Page 124 of Unspoken Truths

“Hope you have enough strength for this, Little Mouse,” I tell her, tossing the marker away as I pick her up in a bridal carry.

Walking quickly, I move toward the creek, which is deep, wild, and getting angrier.

“Let me help,” Theo grunts, taking her legs from me.

Adjusting to grab hold of her upper arms, we begin to swing her body as she screams.

“Hope you can swim, Little Mouse,” I say.

Nacio and Elijah creep closer as they watch, waiting for us to let her go flying.

“You may catch some air, little sister,” Nacio says. “It’ll be the closest you get to flying, I’m willing to bet.”

“That shit will be cold,” Elijah says, wildly laughing as we toss her into the middle of the creek.

I watch as Rachelle is pulled away from where we stand quickly, struggling against the current as she tries to swim.

“Beer anyone?” I ask, turning away to pick up her discarded clothes and throw them into the water as well. If and when she gets out, she’ll be making the trek back naked. It’s what she deserves.

“We can’t kill her yet, right?” Nacio asks, gazing as she disappears from sight.

The water feels as if it’s louder now that she’s gone, and my chest clenches for a moment as I move to pick up my things to repack my backpack. I’m going to need to pick up more rope. I doubt I’ll be getting it back now.

“Nah,” I say. “The creek gets more shallow as it goes.”

Theo gazes at me for the lie, his blue eyes narrowing. It’s over and done with now, I can’t deal with Nacio losing his shit.

“Yeah,” Theo says. “She’ll be fine. Let’s get out of here, I’m hungry.”

Walking together, we trek back down to where our car is, evading where we left Lili. I don’t want to deal with her yelling at me. I want time to unwind, and enjoy the lesson we are teaching the both of them.

We always win, no matter what.

CHAPTER23

IGNACIO

It was really hard to turn my back on Rachelle, but I couldn’t in good conscience refuse to go with my friends. They have always been there for me, and this is a Kings initiated game.

Elijah looks more relaxed even as he leans back on his elbows as he talks with us around the fire. Jared is using it to make dinner, the scents delicious as he cooks.

The rules of this camping trip are that we leave our phones in the parking lot with the car, so we can’t be tracked. The joke is on them, though, because on my seventeenth birthday, my father injected me with a tracker so he’d know where I am at all times. Even when I refuse to go home and stay with one of the guys, he knows where I am.

Dad never wants anyone to use me against him, which means he felt it necessary to take certain precautions. It doesn’t even bother me, since I know exactly how dangerous his profession is. I’ve been doing the dirty work, ensuring that anyone who fucks with us ends up dead.

Just like when I helped Rachelle and Lili kill the men who came after them. It enraged me, the things that they wanted to do to my stepsister. I shouldn’t feel anything for this girl but disgust, but I can’t. Therefore, my phone is on silent in my backpack, since it doesn’t matter if my father can track me through it or not. Lili will undoubtedly text me to yell at me once they’re safe.

The sun is disappearing as we knock back beers and talk, but all I can think about is how Jared tossed her into the creek with her hands tied up to her elbows. I’ll admit the knots were very pretty, making me want to have him tie me up one day before he fucks me. We’re all open to trying new things, and I think knot practice kept him from losing his shit while Elijah was gone.

My concern is that Rachelle may not be able to swim properly. I don’t even know if she knows how to.

“You good, Nacio?” Theo asks, picking up on my quiet mood.

“Fucking hungry,” I say, shrugging, just as my stomach chooses to growl.

The guys chuckle, and all is right between us again.

“Wonder how long Lili will be tied up for,” Jared says. “Rachelle doesn’t know the woods very well, so she’ll be walking for hours.”

---