“What the hell’s the matter with you?” Ethan screamed at him from the driver seat. His hands were shaking as he started the car.
Caleb was doubled over in the back seat, trying to calm his giggles. J.R. rolled down the window as Ethan screeched out of the gravel parking lot; he needed fresh air to cease the bile rising in his throat.
“Oh, lighten up, Deadman,” Caleb chuckled. “Nothing but a little excitement.”
“You crossed the line,” J.R. said, trying to remain calm. His fingers were still trembling and he was embarrassed to show his cowardice to his fearless friend.
“Relax, quarterback. No one got hurt.” Caleb’s laughter turned bitter when he realized he was alone in the fun. “I promised you a good time and I delivered.” He leaned forward and shook J.R. by the shoulders. “Can’t say you won’t forget this night, right?”
Neither Ethan nor J.R. could answer.
Ethan hit the pedal. He just wanted to get home. Fuck staying at J.R.’s tonight, he wanted away from Caleb.
“Someone’s in a hurry,” Caleb commented, the chuckle back in his voice as he flung against the side of the car with the sharp turn on the dark corner. They were heading back to Timber Falls, back to their own territory, and Ethan couldn’t get there fast enough.
It was after one in the morning and the roads were desolate. As they reached their town, Ethan stepped on the gas, running red lights and flying through stop signs. J.R. kept his mouth shut while Caleb’s hysterical laughter was back in full throttle. Ethan thought if he didn’t get Caleb out of his car soon, Ethan would jump out and hit him. He was so distracted by this thinking that he missed the headlight glare pulling out of the vacant grocery lot until the red and blue lights started swirling and screaming at him.
“Shit,” J.R. cursed. “Shit, shit, shit.”
Ethan automatically slammed on his brakes. He knew he was screwed. He pulled into the next lot and parked, the chief’s car right behind him.
“It’s Tourney,” Caleb said in a disgusted tone. “He’s a puss, we’ll be fine.”
“Do us all a favor, Weston, and shut the fuck up,” Ethan snapped. He watched from his rearview mirror as the chief stepped out of his car and walked his way. The chief knew who’d he pulled over; That’s the thing about a small town—the chief knew everyone’s cars.
Ethan rolled down the window as the chief leaned down, looking worn and tired like he’d just been awakened. What the boys didn’t know was that that wasn’t far from the truth. Rex wasn’t usually out prowling the streets at this hour, but he’d been called in by an officer who suspected some unusual activity behind the grocery outlet. Turned out to be a false alarm.
“Ethan Young,” he greeted curtly. He could smell the booze reeking off of them. He looked to J.R. Hudson whose head was down, eyes glued on his lap, and to Caleb Weston, who sat back with a superior grin and his arms crossed over his chest. “I need you out of the car.”
Ethan’s eyes shot up to him. “What? What for?”
“I think you know exactly what for, all of you. Now.”
J.R. was cursing under his breath again while Caleb muttered something about this being bullshit and an inconvenience. But still, they stumbled out, shutting the doors behind them and lining up in a row, leaning against the car.
“How much have you all had to drink tonight?” the chief asked, studying each of them and knowing the clear answer was a hell of a lot more than they could handle.
“Who says we’ve been drinking?” Caleb scoffed.
Rex took two steps toward the towering football player. “I’d be happy to give you a breathalyzer test. However, I will warn you that if that number comes back at what I think it could be, things could get a lot harder for you.”
Rex turned back to Ethan. He could see the way the boy trembled, and it pleased him. He needed a good scare, they all did. “What the hell were you thinking getting behind the wheel tonight?” he scolded. “Do you know the ramifications of your actions could be death, jail time, and loss of a football career?”
Ethan closed his eyes as J.R. dropped to his knees. It took the chief by surprise. “Please, please don’t write us up. If I get anything on my record it’s over. Everything I’ve ever worked for is gone.” He was blubbering now, the night taking over his emotions. “I swear it, we will never do it again,” he continued. His knees dug into the pavement, but his body was numb. He clasped his hands in prayer as he begged to the chief. “We will stay out of trouble, I swear.”
The chief looked down at the sobbing quarterback. He knew he had more than just a few rebel teens on his hands. He had the whole town’s reputation. If he followed protocol, he would be shunned and shamed as the man who had taken away the promising career of the mayor’s son.
Maybe just a good scare was all they needed.
“Get in my car,” he commanded, walking away from them. “I’ll drive you home.”
Ethan lent J.R. a hand as he quickly got up, wiping the snot from his nose. Caleb turned his back and walked to the chief’s car without a word. They slid into the back seat as J.R. directed the chief to take them back to his place. Ethan would be stuck with them for the rest of the night.
“I’ll have a word with the Mayor first,” the chief said through the silence of the dark car as he drove. “Then I’ll speak with the Youngs and Ms. Weston tomorrow.”
Ethan moaned. He had hoped to get off the hook completely.
“That should be pretty easy.” Caleb met the chief’s eye in the rearview mirror. “A little foreplay talk with my mom?” Rex’s eyes narrowed. “Oh, did you not know I knew you came to my house when I’m not there? I didn’t know you two wanted it to be a secret.”
“What are you talking about, Caleb?” Ethan asked, squeezed between the two football players.
Caleb kept his eyes on the chief, who had turned his attention back to the road. He wasn’t going to let Caleb Weston, a nineteen-year-old kid, intimidate him.
“Nothing.” Caleb smiled.
Fortunately for all, it was a short drive to the Mayor’s house. Rex wordlessly stepped from his car and took the long stairway up to the grand entrance of where J.R. called home. The boys watched from the back seat as he rang the doorbell and then waited as lights eventually turned on from inside. It was Jameson, dressed in navy pajama pants and a white tee shirt, who first saw the chief. Once he spotted his son in the back of the police car, he ushered Anna back to bed.
“Chief?” He was alert through his drowsiness. Relief swept through him knowing the chief wasn’t there to report his son injured or worse, but still baffled as to why his son was in the back of his car.
“Mayor,” Rex started. “I’m sorry to wake you at this hour.” He motioned to the boys. “I pulled over Ethan Young for driving fifty miles over the speed limit, while also running multiple red lights.”
The mayor, not amused, crossed his arms over his chest. “And what does this have to do with me? And J.R.?”
“They are all drunk.”
The mayor huffed. He looked past the chief to see his son sitting shamefully, afraid to meet his father’s eye.
“Thank you, Chief, for bringing this to my attention, discreetly.” He patted him on the shoulder as if to dismiss him and stepped back into his foyer. “Boys were out celebrating tonight. Send them in and I’ll take care of it from here.”
“With all respect, sir,” the chief continued, baffled by the mayor’s response. “This is very serious. I should arrest Ethan Young, and have J.R. and Caleb written up for drinking as minors. The significance of what could have happened if I hadn’t stopped them. What if someone else was on the road? I hope you take this into consideration when you apply reprimands and punish—”
The mayor spun on his heels. “I said thank you, Chief. Now, if you would please leave it to me on how to handle my son. You did your job, and I will do mine.”
Rex watched as Jameson stomped his way back up the stairs to his bedroom before opening the back passeng
er door to let the three boys out. Maybe it was guilt from not doing his job correctly, or the way the mayor had belittled him, or maybe it was the smirk on Caleb Weston’s face as he drove away that made him regret not throwing their asses in a jail cell. But who was he kidding? If anything happened to those boys, the town would only point one finger, and it would be at him.
Fourth day gone
The halls buzzed with a low hum of speculation and gossip at Timber Falls High. Heads together, whispers in ears, tears on shoulders. It was a new air among them. Who were they without their leaders?
Rex pressed between them, walking the hall after a visit with the coach and principal. They didn’t stop their chatter in his presence. Instead, they pretended that he didn’t exist. He heard murmurs of runaways, Mexico and Canada, and what about Friday night’s football game? They would be back for that, wouldn’t they? Practice resumed last night, but with the last game of the season set for Friday night, the idea of going on without their star players seemed unfathomable. There was anger in the halls, as some accused them of running away, all for losing a game. Weakness, cowardice, they said, even selfishness.
Rex let all of these comments roll off of him. They did him no good. He spotted Grace and Avery leaning against the lockers, looking glum and uncharacteristically dull. He caught Grace’s eyes, red-rimmed and glossy. He had planned to keep walking, but she waved him over.
“Chief,” Grace cried out. She looked hopeful as he approached. “Is there anything new?”
“Sorry, Grace, I wish I could tell you there was.”
Avery looked up then, and he was not surprised to see her eyes glazed over in tears, but her skin was ashen and pale. She looked ill, and by the way she gripped at her stomach, he thought he was pretty spot on. She shook her head and pushed past him, leaving him and Grace watching her rush to the bathroom.
“She okay?” he asked.
Grace shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know.”
He eyed J.R.’s long-time girlfriend, wondering what must be going on in her head at a time like this. “How are you holding up, Grace?”
She turned her gaze to him. “It doesn’t feel right being at school. Like, I hate not being out there looking for them too, but my dad said I couldn’t skip anymore.”
She ran a hand through her long dark curls, sweeping them over one shoulder. “My mind is going crazy thinking about where J.R. could be. Do you know that this is the longest we’ve ever gone without speaking, like ever?” Her lip quivered, but she took in a shaky breath to keep from crying. “I keep thinking back to the last time I talked to him, and if I said something that would make him, you know… Like if this was his way of leaving me.”
Rex rested a hand on his shoulder. He felt sorry for her, he really did. She lived blindly in her own world. “No, Grace. I don’t think this was J.R. breaking up with you.”
“You don’t know.” She used the sleeve of her sweater to wipe at the tears that slipped down her cheek.
He couldn’t contest that. He looked up from her to see his daughter slip between the crowd of students. Her head was down, staring at the ground. Hannah and Olivia were by her side, speaking urgently to each other. He wished he could walk over and give her a hug, but he wouldn’t dare.
“Did you talk to Lila?” Grace’s voice broke through his thoughts. She must have seen him watching her.
The question surprised him, and then he remembered their conversations at the Hudson house.
“You know, about her and Ethan. Does she know anything?” She sounded so hopeful. “You know, maybe he told her where they were going or something.”
“She hadn’t spoken to him in a while.”
“Oh, okay.” She sounded defeated. The buzz of the class bell rang through the hall and students picked up their speed as not to be late for class. “Well, I guess I have to go,” she said. “Thanks, Chief.”
For what, he wasn’t sure. But he gave her a gentle smile and nod. She met up with Avery, who exited the bathroom, and the two of them disappeared among the crowd. He followed behind several feet, walked past the classrooms, and left through the back door.
“Hey, Chief!”
He turned to see two boys—juniors, he recalled—on the wrestling team, hurrying toward him.
“Chase, Jason,” he greeted. Chase Everett was a stocky, tough kid and captain of the wrestling team. Up until last year, the wrestling team had been more or less a joke at Timber Falls, but Chase brought honor and prestige back to the sport and made a pretty decent name for himself. Rumor had it that big league colleges had their eye on him. Jason Sanborn was a product of family heritage in this town, like Rex himself. Rex had known Jason’s parents back when they were all kids together.
“What can I do for you boys?”
They gave each other a hesitant glance before Chase said, “We have some info we thought you’d like.”
Rex raised a brow. “Is that so?” He could feel their resistance and feared he would lose them if he didn’t act fast. “Why don’t we head to the office, or would you prefer to come down to the station with me?”
Jason shook his head wildly. “No, we don’t want anyone to know we’re talking. If it got back to them…”
The repercussions of being a narc. Rex had seen that enough times to know.
“Can we just talk here, like behind the building or something?” Chase said.
“Of course.” Rex led them down an alley between class buildings. The day was cool but clear. They had a break from the rain, but not the crisp wind. Rex was bundled in a jacket while the boys, typical teens, wore athletic shorts and a sweatshirt. Maybe it was all the raging hormones Rex didn’t miss.
When they were in the clear, Rex turned to them and said, “I want you to know that if you prefer I can keep this anonymous. No need to worry about anything getting out. And I appreciate you boys coming forward with any tip you have.”
“I don’t know if it’s really like a tip,” Chase said. “Just something weird, I guess.”
“They were just acting really strange,” Jason added. His eyes darted past Rex as voices echoed down the alleyway. They waited a moment for whoever was there to pass before Rex continued.
“Strange how?” The chief pulled out his pad of paper to take notes.
“Like fighting,” Jason said. “We were in the locker room after practice, and I guess they just finished with practice, too.”
“When was this?” Rex asked as his pen worked the page.
“Last week, maybe like Tuesday?” Jason said.
“Mmhmm.” Rex thought back to just over a week ago, how that now seemed like a lifetime ago. “What were they fighting about?”
“It was hard to tell but, I heard Ethan the most. He was yelling, even though Caleb was telling him to keep it down.”
“J.R. said they needed to get out of there,” Chase added. “I thought they meant the gym, but then Caleb said, ‘What about the Huskies?’ And Ethan was all, ‘Screw the Huskies.’ And Caleb was telling them they were all over-reacting and to calm down. That’s when Ethan yelled that he didn’t want anything to do with Caleb anymore and that if J.R. can’t see that then he didn’t want anything to do with him either.”
Rex wrote as fast as he could, catching the boys word for word. “Then what happened?”
“Then that was it.” Chase shrugged. “Caleb stormed out, slamming the door behind him.”
“Was anyone else in the locker room?” Rex asked.
Jason shook his head. “No, I think they thought they were alone. They didn’t hear us come in.”
Rex finished up his notes. “Thank you, boys, for coming forward. Is there anything else you can think of?”
“Well.” Jason started, looking at Chase before answering. “It’s just a rumor I think, but someone said they saw Ethan fighting with his dad on the field a couple weeks ago. I don’t know if that helps or even matters but again, just strange. Like why fight at practice? Why not at home or something?”
Rex nodded as he wrote, Nick, Ethan, fight after practice. He would have to ask Nick about this.
“It’s just so weird, you know,” Chase said. “They’re such cool guys, but they’ve been, like, kinda jumpy and almost paranoid when you see them in the halls. And then you have that shit show on Friday night… Sorry, Chief,” Chase said, catching himself swearing. Rex shook his head. “You know, you were there for that game.”
Rex nodded.
“You guys did the right thing coming to me with any information that could lead to finding the boys, or possibly a reason for why they left. Thank you.”
They nodded, seeming relieved to have that off their chests.
“Don’t you boys have a class to get to?”
“Free period.” Jason smiled.
“Okay.” He placed a hand on each of their shoulders. “Good job, guys. Call me down at the station if anything new comes up.”
He walked out of the alley first as not to be seen with them. He tossed his pad and pen on the seat of his cruiser and turned on the engine. He was glad the students had come to him anonymously. He didn’t need vicious rumors being spread about what the boys could have been fighting about. And they were right—what had Nick been doing accosting Ethan at the football field? What couldn’t wait until they got home? Or, was it something that couldn’t be said at home? What did Nick Young know that he wasn’t sharing?
He pulled into the station, surprised to see the small blue Toyota sedan he knew so well parked near the entrance. He greeted the dispatcher at the front desk, who motioned to him there was someone waiting in his office. He nodded a thank-you and opened the door to his box of an office. The blinds were drawn, making the room darker than usual. She sat there, her back turned away from him until he closed the door behind him. That’s when she stood.
“Kate,” he murmured. He hadn’t realized just how much he missed her until she was standing so vulnerable beside him. He pulled her to him and let her release her tears on his shoulder. He wanted to go back to before when it was just the two of them and there was hope for a future. But that was all behind them. He would hold her now, kiss the side of her cheek where the tears fell, but that was all that he could give. She felt his resistance and pulled away.
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