Page 40 of Disobedient Pawn

“You would like her. Oh, you’ll love this. Ren has a higher GPA than Theo,” Blake said, and I didn’t know why that was so funny, but Lisa burst out laughing until she couldn’t breathe.

“Oh, I really like you now.” I looked at Ivy for clarification, but she shrugged. Lisa placed all the clothes in a bag and handed it over. “I gave you my employee discount.”

“Thanks, that’s really nice.” I pulled out the shiny platinum card my father had given me. I hadn’t used it yet and suddenly wondered what the limit was. Just how much trouble could I get into with it? My lip curled up at the thought of maxing it out.

Blake whistled. “Wow, your father trusts you with platinum? My dad refuses to give us anything more than gold. He’s terrified that Theo or I will max it out. No…that’s not right. He’s only worried about me,” Blake said, making me smile.

“My dad won’t give me any,” Ivy said.

“It’s just a card, not magic,” I said, brushing it off, but Blake’s comment really made me want to call the card company.

My father may have found a way to shove me off and forget about me like he’d forgotten about Mum for the last five years, but I was about to remind him that I existed. What better way than hitting him in the only place that mattered to him? His wallet. Some self-care was needed to cope with my deep-seated trauma.

Spinning the card in my fingers, I stared at it like cowboys would their gun in old western movies. A giddiness bloomed in my chest.

This was a terrible idea, but I knew I would do it.

NOVEMBER 8 – MONDAY 7:21 PM

Myles

Shifting into fifth, my baby revved and flew around the final curve before the long straightaway to the city. The Ferrari was my pride and joy, and I showed her off whenever I could. Another week and she’d be put away for the winter, so this might be my last chance to take her out.

A miniature lacrosse stick swung from the rearview mirror, reminding me that not only had I missed my lacrosse practice—Coach was going to have my ass—but I’d missed my tutoring session with Ren.

I’d crashed as the sun was coming up and stayed at home rather than going back to school. Austin’s remains being found was all over the news, and I smirked thinking about how The Kings would react when they saw their signature on the body. Nash was gonna be in huge shit for it and likely take a beating from his father, but he didn’t care. It was what he wanted. Austin needed to be a dual message. So that was what we did. Blake and I turned him into a swinging pinata for the world to see.

It was simultaneously sad and thrilling that we were so good at getting rid of bodies. I was eight when my father first made me watch him kill and dispose of a person. It didn’t stop at that. My twelfth birthday gift was my first kill. Nothing says family celebration like shooting someone.

I’d tried to run afterward but failed and had gotten my arm broken for the effort. Calling the police seemed like the smart thing to do, but the cop was on Da’s payroll, and I was beaten severely for ever picking up the phone. After that, I was resigned to the fact that this was my life…it was the same for all of us.

So I treated those we killed like props in a movie, easily disposable.

Grabbing my phone out of the cupholder, I stared at the little dot on the screen and knew exactly where Blake had taken Ren. One of these days, he’d remember to shut off the ‘Find My Phone’ feature, but until then, I would use it to my advantage.

There was no way in hell I was letting him have an entire romantic date night alone. Crashing his date seemed like fair payback. Payback for what? I didn’t really know, but it felt like he was kicking me in the face by pursuing Ren. Agreeing to be part of a bet in the first place was my own stupidity. Now to win her over, I was up against Blake and Nash. Blake, I could handle, but Nash…he worried me.

“Fuck I’m such an idiot,” I mumbled and turned the radio up, hoping to drown out the voice telling me off in my brain.

It was dusk by the time I crossed into the city limits and veered off the main road to head for the restaurant we all loved. You could get anything you wanted there, and they even had a special section with favorites from back home. Their Steak and Guinness pot pie was to die for.

It would close for the year at the end of this month since most of its revenue came from seasonal traffic. We didn’t get as cold as other parts of the country, but we still got a ton of snow, and no one was hanging out on the river or hiking in the winter. My first year here was a huge shock to my system. I was used to rain and damp days, but this was bitter cold, and it felt like I could never get warm.

If it weren’t for the guys in the Last Rank, I’d find a way to move back to Ireland as soon as I turned eighteen. For no other reason than to get away from my father…if we hadn’t killed him by then.

Hitting my blinker, I pulled into the parking lot and spotted Blake’s car right away. I parked beside him, surprised that the lot was almost full. I was getting out of my car when the restaurant door opened, and Blake’s voice caught my attention. He was too busy telling his story to notice me, but I noticed him and the two girls with him.

“Son of a bitch,” I mumbled under my breath. Either Ren brought Ivy because she didn’t want to be alone with Blake, or Ivy was invited the entire time, and Blake made it sound like a fucking date to mess with me. That seemed more likely. I had a hard time picturing the girl that embarrassed us in the cafeteria suddenly agreeing to a date.

Ren was the first to notice me, the smile on her face slipping, but she didn’t seem angry, more shocked. Fuck she was pretty. Every time I saw her, she took my breath away a little more. Her hair was hanging loose and blowing in the breeze coming off the river, the long strands whipping out to the side. It reminded me of her personality, beautiful and a little wild.

“Fancy meeting all of ya here,” I said. Blake finally looked up and noticed me, his smile turning into an annoyed frown that I’d found him.

“What are you doing here? Have a hot date with that chick from the other night,” Blake asked, and I ground my teeth together.

“Nope, just came for some takeout, but since you’re here, Ren, would ya mind if I spoke to ya for a moment?”

“We were just heading back to the academy. Can it wait til our next session, or are you planning on skipping that one too?” Her tone was even, yet she still managed to sound sarcastic. Ren crossed her arms. I smirked, wanting nothing more than to kiss that smug attitude right out of her. Fuck she got my blood hot.