Page 123 of Heartless Legacy

“Come on.” I grab her hand, pulling her through the crowd towards the east side of the track. I help her up the ladder of an RV and onto its roof, using it as a step-ladder to reach the roof of the abandoned concession stand.

“We’re going to get into so much trouble for this.” LJ sighs as she settles next to me.

Surveying the landscape of the old drive-in movie grounds, I say, “It’s all part of the experience. Plus, we can see everything from here.” We fall silent, but soon we’re yelling and cheering, watching the cars careen around the track.

We’re on the third amateur race of the evening when unwelcome guests step onto our makeshift sky box. “Room for one more?”

“And if I say, no?”

Saint’s face hides what he really thinks about my answer. The Wall voices his displeasure, and grunts, “Make room.”

I smile and say, in a saccharine sweet voice, “Happy to. Shall I push you or kick you off?”

LJ scoots a little closer and mumbles, “It’s a party now. The gang leader’s here.”

Saint’s lips tip up on one side. “It’s good to see you too, Angel.”

“I didn’t say it was a good thing.” She grimaces as soon as the words are out of her mouth, which only makes Saint smile even wider.

“That’s only because Tink here has probably been talking shit about me.”

I quickly correct his assumption. “I don’t talk about you at all.”

He sits next to me, letting his legs hang over the edge. “I’m glad to hear that.” He means it. Talking about him for any reason is the worst thing someone can do. It’s best to treat Saint like Candy Man or Bloody Mary. We don’t invoke his name under any circumstance. “I’m surprised you’re up here, Tink, instead of down there playing.”

I wish. “My car would never make it out there.”

“If you need to borrow one, you know the price.”

LJ’s listening, so I quickly shut down this conversation. “I’m good.”

We fall into silence for the next few races, watching the less skilled drivers zoom by, barely maintaining control of their cars on the turns. LJ’s phone rings, startling us both. She jumps up, nearly dropping it off the roof. Saint reaches over, plucking it from the rain gutter and hands it back. She worries her lip as she stares at her phone. It chimes with the sound I recognize as her voicemail alert.

The look on her face unsettles me. “Everything okay, LJ?”

“I told Damon I’d be in the dorms all night.” Her shoulders slump as the phone rings again. She answers, “Hi, Damon.”

Her voice sounds cheerful, but it’s pitched just a little too high. “No. I know. I’m not at the dorm right now.” She walks over to the other side of the roof to continue her conversation. I keep one eye on the race, the other on the gang members sitting closer than I like. When she comes back, she’s smiling, but there’s a tightness around her eyes.

“All good?”

“Yup. He was calling to surprise me with a phone date.”

“Phone date?” Saint asks, butting into the conversation that has shit all to do with him. “Is the fucker too cheap to take you on a real date?”

“No. He’s at school.”

“He’s calling you instead of coming to see you?” The derision in his tone makes it clear what he thinks about that.

LJ huffs out a sigh. The only real sign that she’s irritated. “Not that my boyfriend is any of your concern, but he can’t come see me. He’s got a lot going on, on campus.”

“Boy-friend?” Saint snorts. “Yeah, I guess that tracks. Because yourmanwouldn’t be calling you for a phone date. He’d be right wherever the fuck you are, making sure you’re good and safe.”

“I’m with Thea. Iam. Safe.”

Saint cuts his eyes at me. “You might be with Tink, but you’re not safe.”

Her chin juts up as she defends me. “Thea would never hurt me or stand around and let someone else hurt me, and I would fight just as hard to protect her.”

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