“You’re a cow, Conor,” Taryn growls, taking one of Future’s toys out of Devlin’s hand and throwing it at her cousin.
Lana stares horrified until Topanga explains, “This is how they are when Bronco isn’t around to play referee. Fun, huh?”
I catch Anders’s gaze and frown hard. He acts so passively sometimes, even though he’s bigger than everyone. I know these people have demon guns and can kill him, but he has those weapons, too.
“This is my house,” he says, frowning right at Taryn. “I earned it fair and square. These are my people. I don’t come to your house and fuck with your people. Now, if you want to keep acting this way, we’ll be at Bambi’s place tomorrow. I’ll take a shit on the living room floor, and Future can piss in the corner. Real caveman behavior. Or you can all calm the fuck down.”
Though the younger women shrink under his angry gaze, Barbie and Bambi don’t even notice him. They're too busy shoving each other to care what anyone else is doing.
I walk past the women and take Anders’s hand. “Can I show you?”
When he doesn’t want to walk with me, I accept how Anders hides in the background. Confronting these women isn’t what he’d normally do. The only reason he spoke up was for me. Now, I want to calm him.
We stand in the grassy area, feet away from where Mama and Future sit. I don’t know where Dove is hiding, but she’s probably afraid to walk past the crazy Woodlands women.
“Topanga is talking about an atrium and a chicken coop and a plaything for Future,” I say, and Anders looks horrified. “I don’t know what most of that would even mean in a yard, but I don’t need any of them. We can just plant carrots, and Future will play in the grass. Your house doesn’t need to change.”
Shaking off his initial disgust, Anders frowns. “I don’t care about the backyard.”
“But this is where we first put your penis-cock in my pussy-vagina. It’s special.”
His frown softens before shifting into a smile. When his large hand cups my face, I lean into the palm. “I know these people are annoying.”
“Topanga and Lana are nice. Barbie voted on our side. I do not like that little boy, though,” I say, and Anders glances back at the devil child.
“No one does. But that’s how it works in the Woodlands. People at the top, the leadership people, get to be obnoxious assholes. People like us have to fight for everything just to stay even.”
Nodding, I realize there’s as much political stuff happening in the Woodlands as at the Village. Mama once said she wouldn’t kiss the ring of the new man in charge. Perry wanted to be nice to John Marks. He figured we had nothing to lose by pretending to like the dumb-dumb who smelled like beets and couldn’t poop.
I hadn’t wanted to pretend, though. Mama and I believed we shouldn’t change from how we were at the Collective. But that thinking could have gotten us killed.
No longer at the Collective or the Village, I’ll need to learn the rules to survive in Anders’s world.
ANDERS
When Pixie mentions us in the hot tub last night, life doesn’t seem so ugly. Then. I see her little brother crawling in the grassy yard and his mother running her fingers over the leaves of a tree at the back fence. This moment feels real comfortable despite the arguing women behind us. I even find myself searching the sea of faces for Dove. My people should all be together. Yeah, I like having a family of my own.
But there’s no denying how quickly life can get ugly.
That’s why I’m on edge over leaving my people. Even with the house locked down and located in a gated community. And I’ll be at a meeting only blocks away. They should be safe. But nothing feels right now that I know members of the Killing Joes Motorcycle Club are in Elko.
On the ride to Bronco’s house, I imagine what those men would do to Pixie and her family. Knowing Gak, he’d slit Fairuza’s throat right off the bat. Take out the strongest, oldest member of the group. Let the rest know they’re fucked.
Pixie would fight them, but her little fists and slight build would be no match for men quick to violence. They’d break her body before fucking it. Dove seems submissive. They’d hurt her, anyway. As soon as Future cried, they’d kill the boy. I know those men. They feel no pity for anyone. They’ll crush that boy’s skull without a second thought.
And they’re in Elko because of me! I should have taken out the entire club before coming to this town. Instead, I found the easy ones and used their heads to barter my way into a new club. I should have hunted down each man and ended the Killing Joes completely.
Oh, who am I fucking kidding? I was too wasted to track down anyone. The only reason I killed the five I did was that they were nearby. If I had to do detective work while high, I’d still be looking for the assholes.
Yet, I feel guilty. After today’s visitors get the fuck out but before I leave my house, I explain to Pixie and Fairuza how dangerous men are hiding in Elko. They’re here to help John Marks.
“Do not let anyone in this house while I’m gone. There is a panic room,” I say before showing them the hidden space in the basement. “Keep the house locked up. If someone tries to bust their way inside, you hide in this room and hit this red button. Then you do not open that door for anyone you haven’t met. Meaning, only Conor, Bronco, and Lowell. No one else, okay?”
Pixie stares at me with wide eyes, terrified by my tone and the idea of her family in danger. In many ways, she’s an adult, ready to
