Page 59 of Defiant
If only Skull would’ve let me bring her back, I could’ve avoided all of this. But no, I had to get in trouble with the big man, exiled from the group for a little bit. Hopefully my exile would not last too long, because I didn’t know how much longer I could stand to walk those shiny, new halls and deal with its preppy, rich, holier-than-thou students.
“You’re stubborn,” Vaughn spoke, eyeing me up with a stare that was near black. Hate and pain sat on his knuckles, two tattoos that looked newer than mine. I got mine when I turned eighteen, a few years ago. Bet he got those just this year. “I know if I try to tell you to stay away from her, you won’t, so I’m not going to waste my breath.”
I gave him a smile. “Good. Maybe you and I can get along after all.” I really did have to get out of this limo soon; this fancy vehicle was making me itch. I kind of wanted to take a sledgehammer to it and make it less pretty.
“I wouldn’t go that far,” he muttered, and I laughed. “You’re new here. She said she never met you before last week.”
“That is technically true, but her and I were destined from the start,” I said, shrugging, as if talking about being promised to someone was something I did every day. “You were never really in the race.”
“Seems to me, she likes me more than she likes you,” he quipped, “but I suppose that’s none of my business.” I opened my mouth to retort, to tell him that there was no way she liked him more than me, but he continued, “I want to talk about what happened. I would never get my family’s permission to enact the type of vengeance I’d like on Ryan and his friends, but you…”
But I had no such family to stop me. No ties to this place, other than Jaz. I could be the free agent where Vaughn could not.
“Go on,” I spoke, waving a hand through the air, inviting him to continue.
A muscle in his jaw tensed, and he gave me a dark look with those black eyes, like two daggers, ready to kill. “I assume you would help for Jaz.”
“I would,” I said, knowing I’d do anything to help her, to protect her, to save her from any future attacks like that. Those fuckers would get what was coming to them, but not quite yet. There was something else I figured Vaughn could help me with.
You see, I’d exhausted that old investigator. He had nothing else for me; I knew that without bugging him more. Vaughn? He came from a family of money. He probably slept with blankets made of cash. He could help me where Jacob Hall could not.
“I need something from you, first,” I said, earning myself yet another scowl from Vaughn. Did he make any other facial expressions, or was that it? Honestly, what could Jaz possibly see in him that she couldn’t see in me? I was so much better than this freak.
“Of course,” Vaughn frowned out, “nothing comes without a price. Name it.”
“I need money,” I told him. My official address with the school was Jacob’s apartment, but that wasn’t where I was staying. Still in the motel a good ways away, and it was where I wanted to remain. Alas, my funds had run out, and I had no credit cards to my name. I needed more money, and I needed it fast…otherwise I’d be sleeping on my bike in the cold for the foreseeable future.
Yeah. That didn’t sound like a fun night, let alone multiple nights.
“I can get you money.” Vaughn spoke without batting an eye, “How much do you need?”
Uh, math wasn’t my strong suit. Mentally adding up how much I’d need to pay the motel, while also wondering how long I’d have to stay here, made me sit there quietly for far too long.
When I said nothing, Vaughn added, “Tomorrow—”
“No,” I said. “Tonight. Meet me at that old diner tonight at seven. Bring a few g’s, will you?” I gave him a good slap on the chest before moving to get out, crawling over him to reach the door, since the limo only had a back door on a single side.
He didn’t stop me, not like I thought he would. Tonight at seven, then. It was a date.
Not a fun date. Not a date with Jaz, which would surely end in me bringing her home, throwing her on my bed, and getting to know every inch of that smooth, tan skin. God, I truly couldn’t wait for that day.
Mark my words, it would happen.
I tossed Vaughn a quick look as I got out, giving him a grin as I shut the door. The limo drove away, and I watched it as it went. By now, Midpark High’s parking lot was mostly empty, save for a few stragglers. I had my hands in my jacket pockets, wishing I had my knife to fiddle with. This school had state of the art shit—metal detectors, cameras everywhere, all that good stuff and more. I’d left it back with my other things, in the motel room. I hardly felt like myself without its weight on my body.
Heading to my bike, I heaved a leg over it, kicking up the stand. I was about to get the key out and start her up, but my phone rang. That was odd. I reached into my pocket and pulled it out, finding a name I wasn’t expecting.
Jacob.
Why in the fuck would Jacob be calling me?
I debated on not answering it, but after recent events, I figured I’d better be safe and answer just in case. “Well, well, well. If it isn’t Jacob Hall. To what do I owe this displeasure?” I leaned on my bike’s handlebars, listening to what he said.
“What the fuck happened?” To say he sounded angry would be an understatement, actually. He sounded pissed, a lot more pissed than I’d ever heard him before—and I blackmailed him into getting me into Midpark. “One fucking day at the school, and things explode.”
Wait. Was he talking about what happened to Jaz? Did she talk to him already? Shit. I didn’t realize they were that close…
“I should’ve never helped you get into Midpark,” Jacob was busy saying. “I should’ve just let you do whatever it was you were threatening to do. I knew you were nothing but bad news the moment you—”
