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I sigh.
Karen says, “I swear to God, Rhys, the shit that comes out of your mouth…”
Rhys chuckles. “No girl’s ever complained about my mouth before.”
“Why do you—”
A knock on the door interrupts Karen’s speech.
Dad shakes his head. “If this is another one of your friends here to throw punches, I’m pulling you out of school and wrapping you in bubble wrap.”
I get up and open the door. Just a tad. You know, in case it is someone ready to throw blows.
Mitch stands on my porch, his hands in his pockets. He’s never been to my house before, at least not that I know of. “What’s up?”
“Hey.” He tries to peer into the house, but I step out and pull it closed behind me. I leave it ajar, still wary of his purpose. “You got a second to talk?”
Confusion blurs my senses. “About?”
His throat bobs with his swallow before his gaze drops. “It’s just… uh… about Ava and—”
“What about Ava?” I cut in.
He sucks in a breath, holds it, then releases with force. Shaking his head, he looks up at me, his eyes tired. “Look, I shouldn’t—I mean, I didn’t want...”
I stand taller, alarm hammering in my ribcage. “Just spit it out, man.”
His lips part, but nothing comes out, and I raise my eyebrows. Wait. “I uh... it was me…”
“The fire?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “No. Not the fire, but kind of. I guess I had something to do with that, too. And I feel guilty about that, but…”
“Jesus, man, just say it.”
He untucks his hands from his pockets, fists them at his sides. “You ever notice how all of the bad shit that happened to Ava’s house happened when Peter Parker was around?”
My eyes widen, and I take a moment to think back. He’s right. Apprehensive, I nod, wait for him to continue while a knot forms in my stomach.
“He paid me to do that shit.”
I dip my head, lean my ear closer to him because I can’t be hearing this right. There’s no fucking way. “What?”
Mitch nods. “I don’t know his angle, or what he expected to get out of it, but he paid me to vandalize her house… the paintball gun, the BB gun, all of it… he paid me to do it all, and I…”
Rage solidifies every muscle, every cell. “And you did?”
His eyes drift shut… just as the door swings open behind me. I get shoved out of the way, and all I can see is a ball of blonde hair and bright red nails holding on to the drink tray as it flies toward Mitch’s face. When the contact’s made, there’s a crack so loud even I hiss in sympathy. Mitch’s face is nothing but red from his eyes down. Blood pours—no sprays—from his nose, his lip, all down his chin, his jaw, dropping onto the porch I never got around to fixing. Before I get a chance to say or do anything, Rhys is lifting Karen by the waist and practically throwing her back into the house. Dad joins Rhys and me on the porch while we take in the mess that is Mitch. Dad’s sigh is louder than the fury building inside me. “Let me take a look,” Dad says, stepping toward Mitch. He tilts Mitch’s head back by his jaw, then clasps the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. Mitch yelps in pain and Dad squeezes harder. “Yep, it’s definitely broken.” He releases Mitch completely. “Now get the fuck off my porch before you stain it with your depravity.”
FORTY-TWO
connor
I tried calling Ava to warn her about Peter. I also tried calling Trevor. My calls went unanswered. So did Rhys’s and Karen’s. We concluded pretty quickly that they’d gotten new numbers and didn’t want to be contacted. It all makes sense now that I think about it. Peter was around when all the major stuff went down, and knowing he got what he wanted is one thing but knowing he’s with Ava… that’s another.
I worry.
I can’t not.
