Page 58 of The Saviors: Part One
It’s been three days since we’ve seen Sean and Kai. Sean still keeps in contact with me, mostly just to let me know that they’re alive and to check on me. I understand he’s pissed, but it sucks not having him around. Axel is still working through his damage, so he hasn’t contacted either of them. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not.
Ari has been here the whole time, and I’m still digging through the hard drive. We’re biding our time before we start going through the warehouses that I found. They plan to hit them one right after the other. But we still need more leads from that hard drive.
I’m sitting on the patio by the pool to breathe for a minute. Axel has gone from snapping everyone’s head off to saying nothing unless it’s business related.
Ari flops in the chair beside me. “What the hell is going on?”
“What do you mean?”
“Cut the shit, Nolan. Axel has barely said anything, and I haven’t seen Sean or Kai for three days.”
I sigh and run my fingers through my hair. “There was a blow up a few days ago, and they left.”
Ari’s eyes widen. “They left?”
“Yes, old man. They left. Do you need to turn your hearing aids up?” Ari growls, and it makes me laugh. Ari is cool as hell to hang around, even if he’s easy to mess with. “It’s been going on since we got here. I’m surprised it took this long. They’re staying with their girl.”
“Wait. Their girl?”
I shrug. “Yep.”
“They’re dating the same girl?” The confused look on his face makes me laugh again.
“Yep, but you want to hear the best part? It’s Chelsea.”
I give him time to register that, and when he does, his mouth drops open. “You’re lying.” I shake my head, and he laughs loudly. “That’s gold. No wonder shit is tense here.”
“I don’t know what to do, Ari. Shit has gotten bad. Really fucking bad. Axel’s too hard headed to admit he was wrong, Sean is rightfully pissed, and Kai doesn’t handle any of this well. Then you throw in Axel being a dick, and it all fell apart.”
Ari sobers and sits back in his chair. “I’m going to tell you what I think just from running my crew. We deal with a lot of different personalities. I want to kill Tyler and his smart mouth daily, but at the end of the day, this isn’t just a team. It’s a family. The only real families some of us have ever had. Axel needs to realize that himself.”
“He used to, didn’t he?”
Ari nods. “He’s let his own personal problems get in the way of that. Axel needs a wake up call. I trust him with my life, or I wouldn’t have joined up. But maybe Kai and Sean leaving is what he needs. When he needs them for something, and they aren’t there, it will hit him like a ton of bricks.”
“You sound like you’re speaking from experience.”
“Keon left once because I was being a stubborn asshole. Then I had to run a job and needed a specific vehicle. That’s when I realized I had no idea how to get it. I had to beg him to come back. It was more than what he could do for the crew. It was his presence that I needed. Maybe Kai and Sean need a reminder that they are needed and not just being used. Do you think the girl convinced them to leave?”
I shake my head. “Not a chance from what I’ve learned from Cole.” He’s actually opened up a lot more about her since shit hit the fan. “It’s probably eating her alive that she might even be a part of the reason.”
“Are you sure you’re okay staying here? There’s a lot less drama at my place.”
“I’m fine, Ari. I like it here.”
“This has nothing to do with your little crush on Axel?”
“I don’t have a crush on Axel, asshole.”
“Tell that to your red cheeks,” Ari laughs.
I fully regret playing that drinking game with Ari, Tyler, and Keon. I should have known better since I’m a lightweight. I admitted that I thought Axel was sexy, and they haven’t let me live it down. Not making fun of me because Keon also admitted that he was sexy. More in a way that makes me hyper aware every time Axel is around. Ari, his crew, and Sean know that I’m bisexual. Axel doesn’t.
When he jumped out of bed the other day naked, I almost fucking fainted. In my panic, I yelled at him to put on pants after I stared for an inappropriate amount of time. According to Sean, my crush will go unreciprocated, so I’ve kept that shit on lockdown because I don’t want to make things awkward around the house.
“Ari. Nolan. In the house.” We both look up at the sound of Axel’s voice just as he’s walking back inside.
“Sir, yes, sir,” Ari grumbles, jumping to his feet.
