They all know Dax and I have fucked her. She was supposed to be ours. We got to pick who we wanted, and she was it.
Law chuckles.
“You think that’s funny?” His father arches a brow.
“We’ll take care of it,” I assure him, getting back on track.
Silence falls over the room before my father lets out a huff. “If you’re going to do this. I want it done under the radar.” I just stare at him. “I mean it, Ryan. No talking to her at school. Don’t even look her fucking way. She does not exist to you while around anyone who isn’t present in this room.”
I roll my eyes. “That’s a little unreasonable.”
“Ryan ...”
“It’ll have to be public.” Rellik agrees with me.
“Wouldn’t that be the ultimate slap in the face?” I add, to get my point across. “For everyone to see her hanging around with the man she accused of rape and murder?” My eyes slide to Dax’s for a quick second. “To see her fucking the very men she turned on?” I’m reaching. I’m not a hundred percent sure how we’ll be able to get her in bed with us. But one thing I know for a fact is that none of us are rapists. We will not force her, but something tells me we won’t have to. And even if she won’t do it, it sure as hell will look like it.
The room falls silent, letting the weight of what I said sink in. No one believed her. I don’t know what Dax did to Henley for her to say what she did on that stand, but I’m going to find out. That’s one thing I will force out of her. One way or another, Henley will confess she lied and beg us for the forgiveness she will never get. And I will make sure that the world sees that when it happens.
Chapter Four
HENLEY
DAY TWO AT school has gone just like day one. The only person speaking to me is Jamie. The boys ignore me completely. Even Dax sat in a different seat today in third period—far away from me.
They’re buying their time. I know it, and a part of me is relieved.
I’m having problems trying to figure out how to get into their good graces. How to get close to them again to get to the truth. It’s going to get dirty, and I’m okay with that. Some things are worth sacrificing, and my dignity will be one of them. Once I out that sorry son of a bitch, the town will see me as a hero. And every bad rumor spread about the poor orphan will be silenced.
I’m sitting alone at a table in the cafeteria when Jamie plops down beside me. “Today has been one hell of a day. Is it over yet?” She blows some hair from her face.
“I wish,” I mumble, taking a bite of my cheeseburger.
She rolls her eyes, opening a can of Dr. Pepper.
I look up to see Scout and Dax enter the room. Dax has his right arm thrown over Cindy Shelton’s shoulders, and Scout is talking to Laney Willow. She has been trying to get into his pants for over a year now.
“They started fucking over the summer,” Jamie says, reading my mind.
I lower my eyes before either of them spot me looking. “I’m not surprised,” I say even though it makes my chest tightens. I thought we had something special, but we were only seventeen, and I was obviously an idiot.
“Don’t let it get to you. He’s been using girls ever since you left.”
I shrug her off. “I want nothing to do with him anymore.”
She places her hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay to still be in love with him, Henley. He didn’t do anything.”
My hand fists. He didn’t hurt me, but he also didn’t stick up for me. “I don’t love him,” I argue through gritted teeth. “I fucking hate them all.”
She drops it and starts to eat her sandwich.
I push my tray away, no longer having an appetite.
“What’s up, ladies?” A guy plops down across from us and starts to eat off my plate. His soft brown eyes meet mine. “Datson.” He reaches over the table to shake my hand. “You must be Henley.”
I take it and nod. “Do I even wanna know how you know who I am?”
His eyes slide over to Jamie, and she smiles.
I arch a brow. “You two dating?”
He laughs at that. “No. I’m her cousin.”
“Oh.”
“Yep, transferred here for my senior year. I’m staying with Uncle Bob and Aunt Jenny.”
Jamie’s parents. “Well, it’s nice to meet you.” I offer a soft smile.
He nods. “It sure is.” He shoves another bite of my food into his mouth. “There’s a party this weekend. You guys wanna go?”
“No,” Jamie rushes out. “We’ll skip this one.”
I look over at her. Her eyes go from mine to her cousin’s and then back to mine before they drop to her plate. Sure, I’m not a popular girl at the moment, but this is what I need. To get myself out there. To show that I’m not afraid of these bastards. A place to make my move.
“What?” I ask.
She lets out a sigh. “The party is at Dax’s house.”
I perk up. A party at his house? I’m not surprised. He used to have them all the time. That could be my in. But what will I do once I get inside? How will I dig around for clues when people are all over the place? I’m not even sure what the hell it is I’m looking for.
I look over at them sitting side by side at the head of the room. Rellik sits back in his seat with his eyes on his phone. Law sits next to him, stuffing his face. Laney is now perched on Scout’s lap. That’s where I used to sit. He’s whispering something in her ear, and she’s laughing. My eyes move to Dax, and he has his signature shades on. But I know he’s staring at me. I can feel it—a coldness seeps into my bones, making me shiver.
I’ve had five months to wonder what-ifs. And I realized that none of the scenarios in my head would come true. I’m going to have to force the truth out of him. And I’m going to have to spread my legs to do it. Men act stupid when they’re jealous. And no matter what I did to Dax, I know for a fact that Scout will throw a fucking tantrum if I touch another guy. But the problem is, no one here will even look at me. Except for one …
I look at Datson and give him a big smile. “We’ll be there.”
He knocks his knuckles on the table. “We’ll pick you up. Nine o’clock.” Then he stands and exits the cafeteria.
Jamie turns to me. “What the hell are you doing, Hen?”
“What must be done,” I answer truthfully, pulling my tray back toward me. All of a sudden, my appetite has returned.
“This isn’t the time for some personal vendetta,” she growls.
I ignore that. “What’s the story with Datson. He single?”
“Son of a bitch,” she whispers to herself. “You need to stay clear of them, Hen. Do you hear me?”
I take a bite of my fries since Datson ate my cheeseburger in four bites.
“Henley?” She grabs my shoulder and forces me to face her. “I’m serious.”
“I have it under control.”
Her eyes soften, and her shoulders sag. “Do you want to end up like her?”
My heart beats faster at her question. “What?”
Her eyes slide to the boys quickly before coming back to mine. I see that Scout and the bitch are making out. His hands are tangled in her blond hair while she grinds on his lap. I fight the urge to go over there and yank her from his lap. Instead, I turn my attention back to my friend. “That’s what will happen if you try anything with them. And … and I can’t lose you again. If you choose to walk away, I will respect that, but not like that. I don’t want them to hurt you like they did Brenda Nash.”
It’s the first time she’s admitted she believed me. That she thinks they all had a hand in it. It’s not farfetched because they are a team after all. They don’t do anything that the others don’t know about. I think that’s why Scout tried to warn me off. He knew what had happened and that no matter what I said, it wouldn’t hold up in court. Maybe he was trying to save me from being slaughtered by the town.
I swallow the fry and lump in my throat. “I didn’t think … you never acted like
…”
“You know I believed you.” She grabs my hands in hers, and tears build in her eyes. “You doubted me?” Her face scrunches in agony at my silence. “I’m sorry I ever made you think that. My father …” She swallows. “My father told me to keep my mouth shut and my opinion to myself, but I always knew you were telling the truth.”
Tears sting my eyes, and I pull her in for a tight hug. “Thank you.” I didn’t know how much I needed to hear that until now. I pull away. “I need to do this, Jamie. I won’t ask for your help or to get involved, but I can’t walk away from this. Please understand.”
She bites her bottom lip. “I know. You already went through this once on your own, though. I won’t let it happen again. Just tell me what to do.”
I take a deep breath. “I’m going to need your cousin. And a shit ton of alcohol.”
Scout
Saturday night, I sit in the basement. Dax sits to my right in a chair with a naked girl kneeling between his legs. His shirt lies next to her clothes, and his jeans are unzipped. Both of his hands are in her strawberry blond hair while she chokes on his cock.
On my left, Law’s smoking a blunt. He passes it to me, and I take a hit as the door opens, and Laney enters the room. She comes to stand in front of me, placing her hands on her hips. “I need to speak to you?”
I tilt my head and look her up and down. I’ve never liked her. She threw herself at me last year, and I turned her down. She knew I was fucking Henley. At the time, she belonged to us.
Our girl.
This bitch here wanted a piece of the pie. Wasn’t happening. But after everything went down and Henley left, I jumped all over it. Literally. Every chance I get. I saw the way Henley watched us earlier today in the cafeteria. We stayed back and observed, getting ready to make our move. I want to see what she does and how she reacts. She’s seemed laid-back for the most part. No one really talks to her other than Jamie. And that’s exactly how we want it.
“No one’s stopping you,” Law tells her.
“Privately,” she bites out, glaring down at me.
I take another hit and then blow it up into her face. Her eyes narrow. “Scout ...”
“Whatever you have to say, you can tell us all,” I inform her.
Her hands fist when I make no attempt to get up. “It’s about Henley.”
I’m not surprised. She’s a good little messenger without even knowing that’s the real reason I keep her around. She’s jealous of Henley and the time I gave her. And the rumors that had spread around the school about us and about what she was to us.
Laney lets out a sigh of annoyance when she understands I’m still not moving. “She’s upstairs with that freak Datson.”
Fuck! My fists tighten.
Dax pushes the girl off his dick and stands, buttoning his jeans, knowing we’re going up there. We’ve stood back to buy some time, but obviously, our time is up. No one touches her but us. No one fucks her but us.
Chapter Five
HENLEY
I SHOULD FEEL bad that I’m using Datson, but I’m not because I’ve had plenty to drink. I’m not sure if he took my advances as genuine or if Jamie gave him a heads-up, but at this point, it doesn’t matter. I’m willing to go as far as this needs to. I started making out with him on the couch in front of everyone. I wanted witnesses. Needed them. Then I stood, took his hand, and pulled him upstairs into a spare room. I specifically chose this room. For a moment, I thought about taking him to Dax’s, but I refuse to go down memory lane tonight. I have other plans.
I throw my shirt and unfasten my bra. His lips are on mine. His kiss is frantic with a little too much tongue, but I ignore it. I push down any comparison to Dax and Scout. I can’t let those feelings enter my mind at the moment.
“Henley …”
He pulls away from me, but I yank his lips to mine once again. I don’t need any dialogue to give him time to chicken out. We need to be up here for quite some time. And when we’re done, there needs to be evidence of what we spent our time up here doing.
I’m unbuttoning his jeans when the door swings open and hits the interior wall.
Datson turns around to see what the hell is going on, and he’s punched in the face.
“What the fuck?” I squeal. “Scout, what are you doing?” I cover my bare chest as Law and Dax enter. But there’s no Rellik.
Of course, Scout ignores me as he bends down and shoves a disoriented Datson out the door with a bloody nose.
Shit! I didn’t expect them to interrupt us. I just wanted them to hear the rumors come Monday at school. “You had no right ...”
He slams the door shut, caging me in here with them.
I swallow the panic that tries to surface. They won’t hurt me. Not here. Not while there are other students around. “Hand me my shirt,” I demand.
Dax leans down and picks it up before throwing it over his shoulder.
Motherfucker!
“Get the fuck out!” I scream even though this is what I wanted. I used Datson. I made a show downstairs right in front of Scout’s current fuck, knowing she’d run to him and rat me out. Such a good little bitch, she is.
Dax reaches behind him and locks the bedroom door. My heart starts to pound.
Scout advances on me. “Are you horny, Henley? All you have to do is ask us.” A cruel smile spreads across his face. It’s the first time I’ve heard his voice in five months. The sound of my name makes my thighs tighten even though the hairs stand on the back of my neck. “Get on your knees and beg us, baby.”
My stomach knots at his words. Us? It’s no longer about him and me anymore. They’ve done exactly what I expected them to do. They all want their own revenge. Attack one, they all attack you. I hate that they’re so predictable. I slap him across the face. “Fuck you!” I shout and try to shove him away from me, but he doesn’t move.
“You think that hurt me?” He tilts his head to the side, his dark brows creased. “I fight for fun. Your little slap won’t take me down.”
He’s right. I’m not strong enough to knock his ass out. And it’d be three against one, so I wouldn’t have a chance. I try another tactic. One that would only work with him. Or at least that’s what I tell myself. Really the alcohol and closeness of him are making my chest hurt with betrayal. “I loved you.”
His body stiffens against mine, and his face goes hard as stone. Tears prick my eyes because the words were true. I loved them all. But Scout? He was the one for me. He was the one that I would do anything for.
“Yeah, I loved you too,” he admits after a long second. His eyes skim over my body, and he pulls his lip back in disgust. “But you chose to betray us.” He turns to walk away, and I refuse to let him have the last word. I didn’t show up here for nothing tonight.
I grab his arm and yank him back to me while my free arm is across my chest, covering my exposed boobs. “I did the right thing.”
He places his hands on the wall, caging me in. He pushes his body into mine, pinning my back to the wall. “Was it the right thing?” he demands. “It cost you everything, Henley.”
I swallow.
“Your friends. Your reputation.”
“You know I don’t care about that.” I’ve never cared much what people think of me.
“And me,” he whispers as if it hurt for him to say it.
My chest tightens. “Scout ...”
“I was the biggest price you paid, Henley. Do you regret it?” He runs his knuckles down my right cheek.
My thighs tighten, and my breathing picks up. “I never wanted to lose you,” I admit shamelessly. Out of all of them, I thought he would back me up, would believe me, but I was wrong.
His hand lowers to my throat, I pant as he wraps his fingers around me and squeezes in a warning. Then he runs his thumb over my jaw and slowly over my lips.
He leans in, and I close my eyes, unable to look at him anymore. A tear runs down my cheek before I feel his soft lips gently kiss mine. It’s a lover’s kiss—
tender and a promise of forever—but we both know the truth.
I open for him, and he doesn’t hesitate. His tongue sweeps into my mouth, tasting me, and I kiss him back. But then he pulls away, leaving me panting. “You were ours before, Henley, and you’re ours now. But instead of loving you, we are going to destroy you.”
And with those words, they exit the room without a backward glance.
Chapter Six
HENLEY
TO SAY I’VE been nervous all weekend is an understatement. After Scout delivered the threat last night, I went home and drank some more. I tried to think of every scenario as to how they could destroy me. Honestly, I can’t think of any. They were my best friends, but it wasn’t like I lived a double life.
We were all just every-day high school kids. We went to parties and got drunk, sometimes high. I even did Molly every now and then, but that’s not anything that the other student body didn’t do.
The only difference today is that Jamie isn’t speaking to me. She’s pissed about Scout hitting Datson. I’m pretty sure he figured out I set him up. If he didn’t know, then Jamie filled him in.
I’m back to being alone.
I walk into the cafeteria to see the boys haven’t arrived yet. I pick an empty table, preparing to sit all alone when a girl by the name of Lacey sits across from me.
“Hi.” She smiles softly at me.
“Hey,” I mumble, playing with my strawberry Jell-O. I’m not in the mood to eat. That’s become the norm.
“It’s Henley, right?”
I snort. As if she doesn’t know who I am. Everyone does. The news made sure of that.
“I admire you standing up for that girl.”
My head snaps up to look at her.
She bows her head and sighs. “I hate what happened to her, but I hate it more that no one seemed to care where she ended up.”
“Did you know her?” I ask.
She nods. “She was my best friend.”
My eyes widen.
Bully Me: Class of 2020 Page 63