Page 193 of Evil Boys

“I’m sorry, Nathan,” Milo mutters. “I’m sorry, Rory—”

Nathan plants a finger on his lips. “No more. It’s not your fault. I just wish I could’ve gotten there sooner.”

“Did you see what they looked like?” I ask.

“I don’t know. They were wearing long coats and skull-shaped masks.” Milo points at his chest. “There was an emblem, there. I could only vaguely catch a word before the guy shot me … Bones.”

A shiver runs up and down my spine.

“Fuck.” Nathan looks up at me and immediately fishes his phone from his pocket.

“What is it?” Lana asks.

“Bones can only mean one thing,” I say.

“Bones Brotherhood,” Nathan grits as he types into his phone. “And they’ve obviously been hired by someone to take care of my parents’ debt, no matter the cost.”

“Bones Brotherhood?” Lana chimes. “I’ve never heard of them.”

“They work under the radar. Notorious for accepting only the dirtiest jobs for the richest among us. They do anything for money, and they operate in several cities. Our parents would never work with scum like that.”

“So like assassins?”

“Not just that,” Nathan says through gritted teeth, still holding Milo’s hand for dear life. “Trafficking.”

I swallow as I watch Lana’s face go as white as snow.

“Fuck! No wonder I couldn’t get rid of these fuckers,” Nathan says.

“They don’t play by the book,” I say.

Nathan’s messages land on deaf ears, so he opts to call the guy who extorted him instead. When he picks up, Nathan puts the phone on speaker and yells, “You son of a motherfucking bitch, give me back my sister!”

The guy on the other end laughs. “And you think that’s going to work?”

Nathan clutches the phone so tight I can hear it crack. “Listen, you little bitch, I paid off my parents’ debt. I gave you the money. Our deal is finished!”

“No, I don’t think so. You see, we only got the money owed to our contractor,” the voice mumbles, clearly amused. “But you failed to provide the added interest.”

Nathan’s pupils dilate. “Interest?”

“Yes …” The voice on the phone is downright malicious. “But don’t worry, we’ll take care of it. You get to live. Your parents get to enjoy prison. And your sister? Well … you’ll never see her again.”

“Oh God,” Lana mutters, covering her mouth with her hand. “They intend to sell her.”

Nathan’s patience breaks. “I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!”

But the conversation is cut off before he can finish his tirade, and Nathan throws his phone.

I catch it just before it hits the wall. We need the information more than he needs an outlet for his rage.

“FUCK!” Nathan yells, almost ripping his hair out of his head. “Rory, I can’t leave her there. They’re going to hurt her. Sell her off to God knows what kind of pervert. Oh God.”

Lana fishes her phone from her pocket and texts someone.

“I’m sorry,” Milo says, coughing again. “I wish I could go out there and fight them.”

“What are you doing?” I ask Lana.

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