Page 112 of Awry
Presh spits into the barrel a few more times.Then, still clinging to the edge of it, she straightens enough to peer at me over her shoulder through watery eyes.“Don’t be mad?”
She and Kris have taken some sort of essence enhancer.I can feel the unnatural energy sparking off them, discordant with their own.The male is either sober or has stuck to alcohol.
Kris steps away from Presh, tucking herself slightly behind the male shifter.Her wide-eyed gaze flicks between him and me.His shoulders are tense, hands fisted at his sides.
“You look familiar,” I say, not looking at him as I run a hand down Presh’s back.
Presh sucks in a deep breath and then gags, likely getting a hit off the contents of the barrel.She steps back, closer to me, shuddering in relief as I run my hand down her spine a second time.“Andy is Rought’s half-brother,” she says.“Same mom.”
“DeVille,” he corrects.
Presh ignores him, her gaze on me.“That’s Kris.She’s Doc Z’s kid sister.All three of us are going to be in shit if our elders find us here.”
I just hum under my breath and do a third pass down Presh’s back.The false tenor to her essence eases under my touch.I’m not a healer, but I can manipulate essence.
“Oh,” she sighs, swaying into me.“That’s nice.I thought … maybe … I thought we could hang at your place tonight?If you aren’t too mad?”
“I told you I can drive,” DeVille snaps.
“And take us where?”Presh finally deigns to address DeVille.“You live with your parents.”
“I have access to Rought’s place.”
She snorts.“Where Rought always is, glued to his computers.”
“Yeah, and he’s currently seriously distracted.Not that anyone will tell me why.”He narrows his eyes on Presh, sneer firmly back in place, as if he knows that she has the answers he seeks.
He’s not wrong.Because I suspect that most of Outcast MC is firmly focused on making sure Presh is safe, if not actively seeking retaliation for her kidnapping in the first place.
It’s not really my business.Except for the keeping Presh safe part.Which is apparently why I’m hanging out at the site of an illegal rave in the early-morning hours.
“I’m starving,” I say.“Is there a drive-thru near here?Some place that serves milkshakes?”
Presh presses a hand to her stomach at the mention of food, but then seems fairly perky when she says, “Dairy Queen is still open, isn’t it?”
“Ice cream?”DeVille sneers under his breath.“Seriously?Gross.”
Kris slips her hand into DeVille’s, and he frowns down at her as if he’s just noticed her presence.“You can drive me home, DeVille.We can sneak into my bedroom from the backyard window.”
He grunts noncommittally, training his attention on Presh again.“They do onion rings at that location, don’t they?I’ll follow you in my ’Stang.”
“Whatever,” Presh says, curling her hand around my arm.“I didn’t ask for a babysitter.”
“And I didn’t want you ruining my chances of getting laid when you wandered into a fucking illegal rave without a bodyguard.”
“What do you know about it?”Presh sniffs offishly.
He grunts, seriously pissed.“I know you aren’t to set foot anywhere without a senior club member with you at all times.I know you are a fucking attention-seeking brat —”
“Nobody asked you!”Presh shouts.Then she sways on her feet and holds her stomach.“You wanna get fucked so bad?”She gestures sharply toward the building’s badly lit exterior.“Go ahead!”
“Um …” Kris attempts to interject.She’s transferred her hold to DeVille’s forearm because he’s clenching his fists.Again.“Presh and I just wanted to dance.We weren’t following you or anything.”
Presh narrows her eyes on Kris.“Why would we have followed him?When you snuck into my room, you said —”
Kris interrupts Presh in a rush.“You don’t have to go back in, DeVille.Like I said, you can come —”
With his sneer still firmly in place, DeVille keeps his attention trained on Presh.“Maybe I’ll make a few calls.”
