Page 12 of Murder & Mayhem

“Yeah, but she’s not a guy!”

There’s a second’s silence before Oliver responds. “She’s not Evie either,” he says softly. “You and I both know she’s more than capable of handling herself.”

That sounded an awful lot like concern in Cain’s voice, and Oliver’s response only confirmed it. Cain’s lack of faith in my abilities isn’t because I have tits and a vagina but because he’s having difficulties differentiating me from his sister. I’m not entirely sure what to make of that revelation, and not wanting to eavesdrop anymore, I move away from the door and head in search of my brother. I have some apologizing to do, and Cain’s reminder of his lost sister has me wanting to fix things more than ever.

I find him in the first place I check—the game room—hanging out with a couple of the other kids. I recognize their faces, but I don’t know their names, so I just give them a small smile before focusing on my brother. “Luc, can I talk to you?”

“Sure.” He finishes up with some car racing game he’s playing before tossing the controller to one of the other guys and getting to his feet, following me out of the room.

Not really sure where to go, I head toward a fire exit, pushing it open and stepping out the back of the apartment complex. The Rejects obviously haven’t done anything back here as the grass is overgrown and half-dead looking, and there’s a bunch of old furniture dumped in a pile.

“What’s up?” Luc asks, drawing my attention his way.

“I owe you an apology. You were right yesterday. I’ve been a total bitch recently, and it wasn’t fair of me to take it out on you.” He quirks a brow, surprised at my honest apology. Yeah, I know, it’s not like me, but he was right to lose his cool. I step closer to him, holding his gaze. “You know I love you, and that I’d do anything to protect you. A lot is going on that you don’t know about, but things are probably going to get pretty bad. I just… I need to know that you’re safe.”

His eyes narrow as his eyebrows tug together. “Sawyer, what’s going on?”

I shake my head, not wanting him to know more than he needs to. It’s for his own safety. “Just promise me you’ll be smart. That you won’t go anywhere alone, and you’ll stick with one of the Reject kids.”

“So now you’re okay with me hanging out with them?” His tone is more confused than accusatory.

“I mean, I’d rather you hung out with nerdy library kids, but I realize, considering where we live, that that was never going to happen,” I joke, trying to lighten the mood.

One side of his lips lifts in a grin. “Based on every teen movie I’ve ever seen, the quiet nerds are really the crazy ones you need to watch out for.”

I snort out a laugh. “So we’re okay?”

“Yeah,” he sighs, still smiling. “We’re good.” I wrap my arms around him, and he lets me pull him in for a hug. “I promise I’ll be safe, Sawyer,” he murmurs in my ear. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

Yeah, that won’t be happening any time soon,but I squeeze him tighter, all the same, feeling much better now that things are good between us again.

“So, you’ll be home later?” I ask as we break apart.

“Yeah. I’ll be home for dinner, but please tell me you're going to shower before then cause, sis, you stink.”

Barking out a laugh and feeling ten times lighter than I did this morning, I shove him on the shoulder, and we head back inside. Once I’m back in the spare bedroom, I head straight for the attached bathroom. Turning on the shower, I quickly strip out of my workout gear and get under the hot spray, feeling the final bit of tension drain from my shoulders as the water seeps into my skin. Having worked out and feeling confident that Jon will be able to help me better defend myself, not to mention having fixed things with Luc, I’m feeling more like myself than I have in weeks. Like I’ve taken back at least a little bit of control. I feel much happier about letting Luc spend time with the kids after my chat with Jon and seeing just how capable he is in a fight. His skills were… impressive, to say the least. He actually reminded me a little of Hadley, the girl who taught me the basics—well, more than justthe basics, but not enough to survive the war we have coming our way. A smile ghosts my lips as I think of her and the secret rooftop sessions we had.

“Why do you want to know all this stuff anyway? You’re more than good enough to defend yourself against any simple thug or handsy asshole.”

I give a casual shrug, unwilling to tell her my plan just yet. I have goals. Plans I fully intend to put into motion—soon. I want to be known as more than just a stripper; more than just another pathetic Black Creek nobody who can’t afford to do anything more than work to maintain the shitty little existence they’ve carved out for themselves. Now that both Luc and I have a safe place to call home, and he’s got food in his belly every night, it’s time for me to focus on what’s next; on the dark figment of a plan that’s been festering like an open wound in the back of my mind for years now. Since the day that everything changed for Luc and me.

Because Hadley gets me in a way nobody else ever really has, she doesn’t get offended at my refusal to answer her. She simply accepts it for what it is—an unwillingness to share something personal with someone else. It’s not like she’s not carrying her own secrets. I know absolutely nothing about her, except her name. And I know that’s not real since I was the one that obtained the fake documents for her. But hey, that’s her business. If she wants to talk to me, I’ll be here to listen, and if she doesn’t,that’s cool too.

“Just be careful, yeah?”

One side of my lips curves up in a grin. “Aww, you wouldn’t be worrying about me, would ya?”

She scoffs, shaking her head. “Not a chance, I just don’t want to lose the only half-decent sparring partner I’ve been able to find around here.”

Grinning, I get to my feet again, ready to go another round. “I wanna practice that chokehold again. I nearly got it last time.”

“Red, you would have been passed out on the ground if I hadn’t let go.” She says it with a laugh, letting me know she’s joking, but I jab her in the ribs and scowl at her anyway, making her laugh harder. The way her voice sounds when she laughs, all raw and husky, makes me think she doesn’t do it too often, and it brings a smile to my lips, knowing I’m able to chase away whatever demons are haunting her, if only for a little while. Hadley’s done so much for me, teaching me to defend myself and more, so if I can bring a little lightheartedness to her life every once in a while… well, at least I feel like I’m repaying her in some way.

I startle out of my daydreams as I catch a flicker of movement in the doorway. My muscles tense as I struggle to remember if I locked the bedroom door. Was I seriously floating on such a high when I came in that I forgot to lock the damn door?! God, I can be such a fucking idiot sometimes.

The shower cubicle is all steamed up, making it impossible for me to identify who is in my room. Still, I pretend to continue with my shower, unaware of their presence, while I assess the situation and try to figure out what to do. Whomever it is doesn’t come any further into the bathroom, apparently content to wait me out. Not seeing that I have any other option, I wash the last of the suds out of my hair while keeping my eyes on the figure in the doorway. Given their tall height and broad frame, it’s definitely a dude, but that’s not helpful given I’m in a gang clubhouse that’s overrun with men.

Squeezing the water out of my hair, I assess the weight of the shower gel and shampoo bottles before gripping the shampoo—the heavier of the two—firmly in my hand. It’s a pretty shitty weapon, but it’s better than nothing, and whoever is watching me will notice if I attempt to disconnect the shower hose and use that to strangle them instead.Let’s save that for plan B.

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