“I’m free tomorrow.”
Why was Milo pursuing me? There were so many girls out there who were by contrast far more prettier than me. Didn’t he have enough notches on his belt?
“I’m not,” I said.
Somehow, I grabbed one end of the journal, but Milo kept a tight grip on the other end. He pulled me close—so close our faces were inches apart. I sucked in my breath paralyzed by the dark intensity in his eyes until they softened.
“Your candy-colored lips look ravishing,” he murmured. “I wonder what it’s like to kiss them.”
My heartbeat escalated, and my lips twitched in response. Breaking eye contact with Milo, I brushed away any attraction I felt for him. Resist, Alexis, resist, I told myself. I’m sure this was part of his plan—lure the girl in, sleep with her, then toss her aside.
I stepped back taking hold of my journal.
“See you Friday then.” He grinned at me as the girls from my school flocked around him.
There were a string of emotions stirring inside me—annoyance, frustration, anger, and I knew Milo wasn’t going to back down so easily. No matter how many times I rejected him, I had a feeling this wasn’t going to be the last time I saw Milo James.
☩
“Eighty dollars? Dusty, you’re killing me here!” I’d been arguing with Dusty—the owner of the only towing company in town, The Bone Yard—for the past thirty minutes, but he wouldn’t budge. “It’s not my fault you decided to go hunting over the weekend!”
“It’s not my fault you decided to leave your car at someone else’s house,” Dusty countered.
“Can I get a discount? It’s the least you can do,” I pleaded.
“No can do, missy.” Dusty crossed his arms exposing his greasy elbows. “This is a business, not a charity.”
Country-ass bastard. I bit my tongue hard pissed over the amount I had to pay Dusty to get my car out since I left it at Mason’s after the party Friday night. I tried picking up my car over the weekend, but it was closed. A ‘We’ve Gone Hunting’ sign was posted on the door. With gritted teeth, I signed over the paperwork and took my keys to the designated parking location.
My gut twisted in sheer horror when I saw my car. Every single window was busted, ‘Demon Whore’ and ‘Filthy Girl’ was spray painted all over in red. On the verge of tears, I slid into the driver’s seat brushing pieces of glass off the dashboard. There was a brick on the passenger seat that said, ‘Satan’s Allegiant.’ I was crushed. It was going to take every penny in my savings to replace the windows and have the car painted. With no job, it meant I would have no money left over to move to Los Angeles. The blood in my veins began to boil as I wrestled with anger and rage. Who would do something so awful?
I already knew the answer.
After hunting the few hang out spots in Dixon, I found Eddie, Mason, and Vance carelessly laughing on the patio of The Swirling Vanilla. I stormed toward them and threw the brick on the table causing their milkshakes to splatter all over the place.
“What the hell?” Mason yelled at me.
“Who did it?” I demanded. “Which one of you assholes wrecked my car?”
They all looked at each other, clueless. “What are you talking about Alexis?” Eddie asked confused.
“Someone broke the windows in my car after the party and spray painted de—” I stopped unable to finish. “Demon Whore.”
Mason glanced at the words on the brick then looked at me with an icy glare. “Maybe if you weren’t a quill lover this never would’ve happened.”
Not willing to control my rage, I slapped Mason across the face that left him pretty shocked. He flinched then knocked his chair over. I stood my ground ready for whatever happened next. The fighter inside me wanted to beat the crap out of him. My dad taught me how to box when I was younger, just in case I ever needed to defend myself. Now was a great time to use those skills.
“You crazy bitch!” Mason lunged at me, but out of nowhere was pulled back by Julian. He took Mason by the collar and shook him around like a rag doll.
“Do you kiss your momma with that dirty mouth of yours, Mason Sutherland?” There was a fury in Julian’s eyes I’d never seen before.
“Fuck you fag,” Mason spat trying to put up a fight, but Julian was too strong and tall for him.
“Call me a fag one more time, see what happens! I oughta stick a bar of soap in your filthy mouth.” Julian slapped him around a bit longer until Eddie pulled him back.
“C’mon Julian, let him go!” Eddie shouted.
Julian straightened his shirt and regained his cool composure. “Keep your boy on a leash. ‘Cause next time, I won’t be so gentle.”
He snapped his fingers at Mason causing him to flinch again. Julian slid his arm around mine and led me away.
☩
The last ray of sunlight warmed my face as the sun set. Darkness loomed over the rooftop of The Burning Witch Apothecary, the streetlights turned on. I sat on the concrete ledge overlooking downtown Dixon contemplating my next move. Now more than ever, I needed a job. I needed to find a garage to have the ‘Stang fixed, cheap.
“Did you know Mason’s dad has some kind of weird foot fetish?” Dawn said exhaling smoke from her joint. “He bought a bunch of foot worship massage oils and lotions the other day.”
Truthfully, I really didn’t care. Every single person in this town was a hypocrite. They tried to hide their demons with the roles they created for themselves by going to church and posing as the perfect family. But behind closed doors, they were sinners just like everyone else. Dawn knew it all since many of the good ole town folk shopped The Burning Witch online store from the discretion of their home. Or so they thought.
“Wanna hit this?” Dawn asked offering the joint.
“I get drug tested for sports,” I replied. Unlike Dawn and Julian, I wasn’t much of a smoker or a drinker. The effects drugs had on people didn’t sound too appealing.
I watched Dawn pass the joint to Julian both sitting on beach chairs next to each other enjoying their high.
“I hate this town,” I said frustrated. I threw a few rocks over the ledge hitting one of the benches. The clanging sound of metal reverberated down the empty street.
“Tell me about it.” Julian exhaled. “This town is a deathtrap; the only way out is in a casket.”
“No, even after death you’re trapped here,” I said glumly taking a seat next to Julian. “Dawn, you should give me a job.”
“Y’know I would, but the shop is barely making any money now. My mom doesn’t even pay me to be here.” She coughed a little, then she and Julian started to giggle. Dawn perked up suddenly like a lightbulb went off inside her head.
“Dylan told me about the motorcycle races they have at an underground parking lot near the old stadium in Atlanta. I hear they bet big money. How much money do you have?”
Already this sounded like a bad idea.
“You’re kidding, right?” I wasn’t about to bet my hard-earned cash on a stupid race.
“You can double your money,” she suggested.
“I’m not much of a gambler,” I said shaking my head. “Besides, if I lose, I’ll have nothing left to fix my car.” And I didn’t want to run into Milo.
“Just bet a little. Enough to fix your car.”
“Don’t listen to her, she just wants an excuse to stalk Dylan,” Julian said.
Dawn turned to Julian and playfully smacked him on the shoulder. “No, I don’t!”
We both shot her a pressuring glare to fess up.
“Okay, maybe I do,” Dawn said slumping into her chair. “He hasn’t called since we did it.”
Julian nearly choked on all the smoke in his lungs, I couldn’t help but laugh.
“It’s not funny,” she groaned.
Julian scoffed. “Clearly your momma didn’t teach you not to let the boys touch you in your no-no square.”
“No-no square?” I asked.
“The part below the waist in between
your legs. You figure it,” Julian told me. “How do you expect the boy to take you seriously if you’re giving away the goodies so easily?” Julian asked Dawn as seriously as he could.
“He was just so irresistible,” Dawn said with a frown. “All the rumors are true, you know. They really know what they’re doing,” she added in a dreamy state. “There was this energy that was constantly pulsating into me.”
Julian and I burst into hysterical laughter.
“It’s called the penis,” Julian said. “Look it up.”
“I really did not want to hear that,” I laughed. “Not to throw you under the bus Dawn, but I don’t understand how you’ve been seen with Dylan all over town, yet no one is harassing you. I’m seen leaving with Milo once, and suddenly I’m an angel sympathizer?”
“That’s cause every boy all the way to the next county over has hit that,” Julian said pointing at Dawn who frowned again. “So, it’s no surprise she’s moved on to angels who don’t know about her reputation.”
“Whatever! If you two don’t wanna go with me, then I’ll go by myself.” Dawn got up in a huff.
“This bitch is gonna get herself killed.” Julian stood up and hollered after Dawn. “Ey, where do you think you’re going? You’ve been smokin’. Get your skinny little ass back over here!”
“Chill, I’m going downstairs to grab some agua,” Dawn said disappearing through the door.
Julian sat back down for a moment entirely convinced Dawn had really gone downstairs for water until...we heard the ignition of her car turn on. We exchanged an alarmed look and ran to the edge of the building. Dawn’s Honda Accord raced down Main Street and out of Dixon.
I didn’t want to run after her, I didn’t want to go back into angel territory, but I had no other choice. I had to catch Dawn before she got pulled over or even worse—got someone killed.
CHAPTER
12
We followed Dawn to downtown Atlanta where she disappeared to a place known as The Underground, a once popular tourist destination filled with restaurants and retail stores but today, many of the buildings above ground stood barren and vacant. The place was a playground for homeless people and thugs selling drugs. It only got worse at night. Anyone in their right mind wouldn’t venture through The Underground alone in fear of getting robbed.
As Julian and I rushed through the main court, we were approached by a bum asking for change. I dug my fingernails deep into Julian’s arm, almost piercing through the skin. I was scared out of my mind but thankfully Julian didn’t mind. Julian shooed the homeless man away and navigated down the steps where a group of skaters were using the rails to perform tricks. Once we reached the lower ground, we stepped through a long row of doors where the glass was replaced by plywood painted with graffiti, and trash littered the concrete floor. I wrinkled my nose at the smell of urine. The Underground was disgusting. Why would anyone hang out here?
“As soon as we find Dawn, we’re out of here,” I told Julian.
“You ain’t gotta tell me twice.”
The smell of cigarette smoke swirled thick in the air inside The Underground, and industrial techno music thumped in the background. The interior wasn’t any different from the exterior, except it was alive and bustling with a melting pot of people; Latinos, Asians, African Americans, Caucasians, every ethnicity was represented including the angels, all brought together for one purpose: motorcycles.
There was a road that extended for about five miles, old-style lanterns lined the sidewalks that once illuminated the restaurants and nightclubs popular back in the 1960s. The angels were decked out in leather and showed off their motorcycle tricks to the gawking crowd. Along the sidewalk, there were more bikers surrounded by girls and brimming with people checking out the bikes.
I scanned over the crowd searching for Dawn but instead found the red-head from Eve’s Paradise in fishnets and knee-length boots. Damn it. If she was here, I’m sure Milo was too—somewhere.
“Whatever happens don’t leave my side,” I told Julian.
“Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in.” I heard Milo’s voice behind me along with the hum of an engine. Cursing under my breath, I waited a moment before turning around to face him. He looked hot sitting on his bike wearing a black leather racer jacket with a white sleeveless shirt underneath. As soon as his eyes met mine, his lips pulled up into a smile.
The butterflies in my stomach somersaulted as I stared at him. I was horrified by my inability to control my body anytime I was near Milo. Every time I saw him, my body always experienced a sudden rush of foreign emotions. But my moment of weakness came and went like brain freeze. Not wanting to entertain him any longer, I scoffed and pulled away from his stare.
“Couldn’t wait till Friday, uh?”
“I’m not here for you.” I grimaced.
“Right,” he replied. “You drove all the way here”—he waved a hand around— “for this?”
“Yep,” I looked down to the end of the road and noticed a few motorcyclists lining up as if they were about to race. “I—came to bet on the race.”
“Is that right?” Milo said not at all convinced. He raised his chin up and narrowed his eyes assessing me before smiling. “Who are you betting on?”
I checked out the competition at the starting line. None had wings. I wasn’t sure who was an angel and who was human. One racer wore a leather vest that accentuated his large muscles. His slick black hair was hanging loosely around his face. I recognized Trent, one of Milo’s friends, who was next to muscle guy. From around the corner of the street, the girl from Eve’s Paradise positioned her bike at the racing line.
What a total bad ass.
“Her,” I said quickly. “The girl with the blue hair.”
Milo glanced in the direction of the racers, assessed his competition then chuckled. “Let’s make it more interesting. Around here we also race for Pinks. If I win, you go out with me.”
“Pinks?” I asked confused. As in ownership papers like in the movie Grease? “No way,” I snorted shaking my head. “I can’t bet my car.”
Milo rolled his head back in laughter as if I didn’t get the joke then said, “are you afraid of a little bet?”
I wanted to tell him to go screw himself, but I didn’t want to appear as a weak little girl who was afraid even though deep inside, I was terrified of losing.
“Fine. But if I win you leave me alone.”
“Deal.” Milo whistled to the heavyset man taking bets. “Hey Skinny, get her down for Alva.”
“How much?” Skinny asked.
Without giving much thought, I yelled, “Five hundred!”
Milo raised an eyebrow clearly shocked by my response, his face softened then a slow smile crossed over his lips. “Big spender.”
“What are you doing?” Julian asked in a whisper.
“Buying my ticket out of Dixon.”
Skinny took note of my bet, it was too late to back out. There was a rush of adrenaline that took over my body. I’d never been the type to take risks when it came to money, always being cautious about my spending, saving every penny I earned because I was determined to leave Dixon. And of course, I never gambled because of my dad. It was his gambling addiction that tore my family apart, the reason my mother had to work two jobs to support us and ultimately pushed her into the arms of Paul.
I suppressed a curse as a sudden sense of guilt overwhelmed me. What if I lost? This was by far the stupidest thing I’d ever done. To make matters worse, I only had a twenty in my pocket. I was so screwed.
“I got a bad feeling about this,” Julian said reading my mind. He stuck one nail in his mouth.
“Babe, the race is about to start.” The red-head from Eve’s Paradise wrapped her arms around Milo with no concern for Julian or me—until she saw me. “Who’s this Pink?” she asked shooting me a deadly glare with her burgundy eyes.
Did she just call me a Pink? What was that supposed to mean?
“The girl in the black
Mustang,” Milo said without taking his eyes off mine. My cheeks flamed. I hugged my body tightly.
“I’ll see you on the front-line Scarlet,” Milo told her.
She had a name, and it sounded evil as hell. Scarlet grabbed Milo by the jaw and smacked him with a long steamy kiss as her vision remained steady on me; she was marking her territory. Milo didn’t move or pull away. If Scarlet was trying to make me jealous, it wasn’t working. I felt nothing but disgust.
“Get a room,” I said walking away, Julian trailing my step.
It was hilarious how dumb girls acted the moment they felt threatened by someone else. Scarlet’s kiss only confirmed my suspicion. Milo was a player.
“You like him, don’t you?” Julian asked.
“What?” I stopped dead in my tracks. “No! I think he’s disgusting.”
“Whatever’s going on between you two, it must be sizzling. I could feel the heat from miles away,” Julian said with sass that only Julian could pull off. “That’s why the red-head just stuck her tongue down his throat.”
“Nothing is going on!”
“You’re gonna stand there and tell me you don’t think that fine piece of angel ass is sexy?” Julian narrowed his eyes. “That boy is finger-lickin’ hot! I’d eat him for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”
I shook my head standing firm. “He’s all yours!”
“Are you a lesbian?”
“Seriously?” I huffed.
“Julian!” I heard Dawn’s shrieking voice as she slapped her arms around Julian. “You need to meet my boyfriend, Dylan.”
Boyfriend? Or friend with benefits?
I glanced up at Dylan who stood beside Dawn. He wore a leather jacket over a fuchsia Hawaiian shirt with black flowers open at the chest with thin gold chains wrapped around his neck. The cigarette in his mouth burned brightly as a cloud of white smoke billowed out of Dylan’s mouth. He held a bottle inside a brown paper bag. He looked like a complete douchebag who reeked of bad news.
“It’s nice to see you again—Alexis, right?” Dylan asked taking another cancer-ridden hit of his cigarette. I noticed his fingernails were painted black and found myself wondering if angels could get sick like humans.
THE TRAGIC + DIVINE, Book 1 Page 10