Only twenty minutes had passed, but it seemed like hours since I called Reyna. My pacing was leaving a trail on the living room rug. Over and over, I tried to come up with a way to tell Reyna about my past. I kept telling myself that what I did was an accident. It could have happened to anyone.Just keep telling yourself that, Kenzi. It was useless, and when a knock came at the door, reality hit me in the gut. My secret was about to be revealed.
When I opened the door, Reyna stood on the other side, concern written all over her face. “You sounded desperate, Kenzi. What is going on?”
Grabbing her hand, I pulled her inside the apartment. Consumed with an uneasy feeling, I looked down the hallway, first to the left and then to the right, before closing the door and locking it. My paranoia was getting the best of me.Was I losing it?When I turned to face Reyna, her worried expression was topped with a hint of annoyance. Her arms were crossed at her chest, waiting for an explanation, which she deserved, especially since I was the one who called her.
“You might want to sit down,” I said. “What I am about to tell you is going to be hard to believe.”
Reyna took a seat on the couch while I remained standing. I needed all the courage I could muster, and standing was the only way I could spill the biggest secret ever. “I killed someone.” Just like that, the words left my mouth, and I knew I couldn’t take them back.
“Yeah, right,” she chuckled, as though I had told her a joke. “Kenzi Horton, a killer? No way.”
“It’s the truth, Reyna. It happened when I was in high school. I think I’m in trouble, and I don’t know what to do.”
“You’re scaring me, Kenzi.” Reyna patted the cushion next to her. “Sit and tell me everything.”
Maybe it would be better if I sat. Rounding the coffee table, I took a seat next to Reyna. “I don’t know where to start. I thought what happened five years ago was over and done with. I should have never trusted Levi.”
“Hold on. Who the hell is Levi?” Reyna questioned, waving her hands in the air, one over the other.
“Levi McBride. He was the cutest boy in high school. Of all the pretty girls he could have asked to be his girlfriend, he asked me. I should have run away, but his bad-boy charm blinded me. I did everything for him, and now I’m paying for it. God, how could I have been so stupid?”
“Just tell me what happened, Kenzi.” Reyna placed her hand over mine. “Whatever you did, we will figure out what to do, together.”
Taking in a deep breath, I faced Reyna with the truth. “Levi was into taking risks. He got mixed up with some bad people. He ended up getting hooked on illegal gambling and owed a lot of money to this guy who ran an underground gambling ring. Levi owned him fifty grand. Back then, it seemed like a lot of money, especially for a teenager.”
“So, what does that have to do with you?” Reyna interrupted.
“I’m getting to that,” I replied, somewhat annoyed as I gathered my thoughts. “Levi knew I had a talent for playing cards. My dad taught me how to count cards when I was younger. Why he did, I have no idea. Maybe it was his way of teaching me math, which I really sucked at. He made it fun, and I loved playing poker and blackjack with him. Anyway, Levi used my talent so he could pay back the money he owed. We were so close to paying off his debt. Just a few more blackjack games and he would be out of debt. I was actually having fun until we got caught.”
I took in another deep breath. What I was about to confess would determine if Reyna and I would remain friends. “When the head guy found out what we were doing, he got so mad. I thought he was going to kill Levi. I couldn’t let that happen.”
“What did you do, Kenzi?” Reyna’s voice trembled with fear, expecting the worst.
“I knew when he took us to the back room where they counted the money that we were dead. Everyone inside the room scattered when he told them to leave. Everything happened so fast. He had his hands around Levi’s neck. I noticed a letter opener sitting on the table, so I picked it up. The guy was so focused on choking Levi that he didn’t see me grab it. I plunged it into the guy’s neck. Within minutes, the cops raided the building. I had never been so scared in my life. We ran out of there as fast as we could. I got away, but Levi didn’t. The cops took him into custody, and he ended up going to jail. I never looked back and ran home.”
“It sounds like self-defense to me, Kenzi.” Reyna tried to reassure me, but I knew it was wishful thinking. “Who was the guy you killed?”
“I don’t know—some big ugly guy with acne scars all over his face. I think his name was Dice. Every day I read the paper to see if the police had any information about what happened, but nothing. The paper never mentioned who he was or even his death. I assumed it was because the guy was into something bigger than illegal gambling, and the cops wanted to keep it from the public.”
“We need to tell Davian about this. But more than anything, you need to tell Axe.”
~5~
Five years ago
Levi
It was like destiny, but not in the real sense. I manipulated the innocence of the cutest girl in high school to make her fall for me without her knowing. Mackenzie Horton’s innocence and purity made her the perfect person for what I had planned. The amount of trouble I was in was skyrocketing, and I needed a safety net fast.
The icing on my plan was Mac—the nickname I gave my sweet salvation. She had a gift that would make all my troubles disappear. Who would have thought that a girl as innocent as Mac had learned the technique of card counting? Certainly not me. I should thank her dad for teaching her. All I had to do was figure out a way to convince her to help me.
Closing my locker door to head to my last class of the day, I realized I was running out of time. There was a high-stakes blackjack game tomorrow night that, if I won, would clear the debt with Dice. Dice wasn’t the kind of man to be messed with. But using Mac’s talents to help me win was my only option. If Dice found out she was counting cards, I would be a dead man. I had to be smart about the game. Being smart meant that I would have to lose a few games.
My thoughts were interrupted when I felt two arms wrap around my waist. If only life could be that simple—a hug here or a kiss there. Turning to face Mac, I pulled her close and kissed her on the forehead. “How about after class we go to my house? I have something important to ask you.”
“Okay,” Mac answered hesitantly. “Should I be worried?”
“Not at all. It is more of a favor than anything.” Calling what I wanted from her a favor was stretching the truth, but the way I planned on asking Mac, it would appear as one.