“This isn’t funny,” I say.
I take a deep breath to let out a scream but stop when a mouth hits my ear through whatever is over my head.
“Don’t you dare make a sound,” the tense voice whispers.
I stop. I don’t fight or even whimper. I think these guys might be insane enough to kill me, and God knows they have enough money to cover it up.
I hear the car door open, and I’m lifted inside. My shins hit the seat, and I wriggle enough until I’m sitting on my bottom. Hands push me over, and I start to fall sideways, but another set of hands catch me on the other side. Doors shut, and I fight to control my breathing.
The vehicle starts up, and there is a body on either side of me. I can feel their legs touching mine, and I pull myself in, making my body as small as I can.
No one speaks as we pull out of the garage. My balance is thrown off by the hood, and I bump and slide into bodies as we drive away. A hand wraps around my thigh, holding me still, and I push away, but it tightens.
“Be still,” the throaty voice commands.
I know instantly that it belongs to Corbin, and God, if I don’t listen to him. He keeps his hand on my thigh, his fingers digging slightly into my skin underneath the material of my joggers, and his palm sears my flesh with the heat coming off of him. I wiggle slightly, afraid of what I feel but also weirdly excited about it. The mystery surrounding these guys is unreal, like I’m in a movie or a book.
Once the vehicle comes to a stop, I’m pulled from inside and deposited on shaky legs. The hood is ripped from my head, and I look around, squinting into the darkness.
“Where are we?” I ask, noting Corbin is at my side now but neither of the twins are. They are standing away from us, talking in low tones, and I don’t know what they are saying. “So, what are you, the muscle behind the operation, the henchman? They are the brains, and you’re the brawn?”
I watch his eyes narrow and nostrils flare as he opens his mouth. He turns his gaze on me, pinning me in place.
“You don’t know anything about me,” he says, his voice shooting right through me.
I flinch, and I want to move back, but then I want to get him to talk again, so I can hear his voice and see his eyes looking into mine. I move to step around, but he reacts fast, gripping my arm and pulling me into him. My body meets his, and suddenly, my fear is gone, replaced by the need to have him tell me dirty things in that voice of his.
God, get it together, Landry. He is not your friend.
He quickly releases me and turns me as Brock stops in front of us.
“Where are we?” I ask again.
He rolls his eyes. “That doesn’t matter. We are somewhere we can talk privately.”
“Why do we need to talk privately?”
He eyes me for a moment and then ignores my question. “What are you doing here?”
“Uh, you took me from my bed and forced me to sit here and talk to you goons. Are you trying to be funny with this stunt? Let me know that you don’t want me here?”
“We don’t want you here. But you are, so we have some questions.”
“Which are?” I lean forward slightly but jump when Bodhi traces my earlobe with his finger.
“Fuck off,” I say, staring at him, but he’s looking at Corbin with a grin as he does it.
“Tell us about Linda,” Brock commands.
I cock my head to the side. “Are you serious? This is a damn shakedown about my mom?”
“Tell us what you know about your mother.”
“Look, it’s pretty clear that you don’t like her. I don’t know if you are looking for dirt on her or trying to break her and your dad up, but I’m not going to help you. Stay away from me, and I’ll do the same with you.” I cross my arms, feeling like my racing heart is going to jump from my chest.
“That’s not how this works. We can make this a nice stay for you or a very uncomfortable one. Your choice.”
“You act like me being here is temporary.”
“Isn’t it though?” Brock’s eyes bore into me.
I bite my lip. It’s unfair, the way they are automatically writing me off. I didn’t ask for this. I didn’t ask for our parents to be married, but here I am, willing to work it out if they are.
“I mean, not for the next year, no. I’m finishing my senior year here at Almadale Prep.”
“Let me make this easy for you. We are Almadale. The name Montgomery is everything in this town. Everyone caters to us; everyone worships the ground we walk on.”
“Jeez. Pretty inflated view of yourself there, bro. If it were true, you wouldn’t have to tell me that.” I’m getting tired of these games now.
“I’m not your brother,” Brock says.
I step forward, my fear gone, replaced by anger with how they’re wanting to scare me with this stunt.
“And I’m not your sister,” I say, clenching my teeth. “I don’t want to be. Stay out of my way, and I’ll stay out of yours.”
We are close. I can see the way his eye twitches in the moonlight, and I smile briefly.
“Understood?”
“You don’t fuckin’ make the rules,” Brock says, moving closer, but I’m pulled back quickly as Corbin shifts forward between us.
“She doesn’t know anything,” he says.
Brock turns his glare on him. I glance over and see Bodhi is now next to me, the moon glinting off a knife he’s holding, running it across a stick.
“Whittle in your spare time?” I ask.
He turns that always-smiling face on me. “Nah, can’t do shit with a knife. I just like the way it looks.”
I don’t know whether to believe him or not.
Brock and Corbin are involved in a heated exchange, and I stand there, my arms wrapped around myself, shielding me from the night air. I’m thankful I put a hoodie on.
“Let’s go,” Brock growls at us as he stalks by.
Before I can protest, the hood is thrown back over my head. My mind swirls with confusion.
What do the guys think I know? What is this really about?
I’m too exhausted right now to figure it out. I expect one of them to grab my wrists again, but they don’t, and suddenly, everything is way too quiet. I reach up, grabbing the hood from my head, and my heart sinks when I see their taillights leaving me behind.
The darkness closes in, and I stand still, afraid to move. I can’t believe they left me here.
This is bullshit.
My stomach clenches with rage and I’m scared. I ball the hood up, throwing it as far as I can with a scream. My foot finds a tree stump with my pinkie toe, and tears prick my eyelids at the pain.
“Fucking hell,” I hiss as I jump around for a second, and then I sink to sit on top of the offending stump.
I have no clue where I am, and I have no way to get back. I’m at their mercy, and that’s a shitty place to be.
After about thirty minutes of me sitting in the dark, jumping at every noise I hear, I finally see car lights. I raise my arm to cover my face when they land on me, and then I stare. I can’t make out who it is. Eventually, a door opens, and Corbin’s voice hits me.
“Get in, Landry.”
Everything in me doesn’t want to get in with those douche bags, but right now, I don’t have a choice.