Unwritten Rules

by Eliah Greenwood

  “I won’t be doing that again anytime soon. Haven’t you heard? She’s been taken.”

  Tanner shrugged. “Really? Good news.”

  “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?” Haze tried to repress the burning anger building up inside of him.

  “Nah.”

  He quickly knew he was going to have to do this the hard way.

  “You know, I didn’t expect you to understand. You never truly cared about anyone.”

  Tanner frowned.

  “I mean, until Rose.”

  The reaction was immediate.

  He got up, his jaw clenched. “How the hell do you know about Rose?”

  “The same way I know you took Winter.”

  Tanner put up a fist, which Haze easily dodged. He took a swing at him, and Tanner crashed against the wall, his mouth bleeding. Tanner could never get used to his little brother surpassing him over the years.

  “So you know, since you’ve taken my girl—which isn’t really nice, by the way—I’ve thought about it and… it’s only fair that I take yours. What do you think?”

  Holding his brother up by the grasp he had on his clothes, Haze found himself wondering why he’d been so unlucky in the sibling department.

  “I’m going to make a deal with you. Return Winter to me and I’ll leave Rose alone, how about that?”

  “You wouldn’t dare touch her. You’re the nice one, brother.” Tanner said, revealing his bloodstained teeth.

  “Am I? Because I have people in front of her place right now waiting for my orders.”

  Tanner smiled as an answer. Haze groaned, his remaining self-control rapidly leaving him.

  “Rose and I are done. I don’t care anymore.”

  Haze grunted. “Why the hell are you doing this, Tanner? What do you expect to get out of this?”

  “I want my brother back. Not some mushy, whipped, weak version of him.”

  “You want your brother back? If you touch as much as a hair on her head, you’ll lose him forever, you hear me? Just return her to me safe and unharmed.”

  “Unharmed, huh? I’m afraid it’s a little too late for that.”

  Haze’s breath caught in his throat.

  “What did you do?”

  “Well, she was a problem. And you know what I do with problems…”

  He paused.

  “I get rid of them.”

  The punches Haze had taken at his brother in the past while training had always been somehow restrained. It wasn’t the real thing. But now, as he punched the heartless monster he had the misfortune of calling family, he wasn’t holding back. Not anymore.

  The only thing they had in common was blood.

  Tanner had made that clear.

  “She’s not dead. You’re lying,” he shouted, bombarding Tanner’s face with strikes. “Where is she?”

  “I told you, she’s dead. Not before I had something from her of course. She was a piece of work, but the sex was worth it.” Tanner smirked. “You should’ve heard her scream. She just wouldn’t stop, and it turned me on even more.”

  Haze felt sick to his stomach. The East Side could hear every hateful word escaping his brother’s mouth.

  “I can’t believe I’m going to say this,” Haze muttered under his breath. “Bootylicious!” he screamed at the top of his lungs.

  The East Side would probably kick the door in at any moment. They’d help him restrain Tanner and force him into revealing Winter’s whereabouts. It couldn’t possibly get any worse.

  “You fucking psycho.” Haze rammed his fist into Tanner’s jaw one last time.

  When the door was kicked in, a feeling of relief settled over Haze. Will, Kendrick, Blake, and Alex were coming to help him handle Tanner.

  “I’m sorry. I can’t let you do this,” a familiar voice said from behind him. Before Haze could turn around to identify the person who’d come bursting through the door, he collapsed heavily onto the hardwood floor with a thunk.

  He thought it was the end.

  But the needle entering his skin told him otherwise.

  There was no blood, no pain.

  Just darkness.

  N I N E T E E N

  Found

  WINTER

  I’ve always wondered what it would be like to freeze to death. Some say it’s like falling asleep or slowly slipping out of consciousness. Now that I’m cradling my knees against my chest and rocking back and forth in a pathetic attempt to warm myself up, I’m afraid I won’t have to wonder for much longer.

  In a way, this might be God doing me a favor. Taking me away before Ian decides what he wants to do to me.

  I’ve been crying in silence for the past five minutes, my stomach grumbling painfully. All hope is gone.

  Dead.

  Just like I will be… sooner or later.

  Slightly less awful kidnapper aka Man Number Two came back down alone shortly after Owen laid his disgusting hands on me. He removed my blindfold and disappeared back up the stairs in a hurry. I don’t know why he did it.

  My money is on guilt.

  I’m not even anywhere near figuring out where I am, the only source of light in the gloom of the basement coming from the small gap under the door at the top of the wooden staircase.

  One door.

  That’s the only thing standing between me and my freedom.

  “Drop him here,” a voice I believe belongs to the monster named Owen screeches.

  They’re back. I haven’t heard them talk or walk for the past thirty minutes. Where did they go?

  “What do we do with him?”

  “Tie him up before he wakes up. You have a couple minutes,” a slightly deeper voice replies.

  That’s a new one. There are three of them now. That voice… I’ve heard it before. But where?

  “What about the plan?” Owen asks.

  “We stick to it. He wasn’t supposed to figure it out this fast, but it’ll have to do. Make sure he stays quiet. We don’t need to draw attention to ourselves. I have to go. Don’t mess this up,” he threatens. “Oh, and one last thing, no blindfold. I want him to see everything.”

  Not long after, I hear a door closing.

  “Make sure he stays quiet.’ Like it’s that easy,” Owen says.

  Minutes pass.

  Man Number Two sighs. “There, he’s tied up.”

  “It doesn’t matter. He’s going to wake up and lose his mind. I don’t want to deal with this shit.”

  “What else are we supposed to do?” Man Number Two replies.

  “We throw his ass downstairs with her.”

  “But he said—”

  “Who cares? We’ll bring him back up before he returns. We both know he could’ve beaten the living hell out of that East Side kid if he wanted to. He’s going to find a way to escape. I say we play it safe and lock him up just to be sure.”

  “But—”

  “That’s freaking Haze Adams. Do you really want to deal with him?”

  My heart stops.

  Haze…

  Haze is here.

  I think I’ve never been more happy to hear this boy’s name in my entire life. Why did they take him? So many questions prowl back in forth in my mind.

  “Fine. But we bring him up before he comes back, and if we get in trouble, I’ll say it was your idea in a heartbeat, got it?”

  “Whatever.”

  They unlock the numerous latches, and the door swings open. I don’t move a muscle, my back facing them as the ropes continue to dig deeper into my skin. They throw his body down the stairs—not without complaining about how heavy he is first—and chuckle evilly.

  “There, go be with your girlfriend,” Owen says, mockery thick in his voice.

  I hear Haze groan in pain as soon as they go back to where they came from. I’m guessing getting thrown down the stairs was enough to release him from whatever sleeping drug is running through h
is veins. My heart pummels in my chest.

  “Fucking shit,” he mutters under his breath, wincing at what I’m pretty sure is a killer headache.

  I try and call out his name, but it comes out in a muffled sound, thanks to the tape covering my mouth.

  That’s when he sees me.

  “Winter?” He squints his eyes. “Oh my God.”

  He looks down at his hand and feet that are heavily tied up with zip ties. I’m guessing they ran out of ropes.

  “Hold on. I’m coming.” He tries to untie himself.

  I want to tell him that it’s no use, that he’s wasting his time, but when he pulls his hands up and bring them back down in a fast movement, snapping his hands against his legs, the zip ties break instantly.

  I can’t believe my eyes when he gets up from the ground and frees himself entirely. Did he just untie himself in less than five minutes when I’ve been struggling for hours?

  One more piece of evidence that he’s not human. He runs to me, kneeling down to my side. He unties me, we beat the kidnappers, and we escape.

  Just kidding, I’m still tied on the ground like a sausage.

  “Ouch.” I hear him run into something.

  The wall.

  “I can’t see shit in here.”

  Allow me to revise myself. Haze Adams is not human except when it comes to walking in the dark.

  He kneels down by my side. “It’s going to hurt.”

  I wince when he removes the tape from my mouth briskly. Tears come up to my eyes, but for the first time, they’re not only caused by pain. They’re happy tears. No matter what happens from this moment on, I know that it’ll be slightly less horrible. I know it’ll be okay.

  Because Haze is with me.

  “How did you do that?” I ask, staring at his now free hands.

  “I’ve been around a long time, Kingston.”

  He throws the ropes that used to hold me prisoner across the room and holds out his hand to me, which I accept. He helps me up. No matter how much I want to stand on my own two feet, my empty stomach and dehydrated body disagree. My knees give out, and I quickly feel myself falling backward. Instantly, he catches me, his strong arms circling my waist as he holds me against his chest.

  “I got you,” he whispers in a raspy voice, his breath fanning my lips. “Always.”

  When I manage to get a grip on my senses, my gaze connects with his and we’re back to being two kids sharing our secrets and biggest fears on a rooftop. For one fleeting second, I dare forget that we’re trapped in a basement, and the only thing I’m a prisoner of are Haze Adams’s eyes.

  I shake my head. “I’m fine.”

  “You’re not fine. We need to get you out of here. Fast.” He glances around the room the same way I did earlier.

  “Don’t bother. There’s only one way out.” I motion to the door. He turns his head, revealing bruises scattered under his left eye.

  “You didn’t get this from the fight. What happened to you?” I exhale, my fingers brushing over the marks on his skin. He softens at the touch, his shoulders relaxing. Then, like reality just came rushing back into his mind, he stiffens up again.

  “No time to explain. We need to get out of here. Long story short, we tapped the cell phone that was sending you the messages and—”

  “Wait, we?”

  “I’ve been working with your boys.”

  “No way. You and the East Side?”

  “What do you think we’ve been doing this whole time? Playing Uno? We’ve been looking for you.”

  For a guy who doesn’t care… he sure went to hell and back to find me.

  “Thank you,” I say, emotional. It might be the exhaustion, the hunger, or the fear of dying I went through for the past two days, but I can’t be mad at him anymore.

  He went against everything he believes in and helped his enemy… for me.

  “What? You didn’t think I’d let my texting buddy die, did you?” He musters a small smile.

  “I’ll admit, the basement and ropes gave me doubts for a second.” I find myself smiling, truly smiling, which I didn’t think was possible in a situation like this.

  “Did you find out who’s behind this?”

  “Yes.” His jaw tightens. “My brother.”

  “But… the text said…”

  “I know. Tanner set us up. We went over to Ian’s lair, looking for you. It was always his plan to send us on the wrong track. But he still wanted us to find you. Just not too fast.”

  I remember the words I heard earlier.

  “Tanner wanted you here, too. I heard him say it. He said he wanted you to see everything.”

  Haze clenches his fists. “I’m not even surprised. That’s some sick twisted shit, just the way he likes it.”

  His eyes light up in realization.

  “Wait. There’s a reason he didn’t do anything to you until now. They’re keeping you safe for when he’s ready. I have an idea to lure them in here. When they come, I’ll knock them out and find my leather jacket. They took it to make sure I didn’t have any weapons.”

  “Your jacket? Why?” I frown, praying he’s not seriously worried about fashion in a moment like this.

  “There’s a mic hidden in it. It’s connected to the East Side. All I have to do is let them know where we are.”

  I can tell from the way he purposefully avoids my eyes that he’s not telling me everything.

  “Haze, what is it?”

  He sighs. “I don’t know what happened to them. They were supposed to come and help me handle Tanner, but they never showed. Someone else did. The bastard got me from behind. I could’ve sworn…”

  Fear crumples my heart.

  “Sworn what?”

  He seems hesitant. “Never mind. It’s not important.”

  “Do you think they’re okay?”

  “Don’t worry, these pricks can defend themselves. We wouldn’t be in this mess in the first place if Kendrick was easy to get rid of.” His eyes meet mine. “Now, are you ready to get out of here?”

  I nod in determination. “I’ve never been more ready in my life.”

  “HELP. SHE’S DYING,” HAZE CRIES FOR the second time in a row as I lie on the stone-cold floor with my eyes closed. “Don’t pretend like you don’t hear me. She’s not moving. I think she fainted.”

  The wooden floor above our heads squeaks and distant voices reach our ears.

  “Damn it, go check it out.”

  “You go check it out,” Owen argues.

  “What? Why me?”

  “Because you’re a scared little bitch who doesn’t want to have to tell Tanner that the girl’s dead. That’s why.”

  “Fine,” Man Number Two scolds. “But next time’s on you.”

  Seconds before the door opens and lights invade the dark basement, Haze retreats to the darkest spot in the room and gets on the floor, bringing his fists and feet together. If we’re lucky, he won’t have time to notice the absence of zip ties on his skin. We’re relieved when we don’t hear Owen lock the door on the other side. They’re obviously not worried.

  Well, they should be.

  Man Number Two glares at Haze, irritated. “What the hell is your problem?”

  “She fainted and she’s not waking up. I’m pretty sure you don’t want her dying before my crazy pants of a brother says so.”

  With my back facing the opposite direction, I can’t see how close Man Number Two is to me—and to getting his skull kicked in—but I can feel one thing: his fear.

  “If you try anything, I’ll kill you right here, right now. With my bare hands and without hesitation, am I clear?” he tells Haze but I know he doesn’t mean it. He seems like the nice one to me. The guy who got swept in his friends’ messes and can’t back down anymore.

  “Oh for God’s sake, sure, whatever you say. Just help her.”

  The man hovers over me, leaning in to place a trembling hand on my shoulde
r. Just as he’s about to shake me awake, Haze makes it his pleasure to catch him by surprise and introduce him to his fist. He puts up a fight but doesn’t last long. Haze wasn’t lying when he said he’s been around a long time. He knew exactly where and how to hit him to silence him. The unprepared guy drops unconscious.

  “It’s now or never. Come on.” Haze motions for me to follow him, leading the way toward the stairs.

  Every step we take feels like the last one. Constantly looking over our shoulders at the inanimate body on the ground, we slowly go up the stairs until we reach the door. It’s honestly a miracle Owen didn’t hear the creaking of the staircase.

  I peek through the keyhole, looking at what seems to be a reception room. It’s big, spacious, but it looks dirty and neglected. No sign of Owen anywhere. Haze peeks, too.

  “This is the abandoned hotel on Route 9,” he says quietly.

  I know exactly what he’s talking about. This is where it all began. I remember the shadow passing through the window when Will locked me in his car days ago. I never would’ve thought that I’d end up here when my phone first chimed. Things would have been so different if I had just found the courage to tell the guys about the messages.

  “You got about fifteen seconds to escape. You run to the door, and you never look back, do you understand me?”

  “What? No,” I whisper. “I’m not leaving you.”

  “If you get a chance to escape, you take it. I can take care of myself in here. You, not so much.”

  I can’t bring myself to answer, and I know he doesn’t find the reassurance he seeks in my eyes.

  “Winter, no matter what happens once we open that door, you can’t look back. Promise me. Even if he shoots me, even if I die, you run.”

  The painful pit in my throat grows harder to ignore. Raising an eyebrow in expectation, he stubbornly refuses to look away until I tell him what he wants to hear. I look down. This results in him delicately lifting my chin up with his finger and staring deeply into my eyes. His touch is like a drug. A simple yet unforgettable high that disconnects you from reality.

  “Winter, please.”

  It takes everything I have to say it. “I promise.”

  He smiles sadly.

  “On three.”

  That’s when it hits me.