Page 41 of Wilder
I swallow hard. “That, of course. We don’t know who did it or why, and that’s frustrating… but also, we’ve been dealing with some other craziness I haven’t bothered to mention to you because it took us some time to realize the extent of what washappening. And now it’s gotten to an overwhelming point, and I don’t know if we can fuckin’ handle it on our own, but I don’t trust the cops in this town as far as I can throw them.”
“Tell me.” Theo’s voice is gruff, his tone demanding, but even so, I can tell by the concern washing over his features that he wants to help if he can.
I spend several minutes as we continue walking to share with him some of the recent events that have us on edge and how all four of us have been threatened in one way or another.
“It’s been bad, man. And I don’t understand what the hell is going on, but Echo and I seem to be at the center of it, and everyone in close proximity has come into the line of fire.”
“When would you say this all started?” Theo turns his head, arching a brow.
“I thought it was this semester, honestly. But then we found out about the photos of Echo’s parents that had to have been taken six months ago. And fuck, really? I feel like it could possibly have started as far back as the accident.”
His brows shoot up. “Seriously.”
I shrug. “That psychotic dickhead on the phone said I’d taken something from him. And all I can think is maybe he meant Alicia. It’s the only thing that makes sense to me.”
“Fuck.” The expletive shoots from his mouth like a goddamn bullet. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Nope. Not in the slightest.” I heave out a harsh breath, then tip up my bottle for another swig of water. “I’ve mostly been on my best behavior since coming to KU. I kept to my-fucking-self in prison. I can’t imagine what else is serious enough to bring this down on our heads. At the same fucking time, why are Beck and Wild being fucked with, too? Echo, I get. She was around back then. But the guys? We’re close now, but…” No one outside our circle realizes how close. My stomach flips and twists in my abdominal cavity, a sick feeling of dread growing inside me.What the fuck would happen if this fucker were aware that we’re all involved with each other?
A squeal of tires coming around the corner distracts me from my thoughts at the same time it has me rolling my fucking eyes. I don’t bother to turn around.Don’t these assholes know that kids play in the streets in this neighborhood?That’s probably the reason why Echo doesn’t let Chase go outside in the front yard hardly at all. She usually holds his hand while they walk to check the box for mail.
Theo glances at me, rubbing his hand over his jaw. “It’s all too fucking much to be a coincidence, that’s for sure. Are you going back to live at SIN?”
Before I can answer, the asshole tire squealer revs the engine of his vehicle. I turn, my brows drawing sharply together, hoping to get a good look at who the dickhead is. One glance over my shoulder, though, and my stomach drops like a lead balloon.
Oh, fuck. The van that followed us. It’s the same one. As my head whips back around, and I try to assess if there is a way out of what’s barreling toward us, I catch the horror on Theo’s face. My heart knocks hard behind my rib cage as the van speeds toward us, and I swear, the driver means to run down one or both of us. I recognize this as one of those times when everything plays out in slow motion, even though the reality is that it’s all happening at high speed—much too fast to stop what’s about to transpire. I don’t have time to think, time to shout at Theo to get out of the way, or even to save myself. And the hell of it is, in a flash, I see it all play out in my head as I know it’s going to.
My ears buzz so hard that I can’t tell what Theo is shouting, but it doesn’t matter because the capacity to think about anything is far beyond me. It’s clear this fucker would love nothing more than to take me out, and there won’t be more than a split-second’s difference between whether he succeeds or not.
I dive and roll, feeling gravel at the edge of the road bite into my skin as I skid across it, and come to a stop. My head collides with the ground. Pain shrieks through my body. I lie there, wondering whether I’m dead or alive. If I’m dead, I’m going to be really, really pissed off.
The screech of the tires as the van races away up around the next corner is something that only registers in a distant part of my mind.Alive.I heave out a breath and close my eyes.
“Royal! Fuck!” Theo shouts, and my eyes pop open to find him on his knees at my side. He looks fucking terrified, which scares the fuck out of me, because I don’t know what he’s seeing. His hands quickly move over me, and I blink with the glare of the sun in my face, trying to track what he’s looking at. I swear I will never complain about it being blazing hot again because it means I’m not dead.
My head disagrees with me, though, as it’s still ringing from the crack my skull took when I hit the ground. I shift, trying to push myself up onto my forearm.
“Hey, hey, no. Don’t try to move yet.” Theo waves his hands. “Take a second to breathe and tell me what the worst of it is.” My old friend is trying hard to present a relatively calm front, but as I watch him pull out his phone, I do notice his hands are a little shaky. “I only got a partial plate.” His teeth clench. “I’m putting it in my Notes so I don’t forget.” He finishes, then huffs out, “I’m calling for help.”
“No.” I draw in an agonized breath, while the stars dance in front of my eyes. “I’m fine,” I grunt, trying to get up again.
“I don’t fucking buy that, and I think we should get you to the emergency room.” Theo bites back a curse. “Dammit, Royal, let me help you.”
“I don’t need the ER, don’t need an ambulance. The road rash doesn't feel great, but it won’t kill me.”
“You hit your head. I saw it practically bounce off the ground.”
He’s not wrong. I groan as I take his hand. Hissing with pain, I clench my jaw as I gingerly come to a seated position. Trying to hide the worst of what I feel, I roll my eyes. “I don’t want to go to a damn hospital. I’m not drawing any more attention to us.” I let out a heavy breath. “Now, don’t fuckin’ freak out. I’m getting up.”
“I still think you need a doctor, Royal.” Theo lightly touches his fingertips to my head, and they come away bloody. His jaw works to the side, and he begrudgingly helps me to my feet. “You’re sure you don’t want to get checked out?”
He’s worried. I fucking get it, but I really am okay. Sort of.
“I’m positive,” I say through clenched teeth. “Just take me back to the house. Wilder will take care of me. He always does.”
Theo’s brows dart together. “What are you talking about?”
“You know—fights and shit. He’s a nursing student, and he knows what he’s doing. I trust him. I’m fucking fine. Please. Let’s just walk back to the Madden house. We aren’t far.”
