Page 86 of Tutoring Mr. Hotshot

Unfortunately for me, I’m not the one who winds up with all the luck. That turns out to be Maddox.

Lame!

Maddox:Got him. He’s a squirrely fucker too.

Bell:Andry, get that bag ready. Give us three minutes, then come out to the car.

Andry sends back a thumbs up emoji. I snort upon seeing it, then head to the front door. There’s no point trying to move through the house to figure out where everyone else is. Bell gave us the play. It’s my job to get where he needs me.

“Shut up you dumb fucker,” Maddox growls at he shakes the kid in his arms. I spot them easily since there’s a blindfold on the kid, and he’s bound like something at a rodeo.

At my raised brow, he tells me, “I’ll explain it later.”

There has to be a good story to this, right? I wonder if Leon and Jake know about his apparent cowboy nature. They might… NOPE! No. Not going to think of it sexually.

I shake my head as I follow the group back out to the car. Thankfully we don’t see anyone on the journey. We’re on our way to the warehouse fairly easily given the way we’d only had the bare bones of a plan when this all started.

“No names, guys. We’re merely here to teach this one a lesson and then send him on his way. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!” rings out in the car.

If the kid is smart, he’ll piece together who we are anyway. There’s no masking the heavy accents Bishop and Andry have or the distinct cadence of Leon’s voice.

Maybe we’ll get lucky though. He may be too scared to figure it all out.

Fear can affect a lot of things.

Inside the warehouse is just as I remembered — empty and big.

Maddox brings in a subdued Liam to sit on the high-back stool someone thought to bring in. I appreciate the seating option since bending down to a normal chair for this conversation would suck. We’re all big guys. It makes more sense to keep him at our level.

“Do you know why you’re here?” I ask the kid once Maddox steps away.

“N-n-no, sir.”

I scoff. “Think hard about it. Maybe you’ll remember something recent you did to hurt someone else.”

He chokes out a cough at my words. I have no doubt he’s figured it out.

“Aries Merry,” he breathes out. “And... and the others. The team?”

“Don’t worry about who we are or are not.” Bellamy’s voice booms through the space. The echo in here is insane. Even I startle at the sound.

Liam cowers in fear. Bell motions for me to keep going, so I do.

“You hurt someone. Now it’s your turn. When we’re done here, you’re going to go home, pack a bag, and leave town.”

Ok, so maybe this wasn’t part of the script. I ignore the looks everyone shoots my way as I continue on.

“You will not reach out to him ever again. And I don’t want to hear that you’ve mentioned him to anyone either. I’ve got ears everywhere.” My voice is low, the tone menacing. It’s the same one I use on the field when someone pisses me off enough to break my fun-loving nature.

The kid’s head bobs, though his face scrunches. “But school. And the team. I have — I have commitments.”

“Consider them broken contracts,” Maddox steps in to say. I nod when he looks my way, as if asking to continue. “You don’t need to worry about them. Go home, wherever that is, so long as it’s not Bellport. Start over. Forget about this place.”

His mouth opens and closes, like he wants to say more, yet he can’t find the words. I grin at his loss. Well, that, and I know we’re about to get to the good part.

Most of us will have to pull our punches somewhat. Doesn’t mean it won’t feel good to hit this fucker for all the shit he’s done to my brother. The head game tactics he’s used are just as bad as the physical bullying.

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