The corner of his mouth pulls up into a smile. One that’s not part of the play and one that I won’t forget anytime soon. “You’re welcome.”
It’s safe to say that Lars will not be performing as Beast. It’s also safe to say that I no longer want this part without him.
“Well, that was a disaster.” Lars chuckles as he walks hurriedly off the stage. I follow behind him, but he doesn’t join the class. Instead, we go behind the curtain to the sound room.
“I hope you weren’t expecting the part because you most definitely did not get it.” There’s no point in pretending. I’m pretty sure he didn’t want it anyway. “Now tell me the truth, why’d you do it?”
His shoulder shrugs. “I wanted you to get another chance. Stay fresh in Mrs. Rhys’ mind since your original audition was yesterday.”
“And you just assumed that I’d do it if you did?” Of course, he did. He knows exactly what to do and say to get me to do what he wants.
“I had high hopes. Let’s just leave it at that. But, even though I bombed it, you still rocked it. So, you’re welcome,” he says, slyly.
“Are you sure this has nothing to do with Madison? Seems like you two have a little quarrel going on.”
“It’s no secret that I can’t stand the girl. But no. I did this for you, Willa.” His butt drops down on the leather recliner that is practically molded to fit his body. He’s always in it. Always such a slacker. I’m beginning to think he’s more than that, though. More than just a rebel—he’s got a heart—a rebel heart.
“While we have a minute to ourselves. I really think we should finish our conversation from yesterday. You said to sleep on my plans, and I did. I’m still planning on leaving Redwood.”
His eyes widen and his body shoots up. “You can’t leave.”
Tilting my head, I cock a brow. “Why not?”
“Because you’re needed here.” He says the words so casually that he expects me to just understand what they mean.
“I’m not needed anywhere. Let alone in Redwood.”
“You’d be surprised.” His fingers lock behind his head and his eyes close. “Wake me up when class is over.”
Without digging further into this, I just chalk it up to Lars being Lars. He speaks in riddles and leaves every conversation unfinished. He will talk to me and I will get that money. One small act of kindness doesn’t make up for the hell he’s put me through. I refuse to let my heart go there. I refuse to let him hurt me again.
10
“You actually got on stage and acted out a scene.” Tommy laughs, again.
“I was helping someone out while doing everything I could to stop Madison from getting the part.”
“Talon filled me in on that mess. So, your way of stopping Madison is by making sure she doesn’t get a role in a high school play. Did it work? Can we move on to the next person?” He spews sarcasm and I wanna slap him.
“Shut the hell up. No, we can’t move on. Have you heard any talk around school about her? Anything I can use against her?”
“Nope. I try not to pay attention to the rumor mill. Got my own shit to deal with.”
“I need you to keep an eye on her. Something tells me that Madison has a lot of secrets up her sleeve. We need anything we can work with.”
His chin drops to his chest with annoyance. “Seriously, man? Your plan is to just dig something up on her and threaten her?”
“Her and Zed are the main problems in my life right now. Doesn’t matter the extent of my plan, what matters is that the problem is eliminated. I could just kill her. Does that sound easier?”
Shaking his head, he agrees with me. “Fine. I’ll see what I can find out.”
“Ya know. I’ve been a puppet to both you and Talon, and now Zed, too. My time is coming and you fuckers better be ready to bend over backwards for me.”
I hold up my fist to him. “You got it, man.”
If I can get Madison away from me, that’s one less thing I have to worry about.
Her joining class and expecting us to take the lead roles together was a bit too much. I also don’t think she was expecting me to suck so badly. In her dreams, she was Belle and I was her Beast.
I didn’t want the part. Wouldn’t even accept it if it was offered. I did it partly because I did, in fact, want to stick it to Madison. She’s a royal bitch and knew damn well that Willa was in the lead for that role. She notices that Willa has been getting a fraction of my time and she’s ready to pounce. All the more reason to keep my distance from my Bible hugging baby mama.
Talon walks into the living room, stuffing his phone in his pocket. “Zed’s coming tonight.”
Tommy looks stunned. “Seriously? How the hell did you pull that off.”
“Told him that we have his back. The Rebels are reuniting whether we like it or not. He’s done some fucked-up shit, but if we want this nightmare to end, we have to pretend we’ve moved on from what he did.”
“I’m not so sure I can do that.” I state the obvious. “I’m not sure any of us can ever really move on from what the fucker did to us and I don’t know how the hell you are evening willing to pretend after what he did to Marni.”
“Look. We all know Zed is fucked-up. Shit, we’re all fucked-up. But he’s holding our future in the palm of his hand and he’s ready to squeeze. We have to try something. Maybe once he gets his revenge on whoever it is he’s after, he’ll have a fresh start.”
“Is that what you got? A fresh start?” I ask. It was only a month ago that Talon killed
