Page 11 of Psycho Boys

I shake my head, mirroring Ash’s gesture, silence enveloping us like a warm blanket.

Five cracks a smirk, trying to lighten the mood, but the weight in the air doesn’t lift. “You two look like you’ve seen a ghost. Come on, it’s just a temporary fucking setback. We’ll find her.”

“Easier said than done,” Ash mutters, but he takes a swig of his beer, the bitterness somehow equal parts familiar and comforting.

Five stretches out, resting his feet on the coffee table, his indifferent demeanor beginning to feel like a smokescreen for the concern underneath.

“Well, I’ve got another idea. Why don’t we hit up that bar on West? You know, the one where everyone goes after a race? Might be a good place to hear some gossip,” he says, his tone casual, but there’s an edge to it that cuts through my haze.

I consider that for a moment. The kind of place where secrets hide in dark corners and more than a few faces are willing to share their ‘knowledge’ in exchange for a drink.

“Yeah, maybe we can find out if anyone’s seen or heard anything about Cali,” I reply, a flicker of hope blooming despite the exhaustion smothering it. "What we need is a fucking list... like Cali had," I suggest, my eyes heavily focused on the dingy rug my feet are planted on, stuck in a nightmare that refuses to end.

"That's not a bad idea," Ash speaks up, his eyes finding mine as they drift away from his laptop screen.

"How the fuck do you know who to put on it?" Five asks, his pierced brows pinching in confusion.

"It's not really hard," I scoff, shaking my head. "Not when there's so many motherfuckers out there who could've had something to do with this shit." I stand up, searching the cluttered kitchen counter for a pen and piece of paper. As my hands sweep the cold marble, an obvious idea hits me, and I shake my head at just how caught up we've been.

"Why are we not starting with our fathers first?" I spin around once I've found a pen, glaring at Ash as if he should've thought about it too.

"You think after they tried to have us fucking killed they'd try something as ballsy as this?" His jaw clenches in anger, and he grips the lighter in his hand so tight for a second I think he might crush it.

"Actually, yeah," I answer, feeling my own anger bubbling hotter and hotter beneath the surface, about to explode "I think they'd try anything and everything to separate us from Cali, and that's exactly what fucking happened." I click my pen and scribble their names onto the crumbled up piece of paper I found, my hand shaking.

Jackson Gray

Adam Moretti

David Blacksburg

Thomas Harlow

Elaine Harlow

"Our parents are practically the kings of this game," I continue, voice trembling beneath the weight of my conviction. “They’d know about any potential threats. And if they’ve been pulling strings, we need to know just how deep this shit goes.”

After filling him in on the situation, Five sits here, nodding, looking deep in thought. He nods, his earlier levity fading as he contemplates the severity of the situation. "You’re right. They might not have directly orchestrated it, but they’re definitely players in this twisted little game," he agrees, a note of urgency creeping into his voice.

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