Page 35 of Stray
The three of us handled the job without Dominik and Auryn. All five of us weren’t required for a simple drug drop. A batch of pharmaceuticals to a regular client. Nothing too concerning.
We waited until dark before loading up the goods from a storage locker where we kept them after receiving a new delivery. Our meeting would be at the graveyard like usual. On the way over, I checked the tracking device on Codie’s car. It was in the parking lot of her building, right where it should be. She hadn’t yet figured out that I’d put a tracking device on her car, and I hoped she never would.
Casper leaned forward from where he sat in the middle of the back seat. He ogled my screen and laughed. Shoving his hands in front of me where I could see them, he signed, “Are you tracking that woman? You’re a goner, dude.”
“Eat shit,” I muttered. “Better watch your ass, man. You might be next.”
“What’s going on? What are you guys talking about?” Rebel was focused on driving, unable to pay attention to Casper’s signing. He also wasn’t as adept at understanding it asI was. Casper often had to type shit out on his phone for Rebel. Auryn too. Lazy bastards. They could have made a bigger effort to learn.
“Casper thinks I’m a goner because I have a tracker on Codie’s car. Honestly, it’s because she’s a bit of a flight risk. I’ve caught her up to no good more than once. The girl is a danger to herself.” My explanation sounded good to me.
My friends weren’t buying it. Rebel snickered. “Welcome to the club, Stray. How does it feel to be obsessed with a woman you can’t get enough of? It only gets stronger. It might make you crazy, but it’s the best fucking kind of crazy.”
With a groan, I let my head fall back against the passenger seat. “Don’t tell me this shit, Rebel. I don’t think I can handle it right now.”
I’d barely scratched the surface with Codie. The rush she got when I pressed a knife to her throat or a gun to her head while fucking her was no different from the rush I got while doing it. We would probably never have what Rebel and Storm had. I would have to live with that. Still, I wasn’t turning my back on this now. I hadn’t gotten nearly as high on her as I believed possible. I needed another hit.
I knew what I had to do.
Glancing over at Rebel, I said, “Do me a favor, would you? Talk to Storm when you get home. Get her to make plans with Athena tomorrow night. Anything it takes to keep her out of the apartment so Codie is there alone.”
As he pulled to a stop at a red light, he gave me a curious stare. “What kind of game are the two of you playing? Is this like a predator and prey thing?” When I didn’t respond but merely continued to stare at him, he said, “I’ll talk to Storm. I’ll see what I can do.”
Keeping Athena out of the apartment tomorrow night was essential. I would be paying Codie a visit. The night I held a gun to her head was nothing compared to what I had in mind.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CODIE
Thinking about Stray’s next move was making me a nervous wreck. I hadn’t seen him since yesterday when I ran from him in the parking lot. That wouldn’t last long. Soon he would make an appearance.
I’d expected to see him on campus today. Either he hadn’t shown up or I’d done a good job at evading him. Storm told me that Rebel and Casper were able to split up the fight with Noah before it got out of hand. That made me feel a little better. I didn’t want to be the reason anyone got hurt.
When I arrived back at my apartment after classes ended for the day, I was both relieved and disappointed when Stray was nowhere to be seen. So many times I’d found him hanging around in front of my building where he could see my apartment windows. Now when he wasn’t there, I felt a sense of disappointment. That led to guilt.
I shouldn’t want to see him out there. Having him stalk my every move was screwed up. So why did I feel better when he was around?
After grabbing a quick shower, I searched the kitchen for a snack. Once Athena got home, we could figure out supper. Usually on weekdays we took turns cooking. I had no ideas for tonight. We needed to do another grocery run soon.
The girls had been talking about partying this weekend. I didn’t know if I was up for that. Maybe laying low at home for a while would be best.
I stood near the kitchen window, staring outside while munching on a chocolate chip cookie. The text alert on my phone went off, startling me from my thoughts. Grabbing the phone off the table, I found a message from Athena. She would be out late tonight with Storm. Most likely helping finalize the details of the wedding.
That left me to figure out supper for myself. After staring into the fridge and then the pantry, I decided to order delivery. This was a good excuse to order from my favorite salad and wrap place. Most of the options were relatively healthy, so I didn’t need to feel bad about eating junk food.
I lounged on the couch watching a true crime documentary on the crime channel while waiting for the food to arrive. Maybe a night home alone was exactly what I needed. No chitchat. No homework. Just me by myself relaxing.
My food arrived, and I dug into a delicious rice bowl filled with various veggies, drizzled in a delicious Greek vinaigrette dressing. So good. While eating I thought about the upcoming wedding. It was still a month away. Although I knew the time would pass quickly.
I wondered how awkward it would be with Stray there as well. Would he even speak to me? Would he ask me to dance? Did a guy like Stray even know how to dance?
My mind ran away with me as I played out several unlikely scenarios. I would definitely need to have a few drinks that night. Hopefully by then we’d have gone our separate ways. As long as I stayed away from him between now and then, he’d most likely move on. He’d find someone else.
I hated how that thought made me a little crazy. Like I didn’t want him to find anyone else, even though I didn’t want him for myself. That wasn’t fair to either of us.
The TV managed to hold my attention until I started yawning. It was past ten when I turned off the living room lights and the TV and headed to bed. Athena would probably be home soon. I doubted she would be out too late. We had classes tomorrow.
After tying my hair into a loose braid, I changed into a tank top, shedding my pants so I wore only underwear. I preferred not to wear a lot of clothing in bed. I hated the way it got wrapped around me when I tossed and turned.
