“Doesn’t look like nobody. Looks like Willa Mack. What the hell are you doing with that girl? Doesn’t she hate your ass after what you did to her?”
“Forget about her. I wanna know what the hell your deal is? What the fuck is going on with you, Zed?”
Looking over my shoulder, he completely ignores me. “She’s trouble, man.”
“Willa and trouble don’t even belong in the same sentence.”
“I bet she’s just as screwed up as her old man. Fucking entitled prick. He thinks that just because he’s a pastor we all have to bow to him.” He looks right through me as he talks. A dead stare on Willa.
Snapping my fingers in his face, I break his gaze. “I said forget about her.”
“Wanna make another bet?” he smirks.
“Fuck no, I don’t wanna make another bet.” I don’t even have to think twice about that one. “The last time I did, you assholes blasted my win all over the damn town. I wouldn’t trust you with my dog, and he died three years ago.”
A sinister smirk dons his face. “Actually, it was only me. I just let Tommy and Talon take some of the credit, or blame rather.” Taking a step forward, his smile grows. “It’ll be a good one.”
“What the hell do you want, Zed?”
“I’ll tell you where Josh’s body is right now if you let me have a little taste of your girlfriend.”
“She’s not my girlfriend.” I grit through my teeth.
“Madison isn’t gonna be happy about this. You running around with Willa is sure to piss her off. So, just give Willa to me and we can prevent Madison from tearing her to shreds.”
“You really are delusional, aren’t you?”
“What? You don’t think she’d want me? Come on, if she let you take her v-card, surely she’ll give me seconds.”
All the blood rushes to my head as my hands plant firmly against his chest and I shove him backwards. “Stay the fuck away from her.”
Regaining his balance, he steps up to me. Nose to nose. “Or what?” When I don’t respond, he pushes further. “Or what, Titan? You’ll kill me? You don’t have it in you?” My fists ball at my side and I bite down as I try to gain some self-control. “You kill the innocent, not the guilty.”
I’m not even sure when he went down. All I know is my fists continue to fly through the air, one punch after another, as blood falls freely from my white knuckles. Zed’s arms cover his face as he attempts to block me, but the punches keep landing.
“He fell. I didn’t fucking kill him.” I scream loudly, but all I can hear is the sound of my knuckles meeting his body. I’m not sure where they land, but the numbness in my hands tells me that I’m making contact. My heart beats violently in my chest as the words he said replay in my mind. You kill the innocent, not the guilty. “I didn’t kill him. He fell in the pool.” I repeat again. “He should have been more careful.” I shout so loudly that the words echo through my own ears and vibrate in my chest.
Gentle hands wrap around me and that calming voice that I always want to ruffle up rings through the deafening screams inside my head. “Stop, Lars. He’s not worth it.” She repeats herself. “He’s not worth it.” She’s so tranquil and unaffected. But this time, I welcome her calm. Getting to my feet, I turn and look at her blank expression. So unaffected by my outburst and the blood that drips from my fingers. She takes my hand in hers and leads me back to the car. I don’t even look back as Zed lies there on the cold ground—speechless, motionless.
Willa leads me over to the passenger side of my car and before I even realize what’s going on, she opens the door. I snap out of the trance I was in and look at her. “What are you doing?”
“I’ll drive. You’re too worked up right now.”
“No, I’m fine.” I push past her, but she grabs me by the forearm. My eyes skate down to where her fingers tangle around the bare skin of my arm, then back up to her eyes. They widen as they stare back at me and her grip on me releases abruptly.
“I’m...I’m sorry.” Her body twists around and she slides in the passenger seat, suddenly looking fearful and scared.
“It’s ok.” I press my palms to the door frame and my head droops forward, so I can see her face. Though she’s not looking at me. She’s watching Zed as he climbs to his feet and dusts himself off. “You really wanna drive?”
“He’s coming.” She grabs the seatbelt and fastens it. “Get in. Hurry. He’s coming.” She huffs in a panic.
Slouching down, I level with her. “Don’t be scared. I’d never let Zed hurt you.”
A surrealness washes over her and her head turns slowly. “You mean that?”
“Absolutely.” I stand back up and shut the door.
She keeps a watchful eye on Zed, who is standing about twenty feet in front of the car. He looks zombified and unnerved, but we both know this isn’t finished. I came here for a reason. Rounding the car, I make my way back over to him. “You ready to talk about what we came here for?”
“You cut my fucking head,” he says in a monotone voice.
“You’re lucky I didn’t cut your throat.”
“You like her, don’t you?” he chuckles. “Lars Titan, falling for the pastor’s daughter. I was curious how far my words would carry before you reacted, and now I know. You like her.”
“I’m not falling for her. She just needs my help. Now, enough about Willa. What do you want?”
“It’s simple really. I want my revenge.”
“It’s not your turn.”
“Then make it my turn. Unless you want cops showing up at all your houses and a body hidden in one of your basements, you’ll make it happen.”
If that’s all he wants, we can make it
