Page 16 of Restless
“I’d like to see a scrawny little motherfucker like you try,” Nardo gritted, looming behind her like a bad omen.
Rory tossed his cigarette. “How about I cut your fucking head off and dance in your fucking blood?”
The light in Rory’s eyes, and the oddness of his voice, chilled Harley. Rumors persisted that Uncle Johnnie took Rory into the meatshack. At first, Harley couldn’t believe Uncle Johnnie would disobey Uncle Christopher’s direct order, but Rory’s tone and the fervency in his eyes changed her mind.
Her brother and cousins smiled.
“Maybe, I’ll just tell Uncle Mort and my dad,” Mark JB said casually.
No matter the valid points Nardo brought up, Harley didn’t want to involve her father and uncle.
“Enough!” she ordered. “Nardo and me are costars in the play, and we cut class to rehearse our lines, so shut up all of you.”
Lou glanced at Nardo, who still stood behind Harley. “That true, bruh?” He glared at her. “My sister is stupid but she’s not a fucking toy.”
“Stupid?” Harley folded her arms, hurt at his description. “Really, Lucas?”
“I’m not falling for your bait, sister. You’re not insulting me by calling me by my given name. As a matter of fact, it doesn’t mean shit coming from you.”
“When Mommie says it, you tremble in your fucking shoes, asswipe,” she sniped.
“Yep. She my momma, sis. You not.”
“Yo, don’t front.” Nardo stepped beside her. “Just because you drop a few letters from words, don’t make you bad, bruh.”
“Don’t talk out of your fucking ass, Grevenberg,” Lou grumbled. “You don’t know shit about me, so I suggest you shut the fuck up before you find out.”
Nardo settled an arm around Harley’s shoulders, then leaned down and kissed her. Out of pure contrariness, she opened her mouth, allowing him to push his tongue in. She turned—
Without warning, Mark JB snatched her away from Nardo and she stumbled. Her cousin gripped her arms to save her from falling. Once she balanced herself, he released her.
The scorn on the boys’ faces cut through her. She lifted her chin.
“We might have to add this motherfucker to the same hit list we have Willy and Wally on,” Axel announced.
Mark JB slapped the side of his head. “Shut the fuck up, stupid. We got a stranger in our midst.”
Lou eyed her. “A fucking traitor, too.”
“Shut up!” Harley screeched, Axel’s words settling in her head. “What hit list?”
“Don’t hit me again, fuckwipe,” Axel yelled to Mark JB, rubbing the side of his head, fury on his face.
“What hit list?” Harley demanded again.
“The one where we fuck up the Byrds for fucking with Mattie,” Axel said sullenly, his look daring Mark JB to touch him again.
“I’d say Willard and Wallace deserve fucking up,” a new voice inserted.
At the unexpected words, they all jumped and turned.
A tall man with a goatee, bald head, and green eyes stood behind them, smoking a cigarette. Something about him was familiar, though Harley was certain she’d never seen him before. He wore a leather duster, black shirt, and black jeans.
His cold gaze caught and held hers before Rory, Lou, Mark JB, and Ryder stepped in front of her.
“I’m not here to harm Harley, Rory,” the man said.
“Who the fuck are you and how the fuck do you know my fucking name, motherfucker?” Rory demanded, sounding like a cross between his father and Uncle Christopher.
