Page 42 of Wild Card

“No.” Fuck, was I really about to say this? “It’s just that the team…once you’re accepted, there’s a certain amount of protection you have as a member. They may treat you like shit or even stab you in the back, but if you need anything, they’ll do it, for the rest of your life. A loan on a house, a job—whatever you need, they’ll do it. You’re essentially getting inducted into a brotherhood.”

I wanted to look over, see if she had the pinched look or if she was glaring. Did it make me a coward to be so loyal to a team that likely knew about Elias’s plan to kill my chances at going pro? Maybe, but no matter how hard I dug, there was never any proof I could find.

I could tell she wanted to ask more, but she moved on to her next question with the grace and fluidity of a seasoned reporter. I felt relaxed and comfortable talking with her as long as it didn’t revolve around my relationship with E, or my major downfall from the team.

* * *

We passedthe city limits of my hometown, slowing to nearly twenty miles per hour. It gave the reporter next to me plenty of time to gather all the details she wanted. Old brick buildings lined either side of the white sidewalks. Flower baskets hung every few feet, providing bursts of color, and tourists were mingling and shuffling in and out of storefronts.

“Cute town.”

I nodded then rolled our windows down so we could hear the chatter, feel the cool breeze that came off the nearby river. There was some kind of banjo and guitar medley making its way through the streets, likely coming from one of the nicer restaurants down the way. They often had live music throughout the day as long as it wasn’t raining.

“I can’t believe I’ve never been here before.” Her face was turned toward the town outside her window.

“Where are you from?” I slowed for a few tourists passing the crosswalk.

“Greensboro, actually…not too far from here. Back when it was just my dad and me, we used to travel to all the local places we could find. He could never afford much time off work or a big trip, so we’d stay close.” She straightened, turning toward me. Her eyes were bright as she remembered her younger years. The way her white teeth flashed and that nose crinkled…

Fuck.

“I remember this one trip…I was eleven, I think. He was trying extra hard to lift my spirits because some girls had been making fun of the fact that my mom died. Kids are cruel—don’t ever let anyone tell you differently. Anyway…” She waved her hand and pushed some of that unruly hair behind her ears. “He was trying hard to make the weekend something that would take my mind off school. He must have traded work or something because the next day, he drove us hours away—it was the first time we’d ever gone that far—and we ended up going near some mountains. I wish I remembered where, but there was this cabin…the outside looked like a fairy tale with these lights strung up everywhere. It was small, only two twin-sized beds and a wood stove inside, but the river behind it was magical. We spent the entire weekend fishing and hiking, and at night, he’d act out parts of my favorite Disney movies. We’d eat Pop-Tarts in the morning, and he let me have as many smores as I wanted.”

I laughed softly, imagining a smaller version of Mallory smiling up at the night sky, those lights strung up and her dad making her smile. It made my chest ache. My dad had been like that too. He was good to us kids, always making memories that would haunt us for all of time.

“So, are you and your dad still close like that? He sounds pretty cool.” I flicked the turn signal and stopped at a red light. We were almost to my mom’s, and I wanted just a little more time with this girl who was starting to make me feel things I never thought I’d feel.

Her heavy sigh made my gut sink.

“No. He ended up patenting some technology used in mechanic shops all around the world. I don’t fully understand it, but it’s like one of those scanners you plug into your car to figure out what’s wrong…well, my dad created a different version that takes it further, explaining what parts you’ll need and then finding local stores who have the parts in stock. It does other things too, can read machines other than just cars—this thing can read aircraft parts, household appliances, even NASA has started using it. It’s revolutionized the industry…or so they say,” she added wistfully, turning her head toward the retreating town.

My mind was spinning. I knew what she was talking about…my dad had ranted about the new technology that had come out a few years before he passed, saying it had changed everything for anyone trying to save a dollar or two on fixing their car.

“Your dad is Charles Shaw?”

Holy shit.

I knew her dad was rich, a big deal…but I hadn’t connected the dots.

Another sigh left her chest. “Yeah…but he used to be just Charlie, back before he’d made his millions. I guess it’s probably billions now, but I try not to check.”

“So, the stepsister…” I edged because it was starting to come together for me. Taylor and Mallory were night-and-day different. Mallory had work ethic, she wore non-designer clothes, her car was older…and Taylor seemed completely opposite. It was why I hadn’t been eager to fuck her when I read her file about how shallow she was, back when I thoughtshewas her sister.

“Dad met Jackie when I was fifteen. She and Taylor were like tornados in our lives, and I often felt like Cinderella, except Taylor wasn’t always horrible—she had a really messed up childhood. She did try, and through the years, she’s gotten so much better. But…the money changed everything for us. Suddenly Dad and I went from eating McDonald’s on our splurge nights to paying a hundred and fifty dollars a plate in restaurants too glitzy and glamorous for my ripped jeans and Converse. I never grew out of that phase we’d started before he made his money, but Taylor grew with it…she was the easier daughter to show off when investors came to town or when people wanted his family at black-tie events. The older I got, the more I hated that world. Taylor fit within it perfectly, and well…Dad does now too.”

This was…not what I had expected at all.

“That’s really shitty. I’m sorry you lost your pops.” And for whatever reason, I reached over and tugged her hand into mine, squeezing it tight because I’d lost my dad too and I knew how painful that was. Even if hers was alive and well, the version she’d grown up with had died when he made his money. It was when she squeezed back that I knew this wasn’t going to be easy. I was going to have to walk away from Mallory once I got my revenge on Elias, because there was no way she’d give me a shot after I slept with her stepsister. Maybe it made me a prick for wanting to eat my cake and have it too…but fuck.

Chapter Seventeen

I slammedthe truck door shut, peering up at the two-story farmhouse-style home. It was weathered with its faded white paint and chipped splotches along the window panes. Flower boxes hung in front of the three lower windows, but there was nothing but dirt and a few old weeds inside each one.

Gravel crunched under my shoes as I followed Decker toward the house. The silence around us was heavy and it almost felt…like death. Like something here had died and now it was just a mausoleum.

“D!” a loud voice boomed from one of the top windows.

I looked up, but with the screen in place, I couldn’t see anything.

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