I shake my head and go back to putting my clothes away, thinking about how mom use to get on my ass for not doing this. I rub my eye as I set my last T-shirt in the drawer.
“Okay how bout this?” Leanne questions in a flat, annoyed tone of voice that was like nails on a chalkboard. She walks in my room with her arms folded to her chest, wearing a pair of black boot-cut jeans and a purple V-necked shirt that has horizontal black bold stripes going across it.
“Much better. I see your wearing purple heels instead,” I say with a smile.
“Yeah well, I like my purple heels with this outfit. Anything else I need to change?” she asks sarcastically.
“Nope.”
“Good,” she says with a mix of delight and annoyance.
Moments later we hear the doorbell ring a few times from downstairs.
“I got it!” Leanne says in a singsong tone and rushes out of my room. I close the drawer quickly and follow out behind her.
She swings the door open and her friends Brandon and Jessie walk in.
“Hey! You all ready?” Jessie asks.
Jessie is one of Leanne's annoying but perky friends who has brown hair with a blonde highlight in the front and hazel eyes. Brandon is probably the closest to Leanne. He's the only guy I'll ever trust for her to be around. He doesn't talk much, but I find him as a pretty good guy.
“Yes! Let's go before he changes his mind,” Leanne says quickly and is ready to walk out the door.
“Hold it!” I say, stopping her and grabbing her by her arm back in the house. “I need the address to the place first,” I say as I hold out my hand, waiting for a piece of paper to appear.
She mumbles under her breath and walks over to the coffee table, bringing me back a piece of folded paper. “Here. Can I go now?” she says as she slaps the note in my hand and rolling her eyes.
I read it over a few times before giving an answer.
“Yeah, have fun. Remember, I'll be there at eleven to bring you home, okay? And keep your phone on,” I say as I stuff the note in my back pocket.
“Yes, big brother of mine,” she says sarcastically and sighs.
“Don't start,” I say sternly, my eyes narrowed at her. “I can still change my mind, you know.”
She mouths the words 'sorry' and leaves me a kiss on the cheek.
“See you later!” she says with excitement after confirming that I have yet to change my mind and walks out the door, rushing to the blue Honda parked in front of the house.
“Jessie, keep an eye on her for me?” I ask in a taunt tone.
“Sure,” she says and runs out to the car and gets in.
I watch them pull off to the street and I close the door, locking it.
God, I hope she doesn't do anything stupid at that party. I find myself shaking my head and eagerly waiting for the clock to strike eleven.
Chapter 4
Glancing over the address as I drive around trying to find the party, I drive into a somewhat decent neighborhood, and I turn a few corners before finally arriving to the street court where the house is at.
Pulling up in my black 2001 Ford Mustang to this small, but modern built house. Looking at the clock on the radio, I think back to the day I got this car. It was my 17th Birthday when my mom gave it to me. She once told me that our Aunt had been wanting to give it to me. I remember when it was a burgundy color and kind of banged up from her car accident. Mom told me it was the same car but with a nice paint job and fully restored interior. Hell it looked like new to me the day I got it, been taking care of it since. My phone alarm goes off reminding me Leanne's party time is almost up, snapping me out of my flashback, I look across the street at the house in front of me. The outside is a light yellow or white. I can't really tell from it being dark. There are three windows in the front and a white fenced porch with a few white steps to enter. Kids are surrounding the outside of it, standing on the lawn drinking and laughing. I can hear the music from the inside all the way out here. I'm surprised no one has called to complain about it to the police. Switching off my engine, I get out of my car, shutting the door behind me. I glace down at my phone for the time and the digital clock hits eleven. Right on time. I walk through the grass badly in need of maintenance, searching through the crowd of people. I hope to pick out Leanne, and after a few moments of doing so, it's clear she isn't out here and so I decide to head inside the house to have a look.
When I walk in, the music is blaring much louder than from being outside. Red and blue lights are flashing like it is some kind of dance club. The room is so heavily filled with smoke that I can barely make out any faces. It's like walking into a thick misty fog in here. I walk around the passed out bodies on the couch and floor, stepping over the broken bottles, picture frames, and empty cans of beer scattered all over the room. Turning to the left, I spot Leanne's friend Jessie and I head over to her after kicking a can out of my way.
“Jessie!” I say as I tap on her shoulder, trying to talk over the loud music.
“Hey!” she replies as she spins around in her seat to face me. She looks fucked up drunk. Damn, how many drinks did she have?
“Where's Leanne?” I ask.
“I don't know. I think she might have left already.” Her words are slurred as she starts to lean a little, drink in her hand tipping over and spilling onto the floor.
“I told you to keep and eye on her. And she couldn't have left. I'm here to pick her up, Jessie.” I say as my eyes narrow at her and my voice low and rough. She doesn't even fucking notice how annoyed I am with her.
“Well... Maybe she's still around,” she says with a shrug and goes back to sipping on her drink.
“I sure fucking hope so.” I am fuming, hands and jaw clenched and my brows furrowed, not that Jessie even notices. Damn! I knew I shouldn't have asked her to watch Leanne. She can't even take care of her damn self, I scold myself, feeling regretful.
I walk around the rest of what I think is the living room slowly then head down the dimly lit hallway, knocking on doors and taking a peek inside them. When I finally reach the last door in the hallway, I tap on it gently with my knuckle and leaning my ear to the door. I faintly hear some moaning sounds and, scrunching my eyebrows with confusion, I reach for the knob slowly and open it. Peeking inside, the room is fully lit with soft music playing in the background. That is when I see a girl in a purple shirt laid up underneath a guy.
What. The. Fuck.
I immediately storm inside in a fit of rage, grabbing the guy’s shirt and throwing him off the bed, onto the floor.
“Get off my fucking sister!” I roar as I stand over him, ready to beat him down.
“Oh my god!” the girl says as she crawls off the bed and backs up to the corner of the room, pulling her shirt down to cover up her panties. It was then that I realized I made a mistake.
I run my hands through my buzz cut hair and realize that it is not Leanne. Fuck! I step back at the doorway and the guy I pulled off is sitting on the floor, groaning in pain as he glances up at me.
“I'm so sorry.... I- I thought-” I begin in a breathy tone and leave the room feeling embarrassed.
I begin to feel a little agitated as I pull out my cell phone and dial Leanne's number. It rings several times before going to voice mail, which only makes me annoyed and more agitated than before, but still I leave a message for her.
“Leanne, I'm here to pick you up at the party. If you were going somewhere else, you should have fucking told me. Call me when you get this.”
I click the end button on my phone and sigh to myself. I continue to look around the room for a few more moments before finally taking a seat at a vacant bar stool. I take a deep breath and exhale as I stare down at my phone, hoping for a call back from her.
“Collin!” I hear someone say my name from behind me. I turn around and Brandon is running towards me. I thought he would be happy to see me and will give me information on Leanne, but as he gets closer, I can read the worry and fear written on his f
ace. His eyes are wide and he keeps looking back over his shoulder as if someone is following him. For a moment, my heart beats quickly as I wonder if it has anything to do with Leanne.
“What's up?” I ask, my heart jumping in my chest as I wait in anticipation for him to spit out his words...
“Someone just smashed the side windows on your car, Collin!” With this, he leans over, resting his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
“What?! You're lying.” I look over him in disbelief, shaking my head.
“N-No, no I'm not. Go look,” he stutters, but he lifts his hand and uses his index finger to point towards the door.
“The fuck?” I say under my breath and immediately get up from my seat, pushing Brandon out of the way to head outside.
A crowd has formed around my Mustang, murmuring to themselves about my car. I push them out of the way to get through. “What the hell!” I yell out as I grab the top of my head with both hands in frustration. “Which one of you mother fuckers did this?” I demand as I spin around.
Nobody answers me and it only pisses me off even more, so much more that I'm ready to knock someone the hell out. I gather myself and open the car door to look inside, quickly searching inside, but nothing seems to be missing or tampered with. Who the fuck smashes in windows and not take anything? I lean down to check my tires and they all seem fine, no holes and no slashes. I shake my head, feeling a little relived that it is only my side windows.
“Hey, are you okay?” Brandon asks as he pats my back gently, knowing my pain.
I stand back up. “Ye- Yeah, I'm fine. You didn't see anything?” I ask him, confused.
“No, I just saw your car busted up,” he shrugs, looking away. He can’t quite meet my eyes as he takes in the damage.
“Damn... Okay.” I say with disappointment. I look in my car a little more and spot a folded yellow piece of paper on the passenger seat. I tilt my head to one side wondering why I didn't see that before, but still, I pick it up to read it:
We got what you want. Come and get it.
Who the hell wrote this? I can't think of anyone who would hate me or have a problem with me. Was it that guy I tossed on the ground? But wasn't he in the room with that chick when I left? I think back and realize he was, everything getting lost, jumbled, and shaken up in my mind. Shaking my head, I fold up the note and put it in my pocket, hoping it was just a prank that no one wants to own up to. With a sigh, I swipe all the broken glass off the seat as I climb in.
“What's that you found?” Brandon asks me as he places a hand on the door, stopping me from closing it.
“Nothing.” My answers are short and I know it sounds like I am cross, but I start up the engine
“You going home?” he asks me with his eyebrow raised.
“No, I'm going to try to find Leanne,” I plainly state as I jerk the door out of his hand and slam it shut.
“With your windows busted up?”
I roll my eyes.
“Yes, right now. I don't give a crap about my windows. I just need to find my damn baby sister. I swear to God if this is one of her jokes I'd-” I pause, sigh, and then close my eyes as I try to gather my thoughts.
“Where do you think could she be?” he questions.
“I have no idea. I asked Jessie to keep an eye on her, but I guess she was too busy getting drunk.”
“Yeah, that's Jessie for ya,” he smirks as he looks back at the house.
“I just need to find Leanne. Will you let me know if you ever hear from her?” I ask, my voice flat, but I know he realizes I am in a panic just by the look in my eyes.
“Yeah, no problem,” he nods.
“And let her know that I'm looking for her and tell her to give me a call and get her ass home as soon as possible?” I add.
“You got it.” He steps in front of my car and pats the hood, letting me know that he understood and would comply.
“Thank you,” I nod and pull off onto the street, turning a dark sharp corner.
God, I hope she goes home, and she's not out fooling around with some boy that she does not want me to know about.
Chapter 5
So far, I have been spending the last few hours roaming the streets of Berkeley, California. There is no sign of Leanne anywhere and it's making me sick to my stomach. Where the fuck could she be? I think to myself. I decide to give up for the rest of the night and head on home with high hopes of her being there.
When I finally reach the house, I slam my car door and bolt inside.
“Leanne! You home?!” I call out for her as I toss my keys on the kitchen counter. “Leanne?!” I shout out once more, but there’s still no answer.
I walk around the living room briefly and then into the kitchen. I start to get more worried than ever as I quickly sprint up the stairs and run down the hallway into her room. She's not in here either. The bed the way she left it, neatly made in her perfect clean room. Her blinds and curtains are open with the moonlight shining through, bouncing off the pink walls. I walk over to her window and shut her curtains and head out of her room, closing the door behind me.
I grow more and more frustrated with each second that passes. I run my hands through my hair once more then I scream at the top of my lungs, throwing my head back as I do. I don't know what else to fucking do and this shit is making me lose my damn mind. I pace up and down the hallway a few times, trying to think where could she have gone to? Does it have something to do with the note? I pull out the note and read it over several times, trying to figure out whose handwriting it is, but I can't.
I walk slowly to my room and sit at the end of my bed as I continue to scan over the words.
We got what you want. Come and get it.
What do they have that I want?
I sigh and lie down on my bed and stare up to the ceiling. Shutting my eyes as I am reminded of what mom said to me on her deathbed. The hospital room she was in was cold and she couldn’t eat the food. At that moment, I can see her glowing blue eyes, pale skin, and her messy dark hair. I hate to remember her that way, but can't help it since that was the last time I saw her alive at least. I think back to what she said to me before she died, her voice so soft and so caring. Her love was warm and her words will stay with me forever.
I need you to take good care of Leanne for me, please. Also... Collin, I need you to please get out of that gang you're in. Please change your life for the better, Leanne is going to need you more than ever now, baby. Get a job, go to school, anything but being in that gang.
Her touch was still so soft even though she was slipping away. I take a deep breath as I open my eyes and tears runs down my cheek. I wipe it away with my finger and sniffle slightly.
Moments later, I feel my phone vibrate in my pants pocket, I sit up immediately and pull it out. The name on the screen lights up Leanne in white letters. My body overcomes with relief.
I answer it.
“Leanne!” I say as I sit back up feeling a little overwhelmed. “Where the fuck are you?!”
“Oh, this isn't Leanne, sweetheart,” a soft female voice plays over the phone.
“What? Who the fuck is this?” I say, confused.
“Awww. Are you not out looking for your beloved baby sister, Collin?” she says in the creepiest bitchy way possible.
“Who. The. Hell. Is. This?” I am way too annoyed for this as I clutch my phone, scared that I’m going to break it before I get answers.
“How soon we forget?” she says sarcastically and my eyes grow wide as I begin to figure out who it is. Kristen.
“The fuck? Is this who I think it is?” I ask, hoping my mind is dead wrong.
“Yes, yes it is. Did you miss us, baby?” her fucking overly sarcastic voice and her bitchy tone makes my skin crawl.
“Please tell me you do not have Leanne.” I sit up straighter as I wait for an answer and I’m scared that my voice will crack, giving away how scared I am.
“As a matter of fact, we do.” I can sense the smile o
n her face right at that moment and I sigh.
“What do you want?”
“Oh, I think you already know the answer to that. And just to let you know, if you don't fucking come back, your so called “sweet, perfect life” you have now, will get twisted upside down and we'll have to make little miss Leanne your replacement.” I can picture it now. I can see her holding Leanne’s phone while having one hand on her hip, eyes gleaming and white teeth gleaming.
“No, no you can't do that, Kristen. She’s not me!” I yell out, hoping that no one will complain about the noise.
She chuckles softly. “Like I said, she will unless you come back. Keep. An. Eye. Out. And watch your back at all times, baby,” her words slow and stern.
“KRISTEN I-”
She hangs up before I can get another word in. “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” I yell out in anger and immediately stand up, slamming my fist into the wall in front of me and leaving a gaping hole in it.
I huff and leave my room, heading back downstairs. I blot back to the kitchen and scramble through the drawers and cabinets. Where the fuck is it? Where's my fucking gun? I think to myself as I keep looking through the kitchen. My god, I don't even know when the last time I used it. I knew I should have brought it with me to the damn hospital the night I was shot, but I didn't. I really didn't think I needed to. Fuck. My. Life.
I march back upstairs and into my room again and I quickly search through my dresser and nightstand drawers, then in my closet. I stand there for a moment, trying to think back if this is where I put it or did I hide it so I would never see it again. Hell, maybe I threw it in the fucking lake somewhere. I put my hands on my face and take a few steps back as I think harder of where I might have put my gun and then it hits me. THE SAFE! I run out of my room, downstairs, and into the garage where I switch on the light and walk over to the safe sitting in the corner. I kneel down in front of it and type the password, watching the light beep red. Fuck, what is the password?
I think to myself for a few seconds and finally figure it out. I type in Leanne's birthday digits 12,25,1995 and the light goes green and it clicks. I open the door slowly and in there lays my I-Ten gun. I take it out looking it over and cock it open, seeing that it is fully loaded. I run my fingers through on the side of it and my mind races back on all the times I used this. I injured so many people and killed some too. My heart pounds as I think back even further to all the shit I did; breaking in houses, stealing cars, selling drugs, and beating the shit out of people who owed me money. I shake my head as I stare down at the weapon in my hand.
Initiation: A Novella (Initiation Trilogy Book 1) Page 3