Page 1 of Charming But Reckless

PROLOGUE

ORION

9 yearsold

“My birthday is goingto be the best! Mama said she bought me a custom cake with Transformers on it. I hope she chose Bumblebee instead of Optimus. He’s the coolest,” I told Arick as we dug through the mud to find his locket.

He nodded along to my words, though he didn’t speak. I knew he was upset about the necklace. Talking about my party was meant to distract him from it since I didn’t know if we’d even find the dang thing.

Ever since his mama passed away last spring, he’d been much quieter. Part of me suspected it had to do with his daddy and all the mean things he said.

“Boys don’t cry.”

“Be tough.”

“No point if you aren’t the best.”

All of it was garbage. I knew because my own mama said as much when she didn’t know I was listening. I trusted her word over Mr. Maas’s anyway. The man was a bully who didn’t deserve the awesome son he had in Arick.

I was about to tell him we should head back to the apartment complex we both called home when I felt something solid beneath my fingers. Moving the dirt around, I spotted the familiar gold pattern laying face up.

“Look what I found!”

Arick’s head whipped in my direction at the announcement. A second later, he launched himself at me, a wide smile on his face. It was the happiest I’d seen him in months.

I rubbed my chest to push away the ache seeing his smile gave me. It wasn’t fun knowing my friend was hurting and I couldn’t fix it. Mama said time would heal his wounds, but I wasn’t sold on it. Granted, she was the smartest adult I knew. I really should trust her.

But I didn’t much like waiting.

“Thank you for helping me find it.” Arick wiped the necklace on his shirt, transferring the mud onto his clothes like it wouldn’t be a big deal when his daddy saw it. I winced at the reminder of how much of a jerk the man turned into at the slightest offense.

I rose to my feet, then tugged him up too. “Does your daddy work today? Can you come over for cookies?”

He shook his head. “He’s already at home. I’m sure he’s waiting for me.”

Neither of us spoke after that declaration. I wasn’t sure what to say or how to tell him it would be ok. Mama would have taken him in if she had the money to and if his Daddy wasn’t such a mean man. I knew it hurt her as much as I did to let him go home every night to that monster.

As we neared the edge of the park, there was a shift in the air. I turned to look at Arick only to find his wide eyes on something behind me.

I didn’t get a chance to spin around. Didn’t have a moment to understand what was coming.

A dark piece of fabric was shoved over my head as someone lifted me off the ground. I screamed for help. I yelled to Arick, hoping he’d had a chance to run away too. One of us needed to tell our parents. Someone should get to the police.

Sure, we lived in a rough neighborhood and things happened. But this wasn’t just a fight or someone’s grocery money getting stolen.

I was being kidnapped.

I’d watched enough after-school specials and paid attention at the assemblies our elementary teachers gave to understand as much.

No one intervened on my behalf. I didn’t hear another voice, Arick’s or otherwise.

A few rushed steps later, I was thrown onto a seat. It felt like the backseat of a car. When I lifted my hands to pull off the hood, someone grabbed my wrists and tied them up. The plastic tore into my skin, making them hurt worse than the time JT Saling broke my wrist for saying his haircut was ugly.

I whimpered as I sunk into the seat. Without my sight or the ability to move my hands, I felt helpless. How would I get out of here? And where was my friend? Was he safe or did they get him too?

“What about the other one? He get a good price too?” A voice that had a thick accent asked aloud. I felt his body pressed against mine in the backseat. He wasn’t holding me down, though it was obvious I wouldn't be able to escape with him there.

Someone else grunted. “No. He's covered in bruises and has a broken finger. No one will want to wait for him to heal. This one will go far though. Boss will be happy.”

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