Page 246 of Barinov

Marisol leans over, her black and pink waves brushing Zeke’s leg as she looks me dead in the eye. “He won’t release him to hunt so he’s mad.”

“Mar,” Zeke snaps.

“What?” she says, nonchalantly picking at her neon-pink nail. “It’s the truth. Part of it anyway.”

“What the hell does part of it mean?” I ask Marisol.

Zeke shoots her a glare and the chick clamps her mouth shut. She yanks out her phone and begins typing, angling her body away from everyone.

My phone buzzes in my pocket, but when I glance over at Marisol, her eyes widen and she shakes her head slowly.

Guess I’ll read that later.

“Terrible. Horrendo. I need an aspirin,” Javi groans, waving them off. He turns his gaze to the sidelines, his posture instantly straightening into pure royalty. “Trifecta! Show these children how it is done. Full set. From the top!”

Bella, Ellie, and Haley glide out like the superstars they are in their shimmering burgundy and black Trifecta uniforms. Knox slides a few dials on his soundboard, shifting the overhead gym lights to the Trifecta’s red, teal, and pink.

“RITMO” by the Black Eyed Peas and J Balvin tear through the speakers. The Trifecta launches into that sexy-as-hell Latin fusion they were planning on performing at Nationals before Bella’s little Disco Inferno switch-up. The same exact routine that would’ve easily had that fancy pants judge she was so worried about eating out of her perfect little hands.

“So that’s what this is about?” I whisper to Zeke, keeping my voice low beneath the booming bass. “Project Dylan.”

Zeke nods, his eyes locked on his sister but his mind is clearly miles away. “It’s the only thing I can focus on right now that doesn’t send me—” He cuts himself off, shaking his head. “I need this, Lex. I just want to do what I’m supposed to do. Save kids. That’s it.”

I get it. Well, not really. I can’t imagine being trapped in that house for that long while knowing damn well there are plenty of monsters still running loose. That and whatever else Luca put his sorry ass through in there.

“What did Monroe say?”

“That I haven’t faced it,” Zeke spits out. “That I’m not processing.”

“Fucking shrinks and their psychoanalysis bullshit,” I mumble. My eyes automatically track Bella as she spins in those tight shorts.

“Right?” Zeke lets out a dry laugh. “You said you had a better way, remember?”

I cut a slow grin his way, that lethal fight night spark igniting in my chest. If he won’t talk through his trauma, maybe he can fight it out.

“Yeah. Meet me at Northvale tomorrow. We’ll get this shit solved real quick.”

“That’s how it’s fucking done!” Knox’s voice reverberates off the gym walls. His eyes shining as he points toward Bella, Ellie, and Haley, breathing heavily at center court. “The Trifecta is back, baby!”

Javi wipes a tear off his cheek on the sidelines next to Rez. “My babies.”

My phone vibrates in my pocket again. I pull it out, ignoring Marisol’s text for the time being, and open up the newest message.

KNOX: I need you guys to do something for Bella.

ME: What?

KNOX: Go get the rain stage and hook it up.

“Babe.” I elbow Cade and tip the phone toward him.

By the time Cade, Briggs, and I are back in our seats after wrestling that monster of a stage out of storage and finally getting the damn thing hooked up, practice is damn near over. The girls are wrapping up one of the Trifecta’s competition performances for the upcoming season when Knox’s voice booms back over the sound system like this is his own personal concert.

“From the looks of that, babes…” He dramatically fans himself. “Maddie Rae and those little Revs will be running back to mommy before Regionals even begins.”

A roar of laughter fills the gym.

“Freshmen…” Knox leans back into the mic, grinning like the chaotic devil he is as the saxophone beats of Jason Derulo’s “Talk Dirty” repeat in the background.