassie like. It’s not.”

“Adam. Just spit it out,” I said.

“It’s security footage,” Adam muttered, motioning both of us closer. “From the hotel. They figured out Henry Miller got smacked around and Zariah got to see the security footage.”

I stared at him for a long moment. “Fuck.”

“Yeah.” King breathed out through his nose. “Fuck.”

“Can you…recognize us?” I asked, leaning closer.

“Can a random person recognize us? Hell no. Their camera equipment must’ve come from the moon landing. Everything’s grainy as shit. Except…Zariahknowsus…”

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