Page 2 of Smoke

Hawk grinds his teeth, the muscle in his jaw ticking. “Stepsister. And I never said she was a badass. Just a threat.” That familiar darkness still haunts his expression. That same indignation when his gaze flits over me.

A second guy stomps in. His black hair is cropped short, almost buzzed, revealing tattoos on his scalp. He smirks but his brown eyes look dead inside. “Cute. Let’s have your family reunion some other time. Where are the dead white boys at?” Dressed in all black, he wears a button down shirt, stiff slacks, and leather gloves. Black ink peeks out from underneath the hem of his sleeve.

My stomach knots. He’s told them about me. Two men whom I’ve never met. And yet he’s told them I’m trouble. That we used to be family. And probably that he hates me. “In the living room,” I rasp. I point toward the sunken sitting area, my fingers trembling. “There’s so much blood. How are you going to…” My head is spinning, my mouth dry.

Hawk nods toward the blond one. “Scarrow will get rid of your prints, fibers, and DNA. Omen will take care of the bodies… we’ll make it all disappear, Cherry. The blood, the weapon, everything.”

I nod and hug my own chest. Goose pimples flare across my skin. “What if their parents come home?”

His eyes darken. “That’s all you need to know. Now get the fuck out of here, Cherry. Go out the back, and take the long way to town through the woods.”

Scarrow snickers. “She’s going to need an alibi too, dawg.”

“Roxy’s down at Level Up. I’ll just go there.” I hug myself tighter, the sound of his voice making me shiver.

Hawk shakes his head. “Nah. You need to find a dick to suck. Give some dude the best fucking blow job of his life. One he won’t ever forget.”

I feel my cheeks heat. I’d forgotten what it was like to be slut shamed by a man I used to look up to. “Is that all you think I’m good for?”

He looks away as the other two stifle their laughter and start to get to work. “You called so I came. But this time, it ain’t for free. You’re gonna owe us. And someday, I will be back to collect.”

His words sound like venom. The disdain he has for me is thick, contagious, weighing heavy in the air between us like strangers. “What, no family discount?” I can’t keep the snark out of my tone. My self-pity is turning into bitterness the longer I stand here and soak in his degradation.

Hawk stalks toward me, the closest he’s been to me in years. As he glares down at me, I can’t help but want to touch the scar I gave him. It’s deeper than I remember, longer, as it stretches from the corner of his eyebrow to right underneath his cheekbone.

“Sweetheart, you’re the farthest thing from family that anyone could ever be,” he growls.

Butterflies swim in my stomach. And not the fun kind. No. These feel more like rotting flies. Owing a debt to Hawk Riley is not something I’d wish on my worst enemy. “Fine. I’ll pay you then. I’ve been working all summer at the fair. Name your price.”

He cracks his knuckles before taking off his leather jacket. “Oh, I will. But you can save your ice cream money for now. We’re about to clean up three dead bodies for you. There’s going to be a much higher price to pay down the road. This is intimate shit, Cherry.”

I swallow hard and try to look anywhere but at his corded biceps. They’re slick with sweat, giving a smooth sheen to his black tattoos. “Just tell me what you want, Hawk.”

Scarrow and Omen both look up. It seems like they want to hear what my payment is going to be too. Seeing as I will owe it to all three of them.

Hawk takes another step toward me and breathes in a deep mouthful of my scent. His lip quivers. “I haven’t decided yet.”

A familiar tinge of shame tickles my belly. My traitorous body wants to lean into him. I take a big step back instead. “When?” My heart races.

He shrugs as if he’s uninterested, but the primal hunger in his eyes is bolder than it’s ever been before. “We gotta go away for a while. So take care of yourself, sister. You better be in mint fucking condition when we come back.”

I fight the urge to cry. I vowed I’d never let him bring me to tears again. But he’s getting way too fucking excited about me having to look over my shoulder for the foreseeable future.

Scarrow and Omen undress me with their eyes as if they all of a sudden have permission to. Hawk tenses and I take another step back. “Thank you for coming. I didn’t know who else to call.”

He nods. “Back door. Woods. Blowjob. Go. Now.”

“See ya, asshole.” I blow out a deep breath and flip him off with both hands before shoving through the rickety screen door. I don’t have to turn around to know that he’s returning the gesture. He always does.

I charge through the woods and don’t look back. I do exactly as he tells me. And then I wait. Every day. Every month. Years… I wait until I give up thinking he’s ever gonna step foot in Crimson Valley again.

But deep down I know better. I know he’ll never let me off the hook. Hawk always collects on his debts. Especially from the preacher’s daughter who ruined his life one summer.

Eight years later. Present Day.

“Well, it’s about fucking time, Marv. My regulars are threatening to stone me to death. You can throw them in the back. Next to the other cases.” I sign the clipboard before handing it back to him.

“Sorry, Cherry. We’ve had three delivery trucks hit this month. It’s getting rough out there.” Marv’s been at this a long time. He’s old, weathered, and weary. But lately, he just seems dejected. Too poor to retire, and too proud to complain about the shitty working conditions.