Page 20 of Cruel Legacy

He’s a tank too. He’s sporting a short-sleeved shirt and shorts. The exposed skin suggests he’s hard muscle and angular lines. I’m too far away to make out the pattern of the ink on his arms. Holden looks bored with everything and is gripping a book in his hand.

Too bad he hangs with Paxton the Dick or I’d invite him to read to me at night.

The last guy. The one with all the letters of the alphabet in his name is a popcorn thief, and he seems the happiest out of the group.

He’s smiling and laughing as he makes his way to their table. He’s thinner than the other two, but I can tell he’s still solid under his ripped skinny jeans and heather grey t-shirt.

The tips of his curly brown hair peeks out from his beanie and brushes against his forehead. His light blue eyes hold too much mischief.

I remember the way he called me pet and how he seemed to enjoy saying it even more when I called him out on it. He’s definitely the jokester out of the group.

When his gaze sweeps over my table, his smile widens. I dismiss him with a flick of my eyes and turn away.

We were at the same movie; I let him have some of my rum, and he stole my popcorn. That doesn’t mean we’re suddenly buddies or anything, and I don’t need Paxton Cox and his buddies thinking I’m seconds away from falling at their feet like everyone else seems to be doing.

I might be on the hunt for steady dick, but those three are the last people I’d ever want to hook up with.

Chapter10

Pax

My dad’s orders were clear. Keep an eye on our new neighbor. It hasn’t been as easy as it sounds.

She must’ve stayed off campus this weekend. There were no sounds coming from her room. Not even a muted television or flushing toilet.

Dad gave no details or identifying features about her. She could be any one of the girls who walked by me this morning. Monday would have been our first chance to get eyes on her.

She’s in the same early morning statistics class as Finn and Holden, but they skipped because we were still dealing with the incident from our last challenge.

A street camera a block away from the scene captured the license plate of the Audi. Holden worked his magic. We know it was a rental car, now we’re working on finding out who was driving it.

For the third time in almost as many days, I wonder if the near miss with Finn was a test.

The South side of town is basically abandoned. The land development board and city council decided they wanted better control of access points in and out of town when we incorporated. As the years went on, the cost of homes here grew. Business was booming, and the town went from an affordable quaint town to a thriving beach front city, owned and operated by the independently wealthy.

The land and property taxes increased for everyone. The lower-class families were hit the worst when the mines, their primary source of income, dried up. They found new jobs that required a longer commute, using the canyon pass as an access route, but the accident at the mouth of the canyon was the final blow.

The road and bridge were deemed a safety issue, and traffic was rerouted through the new highway system. The one with a high ass toll fee going to and coming from LA.

The South-siders couldn’t keep up with the property taxes on their crappy houses and eventually moved to Palisade Shores, which despite its name, isn’t as affluent as it sounds.

The bar, the hotel, and a few other businesses on the East side of town by the pier are the only small businesses in town that are still family owned and operated.

They sit on some pretty coveted acres of land, but the families have all agreed they’ll never sell to the city. They formed a conglomerate to make sure no one could be forced to back out of the agreement.

Individually, they’re just business owners. Together, they’re pretty powerful. They’ve been holding out against the council for a long time, but the current owners are getting older, and their children and grandchildren aren’t interested in taking over. Not when the jobs on the North side of town come with more money, better benefits and prestige.

The city council and land development board know this. They’ve been biding their time, building up fancier new shit, while the older establishments lose money, or close because they can’t match the amenities and draw of the newer businesses.

They’re waiting for the old folks to pass away, and fully expect for the family members to sell off the properties for pennies on the dollar, compared to the amount the city will make when they rebuild.

I walked in on my dad on a call once. The council wants to turn Canyon Falls into the West Coast’s answer to The Hamptons and Martha’s Vineyard.

I pull my weighted jump rope out of my gym bag and start my warm up. I do ten minutes of jump rope, then move on to upper body, then legs, abs, and finish off with one final round of jump rope before getting on the ground to stretch out my calves. I grab a towel off the rack to mop up the puddle of sweat I left on the mat and toss it in the laundry bin on my way to the exit.

There’s a gym in our dorm, but this one has more weights. I never shower here. Not since the time my shit got stolen by a rival fraternity as a prank.

It took me three days to track down who did it. My retribution was swift and embarrassing, with just the right amount of flair. I chuckle, remembering the look on Tyler Stuart’s face when he found out his car was missing.

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