Page 9 of Betraying Bexley

Chapter 2

Ale strode the halls of Princess Anne High school in search of room 317—Bronx’s chemistry class. When Asher told them, they had to up the timeline and jump in with both feet, she’d taken his words literally and had gotten into trouble the first day of school. Keeping his feelings separate from the mission was hard. He saw firsthand what the students were capable of when they wanted to hurt someone, namely Bex, however, he also couldn’t showhowit affected him either.

It blurred the line between caring and doing his job. Because, yes, putting the three bitches in their place would feel amazing and help Bex, but it would also mean getting closer to their target. Yes, in the end, that was the main goal, getting closer to Bex so they could find where her father could be or where he might go, especially after murdering Iliana's parents, however, it put Bex at risk too. Something he wasn't comfortable doing.

Unfortunately, the balanced scales were slowly beginning to tip and not in any of their favor, he feared. If he committed himself a hundred percent to the mission, there was a chance it could end up getting not only himself killed, but Bex too and maybe their team. He had to come up with a plan that not only protected them but their target. Which also meant, dealing with Bronx.

When he received the text message at lunch from Noah, he wanted to laugh with Bronx and high-five her while simultaneously yell at her too. The girl was a twisted ball of energy. She had a great head on her shoulders and wanted to help, but something told Alé, she’d been a little too eager to find her place within the team. On the other hand, they were down a member with Iliana gone and they needed to make the connection again. It was a delicate balance. Add in the fact she was also the youngest, at seventeen, she most represented what a normal high school kid should be like. Him? He dropped out at fifteen and only obtained his GED with Jamie a couple of years ago. So, he hadn’t had the same experiences as some did.

Alé glanced up at the classroom numbers and came to a stop in front of the room he needed. He popped open the door and found the teacher in the middle of an explanation that sounded like an alien language to him. Alé stepped inside and cleared his throat, garnering the teacher’s attention.

“Excuse me, I don’t mean to interrupt, but I need Bronx Lewis please.” He motioned to his teammate sitting three tables away from where he stood.

The teacher nodded. “Bronx, you may go.”

She shoved her books back into her bag then joined Alé. The confusion on her face surprised him. How could she not realize her actions put them on several different radars today. Not that all of it was bad. They had to still take it easy. Integrate into Bex’s life seamlessly, not break the door down and cause a scene.

Once they were outside, heading for the guidance office where Noah was supposed to meet them, he glanced at Bronx. If she was upset or mad, she didn’t show it. From the message he received, Alé knew Bronx had been disciplined by the principal, so maybe it took some of the fire out of her belly.

“This is about earlier, isn’t it?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he answered. “Noah wants to talk to you.”

“Figured as much. Look, between you and me, those girls deserve everything they get and then some.”

He agreed. They did. But they weren’t there to protect Bex from them, they were there to ferret Raul out. “Sometimes less is more.”

She shrugged. “Sometimes less, keeps you stagnant.”

“Touché.”

“Plus, I found out more in two hours than you have in the couple of weeks you’ve all been here.” Her smug smile irritated Alé. He shouldn’t be upset with her, he should be grateful, yet he couldn’t pin down why it affected him so.

“Oh? What did you find out?”

“She’s not eating for one. Two, she likes Shakespeare. Three she has a horrible speech impediment no one has ever taken care of and four, if I didn’t know any better, I don’t think her leg works properly. Though, I’d never say it to her face.”

Alé stared at her, dumbfounded by the information she’d gathered in less than a day. “Anything on her father?”

Bronx shook her head. “Nothing, other than, she had ‘work,’ this afternoon.”

“Dry cleaners on Marable and 7th. We know. She goes three days a week.” They stopped outside the guidance office. “Noah is here, prepare yourself.”

“Meh.” Bronx shrugged. “I have my ammo at the ready. I’ve got this.”

Somehow, Alé didn’t think anyone was ever prepared when it came to a meeting with Noah or Asher, especially when they were pissed. “Your funeral.”

They stepped inside the room. Alé locked the door behind them so they wouldn't be disturbed. He also knew they couldn't raise their voices or else someone might eavesdrop when they shouldn't be. Noah sat at the small table. His hands were folded in front of him, his knuckles white from clenching his fingers together. He tracked them like a predator tracked their prey, waiting for them to sit, so he could pounce. It was unnerving, to say the least.

Bronx opened her mouth to speak as she sat, but Noah held up his hand, cutting her off. The girl deflated, sitting back in her chair. The small pout of her lips made her appear younger than her age and in any other situation, Alé would have found it cute. Right now, they didn’t have time for ‘cute.’

“What were you thinking, Bronx? You’re supposed to be flying under the radar, not lighting the son of a bitch up on the first day!” Noah snapped. The roughness of his tone had Alé jerking in his chair. “And you, I thought we told you to explain the situation to your new team member, so the transition was seamless, what the fuck happened?”

Alé held his hands up. "We did. We went over the protocols and how we were supposed to approach this situation with Bex, Bronx went in with both feet like Asher wanted."

“She can speak for herself,” Bronx said, waving at both Alé and Noah. “If you have questions about my actions, direct them at me and me alone. He had nothing to do with it.”

“Fine,” Noah replied locking his intense gaze on her. “What the fuck were you thinking?”

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