by C. L. Stone
“Too much to explain,” I said. “We have to go. Now.”
Raven started walking beside Marc, and then gave up, heaving Marc up over his shoulder.
“Christ!” Marc shouted. “Put me down.”
Raven ignored this and ran for the bedroom. I followed.
Out on the balcony, we looked down. Axel and the boat weren’t there.
“Where is he?” I asked.
“The yacht’s going at top speed,” Raven said. He gazed out across the water and pointed. “He’s way back there.”
Axel was standing at the helm, soaked like he took a swim to catch the boat. He was trying to hurry and catch us.
“We can’t wait,” I said.
Raven crossed the balcony, putting Marc down on the floor. “You can swim, can’t you?”
“With this leg?” Marc asked. “I can try.”
“I was asking her.” He turned. “You up for it?”
My heart thundered. “Sure.”
“Don’t sound so confident.” Raven assisted Marc to standing. Marc gazed down over the edge of the balcony.
“It’s a jump,” Marc said. He pulled himself up with a groan, swinging one leg over. “Help me with my other leg.”
Raven stooped over, picking up his foot. Marc growled and yelped the whole time, cursing. Raven released his leg once he had it over the balcony edge.
I got beside Raven, pushing myself up to sit next to him on the edge. I gazed down at the water. “It’s kind of high up,” I said.
“We need to jump now,” Raven said. He hauled himself up and over. “On three.”
“Three,” Marc called, his hand landing on my shoulder blades and he pushed.
I cried out, probably a slur of curses all jumbled together, including Marc’s name into the mix. I had a flash of an idea, like in the cartoons where I had a split second of air and falling and I thought perhaps I would stop just before the water.
I splashed down hard, in the most sprawled out belly flop ever performed. I sunk deep, and felt the push of a current. I was going under.
Hands went around my body, and then clutched at me. I turned, finding Marc. His face was grim, and he was looking up at the surface. His hand flew out, above his head, and he swam, with me in his other arm. He clutched me toward his body.
I did my best to help, kicking my legs, trying not to kick him in the effort.
We surfaced, and I sputtered, feeling the slice of chill as the wind picked up around us, stronger than before, and completely icing my body. The water was cold, but it wasn’t so bad with the surprise of it. Now that we were on the surface, and the breeze swept around us, it was killer.
I floated next to Marc, glancing around. “Where’s Raven?”
Raven popped up a few feet from us. He jerked his head back and wiped water from his eyes. He growled. "It’s like Russian bath water."
"Russians are fucked up,” Marc said.
I pointed to Axel coming around in the boat. Marc pulled me up in the water. Raven got beside me. When Axel pulled alongside us, he killed the motor and leaned out.
"Kayli," Axel said, reaching for my arm.
Before I could protest, Marc and Raven pushed me at Axel. I was hauled up and tossed into the floor of the boat. I sprung up, reaching down for Marc's arm, as Raven assisted by pushing him, and Axel yanked him from under his armpits, leaning back with everything he had and sitting on the bottom of the boat to haul him in.
We were starting to haul up Raven when a thundering rumble nearly startled me into falling back into the water. We finished hauling in Raven and turned together.
The yacht had collided with the bank. It seemed to have turned slightly, as if someone had tried to redirect the boat, but it was too late. With the motor turned on and running, the yacht continued to shove itself onto the bank until the front crunched. It stopped and the engine suddenly died.
I was about to make a comment when an explosion blasted out of one of the lower decks. Debris soared out. Some crashed into the water and other pieces soared up for a while before landing. A large hole was left, smoking and revealing an open fire.
"What was that?" I cried out.
Raven grunted. "You told me to get rid of the damn drugs," he said.
I flared at him. "You blew it up?"
Raven picked himself up off the floor of the boat. "Well, that was just a bonus."
I gaped at him a moment. With all the chaos, with wanting to get Marc off the boat and trying to get away before Coaltar came to his senses and called the police, I had completely forgotten about the drugs. Raven remembered. He kept his promise.
When the shock wore off, I lunged at him. I wrapped my arms around his neck, beaming and hugged tight. "You're the best."
"What can I say?" His arms encircled me and he pressed his body close. "I'm a professional Russian."
Marc dropped himself until he was flat on his back on the boat. He grunted and clutched at his leg. "I think we’re done here. Can we go now, Kayli? I think I need to go back and see the doctor."
GONE
We returned the boat to the Marina. First, Raven and Axel assisted Marc to the car. This time, the girl in the boat house came out and asked if we were okay. Axel waved her off. He told her Marc just twisted his ankle. He’d be fine.
He lied pretty smoothly. He drove off with Marc, heading to the hospital.
True to his word, Raven left a soggy wad of cash with her, pointing her to the boat, and telling her to fill it with gas and pay the docking fee. He even added an extra couple of twenties and asked her to pick a nice bouquet of flowers to place inside. “I just want it to look nice when he comes back for it,” Raven had said, making it sound like it was Marc’s boat. We left before the girl could figure out the truth.
Back at the apartment, I took a long hot shower and changed into a shirt that belonged to Marc and found shorts from my own bags. I took over one side of the couch. Raven, dried, and in a tank and sweatpants, claimed the other side. I was dead asleep for a few hours. After a swimming in the cold water and all the stress, I could have slept for a week. Still, it felt like a job well done.
When I did wake a couple hours later, I didn't want to move. My legs were intertwined with Raven’s. I stared off at the silent entertainment center. It was strangely cozy and quiet, the first moment I felt relaxed in days.
Was it really over? Now that we had escaped, my mind flew to all the possible results. Blake may call the police. He would sue me for damages at best. What about the drug dealers? Would he rat me out to them and have some goons hunt me down?
Sirens started up deep in the city. I turned onto my back at first. When the police cars got closer, I sat up sharply and held my breath, a palm pressing against my thundering heart.
"Little thief," Raven called to me, in a deep voice raspy with sleep. His brown eyes locked on my face. He untucked himself from under the blanket and opened his arms up to me. "Come."
I untangled my legs from his and crawled over. His arms drew me in until he could fold me into the small space between himself and the back of the couch. With my back against the couch, he pressed himself into me.
His face nestled into my shoulder. "They aren't after us," he said quietly.
"They might come," I said. "Eventually."
"If they ever come for you, they better bring an army. I wouldn’t let you go that easily."
I smiled at his arrogant boast. "Is that how a criminal thinks?"
"It's how I think." His arms wriggled around me until he hugged me close as we snuggled on the couch together. "You and your crazy plans, and fucked up boat crashing." He released me for a moment to curl fingers under the collar of the large T-shirt I wore. He slid the material down, exposing my bare skin. His head lowered and for a moment, his lips only brushed along my flesh, sending warmth. His lips puckered and he kissed me at the corner of my neck, close to the shoulder. His lips parted slightly, and he suckled gently for a moment before releasing me. "Beautiful."
&nbs
p; My spine rippled with the spark his lips ignited inside me. At the same time, I tensed. The cuddling had been felt friendly up to that point. I was already in a mess with Marc and possibly Brandon. I wasn't ready for Raven to mix in with it.
"Raven," I said, in a voice that was more delicate. I didn't want to hurt him. I didn't want him to stop, but I didn't think my heart could take any more.
His lips grazed my neck, lighting up every nerve along my spine. The warmth spilled right into my heart. "Do me a favor,” he murmured against my skin. ”Don't tell Marc or the others."
My breathing hastened. My mind whirled for his meaning. I was ready for some reasonable request. Like when he helped me get a note to Wil. Or maybe when he beat up that guy in the parking lot. Was he warning me not to tell them that? Could he get into trouble? "Tell them what?"
His lips met with the back of my earlobe. He breathed against me. His hand shifted down to hold me around the waist, pulling me closer. His voice came to me, guttural and low in my ear. "I'm pretty sure Marc has a little crush on you. I think if he knew about us, it may break his heart."
I eased myself up to sit. He pulled back, putting an arm up to pillow his head with a sleepy smile on his face. I didn't get it. I mean, I guessed at was he was implying, but I couldn’t tell if he was serious. Was he teasing me?
"Us?" I asked.
He smirked. He opened his mouth and started to say something but a rattling of keys in the door stole his attention. He twisted himself to look back at the door.
Marc appeared first, followed by Axel. Brandon and Corey tailed behind them. Kevin followed and he closed the door behind himself.
I sat up further, pulling myself away from Raven. Raven shared a small smirk with me, like I was doing exactly the thing he wanted me to do. I didn’t know how to tell him I was just confused and didn’t know where to put myself.
Brandon worked his way around the group of guys, his arms open and his face full of concerned lines. “Kayli, what the hell were you thinking?”
For a flash of time, I thought he was talking about sitting on top of Raven. “Huh?”
He came around, pulling me up by the arm. He hugged me to his body. He pushed his face against my ear. “You shot him in the leg! And the boat?”
“Sorry?” I wasn’t sure if that’s what I should say. He didn’t sound peeved as much as it was like, oops, you spilled the milk.
He sighed heavily and whispered quieter so only I could hear. “How am I supposed to protect you when you’re running off half-cocked like that? Next time, give me a chance to keep up, okay?”
I grinned into his shoulder. I couldn’t help it.
A body slammed in behind me, nearly knocking us over. Corey’s face loomed near mine, the grin was broad. “Marc told us about the boat crash. That was awesome. I wish I’d seen it.”
I struggled to breathe between the two, and then started wriggling. “Guys, you’re such dorks.”
“Hey,” Axel barked at me, but in an amused tone. “What did I tell you about the name calling?”
The twins released me, and I stood on the carpet with my hands up in defense, as if waiting for one of them to strike.
Axel gestured to the couch. “Okay, sit. We need to figure out what happens next.”
Raven pulled himself up on the couch, and he slid over, making room for the others. Corey sat next to him. Raven gave him the I wasn’t making room for you look but Corey was oblivious to it and grinned happily at him. Raven smirked, shook his head and sat back.
I sat next to Corey and Brandon took up the space my other side. Between them, it was like two mirrored bodyguards, equally exquisite.
Axel and Marc sat on the coffee table. I guessed they really did need the coffee table. They used it for these meetings. Kevin sat on the floor.
“Okay,” Axel said. “From what I’m hearing, Coaltar’s crew called for a tow boat, saying there was a small accident. Coaltar was toted out, and has a private doctor looking at his leg.”
“How do you know all this?” I asked.
Corey coughed lightly and grinned.
I smirked at him and poked him in the arm. “You sneaky devil.”
“Yeah, well,” Corey said, rubbing his hand across the back of his head. “I figured I’d tap in and at least figure out if they were coming after us.”
“He’s going to be in surgery soon,” Axel said. “And from what I hear, he’s already planning a recovery retreat down in Palm Beach, Florida. He’s telling people he’ll be there for at least three weeks. For now, he may just be out of our hair.”
“What about the cartel?” I asked. “Did I mess up? Are they coming after us?”
“Actually,” Axel said, sitting up a little straighter. “From what I understand, the man that attacked Marc on the boat was a member of the cartel. He’s heading back to his gang, but Coaltar’s made a deal with him not to talk about you. This gang member wasn’t happy, but apparently Coaltar’s already gone above and beyond what they expected and they appreciate his intervening early.” Axel raked his fingers through his jet-black hair and yanked the strands away from his eyes. “No one wanted a turf war in this area. The JH-14 drugs were from an offshoot of their own gang looking to start an uprising. They’re going to infiltrate and pick out the key personnel and take care of it their own way.”
I gasped, my hand reaching for Corey’s leg for stability. “They can’t—“
Axel waved his hand in the air. “They’re drug gang members,” he said. “Every one of them. The village is safe, but the persons responsible will be hunted. When Coaltar told you that part about the drugs not hurting anyone if they drank it from the well, he was telling you the truth, or at least he believed. Maybe he even believed part of what he was saying when he thought he could save lives, but the truth was, the cartel would have never let these guys get away with this. The drugs may have actually warned the village the cartel was coming, but it wouldn’t have stopped this assassination.”
Corey gently wrapped his hand around my wrist and tugged it until he could clutch my hand. “Kayli,” he said quietly, drawing my attention. “These aren’t good guys. These are murderers and drug dealers fighting their own war. But now they’re going back home and out of Charleston. The battle is over there now. The DEA and other government agenices need to take care of this. This is beyond what we can do. We can’t take on the world.”
I had to agree. Outside of stopping Coaltar, I had no idea what else to do about this. Maybe Axel was right. Corey was right. They all were. How far do you go to help people?
And with that thought, I sighed heavily. “It’s over,” I said softly. It was true. They didn’t need me anymore and I wasn’t in danger. There was nothing to hold me here. I was a stranger they met a few days ago, and despite so much that had happened, this all had to end.
The others nodded grimly.
Kevin looked confused. He brushed his palm against his dark curly hair. “Why the hell do you guys look like that? I say it’s about time this was over. Now we can get back to it being almost quiet around here.”
Raven smirked. “When is it ever quiet?”
“It certainly isn’t usually this bad,” Kevin said. “Apparently I missed most of it.”
“Consider yourself lucky,” Axel said.
I started to say something, and then realized Corey was still holding on to my hand. He’d intertwined our fingers. I grinned at him, as it was so cute. He didn’t strike me as gay like his brother said. Still, Corey’s smile was again melting that wall inside me. It made it hard for me to say what I had to.
“Guess you guys don’t need me anymore,” I said. “It’s time I went home.”
There was a collection of grunts and coughs. They looked at each other.
Axel shrugged. “If Coaltar’s out of the way, and there’s no sign of him looking for you, there’s no reason to hold you here.”
Marc frowned. “Kayli,” he said. He jerked his head and motioned to the door. “Can I talk to you
? Outside?”
I glanced at the others, wondering, but no one questioned this. I stood, worried that if I didn’t go with him, he’d come after me and carry me out like last time.
I stood, releasing Corey. I waved shortly at Brandon and then at the others and followed Marc out into the hall.
When the door closed behind us, I hovered on the carpet. The hall was empty, and I was nervous, wondering what trouble I was in now.
Marc still favored his leg. I was surprised to see him up and going and not strung out on pain killers. “How’s your, um...” I said. I didn’t know how to bring it up.
His eyebrows shifted above his mismatched eyes. “My leg?”
“Yeah,” I said.
He smirked. “At least I didn’t get shot this time.”
I rolled my eyes and took a step back. He could joke about this?
“It’s fine.” Marc faced me and waved off his hand like he didn’t want to talk about his leg any more. “I promised you,” he said.
I wasn’t sure which promise he was referring to me. “Huh?”
“I told you that you’d never have to see that hotel again,” he said. “And I didn’t want to tell the others yet.” He leaned on one leg and hobbled closer. “You can stay here, you know? I mean, if you’re uncomfortable in the bedroom right now, there’s at least a couch. And Wil could come with you. We’ll make room.”
My mouth dropped open and my heart thundered. “Marc...”
“He’s cool,” he said. “I would have done it sooner, but it got kind of crazy. It’s no big deal. A few months and he’ll be in college. And even before then, we’ll get you an apartment. Or you can just move in. I don’t care. Whatever you want.”
I squared off my shoulders at Marc. I knew he wouldn’t like my answer, but it needed to be done. “I have to go,” I said.
“Not this shit again.”
I made a fist, aiming a loose punch at his chest. “I mean I have to go home.”
His eyebrows hunched together. “Bambi, I promised you that you wouldn’t have to go back.”
“I know,” I said. “I appreciate it, but...” I stumbled for words. It’s not what I wanted. In my heart, I’d already grown really fond of everyone.