Rebel With A Cause

by Ashleigh Neame

  Carter looked down at the ground. “So, what are we gonna do then?”

  Another female voice interrupted them. “Katie, what exactly did De do to you?”

  Carter sighed. He guessed it was time to finally let someone else in on their secret. Especially since that someone was his baby cousin, who would be living with them for a while.

  He led the girls back inside, and sat them down on the sofa.

  “Carter?” Bekah asked. “What’s going on?”

  He sighed and let out a deep breath. He sat down on the matching armchair, rested his elbows on his knees, and clasped his hands.

  “De attacked Katie,” he confessed heavily.

  “What!” Bekah yelled. “How? When?”

  He locked eyes with Katie, who had tears running down her cheeks. He looked back at Bekah.

  “After we broke up, Katie didn’t handle it too well. She went off with De…” It was hard for Carter to continue talking about what happened. He still blamed himself, reasoning that if he had never been the jerk that he was, none of this would have happened.

  “De attacked me,” Kaitlyn interrupted. “I stupidly went off with him, and when he tried it on…I told him no, but he did it anyway.”

  Bekah gasped. “Why didn’t you tell anyone? Did you call the cops? Why didn’t you call the cops?”

  Kaitlyn looked away. She was ashamed. Yes, her nightmares were becoming less frequent, but she still felt dirty, and worthless. Talking about De made it worse.

  She curled her legs up under her body and hugged a pillow to her chest.

  “I don’t know. But I know De needs to be taken down. He needs to be locked up, and they need to throw away the key. He’s scum.”

  Bekah was at a loss for what to say. She was usually a quick thinker, cunning and witty. But now, she felt like she’d been bowled over.

  She, who was a street racer herself, failed to see the dangerous freak that De was.

  “I can’t believe it,” she muttered. She didn’t want to believe it. But there was no reason not to believe Carter and Kaitlyn. Carter never lied to Bekah, ever. He was like a big brother, always wanting to protect everyone. He was honest, unless he was protecting someone. Bekah had to believe him.

  And Kaitlyn! Kaitlyn was like a sister already, why should she lie to Bekah?

  She had no option but to believe them.

  “We need to figure out a way to get him locked up,” Katie said quietly. “Or at least to stop him.”

  “We’re gonna need help for that Katie,” Carter replied sourly. “Where are we gonna find people that we can trust?”

  Bekah looked at him like he was insane. “Hello? You have friends, do you not?”

  Carter looked sideways at her. “Bekah, they’re street racers. De was one of my best friends, but look what happened.”

  Kaitlyn looked at the floor and began wringing her hands. “T-Man would help. So would Marcus. And even Alec might help. He’s part of the inner sanctum.”

  Carter closed his eyes heavily, like he was in pain. “I don’t even know Alec, Katie. Why should I trust him?”

  “You can still trust T-Man and Marcus though!” Bekah yelled. “You have friends! You don’t need to shoulder everything yourself, Carter. You’ve been doing it for years, ever since your parents died. It needs to stop. Katie and I are your family now, and T-Man is like a brother. I know you don’t like Marcus, but he’s my boyfriend, and I know he was Katie’s. He still cares for her, so I know he’ll wanna help.”

  Carter growled. “Marcus is a tool. You may wanna be around him, but I’m not letting him anywhere near Kaitlyn. He used her to get revenge on me, and now he’s using you!”

  Kaitlyn had had enough. “STOP!” she screamed. “Just stop fighting!”

  Carter and Bekah stopped their bickering immediately. They turned and looked at Kaitlyn, who was on her feet, cheeks red and a bitter, twisted expression. She was almost snarling.

  “Get this through your thick head, Carter,” she snapped. “Bekah is right. You need to let T-Man and Marcus in on this. They will help, I’m sure of it. You don’t need to include Alec, but you do need to include those two. They are friends, they’re not like De. Stop trying to take him down alone, you’ll only get hurt.”

  She stopped talking, pressed her lips into a thin line, and then collapsed into the other armchair. She puffed out a big breath, and watched Carter carefully.

  He stared back at her for a moment, before storming out of the house. He grabbed his car keys on the way out, and they soon heard his car start up, and his tyres squeal as he sped out of the driveway.

  “He’s an idiot,” Kaitlyn finally said. “He’s going to get hurt if he tries to take that madman on, alone.”

  Bekah shrugged. “I know, but until he realises that, we’re gonna have to operate on the down low.”

  Kaitlyn cracked a wry smile. “‘Operate on the down low’? What are we, spies now?”

  Carter barged into De’s house in a rage. He’d seen De arrive home, and now he wanted a fight.

  “Hey!” he yelled, searching the house for De. “Deangelo! Come out you bastard!”

  He kept slamming doors, until he heard a shrill, girlish scream of terror.

  “De!” he yelled angrily. He ran towards the screams. He was unsurprised to see that the source of the screams was Aria, De’s latest girlfriend.

  “No!” she screeched. “Stop!”

  He heard De growl. “Shut it. You wanna be with me? Will this is part of the deal.”

  Carter watched in horror as De put his hands around her throat, and quickly snapped into action. He hauled De off her and slammed him against the wall.

  This time, Carter wasn’t taking any mercy. He slammed his right fist into the side of De’s face, holding him off the ground with his left hand.

  “You’re TRASH!” he bellowed. “TRASH!”

  He kneed De in the family jewels and let him fall. There was a sickening crack as De landed on his kneecaps.

  Carter didn’t waste any time. He punched De in the stomach and laughed humourlessly as De collapsed on the ground. He then proceeded to kick De in the ribs.

  Not one to waste any time, De grabbed Carter by the ankle and pulled him off balance. Carter fell to the ground and De rolled on top, straddling him. He punched Carter in the face over and over again.

  Aria’s screams were deafening. She wanted to run, but was paralysed in fear, unable to get out of there. She just watched in horror as the man she was dating beat another guy for fun.

  “Bastard,” Carter choked on the floor. “Katie and Bekah know I’m here. If I don’t come home, they’ll ring the cops.”

  De laughed. “You think the cops will seriously look for a law-breaking eighteen year old when he hasn’t been missing for 24 hours? Get real.”

  Carter tried not to look at Aria. “We have a witness.”

  “So I’ll get rid of her, too.”

  Carter wouldn’t admit it, but he was terrified. De was crazy – no, he was worse than crazy. He was insane. Carter knew that De wouldn’t hesitate to kill him, as well as Aria.

  This gave him the strength to fight. He had to get back to Kaitlyn, and save Aria at the same time.

  He threw De off of him and climbed on top. De wrestled for control, but Carter had excessive amounts of adrenaline flowing through his veins. He was too strong for De.

  He wrapped his hands around De’s neck, holding him there while he struggled. Eventually, De’s struggles grew feebler and weaker, and Carter grinned. He loosened his hands a tiny bit and bashed De’s head on the hard floor. De went still.

  Climbing off him, Carter saw that De was still breathing. Good, he thought. De was still breathing, so Carter hadn’t killed him – yet.

  He walked over to De’s girlfriend, Aria, and noticed her trembling. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in for a brief hug.

  “Come on,” he whispered. “I’ll get you out of here. You can come and stay with me and my fami
ly for a while.”

  Aria was unable to comprehend the situation. She just nodded meekly and followed him.

  When they were in the car, she whispered, “Thank you.”

  Chapter 18

  Carter burst through the door with a crying Aria in his arms. In the car, while they were racing away from a knocked out De, she had broken down in tears, unable to contain her terror anymore.

  Kaitlyn and Bekah were at the table with T-Man and Marcus, along with Marcus’ brother Brady.

  Carter flashed an angry look at his cousin and his girlfriend, before depositing Aria on the sofa.

  “What happened?” Kaitlyn asked, shocked. She came over to the sofa and crouched down by Aria’s head.

  Carter looked down at Aria. “De happened.”

  She frowned and looked at Carter. He wouldn’t meet her eyes.

  Bekah got up from the table and grabbed a tea towel from a kitchen cupboard. She wet it with cold water, and placed it over Aria’s forehead.

  “Hey,” she soothed. “It’s going to be ok. De can’t hurt you here.”

  Kaitlyn and Bekah shared a look. Kaitlyn’s eyes were wide in terror, and Bekah looked concerned.

  Kaitlyn looked away and crouched next to Aria’s head.

  “Hey,” she said quietly. “Aria.”

  Carter stroked Aria’s hair. “Aria,” he whispered. “Aria, come on. It’s ok. De’s not here. You’re safe.”

  Carter hated lying. Aria was not safe. De was a menace, and if he wasn’t stopped soon, he’d end up hurting someone else. He was one hundred percent sure that no one in his house wanted De to hurt anyone else ever again.

  Aria continued to sob wordlessly. Carter sighed.

  “What are we gonna do?” he asked. “We can’t just leave her like this.”

  Katie bit her lip, tears forming in her eyes. She blinked them away and composed herself.

  “Put her in the spare bedroom,” she ordered. “Someone can keep watch over her, while the rest of us stay out here and think about what to do about De.”

  Carter picked her up, wincing when he put strain on his injuries. “Who should it be?”

  Kaitlyn looked out the window, before flicking her eyes up to meet Carter’s.

  “It should be you,” she said. “Aria knows you. You were there for her, you stopped De. You should be the one to stay with her.”

  She avoided his eyes, leaving Carter wondering what the hell was going on with her. She seemed distant, and he didn’t like that. He wanted to protect her. He wanted to reach out and hug her, carrying her away from the mess that was part of their life.

  Kaitlyn walked away, disinterested in what Carter had to say. She just wanted to bring De down, and get on with her life. For that, she needed Carter, but she wasn’t in the mood to talk to him right now.

  “Katie,” he said quietly. “I love you.”

  She shrugged. “We just need to focus on the task at hand.”

  He looked down at Aria, whose face was drenched in tears, and walked her to the bedroom.

  Kaitlyn sat down at the table and sighed.

  “Right, where were we?” she asked, pulling a notepad towards herself.

  Marcus looked at Kaitlyn. From what he could see, she was hurting. She looked lonely, and not up to having Aria in the house.

  “Katie, can I talk to you for a second?” he asked. “In private?”

  She sighed, pushed her notepad away and followed Marcus outside. They sat down on the edge of the deck, where no one could see them.

  “Are you ok?”

  She sighed and rested her head on her arms, and her arms on her legs. “I don’t know,” she sighed.

  Marcus rubbed her back. “It’s bringing it all back, huh?”

  She was quiet for a moment. “In a way.”

  “Care to explain?”

  She looked at Marcus. “It’s just…Carter was there for Aria. He saved her. No one was there to save me.”

  Marcus sighed. He pulled her in for a hug and kissed the top of her head. “I’m sorry.”

  She sniffed and pulled away. She raised a hand to her face and dashed away the few tears that threatened to spill. “Why?” she choked. “It’s not your fault.”

  He gave her a small squeeze and rubbed her arm. “I know. But I’m sorry all the same.”

  She sighed. “I suppose we should get back in there.”

  He shrugged. “Or we could stay out here, away from everyone, just chilling.”

  “I doubt your girlfriend would be pleased.”

  He laughed. “Bekah’s cool, Katie. She knows we have a history, and she knows we’re friends. She also knows that things between me and her aren’t serious. We’re just having fun.”

  She gave a small smile. “You are such a liar.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. I’m not lying. Bekah and I aren’t serious.”

  She shrugged his arm off. “I think we should get back in there.”

  She stood up, and he grabbed her hand. “Katie, think about it. You don’t need to go back in there. You can just leave; I’ll take care of everything.”

  She shook her head. “No, I can’t. I can’t forget it while it’s happening to other girls. That’s something you never understood about me.”

  She pulled her hand out of his and walked back inside.

  “Hey,” she said flatly. “So, what are we gonna do?”

  Carter sat in the spare bedroom on the floor, watching Aria. She was either sound asleep or passed out.

  Staring at her, he wondered why Kaitlyn had been so weird when he brought Aria home. Isn’t this what Kaitlyn wants? he asked himself.

  He shook his head. He didn’t know what the hell was going on. One minute she was fine, wanting to protect Aria, and the next, she was being awkward. It just didn’t make sense.

  The door opened and he looked up to see Bekah walking in, a glass of water in her hand.

  “Here,” she said, holding it towards him. “Thought you might be thirsty.”

  He took the glass and drained it in one scull. He then held the empty glass in one hand and stared into it, as if it held all of life’s answers.

  “Ok, what’s wrong?” Bekah asked, sliding down the wall to sit next to him.

  He sighed. “Nothing.”

  She shook him in good humour. “Come on dude, what’s wrong?”

  He stared into the glass. “What’s up with Katie?”

  Bekah sighed. “It’s complicated, Carter.”

  “I’ve got time.”

  Bekah looked at her cousin moment, before grabbing one of his wrists and rubbing soothing circles on it with her thumb. “It’s the fact that you saved Aria.”

  He frowned and looked at Bekah. “But she wanted to save Aria.”

  Bekah shook her head. “It’s the fact that you saved Aria, but you didn’t save her.”

  Carter was immediately defensive. “What the hell? Why is she blaming me? I didn’t even know that De was gonna hurt her! I didn’t know he’d attack her! How is it my fault?”

  Bekah slapped him. “It’s not that Carter! She doesn’t blame you. If she blames anyone, it’s herself. She didn’t take your warning seriously. But that’s not the point. The point is, you saved Aria-“

  “Because Kaitlyn wanted me to!” he interjected angrily.

  Bekah pulled on his ear. “Shut up and let me finish.”

  He pulled away, shutting up and nursing his sore ear.

  “The point is,” Bekah repeated, “you saved Aria. But no one was there to save Kaitlyn. She had to deal with it on her own, and she feels even more alone, knowing that Aria is here, in this house, getting all the support that Kaitlyn needs. Aria has all of us, Carter. But Kaitlyn has no one.”

  “She has me!”

  Bekah sighed again. “Don’t make me slap you again,” she warned.

  He shut up and scowled.

  “Kaitlyn doesn’t have you Carter, not completely. She needs your help; she needs a hug. And yet here you are, alone in a be
droom with Aria, and not out there with your girlfriend.”

  “Kaitlyn wanted me to be here!”

  Bekah dragged her face down her hands. “Ugh, Carter, you are so frustrating! You should have said no, or that you’d be out there, with her, when Aria fell asleep. You just don’t understand, Carter, and now Katie feels more alone than ever. She needs someone to love her, Carter, but she can’t tell her parents, so all she has is you.”

  Back in the lounge, no one was talking about De. The latest mundane topic was the latest episode of a pathetic new Australian TV show.

  The mindless chatter was getting ridiculous.

  “Guys, what the hell are we doing here?” she asked, exasperated. “We’re supposed to be thinking about ways to stop De, not discussing crappy TV shows.”

  Brady smirked. “I agree.”

  Kaitlyn felt glad he agreed. It was nice to have a sort of comrade-in-arms.

  Bekah came back into the living area, washed the empty glass in the sink, and sat next to Katie.

  “I think we should leave this to the cops,” Bekah confessed. “We’ve had enough trouble because of De. Let’s just tell them what’s going on, and leave it up to them.”

  Kaitlyn was outraged, and Brady snorted.

  “Yeah, like the cops will be able to do anything,” he scoffed. “They don’t do shit.”

  “Brady’s right,” Kaitlyn blurted. “The cops can’t do anything. It’s too late, and if we go to them now, Carter will end up in jail, Brady will be sent back to prison, and De will get off scot free.”

  “Not to mention, the cops play by the rules, and criminals don’t,” Marcus piped in. “De will outplay the police, and he’ll go free. We need to do this ourselves, but keep it on the down low.”

  “Impossible,” Bekah replied stubbornly. “There’s no way we can do that. We’ll get caught.”

  “No, we won’t,” Carter interrupted. Everybody looked up to see him standing in the doorway, arms folded across his chest.

  Bekah tried to reason with her cousin. “Carter, of course we will. De’s too smart for us.”

  “De’s only one person,” Carter said evenly. “There are six of us. Seven if you count Aria.”