The Academy--The Bird and the Beetle

by C. L. Stone

  "What was that?" I cried out.

  Raven grunted. "You told me to get rid of the damn drugs," he said.

  I flared at him. "You blew it up?"

  Raven picked himself up off the floor of the boat. "Well, that was just a bonus."

  I gaped at him a moment. With all the chaos, with wanting to get Marc off the boat and trying to get away before Coaltar came to his senses and called the police, I had completely forgotten about the drugs. Raven remembered. He kept his promise.

  When the shock wore off, I lunged at him. I wrapped my arms around his neck, beaming and hugged tight. "You're the best."

  "What can I say?" His arms encircled me and he pressed his body close. "I'm a professional Russian."

  Marc dropped himself until he was flat on his back on the boat. He grunted and clutched at his leg. "I think we’re done here. Can we go now, Kayli? I think I need to go back and see the doctor."

  GONE

  We returned the boat to the Marina. First, Raven and Axel assisted Marc to the car. This time, the girl in the boat house came out and asked if we were okay. Axel waved her off. He told her Marc just twisted his ankle. He’d be fine.

  He lied pretty smoothly. He drove off with Marc, heading to the hospital.

  True to his word, Raven left a soggy wad of cash with her, pointing her to the boat, and telling her to fill it with gas and pay the docking fee. He even added an extra couple of twenties and asked her to pick a nice bouquet of flowers to place inside. “I just want it to look nice when he comes back for it,” Raven had said, making it sound like it was Marc’s boat. We left before the girl could figure out the truth.

  Back at the apartment, I took a long hot shower and changed into a shirt that belonged to Marc and found shorts from my own bags. I took over one side of the couch. Raven, dried, and in a tank and sweatpants, claimed the other side. I was dead asleep for a few hours. After a swimming in the cold water and all the stress, I could have slept for a week. Still, it felt like a job well done.

  When I did wake a couple hours later, I didn't want to move. My legs were intertwined with Raven’s. I stared off at the silent entertainment center. It was strangely cozy and quiet, the first moment I felt relaxed in days.

  Was it really over? Now that we had escaped, my mind flew to all the possible results. Blake may call the police. He would sue me for damages at best. What about the drug dealers? Would he rat me out to them and have some goons hunt me down?

  Sirens started up deep in the city. I turned onto my back at first. When the police cars got closer, I sat up sharply and held my breath, a palm pressing against my thundering heart.

  "Little thief," Raven called to me, in a deep voice raspy with sleep. His brown eyes locked on my face. He untucked himself from under the blanket and opened his arms up to me. "Come."

  I untangled my legs from his and crawled over. His arms drew me in until he could fold me into the small space between himself and the back of the couch. With my back against the couch, he pressed himself into me.

  His face nestled into my shoulder. "They aren't after us," he said quietly.

  "They might come," I said. "Eventually."

  "If they ever come for you, they better bring an army. I wouldn’t let you go that easily."

  I smiled at his arrogant boast. "Is that how a criminal thinks?"

  "It's how I think." His arms wriggled around me until he hugged me close as we snuggled on the couch together. "You and your crazy plans, and fucked up boat crashing." He released me for a moment to curl fingers under the collar of the large T-shirt I wore. He slid the material down, exposing my bare skin. His head lowered and for a moment, his lips only brushed along my flesh, sending warmth. His lips puckered and he kissed me at the corner of my neck, close to the shoulder. His lips parted slightly, and he suckled gently for a moment before releasing me. "Beautiful."

  My spine rippled with the spark his lips ignited inside me. At the same time, I tensed. The cuddling had been felt friendly up to that point. I was already in a mess with Marc and possibly Brandon. I wasn't ready for Raven to mix in with it.

  "Raven," I said, in a voice that was more delicate. I didn't want to hurt him. I didn't want him to stop, but I didn't think my heart could take any more.

  His lips grazed my neck, lighting up every nerve along my spine. The warmth spilled right into my heart. "Do me a favor,” he murmured against my skin. ”Don't tell Marc or the others."

  My breathing hastened. My mind whirled for his meaning. I was ready for some reasonable request. Like when he helped me get a note to Wil. Or maybe when he beat up that guy in the parking lot. Was he warning me not to tell them that? Could he get into trouble? "Tell them what?"

  His lips met with the back of my earlobe. He breathed against me. His hand shifted down to hold me around the waist, pulling me closer. His voice came to me, guttural and low in my ear. "I'm pretty sure Marc has a little crush on you. I think if he knew about us, it may break his heart."

  I eased myself up to sit. He pulled back, putting an arm up to pillow his head with a sleepy smile on his face. I didn't get it. I mean, I guessed at was he was implying, but I couldn’t tell if he was serious. Was he teasing me?

  "Us?" I asked.

  He smirked. He opened his mouth and started to say something but a rattling of keys in the door stole his attention. He twisted himself to look back at the door.

  Marc appeared first, followed by Axel. Brandon and Corey tailed behind them. Kevin followed and he closed the door behind himself.

  I sat up further, pulling myself away from Raven. Raven shared a small smirk with me, like I was doing exactly the thing he wanted me to do. I didn’t know how to tell him I was just confused and didn’t know where to put myself.

  Brandon worked his way around the group of guys, his arms open and his face full of concerned lines. “Kayli, what the hell were you thinking?”

  For a flash of time, I thought he was talking about sitting on top of Raven. “Huh?”

  He came around, pulling me up by the arm. He hugged me to his body. He pushed his face against my ear. “You shot him in the leg! And the boat?”

  “Sorry?” I wasn’t sure if that’s what I should say. He didn’t sound peeved as much as it was like, oops, you spilled the milk.

  He sighed heavily and whispered quieter so only I could hear. “How am I supposed to protect you when you’re running off half-cocked like that? Next time, give me a chance to keep up, okay?”

  I grinned into his shoulder. I couldn’t help it.

  A body slammed in behind me, nearly knocking us over. Corey’s face loomed near mine, the grin was broad. “Marc told us about the boat crash. That was awesome. I wish I’d seen it.”

  I struggled to breathe between the two, and then started wriggling. “Guys, you’re such dorks.”

  “Hey,” Axel barked at me, but in an amused tone. “What did I tell you about the name calling?”

  The twins released me, and I stood on the carpet with my hands up in defense, as if waiting for one of them to strike.

  Axel gestured to the couch. “Okay, sit. We need to figure out what happens next.”

  Raven pulled himself up on the couch, and he slid over, making room for the others. Corey sat next to him. Raven gave him the I wasn’t making room for you look but Corey was oblivious to it and grinned happily at him. Raven smirked, shook his head and sat back.

  I sat next to Corey and Brandon took up the space my other side. Between them, it was like two mirrored bodyguards, equally exquisite.

  Axel and Marc sat on the coffee table. I guessed they really did need the coffee table. They used it for these meetings. Kevin sat on the floor.

  “Okay,” Axel said. “From what I’m hearing, Coaltar’s crew called for a tow boat, saying there was a small accident. Coaltar was toted out, and has a private doctor looking at his leg.”

  “How do you know all this?” I asked.

  Corey coughed lightly and grinned.

  I smirked at h
im and poked him in the arm. “You sneaky devil.”

  “Yeah, well,” Corey said, rubbing his hand across the back of his head. “I figured I’d tap in and at least figure out if they were coming after us.”

  “He’s going to be in surgery soon,” Axel said. “And from what I hear, he’s already planning a recovery retreat down in Palm Beach, Florida. He’s telling people he’ll be there for at least three weeks. For now, he may just be out of our hair.”

  “What about the cartel?” I asked. “Did I mess up? Are they coming after us?”

  “Actually,” Axel said, sitting up a little straighter. “From what I understand, the man that attacked Marc on the boat was a member of the cartel. He’s heading back to his gang, but Coaltar’s made a deal with him not to talk about you. This gang member wasn’t happy, but apparently Coaltar’s already gone above and beyond what they expected and they appreciate his intervening early.” Axel raked his fingers through his jet-black hair and yanked the strands away from his eyes. “No one wanted a turf war in this area. The JH-14 drugs were from an offshoot of their own gang looking to start an uprising. They’re going to infiltrate and pick out the key personnel and take care of it their own way.”

  I gasped, my hand reaching for Corey’s leg for stability. “They can’t—“

  Axel waved his hand in the air. “They’re drug gang members,” he said. “Every one of them. The village is safe, but the persons responsible will be hunted. When Coaltar told you that part about the drugs not hurting anyone if they drank it from the well, he was telling you the truth, or at least he believed. Maybe he even believed part of what he was saying when he thought he could save lives, but the truth was, the cartel would have never let these guys get away with this. The drugs may have actually warned the village the cartel was coming, but it wouldn’t have stopped this assassination.”

  Corey gently wrapped his hand around my wrist and tugged it until he could clutch my hand. “Kayli,” he said quietly, drawing my attention. “These aren’t good guys. These are murderers and drug dealers fighting their own war. But now they’re going back home and out of Charleston. The battle is over there now. The DEA and other government agenices need to take care of this. This is beyond what we can do. We can’t take on the world.”

  I had to agree. Outside of stopping Coaltar, I had no idea what else to do about this. Maybe Axel was right. Corey was right. They all were. How far do you go to help people?

  And with that thought, I sighed heavily. “It’s over,” I said softly. It was true. They didn’t need me anymore and I wasn’t in danger. There was nothing to hold me here. I was a stranger they met a few days ago, and despite so much that had happened, this all had to end.

  The others nodded grimly.

  Kevin looked confused. He brushed his palm against his dark curly hair. “Why the hell do you guys look like that? I say it’s about time this was over. Now we can get back to it being almost quiet around here.”

  Raven smirked. “When is it ever quiet?”

  “It certainly isn’t usually this bad,” Kevin said. “Apparently I missed most of it.”

  “Consider yourself lucky,” Axel said.

  I started to say something, and then realized Corey was still holding on to my hand. He’d intertwined our fingers. I grinned at him, as it was so cute. He didn’t strike me as gay like his brother said. Still, Corey’s smile was again melting that wall inside me. It made it hard for me to say what I had to.

  “Guess you guys don’t need me anymore,” I said. “It’s time I went home.”

  There was a collection of grunts and coughs. They looked at each other.

  Axel shrugged. “If Coaltar’s out of the way, and there’s no sign of him looking for you, there’s no reason to hold you here.”

  Marc frowned. “Kayli,” he said. He jerked his head and motioned to the door. “Can I talk to you? Outside?”

  I glanced at the others, wondering, but no one questioned this. I stood, worried that if I didn’t go with him, he’d come after me and carry me out like last time.

  I stood, releasing Corey. I waved shortly at Brandon and then at the others and followed Marc out into the hall.

  When the door closed behind us, I hovered on the carpet. The hall was empty, and I was nervous, wondering what trouble I was in now.

  Marc still favored his leg. I was surprised to see him up and going and not strung out on pain killers. “How’s your, um...” I said. I didn’t know how to bring it up.

  His eyebrows shifted above his mismatched eyes. “My leg?”

  “Yeah,” I said.

  He smirked. “At least I didn’t get shot this time.”

  I rolled my eyes and took a step back. He could joke about this?

  “It’s fine.” Marc faced me and waved off his hand like he didn’t want to talk about his leg any more. “I promised you,” he said.

  I wasn’t sure which promise he was referring to me. “Huh?”

  “I told you that you’d never have to see that hotel again,” he said. “And I didn’t want to tell the others yet.” He leaned on one leg and hobbled closer. “You can stay here, you know? I mean, if you’re uncomfortable in the bedroom right now, there’s at least a couch. And Wil could come with you. We’ll make room.”

  My mouth dropped open and my heart thundered. “Marc...”

  “He’s cool,” he said. “I would have done it sooner, but it got kind of crazy. It’s no big deal. A few months and he’ll be in college. And even before then, we’ll get you an apartment. Or you can just move in. I don’t care. Whatever you want.”

  I squared off my shoulders at Marc. I knew he wouldn’t like my answer, but it needed to be done. “I have to go,” I said.

  “Not this shit again.”

  I made a fist, aiming a loose punch at his chest. “I mean I have to go home.”

  His eyebrows hunched together. “Bambi, I promised you that you wouldn’t have to go back.”

  “I know,” I said. “I appreciate it, but...” I stumbled for words. It’s not what I wanted. In my heart, I’d already grown really fond of everyone.

  At the same time, I was afraid. I wanted to retreat to a place where my head could clear. I wanted to be sure. I wanted them to be sure. They’d felt obligated before.

  He sighed. He captured my wrists, drawing them together and holding tightly. He pursed his lips and his eyes closed. “I know,” he said, his voice deep.

  That broke my heart and I didn’t know how to repair it. It made me want to take everything back to not hear those words. It confirmed everything I’d been feeling, split between two worlds. And in his voice, I sensed he did know exactly what I was doing. I could have called Wil and told him to come meet me and explain everything. There were a thousand different scenarios. What I needed was more than just a talk with my brother. I needed to escape.

  Doing this in front of him made it much harder to leave. And we weren’t really together. Not really. And this wasn’t even goodbye. I just needed to get away. I needed to know for myself I could leave and come back if I wanted to and this wasn’t some desperate attempt from them to take care of me, because they felt they had to. Because they felt I couldn’t make it on my own otherwise.

  I needed to know I was wanted for who I was. And I didn’t know who I was outside of Kayli the thief.

  I stood with him clutching my hands. Neither one of us knowing when, or if I’d be back, or if I’d be too scared to ever return to this. Because when you run away from something, a return is too hard to imagine. There was too much focus on the leaving to even think about what was next. The frown on his face, though, was too much to bear.

  So I kissed him.

  I was up on my toes to do it, and he must have sensed me zeroing in because he tilted his face toward mine. I first meant to just peck his lips, but the peck turned into a lengthened, closed-mouth kiss.

  When he parted his lips, and turned his head, I parted mine. His tongue felt for my lips, and mine darted out to meet him
. I was his echo. In more than a few ways.

  It was the kiss that drove my heart to dare think about the future. Every thought of doubt I had before, it suddenly buried into the back of my mind, and was replaced by a will, a desire of what I really wanted.

  It was then I knew. I wanted to come back. On my own terms, later. I wanted him, wanted Brandon, wanted Raven, wanted the rest. It was for that reason that I had to go, and that reason why I knew I’d return and want to figure out. This feeling that crept into my heart at his kiss, I wanted it to come back.

  He was telling me with his lips that I could come back. That the door would be open. That he’d be waiting.

  I tried to tell him without saying a word that I would. Eventually.

  And as much as I wanted the kiss to last so long that I never left at all, I broke away from him and backed up. I still had a few things I needed to do.

  When I was back on my feet, I couldn’t look at him. I was too embarrassed that I had opened myself like that. I hadn’t meant to.

  “You felt it, too,” he said in a low and guttural voice.

  “Hm?” I glanced up at him, unsure.

  His hand darted out, clutching my gut. “The goddamn wriggly sparks.”

  My lips twitched to answer him, but the truth buried itself into my tongue. It was too painful to tell him. Yes, I felt them. Except I’d also felt them with Raven moments before. And with Corey. With Brandon. It was part of the reason I had to go now. Before this went too far. This was a friendship of guys that I didn’t want to cause chaos in. I needed to break away, let everyone cool off, and when I returned, I’d either make sure we were all friends, or select one. The choice was impossible right now. They were all good and tugged my heart in different directions.

  He sighed, pulling his hand away and then lightly pushed me off. “Go,” he said.

  He was right. I had to go or I would never leave, and that simply wouldn’t be right. “There’s a bus that stops in front of the building, isn’t there?”

  He nodded. He fished into his pocket, pulling out one of those emergency phones. He also plucked out his wallet and selected a wad of bills. He put both in my hands, and then closed my fingers. He ducked his head down until his forehead touched mine. “Call me any time. I mean it. I’ll come get you.”