Expect the Unexpected

by L. M. Heidle

  My face broke into a huge grin. “Yeah, Chirpy day. When I was thirteen, there was this boy I really liked. I thought I was in love. One day after school he walked up to my locker and started talking to me. As you can imagine, I heard bells ringing and was mentally putting our initials into a heart. After the best ten minutes of my life, he brought up Jacey, my best friend. He wanted to know if she had a date to the dance. I was so broken hearted that I ran straight to my brother. I wanted him to beat Eric up, but instead of doing that he created ‘Chirpy Day’. He took me for ice cream, and we went to the movies to get extra buttered popcorn. My mom was sort of a health nut, so that was a big deal. Anyway, from that day on we celebrated ‘Chirpy Day,’ every month on the first Thursday.” I laughed remembering all the fun things we did.

  He didn’t say anything, just stared for a while. “Alex, I’m glad you told me, but I hate that it took so long.” I nodded in reply. I was starting to feel like a bobble head with all the nodding I’d been doing today. His hand came up to my face, and he ran his knuckle down my cheek. That simple act had my heart soaring as warmth spread over my cheek. “I’m sorry you lost your family, angel.”

  “Does it make me a horrible person because I haven’t been to see him, or am I horrible because I still care?” I whispered my biggest fears.

  “You couldn’t be horrible if you tried.”

  I shoved him a little. “Flattery will get you nowhere.”

  He gave me a light kiss before continuing. “No one can judge you for how you handle this because no one’s in your shoes. The way you’re handling this is what works for you.”

  “What if he thinks I don’t love him?” Just the thought had a painful jolt hitting my heart. There was no way in this world that I couldn’t love him.

  “He knows because of the cards. If you didn’t care, you would’ve cut all ties with him.”

  “I just feel like a failure because I’m not strong enough to go see him.”

  “Well, when we get back to Austin, let’s go.” He made it sound so easy. As if confronting my fears was no big deal, when it was a huge freaking deal. Oddly, though, I had a feeling it wouldn’t be as hard with Trayton by my side.

  “You would go with me?”

  “Of course, I would.”

  “Thank you,” I weakly replied. The thought of seeing my brother for the first time in four years had my stomach rolling. I couldn’t decide if I was more excited or terrified to see him. I was physically and emotionally drained after our talk, so I leaned into Trayton and closed my eyes.

  I woke to Trayton gently shaking me. “Angel, why don’t you get in the shower? I’ll meet you downstairs.” I used my bobble head motion again. He kissed my forehead and shut the door behind him as he walked out.

  TRAYTON

  I shut her door and leaned back against it. I didn’t see that coming. I was still a little aggravated with her, but I understood why she was so hesitant to talk about her family. I wouldn’t want to relive that either, and my uncle poking around hadn’t helped.

  My uncle wouldn’t bring all of that up unless he had a reason, and it better be a damn good one to make her go through that. It gutted me listening to her pour her heart out because I knew no matter how bad I wanted to I couldn’t take that pain away. That pain ran so deep I wasn’t sure it would ever completely heal. I hated that the only thing I could do was sit there in silence and wipe her tears.

  Every step closer to my uncle’s office made my blood boil a little more as I remembered every tear that ran down her face. I may not be able to take the pain away, but I could do my best to prevent it in the future.

  Normally I’d knock out of respect, but not today. I barged in yelling, “What in the hell was that about?” I pointed at my soaked t-shirt. “Do you see this? This is from her tears, so you’d better have one hell of a reason for what you pulled!” I ran my hand through my hair as I paced, trying to get my temper under control.

  As calm as ever, he said, “I was simply trying to get to know her.”

  I laughed, although it was completely hollow and slightly deranged. “Don’t play me. I’m not one of your stupid foot soldiers. What do you know?”

  His brought his glass of scotch to his lips as he demanded, “Shut the door.” I closed my eyes. I had a feeling this was going to be bad. After I’d shut the door, I flopped down in a leather chair in front of his desk. “What do you know about her family?”

  “Just what she said in the car plus what she just told me.” He moved his hand to tell me to continue talking. “She said that her brother was the one that killed them, and she hasn’t seen him in four years.” I left out the part about how she fell apart in my arms and how vacant her voice sounded at the end. I didn’t know if that was more for her privacy, or that I wasn’t sure I could handle talking about it. “Why?”

  “Did she happen to mention anything about a Playboy from the Diablos?”

  No, no way. She couldn’t be associated with them. They were one of the biggest gangs in Texas. “No, she didn’t, but you can’t honestly believe that she’s involved with them.”

  “She may not know exactly who Playboy is, but she does know him. He was one of her brother’s closest friends.”

  “How?”

  “They both went to high school with him.”

  “Is Trip involved with the Diablos?”

  “Not that I can tell, but Playboy’s watched out for him in prison. From what Alberto could find, it seems he did everything he could to keep Trip out of the gang. He also found out that he still sees Alex from time to time.”

  Jumping out of the chair, I exploded. “What?”

  He had his hands steepled in front of him. “He sees her at least once or twice every couple of months and calls her often, but rumor is that someone named Alexandria is protected by him.”

  “Protected by him? What the hell is wrong with him? Doesn’t he know saying that could get her killed?” I practically yelled as I paced back and forth. “She has no bodyguard, and since we’ve been together, I haven’t seen him. He’s leaving her completely unprotected.”

  “Trayton,” my uncle’s hard voice broke through my anger. “Maybe protected is the wrong word, but he is watching out for her. One of his men has a brother that’s in some of her classes.” I dropped back into my chair putting my head in my hands. “You know what this means right?”

  Yes, I knew exactly what that meant. This was no longer simply a relationship. “The Diablos aren’t a problem for us right now, but we can’t have Playboy getting pissed off and making them become one.”

  “What do you want me to do? I won’t lose her.” I couldn’t lose her.

  Uncle Vito sighed, taking a drink before continuing. “I figured you’d say that. The way you watch every move she makes and adjust your body around hers reminds me of my Lucia. There was nothing and no one that would stop me from having her.” He’d told me the story of how he’d had to win over her father enough times I could practically recite it verbatim. “Just promise me you’ll be careful and talk to her. I want to know everything she says. Got it?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  He threw back the rest of his scotch as he stood. “Alright, let’s go to dinner then.”

  This was probably going to be the longest dinner of my life. I was dying to know how much she knew about Playboy, but I couldn’t do it tonight. Not only because we’d be with my family, but her nerves were already exposed and raw. I didn’t want to cause her more pain.

  ALEX

  A knock on my door woke me, but there was no way I was getting out of this bed. I’d never slept on a cloud, but I was pretty sure this was what it felt like. I didn’t think I’d ever slept this good. I snuggled back into the bed, pulling the comforter tighter around me when another knock interrupted my heaven. I frowned at the offensive door. I yelled, “Come in.”

  Trayton walked in, and I about swallowed my tongue. His hair was slightly damp and disheveled. He had on a tight, blue Henley that brought
out the blue in his eyes. The faded jeans he wore fit so well I wouldn’t be surprised if they were tailored. “Good morning, angel. Hurry up and get ready. I want to take you somewhere.”

  “Do we have to?” I whined. “This bed is so comfortable, it’s like sleeping on a cloud.”

  I figured I’d get a chuckle out of him, but I got nothing. His voice held the same amount of motion as his face showed, little to none. “Yes, now get up.”

  Something was definitely going on. “Tray, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, everyone’s waiting for us.”

  I jumped out of bed. “Why didn’t you say that?” I ran around the room like a chicken with my head cut off trying to get dressed.

  “I’ll see you down there.” I frowned as he closed the door. The Trayton I knew would try and hang around to help me change. I couldn’t think too much about him right now because I needed to get ready.

  When I finally made it down to the kitchen—I made a few wrong turns—everyone was sitting around the table. “I’m so sorry. You guys shouldn’t have waited on me.”

  Vivian spoke up, “No worries, dear, we’d just sat down. Trayton, where are your manners? Help her with her chair.” He stood up pulling the chair back for me and helping me scoot it in.

  “Well then, good morning, everyone.”

  Alyssa was practically jumping in her chair. “Good morning! Are you ready for our day?”

  Before I could respond Tray cut in, “Actually, Ally Cat, you’re going to need to reschedule. I’m taking her somewhere this morning.” The hard tone of his voice had me and everyone at the table turning to him. He and his uncle were locked in a staring contest. Something was definitely being passed between them and whatever it was, was serious. I pulled my eyes from them to examine Trayton. His hands were clenched on the table, and a muscle ticked in his jaw.

  “What?!?! You can’t, I have everything planned. I can’t just change it all now,” she whined.

  Her dad commanded, “Yes, you can and you will.”

  I was seriously confused right now and a little worried. His uncle’s hard voice and lethal expression had me sitting back in my chair. I was still a little wary of him after the car ride from the airport, but the tension had eased after last night’s dinner. He was relaxed and joked the entire night. This was a side of him I hadn’t seen, and frankly, it scared the crap out of me.

  When Alyssa dropped her head, I asked Trayton, “Can’t whatever you have planned wait until later?”

  “No. In fact, we need to get going.” I stared down at the plate I had yet to touch. He threw his napkin on the table. “Fine, hurry up and eat.”

  I gave Alyssa an apologetic smile, “How about we plan it for tomorrow?”

  She crossed her arms and huffed, “Fine.”

  As soon as the last bite of food hit my mouth, Trayton was ‘helping’ me out of my chair. I smacked his hand away when he tried leading me out of the room. “Hold on.” I turned to say goodbye, but everyone except his uncle had downcast eyes. He was rubbing his finger across his lip, studying me again.

  As soon as we left the kitchen, Trayton grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the house. I basically had to run to keep up with him as he led me across the backyard to what I assumed was the guest house. When he stopped to enter a code, I noticed the camera pointed at the door. It was a little creepy the level of security this place had. I was pretty sure you couldn’t go anywhere and not be on camera.

  Opening the door, he led me over to a plush couch. Just like the main house, this place was impressive, with lush furniture and beautiful artwork. He let go of my hand but didn’t sit down. Instead, he paced back and forth running his hands through his hair.

  My voice was shaky when I spoke, “You’re scaring me. What’s wrong?”

  “Everything, Alex, everything is wrong.”

  Hello, cryptic statement. “I need more than that, Trayton.”

  He came over to sit by me and spoke with an urging plea, “Alex, I need you to be completely honest with me.” I did NOT like the way he said that. He grabbed for my hands, but I pulled them back.

  “Cut the crap, Trayton.”

  He took a deep breath and inquired, “Do you know someone named Playboy?” I didn’t know what he was going to say, but never in a million years would I have guessed that.

  “You mean Lucas?” He nodded. “Yeah, I know him. We kind of grew up together. Why are you asking about him?”

  He ignored my question. “When’s the last time you saw him?”

  “What’s this about, Tray? Why are you asking about him?”

  “Just answer me, Alexandria.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest defiantly and refused, “No, what’s this about?”

  “Answer my question then I’ll answer yours.” My gaze ran over the hard lines of his face and the tightness in his jaw. Whatever this was about had him on edge.

  “I haven’t seen him in a couple of weeks.”

  “What about the last time you talked to him?”

  I threw my hands in the air when I jumped up. “I don’t freaking know, earlier in the week I guess. What the hell is going on?”

  “Do you know what he does?”

  “He works for the same garage he has since high school. Why are you asking about him? How the hell do you even know about him?”

  “Alex, sit down.” I was so confused I didn’t even argue. I just did it.

  “I’m asking because he’s a Diablos.”

  “I know.” He exploded, knocking over the coffee table when he stood.

  TRAYTON

  She knew? Everything I thought I knew about her changed. My mind raced through the months since I’d met her. There was no way she knew, not with the way she reacted to my past. She couldn’t. “What exactly do you think the Diablos is?”

  “That’s the name of the garage he works at.”

  “No, Alex, he’s a member of the gang Diablos.”

  Pure shock crossed her face as it slowly drained of all color. “No, no, no. He can’t be. I’ve been to Diablos, and it’s a garage.”

  I bit the inside of my lip until it bled to stop myself from losing it. Of course, he took her there. He’s lucky he wasn’t here right now, or I’d kill him. “When was the last time you were there?” Please, God, say years.

  “A couple of months ago, I took my car to him.” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Her seeing me lose it wouldn’t help this situation.

  Calmly as I was capable of right now, I demanded, “Alex, you can’t go there, ever again.”

  “Tray, we’ve been over this. Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do. He’s like family to me.”

  “This is different. He’s not who you think he is. It’s not safe for you there.”

  “I don’t believe you.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket. “I’m going to call him, so he can tell you how wrong you are.” I plucked the phone out of her hands before she could even swipe to unlock it. “Hey, give me that back!” I shook my head no and set it on the armrest as I sat back down.

  “No. Alex, I’m telling you he’s a lieutenant in the gang.” I wouldn’t tell her this, but that position was pretty impressive for his age. She continued shaking her head no. “Okay, tell me what was he like when you pulled up to the garage?”

  “He was upset that I stopped by without calling, but that’s because they were busy.”

  “No, he didn’t want you there because it wasn’t safe. That’s where most of their business is run out of.” I could tell she still didn’t believe me, so I kept pushing. “Does he have any tattoos?”

  “Yes, he has a ton. He’s got two complete sleeves, some on his chest, on his back, and he has a couple on his legs, too. Oh and there’s one on his neck. What’s that have to do with anything?” Not really liking that she knew where all his tattoos were, but I couldn’t focus on that right now. My sanity was already holding on by a string and if I thought too much about that I’d snap.

  I pulled my
phone out and searched for an image of a diablo. “Are any of his tattoos like this?”

  She looked at my phone for a minute before replying, “Maybe. The one on his back is sort of like that.”

  “That’s their gang insignia.”

  I watched her closely as she tried to understand what I told her. In any other situation, I’d say the wrinkled forehead and scrunched nose were adorable. She nibbled at her bottom lip until it bled as she studied the picture on my phone. I wanted to stop her and wipe away the drop of blood, but I kept my hands to myself as she internalized this. The worry and sadness she started with slowly disappeared from her features to be replaced with irritation then anger.

  “Are you sure?” I nodded my head. She stood as she seethed. “I’m going to kill him!” She ranted on and on about the different ways she could kill him. I made a mental note to never piss her off because some of them would make my father proud.

  “I can’t believe he would do this. I thought he was smarter than that!”

  She sat down with her head in her hands as she shook. Unlike yesterday her shaking wasn’t from tears but from anger. Then like a light switch her anger was gone. She slowly sat up, her face etched with worry and exhaustion. Again I wished he was here so I could kill him for putting her through this, but if I really thought about it, I was putting her through it too. She probably never would’ve known if it wasn’t for my family. “I think I need to lie down now. Are we finished? Can I go back to my room?”

  “Yep, come on. Let’s go.” I figured I’d drop her off and then go fill my uncle in.

  ALEX

  If what Tray said was true, I really was going to kill Lucas. All the times we’d been together and talked, not once did he mention joining a gang. The only time I’d ever remembered him talking about a gang was when his neighbor was killed by a rival gang. He talked about how the guy’s kid brother joined to get revenge, only to be killed by the same gang a week later. The kid was thirteen. He swore up and down he’d never go down that road.

  I lied to Tray when I said I needed to lay down. I just wanted some privacy to call Lucas. Thankfully Tray hadn’t been paying attention to my phone when he helped me up. I was able to grab it without him seeing.