Page 33 of Petals of Blue: Part Two
ROLL!Felix demands, but I can't. All my energy went into opening the stupid hole I didn't get to use.
The stench of stale beer and body odor swarms me just before pain explodes through my ribcage. Clarence, the fucker, is yelling obscenities, but I'm too busy trying to wheeze a goddamn breath in.
"T-t-thank yewwww," I wheeze out, once I realize he rolled me over onto my back. Black spots dance in my vision, but imagining Declan shooing them away with a fly swatter makes me smile and open my eyes. Sadly, the image above me isn't my high school best friend running around with a fly swatter. It's Clarence pointing and shouting at the tiny ass hole in the floor.
Get up. Or crawl. I don't fucking care, just stop making jokes for a damn second and RUN!Felix’s final vicious word collides with Clarence's. "You were trying to RUN?!"
Biting the inside of my cheek, I tune out the rest of the old, fat pedophile’s rant and slip my elbows beneath me. My ribs protest, but I'm more than halfway out of my mind, so I just think of it as a period cramp.
Being a woman is hard. Yeah, that's all I'm dealingwith right now. If I tell myself I'm half asleep, still drunk, and on my period, it's basically the same thing.
Blue motherfucking Bennett...Felix sounds exasperated in my mind.
"Yeah, yeah," I breathe quietly and position myself on my hands and knees. Clarence, who I'm thinking might be drunk, is now swaying and looking at me.
"Stay right there, little kitty." He licks his lips as his beady eyes dip to my breasts,which are completely fucking covered in a baggy T-shirt!
Christ, he's gross.
"You've changed, kitty. More than a handful now," he slurs as I slowly climb to my feet.
Easy now. You’ve got this, sweetheart. Go slow so you don't get dizzy,Felix warns, reminding me of my predicament. But that also reminds me of why I'm here in the first fucking place.
"And s-some things don't. You're still p-preying on young women, asshole." Getting full sentences is hard. While it's slightly warmer out right now, the temperature is dropping fast, and I haven't had the chance to warm up in so long.
Clarence tsks and shakes his head, inching closer to me like I'm a wild animal. "No, kitty. It's always been aboutyou.I get what I want, no matter how long it takes."
What?
His smile slips from sleazy into something that will make me have nightmares for the rest of my life. Clarence is looking at me like I'm precious, like anobsession.
"Sure, the girl is pretty, but her videos are all about you. That's how I found you. Her perfect role model and the one everyone loves. Now it's my turn to love you, kitty."
Fucking hell, get the fuck out of there!Felix bellows in tune with the throbbing in my head. There's too much to think about, to process, right now when I'm pretty sure I'm about to pass out.
The look on my face must convey my determination because the nasty, sweet smile on the drunk man's face flips right to thunderous, and I guess,offended.
My calves flex and my toes curl of their own accord. Fight-or-flight response activated. I didn't have the ability to fight days ago, but I sure as shit am not going to talk myself out of running.
Freezing wind kisses the back of my neck, and I answer its enticing call. I fuckingrun.
Twenty-Five
FELIX
“So, I totally understand why we're speeding and panicking, but how do we know for sure that this next place is the right one?"
I'm too busy trying to keep our vehicle on the road to answer Declan. He makes a good point, though, which makes me pause. Howdowe know if we'll find her at the next arboretum on our list?
"Because it's next," Jared says, staring out the windshield almost as fiercely as I am. I'm grateful for his attention because I guarantee the torrential downpour is going to freeze, then we're really going to have a fucking problem.
An icy blizzard is the last fucking thing we need.
"That's not an answer, dumba—" Declan cuts off with a grunt. I spare a glance in the rearview mirror and see him glaring at his brother. "Can everyone stop fucking punching me? God, it's overstimulating as hell."
My lips twitch with a suppressed smile. I can't wait for us to get Blue back and settle into our new normal.Through all the stress, there have been flashes of sadness for the humor and fun times she’s missing.
"Don't be rude and I won’t hit you," Roman explains. I bet Declan rolls his eyes, but I can't afford to take my eyes off the road again. The sun set a little while ago, and shit's getting dangerous.
