by C. A. Rene
That’s actually not a bad idea, Jennifer will for sure receive those photos even if the police blocks it from the media due to who his mother is. She will know exactly who set this up, especially when she questions her son about who he was out with the night before. She will know I can also infiltrate her life as well as she has mine but the only difference being I plan on killing only her.
I help them move the body to the base of the tree and lay him out under a branch that Emmett and Vin broke. Then we put some strategically placed branches on him and I smear dirt on his face and clothing. After we finish I take a series of photos of him laying on the ground and the broken branch.
“We should get going.” Emmett says while he grabs the duffle bag, “he’ll wake up soon.”
Vin and I follow Emmett out of the woods in the opposite direction I came into them with Carlos. There is a blacked-out sedan waiting parked on the side of a service road and I am thankful Emmett thought about using this instead of Shelby. We pile in and Emmett takes us on a scenic route around the city until he’s sure there’s no tail. Once we get back to Vin’s condo I am so exhausted, I can barely lift my feet.
“Give me the phone,” Emmett holds his hand out, “I will send off the photos to the police and you guys can head to bed.”
“Okay.” I nod, too tired to object. “Don’t tell Carm about our involvement in this.”
“I won’t.” He shakes his head.
I hand over the phone and follow Vin into our bedroom. Once inside he helps me out of the clothes I was wearing, dresses me in a sleep shirt and no underwear, then proceeds to brush out the knots in my hair.
“You make me proud, baby .” He whispers, that sentence sending a chill down my spine. You’ve made me proud, Mija. I shake off the voice of my father and I rest my forehead on Vin’s chest. “Your parents are proud of you, too.”
I really hope my parents can’t see anything I have done with my life, that includes my mother as well. I truly believe if she could see me now, she would see more of my father than herself and I just can’t live with that thought. Even knowing this, I can’t stop what I’ve started until I have eliminated the threat to my family and the people I love most. So, I might as well have fun along the way.
33
The past week has been quiet and as predicted, none of the suicide attempt was leaked to the media but we are sure Jennifer got the message. Carm called to tell Ember that it looked like Jennifer up and took her family on an impromptu vacation this past Tuesday and he doesn’t know where or for how long. Carm says he has his right hand and best tracker Trent on the job.
Ember seems lighter and more carefree this week, it could be because her brother is moving here but I think it’s because she doesn’t have the weight of another murder on her shoulders. Emmett sent a moving van and it arrived today with most of his stuff. The fucking van was packed tight and I’m still wondering how the fuck a seventeen year old could accumulate this much.
“Is he a hoarder?” Em whispers as we watch two guys unload his shit into her foyer. “Could this be a sign for severe psychosis?”
I walk over to a stack of boxes and open the first one in front of me. It’s filled with books, and what looks to be manga. I open a few more boxes and see the same, Emmett must be an avid reader. You would never guess by his appearance but then again you’d never guess I was an aspiring actor either by mine. “He has a ton of books.” I tell Em over my shoulder, “and some of these look hella expensive.”
“Seriously?” She asks while coming to stand beside me, “Emmett reads?”
“Yeah, unless he robbed a few book stores for the fun of it.” I shrug.
“That sounds more realistic,” she nods. “This isn’t going to all fit into his room. I wouldn’t mind starting a library though.”
“Library?” I ask her, “what room would you convert though?”
“The only one in this house that remains empty.” She can’t mean her parents room because she hasn’t stepped foot in there since we received the news of their death. The door has been shut tight and no one is allowed to enter. “There’s a large loft on the third floor. It’s sound proofed, too. Do you know of anyone that could build me a library?”
“We’ll figure it out.” I say as I kiss the top of her soft head, “I’m going to stop by and see if Travis is ready to go tomorrow.”
“Okay.” She grins at me and reaches up to kiss my cheek. I know she’s happy that I’m trying to figure out how to salvage a relationship with my brother.
I leave her to the movers and hop into my Hummer to head over to Travis’. I pass by Danny’s house again and surprise, surprise, he’s throwing another party. I slow down and watch his front lawn, there looks to be some sort of fight going on with a few guys from our drama club and Danny himself is sitting on his front porch watching. He spots my vehicle and jumps up from his seat.
“Hey! Vin!” He starts jogging across the street, “are you coming in?”
“Maybe,” I shrug, “I was about to pick up Travis.”
“Travis?” His nose turns up in disgust, “why?”
“Probably because he’s my brother.”
“This shit is weird. I don’t hear from you in weeks and all of a sudden you’re best friends with your enemy?”
“Sometimes we’re mistaken on who’s an enemy and who’s a friend.” I lean out my window, “mind if I bring him by?”
“Whatever you want, man. As long as I actually get to see you this summer.”
I nod and pull back out onto the street. I’m not sure how Travis will feel about going to Danny’s house for a party but I’m hoping it’ll take his mind off his home life. He barely gets out as it is and yeah, we may be bringing him to New York with us this weekend but I know the more time he’s out of that house, the better.
I pull into his driveway and notice his gates are open yet again. I take my time driving to the house just in case something flies off the balcony in front of me. When the coast is clear I park the Hummer and step out.
“Back again?” I hear him ask from above me. I look up and find him smoking while leaning on the railing again. “What’s up? Are we leaving a day early?”
“Nah, I got bored watching movers unload Emmett’s shit. Thought we could go chill. Danny is having a party.” I suggest.
“You want to join the ranks of the delinquents today?” His brow raises, “I’m in.”
“Yo, I chill with them.”
“Yeah, you do.” He replies with a grin, “I gotta get dressed. Give me five minutes.”
“Bastard.” I mutter.
I get back into my vehicle and a few minutes later the front door opens but it’s not Travis, it’s his mother, Christina. She stands in the doorway with what looks to be a martini glass and a cigarette. She continues to stare at me, so I climb back out and go to lean on the front of the Hummer.
“Hi Mrs. Greene, how are you doing?” I aim for polite.
“Don’t you just look delectable.” She purrs, “you have his eyes and his body build.”
“You doing good?” I ignore her comparisons to the man I hate.
“I am now,” she nods and licks her lips, “I could always be better. Want to come in for a drink?”
Before I can reply she’s being pulled in by her arm back into the house, I push off the Hummer and start for the front door.
“Are you sick?” I hear Travis’ voice, “he’s my brother. Get the fuck upstairs, you’re being embarrassing.”
“That is a man out there, and a handsome one at that.” I hear his mother croon, “I could show him what a real woman is like.”
“Go pop some pills and put your ass to bed.”
I stop snooping and go to get back into my Hummer, clearly his mother is drunk and not herself right now. Travis comes out a few moments later and gets into the passenger side.
“Sorry about that,” he avoids my eyes, “she’s out of it.”
�
�It’s all good.” I shrug, “you need to piss before we leave?” I grin at him.
“You want to see my dick again? You do realize we’re related and this ain’t Alabama.”
“Fuck, you’re nasty dude.”
“That’s what she said.” He nods.
I chuckle as I pull out of his driveway and we make our way over to Danny’s. The music is still pretty loud and there’s someone out front puking into a flower pot. So, the party has been going for a while already. I park on the road and we both walk up Danny’s front drive. Travis lights another smoke and stops to check out two females slapping the shit out of each other.
“Those things are going to kill you.” I point at his cigarette.
“Among other things.” He shrugs while pulling his hat lower over his eyes.
“Vin?” I hear Marlana’s voice from the doorway. I knew she would probably be here and maybe I wanted her to be. I would like to finally give her the closure she obviously needs for whatever the fuck we were.
Travis throws down his smoke and steps on it, “I’m gonna go find a drink.” He brushes by Marlana and nods.
“Hey,” she comes over to me. “Where’s Ember?”
“At home.”
“Oh, that’s cool.” She nods, “is everything okay with you guys?” I can see hope in her eyes and I know I need to squash that right now and make sure it sticks forever.
“I’m going to marry Ember.” I nod, “but I do owe you an apology because I used you for many years. I knew how you felt and I continued to use you because it was easy.” Her face falls and she grows a few shades redder. “I should have never continued to sleep with you because I never ever intended to have a relationship with you. It was never going to happen with you Marlana, even if Ember never moved here.”
“Wow.” She shakes her head and her purple hair billows around her face, “don’t hold back or anything.”
“I’m telling you as a warning. Ember is not to be fucked with and if you keep up with the shit you were pulling last year and this summer, she will not hesitate to fuck you up. So, just move on already, stop approaching me like we are friends because we are not. It was never a friendship; it was just about fucking and that ended a long time ago.”
A tear escapes and rolls down her cheek, I can never tell what’s real and what’s not with this bitch so I have a hard time not being apathetic towards her. “Okay, I got it.” She nods and starts walking into the house. She turns when she gets to the front door and says, “it’s over.” Duh, bitch. She disappears into the house and I breathe a sigh of relief. It felt good to finally admit to her what I did.
I get to the front of the house and look inside to see if I can spot Travis anywhere and instead see Marlana sitting on the lap of a drama club dude and they are devouring each other’s mouths. Perfect. I head towards the backyard and to the sounds of people splashing in the pool. That’s where Danny and I would be during these things, drinking and watching the girls get naked. I do indeed find Danny and surprisingly I also find Travis with him. They have a line of shots in front of them and my brother is downing the majority of them in quick succession. Again, I would be impressed with his drinking skills if I wasn’t so worried about how often he’s doing it.
“Vin! Shots!” Danny yells out. Travis turns after downing the last shot and grabs his beer.
“Nah dude, I’m driving but I’ll grab a beer.” I take a beer from a nearby cooler and raise an eyebrow at Travis.
“What?”
“You good?” I watch as his eyes flick over to the right and I see Adri standing there with Shay. She’s wearing a barely there pink bikini and laughing at something one of the guys that’s standing around them says. “Never mind.” I say and clasp my hand on his shoulder. I see the moment Adri notices us and she looks stunned to see us here together. She moves away from Shay and the group of admirers and comes over to us.
“Hey guys.” She says softly, “Ember here?”
“Nah.” I reply, “she’s home organizing all of Emmett’s shit.”
“I see,” she nods and looks to Travis. “Hey Trav.” He nods to her without making eye contact and then turns his back to head inside. “Fuck, I really don’t know what’s wrong with him.” She groans.
“You do know his dad died right? And his house is a shithole right now. His mother is off her shit and he basically has no one. That’s what’s wrong.” Her obtuse attitude towards Travis’ issues is starting to grate on my nerves. I turn my back on her as well and head inside to look for Travis. I see his back leaving through the front door and I follow him. I’m stopped suddenly by Adri’s hand on my arm.
“I’m not ignoring the issues he’s going through. I would be there for him if he would just let me.” She whispers as tears fill her eyes.
“Don’t wait for him to let you, just force him, like I’ve been doing.” I pull my arm away, “I need to go find him.”
I find him on the porch lighting another cigarette and leaning against the side of the house. “Want to head out?” I ask him. He looks at me and shrugs. He’s trying to look unbothered but I see the muscle in his jaw clench and unclench. “Want to talk about her?”
“Nope.” He pops his ‘p’.
“Alright.”
I lean against the house beside him and finish my beer while he smokes. It’s not an awkward silence and I make it a point to have a conversation with him this weekend. He needs to offload because that look in his eyes is the same one I used to have until Em came and talked me off the ledge.
While we’re driving back to his house, Travis is scrolling through his phone and I glance over to see it’s Adri’s IG page. I pull into his driveway and put the Hummer in park.
“Hey,” I say to him, “open that glove box.” He reaches forward and opens it, the lid falling forward. “Reach in and pull out what’s in there.” He reaches in and I see in his eyes the moment he touches it.
“What the fuck Vin!” He yells, pulling his hand back out. “Why do you have that?”
“Because life is never predictable,” I look into his eyes, “and I wanted to always be prepared. I want you to take it.”
“I…” his head drops forward. “I hate guns.”
“Look, I don’t think our father was involved with the best of people and I need to make sure you can protect yourself.”
He turns to look at me with his eyes wide, “how do you know who Dad was involved with?”
“I wasn’t always sure, just a hunch but seeing your reaction now proves I was correct. Take it, please.” He reaches back in and pulls out the gun then tucks it into the waist of his jeans. “Hide it in a safe place, okay?”
He nods and gets out of the Hummer, “see you tomorrow.”
We finally get to the condo and it’s late Friday evening. The drive was easier this time with the three of us rotating. This place is starting to feel like home since we are here basically every weekend. This weekend though, I want to finally have some fun and try to get Travis’ mind off the bullshit he’s dealing with hours away in Whitsborough.
“I haven’t been here in so long.” Travis says, dropping his bag to the floor. “Nice view,” he walks over to the windows.
“I love it here,” Ember breathes, “New York will always be home to me.” She heads into the kitchen and pulls open the fridge. We don’t have much because we don’t want shit to spoil in the fridge. “Fuck, I’m starving.”
“Let’s order some Chinese, Travis and I will take a walk to pick it up. You go take a shower and relax.” I say as I lean in to kiss her softly.
“You’re too good to me.” She smiles against my lips.
“Is this what I have to watch all weekend?” Travis asks with his arms crossed on his chest and a smirk on his face.
“Wear earphones while you sleep.” I wink at him, “we get loud.”
“Gross,” he shudders and chuckles.
“I’m gonna call Emmett and tell him we’re he
re. You guys order whatever.” I watch as she heads into our bedroom and closes the door.
“I’ll order.” Travis says as he waves a menu in the air.
“Cool.”
About ten minutes later we exit the condo and walk a few blocks up the street to the Chinese restaurant. Travis has been quiet but I’m planning on having a chat with him later after dinner. Here in New York, you can’t see a star in the sky. In Whitsborough on a clear night you can see them all twinkling and bright.
The Chinese restaurant’s entrance is a little ways down a sketchy looking alleyway but Ember says this is the best one around. We enter the alley and Travis takes a quick look over his shoulder. I feel a sense of unease too, like someone is following or watching us. I reach for the gun tucked into the back of my jeans and look back to see a black hooded figure come up quickly and hit Travis over the head, he drops fast and before I can react, something hits me on the back of the head and everything goes black.
The sound of metal sliding open pulls me from my unconsciousness. I watch as two guys drag in a moaning Travis and drop him on the floor. I don’t have time to survey my surroundings as the two men approach me and roughly lift me to my feet. “Who are you?” I slur out as I fight to stay conscious. They don’t answer me and instead drag me down a hallway to an open door. They pull me into the room and strap my arms to a chair with zip ties. “Hey!” I struggle against the bonds, only to have them cut into my skin, “where are we?” They exit the room without responding and shut the door.
A few minutes later, I have blood oozing out of my wrists from trying to break the ties and my hands have gone numb because those bastards strapped me in too tight. The door bangs open and my jaw drops from shock as I see who it is. He walks straight up to the table and takes a seat in the chair across from me. He smirks when he sees the shock on my face and drums out a beat on top of the table.
“You guys really thought you had me, huh?” He chuckles, “I’ll admit, that pretty little girlfriend of yours is smart.”
“I hope you know, you’ve just signed your death certificate,” I grit out. “I saved you once, I won’t do it again.”