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I twist in the seat to look at Alex. “So, are you going to tell me what my dad did to you? Or are you just going to keep avoiding the subject?”
He nibbles on his bottom lip, glancing at me. “If I tell you, are you just gonna defend him?”
I snort a laugh. “No. I never defend my father.”
His gaze searches mine. “Why not?”
“Because I’ve learned over the years that most of the shit people accuse him of is the truth.”
“So, you never step in on his behalf?”
“Nope. The only people I do that for are my sisters.”
He stares at me curiously. “You kind of sound like Blaise.”
I let out an exasperated exhale. “That’s not the first time someone’s said that to me.”
“That’s not a bad thing. Blaise is a good guy,” he says defensively. “No matter how much he gets on my nerves sometimes.”
“I know he is,” I say quietly.
A beat of silence ticks by before he redirects his attention back to the street. “Your dad stole the job my father was going to give to me.”
That’s so not what I was expecting him to say.
“That’s why you’re upset? Seriously?”
“Yes, seriously. But it wasn’t about the job.” He downshifts, slowing down to make a turn down a narrow side road. “It was about what the job represented.”
“Which is?”
The pinkish glow of the sunset reflects the anger in his eyes. “Mine and my brothers’ freedom. And what’s really messed up is your dad fucking stole it from me on purpose.”
My brows dip. “I’m not sure I’m following you.”
He shifts gears again, slowing down as the paved road shifts to dirt.
As I become aware of all the desolate fields around us, anxiety creeps up inside me.
Where the hell is he taking me? Was he lying about knowing where my sister is?
Why the hell didn’t I bring my pepper spray?
“A few months before you guys moved to Honeyton, your father showed up here and talked to my dad about working for him to settle an old debt he owed,” Alex explains, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel.
“Yeah, I know this,” I tell him, touching the bandage on my wrist. “It was from a gambling debt, right?”
He flips on his blinker to make a turn on an even narrower road. “From what I understand, that’s what it was, but I’ve heard rumors that there’s more to it than that.”
I glance at him, confused. “Like what?”
“I really have no fucking idea, and honestly, when it comes to my father’s world, the truth usually stays buried. And if you go looking for it too hard, you’ll end up being buried, too.” He throws me a smirk but the move is forced, almost as if he’s putting on a façade.
I mull over what he said, my confusion doubling. “I still don’t understand why you blame my father for taking your job. If he was just trying to settle a debt and your father gave him a job that was supposed to be yours … how is that my dad’s fault?”
“Because that job was supposed to be mine and my brothers’ tickets out of here,” he bites out in annoyance.
“But how? I don’t understand.”
