Page 22 of Dark Things
She’s all but screaming at this point, and if someone doesn’t come get her, she’s going to be lying flat on her back with a reason to get another nose job. And they aren’t fun, trust me.
But before I can start screaming back and making a scene, I feel Cat at my back. I can almost sense the anger wafting off of her.
“Hey Bloody Mary, why don’t you go give a venerealdisease to someone else. Reb doesn’t need your skank ass clogging up all the fresh air.”
I see Mary’s arm draw back getting ready to hit Cat and I lose it. I catch her arm, twisting it behind her back and lifting it so that she’s standing on her tiptoes. My other hand fists in her hair as I contort her back into me. She can’t move unless she wants to break her arm.
“Cat asked you to leave. I suggest you do that before I show all the people in these stands how tough you really are. You do not want to fucking test me.”
I scuff before shoving her toward the railing separating us from the field. Everyone is looking at us; I just hope no one is filming. Stan isn’t going to like it if this gets back to him.
Mary recovers, cradling her arm to her chest. “You’re so fucking dead. Let’s see how the rest of the team feels about a fucking dirty whore being around them.”
She spins on her spiked heels before sauntering down the aisle. I turn to Cat and see her eyes are wide, mouth agape. I try to judge where she’s at. Is she scared of me now?
“That was…” her voice trails off before picking up again. “Fucking amazing! Do you know how long I’ve wanted to put that twatwaffle in her place. She’s such a fucking bitch.”
Cat hands me my hotdog and we both sit for a moment. “What did she mean by the rest of the team?”
Cat swallows and takes a sip of her beer before glancing over to me with a grimace. “Mary’s on the equestrian team. And while a whole lot of people don’t like her, they don’t go against her, either. Her parents sponsor a lot of our competitions. They’re something like horse royalty in the circuit.”
“People are actually worried about that shit? They want her to like them?”
Even before I went to juvie, I never worried about where people came from. Sure we had enough money to buy most of the properties in Manhattan, but I never used my money as a source of power, and I never hid behind my parents.
“Oh yeah. Especially the scholarship kids. If you go to Skyton for equestrian sports, Mary is the one to stay away from if you don’t want trouble.”
Some of the excitement has worn away from Cat’s face. I don’t know why I feel like I need to assure her, but she needs to know.
“Cat, you’re Haunt’s twin. Haunt is extremely important to me, so by extension you are, too. Nothing is ever going to hurt you, especially not some fucking prissy princess from a gilded stable.”
Wetness pools in her eyes. It makes my inside squirmy, but I keep the thoughts from my face. I don’t have people who count on me to keep them safe except for Haunt. But I could never stand by and let someone hurt his twin. I know what family means to him. And he knows how much siblings mean to me.
“Thanks.” she says, clearing her throat. “I've never really had anyone have my back like that. Well, other than Haunt.”
I stare at her for a bit before turning back to the field. They guys are all pouring out of the tunnel again. I grasp her hand in mine and give it a little squeeze before letting go and taking another bite of my hotdog again.
“You have us both now. Don’t worry about assholes like that again.”
We settle back and watch the rest of the game. I’m wondering now if what Haunt said is true. Maybe we need to let Cat in a little more. Maybe it isn’t me who needs other people; maybe it’s her. And when I think about how I was before I had Haunt, it makes me think that she could be the same.
9
Haunt
After the win this afternoon, I’m floating on the best kind of high. Reb and I have to work tonight, but it was awesome to just be normal for a little while. Cat took us to her favorite burger place, and we laughed like we’ve all been together for years.
I knew Reb and Cat would get along, and now seeing them after their time together, it proves my theory. They need each other. Reb always has me, but it would be nice for her to have others to rely on, too. She’s such a multi-faceted person. She has parts of herself that need to shine. My part is all the darkness inside of her, the ones that would make lesser men run screaming, but the softer side needs help coming through. Cat could be that for her.
Now we’re standing next to Black Caviar’s trailer in the middle of the night. It’s dark in the corner of thetrack, but we need to move him before someone notices him gone. There’s a guard and a few security guys after hours, but Stan pays them enough to look the other way. Still doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be careful.
“You ready?” I ask, picking up the last of the bags and throwing them in the back of the pick-up.
“Yeah, let’s get this over with. Let’s hope I don’t end up in the ICU later,” she growls, walking over to the passenger side.
I grab onto her waist and kiss her head before depositing her into the seat. Could she have gotten in by herself, yes. Will I take any opportunity to hold her, also yes.
“I’m not a damn baby. I can jump into the truck, and also, who the fuck put these big ass tires on here? It’s not like we’re going to a monster truck rally,” she complains while I walk over to slide into the driver’s seat.
