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“How fun,” she said.
“You have no idea. At first, I didn’t think he’d go for it. I know he’s capable of a lot of things, but you see, I had no idea you’re the reason he’s the way he is.”
She looked up to see Hunter staring at her. Every now and then, he’d glance down at the road, but his focus was on her, and she hated it.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“No, you didn’t? We’ll see. Maybe your memory is fogged up, but one day, you will realize all of this is your fault.”
She lifted her tied hands and wiped away the tears.
Logan was supposed to stay gone, along with his other friends. She didn’t know what Logan had done to be cast out, but she’d been told all of them had gone. He wasn’t going to come back to Crow Valley. She’d been promised that.
He’d been one of the star boys. The little rich kid who could have anything he wanted. Only, she’d not bowed down to him. She’d fought him then, and she’d continue to fight him, every step of the way, until he was taken down.
“What’s he like now?” she asked.
“Ah, has curiosity raised its ugly head?”
She looked back at him. “I want to know what I’m up against. Exactly who I’m up against.”
“I think you know. Logan has told me he hasn’t changed much. He’s gotten older. A little meaner, maybe. He’s powerful. Rich. Any other woman would be flattered at the kind of attention he’s bestowing on you.”
She felt sick. She didn’t know what Logan would want with her, unless he was acting on behalf of his friend. “Please, take me home.”
“Not going to happen.”
“I didn’t do anything wrong. I did what I was supposed to.”
He laughed. “I’m sure you did. You better relax. Where we’re going, it’s not going to get easy for you. Believe me, it’s going to get very hard. Logan’s been planning this meeting for a long time.”
The radio was turned on, and she closed her eyes, letting the tears fall.
She should have left Crow Valley when she had the chance. After her parents died and she was left all alone.
Tugging on the rope, she tried to pull her hands free, but it was no good. There was no fighting this hold. She gritted her teeth and pulled again, trying to find the end. If there was a chance of getting out on the road before they even got to wherever Logan wanted her, she’d take it. Would he be with Logan?
She’d not seen him since the day he’d paid an impromptu visit to her home. Her parents had been at work, and she’d decided to be home-schooled. There was no way she could go back to school. Her locker had been defaced, and her life had become unbearable. She had no choice but to finish her education at home.
He’d promised her. Looked right into her eyes and told her there would come a day, he’d be back, and when he did, he’d pay her back. They would be even. All this time she’d known he’d be back, and she only hoped he would never find her.
This was her mistake.
She would have to live with it, but why would Logan want to hurt her? She had done nothing to him.
****
Staring out across the expanse of his lawn, Logan took a long draw on his cigarette marveling at the fake beauty before him. A real garden wasn’t tamed. It didn’t have gnome ornaments or statues of semi-clad women. At the click of his fingers, he’d be able to have real women, standing naked, waiting to amuse him.
He preferred the wildness, the chaos, danger to all the fake and preened lawns. The gardener had promised to stay on, to help maintain the grounds. He’d fired him on the spot. True beauty was seeing what lay beneath. To Logan, it wasn’t about masking nature, but seeing it grow. Seeing the real world, and being inspired by it. He looked forward to seeing the grass grow, the weeds coming up out of the grounds, surrounding their fake, ceramic gnomes and poised sculptures.
Throwing his cigarette to the ground, he stamped it out, blowing out another puff of air.
Gripping the cold cement railing, he breathed in the night air. It was nothing like the city. No lingering toxic car fumes, or the stench of decay. Walking down the street, he’d be able to get a good whiff of rotten food, animal piss, and the unmistakable scent of desperation. He couldn’t get any of that now.
The air was clear, crystal clear.
Just like his feelings. He was more than ready for what he planned to do.
For twelve years he’d bided his time, preparing, getting stronger, throwing away the shackles that had once bound him, and taken over. He was no longer caged for a crime he didn’t commit. The moment he stepped foot in the small town, he made sure the Sheriff knew who the real boss was. Before Logan had kicked out the previous tenant, he’d laid down the law. If the Sheriff even thought to interfere with his plans, Logan would make the Sheriff’s extracurricular activities public. It wasn’t his fault the man liked to go and visit gay bars, and also have a hand at underage children, boys more specifically. Logan remembered being in those bars, and the Sheriff had tried to lure him in. He’d tried to blackmail Logan, to get him to confess, and also tried to scare him. When the man tried to touch his dick, even then, Logan had been strong. At eighteen years old, he’d been bigger than everyone in his high school. No one could take him. He’d been a tank, unmoving, unyielding, but Ava, she’d taken him down. She’d crushed him to his knees, and now it was his turn to reciprocate. Her lies and hatred had ruined his life, or at least, ruined a few years of it. She’d had him incarcerated, punished for no reason at all.
