Page 57 of Redemption in the Dark (The Righteous 5)
He fidgeted, trying to get the words right in his head. “I…I um. Would you like to go on a date with me sometime? Movies or something?”
Samantha looked him up and down and then started to laugh. He didn’t know what he said that was so funny, but she doubled over laughing and drawing the attention of everyone outside the school. He looked around at the groups of people that were openly gawking and smiled like he was in on the joke.
“Wow, Wolf, you have a sense of humor.”
“What? I wasn’t….”
“Look, Wolf, you’re okay and all, a nice guy even, but you’re…how do I say this and not sound rude…you’re too, you know.”
He looked at his clothes and then back up at Samantha. “No, I really don’t.”
She rolled her eyes at him and let out a sigh. “Don’t make me say it.”
“Say what?”
“Fine, whatever. You’re too red. You know, too Indian for me. I have no interest in dating anyone from that shitty reserve. Thanks, but I have higher goals than tying myself to someone like you. Thanks for the compliment, though.”
She smiled and walked away like she hadn’t just insulted him, his family, and his heritage. Talk about being prejudiced or racist maybe both, in two sentences. He stared after her until she was on the cheerleading practice field, and as all the girls laughed and looked over at him, he turned and marched away.
He’d been too angry and hurt to go home and face his family, so he went to the park and sat down on a swing. His mind went over her words again and again. Each time the loop played, the bitterness bloomed a little more in his chest. They were words he’d heard more than once, but usually, it was from other guys that thought they were being funny, which of course, wasn’t. He’d grown to expect the looks when he walked into a store that clearly said they thought he was there to cause trouble. He’d also gotten used to the teachers all talking to him slower, like the fact he was half Indian made him stupid or something, but this…this had hurt on a whole new level.
“Ugh!” Getting to his feet, he stomped up the stairs to get changed. He quickly put on his track pants and a sweater and went out into the hall to the bathroom, but the door was closed.
His knuckles hit the wood, unsure why it would be closed when no one was supposed to be home.
“Hello, Awinita?” No one answered, so he tried the handle, but it was locked. “What the heck? Awinita, are you in there?” He knocked again but took a step back when no one answered. He stared at the bottom of the door. “I’m going to look under the door, Awinita! Do you hear me? If I do this and you’re naked, so help me, I’m going to need therapy for the rest of my life for seeing my sister naked,” he called out as he got down on his knees and placed his eye in front of the narrow space at the bottom of the door.
Like a bucket of ice water had been dumped in his veins, his blood ran cold. All he could see was her hand hanging over the tub’s edge and the red on the floor.
“No, you promised!” Wolf jumped to his feet, took a stride back, and slammed his shoulder into the door. “You said you’d stop!”
Panic was making his heart race as he stepped as far back as he could and slammed into the door again with a yell.
“You made me swear not to tell!” This time the old lock gave way, and the door burst open with a bang as it hit the wall.
“Awinita, don’t you dare die.” He ran to the tub and pulled his sister from the water and laid her out on the tile floor. Grabbing towels, he wrapped up her wrists. The deep slices in them didn’t give him much hope, but he tied them as tight as he could.
“Come on, breathe.” He pushed on her chest like he’d been taught in his first aid class and blew in her mouth, but she didn’t move. “Come on, Sis, you can’t die!” He ran from the bathroom to grab the phone and stumbled down the stairs, falling on his ass, but it didn’t slow him down as he raced for the portable phone. He dialed nine-one-one before running back up the stairs.
“Nine-one-one, what’s your emergency?”
“Help, I need help. It’s my sister. She’s cut her wrists, and she was in the tub. She’s not breathing. I don’t know what to do.”
* * *
Wolf jerkedawake and was disoriented in the dark. He felt like he was the one that was gasping for air as he sat up in the Hummer. Hands shaking, he rubbed his eyes, but it did nothing to erase the image from his mind. It had been a long time since he dreamed about his sister’s death. He’d never forgotten her blank stare as she looked up at the ceiling, not seeing anything. His father dragged him from the room as he screamed for the paramedics to save her.
Jimmy had cried almost as hard as he had when Wolf was dropped off at his house so his parents could go to the hospital alone. Nineteen, she’d just been a confused and hurt kid, and the rest of her life was taken from her. All the hopes and dreams that she could’ve accomplished were gone in a blink. That was why he’d chosen to become a field medic. Every time he’d saved a life the guilt over his sister’s death eased a thin fraction in his soul.
He heard his truck start outside, so he hopped out of the back seat of the Hummer just as the rev of the engine roared past the shed. He opened the door just in time to see the taillights leaving.
“Dammit, Maeve!”
He pushed open the large bay door, ran back to the Hummer, and jumped behind the steering wheel. The vehicle roared to life as he turned the key and stomped on the gas. Dirt flew in the air like a rooster tail behind the vehicle, tossing little granules onto the roof and pinging against the shed wall.
The Hummer raced down the long driveway, and he just caught a flash of taillight before the truck disappeared over the hill to the left of the driveway. She couldn’t know where she was going, yet that wasn’t stopping her from driving like a demon out of hell.
The Hummer skidded sideways on the loose gravel as he shifted down and made the sharp turn at the end of the driveway onto the main dirt road. The taillights flew over the next hill, the back end rising high into the air. He knew at this pace that the vehicle could flip over any minute. Was she trying to kill herself?
