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“What the fuck happened?” I ask. Erika’s too shaken up to say anything. The girl is sagging in her sneakers. I place a hand at the small of her back to prop her up.
“We’re finding out,” one of the twins says, although I’m not sure which one. They both look the same to me.
“This dorm floor’s got like thirty women and all of them have phones. Someone has to have recorded something.” I’ll pound on their doors all day long if that’s what it takes, because no one does this to my treasure.
“Why do you think it smells like a pizzeria up here? We already bribed them and have the video.” The same twin waves his phone at my face. “We’re in the process of making an ID.”
I grab the phone and watch two guys wearing collared shirts with khaki shorts stand in front of Erika’s door. Their backs block the view of the door handle and lock, but my guess is they’ve got some tool. The door pops open and they disappear inside. After ten minutes, they exit, leaving the door wide open.
“They’re proud of their work,” I note. The bastards didn’t bother disguising themselves. One of them grins and winks at the camera. I wonder if he’ll enjoy swallowing his own teeth.
“That they are.”
I toss the phone back to the Audley twin. “Text me when you have more deets. I want in.”
“On what?” Sweet, innocent Erika stands up with some of her clothes in her hands and casts me a confused glance.
“I want in on helping you clean up,” I reply blandly. The Audley boys will know what I want. Erika doesn’t need ugly stuff in her life.
It takes about an hour to clean up the room, haul out the trash and pack up a couple bags—one for Erika and one for her roommate. Neither girl is staying here tonight and if I have my way, Erika won’t be back.
She’s quiet as we walk to my truck. I hate that she’s upset. Maybe I should tell her I’m going to rearrange their faces.
“You know that I’m going to make that whole mess right, don’t you?” I say as I help Erika into the truck.
She makes a face. “I’m not bothered about that. I’m…my parents are going to find out and they’ll be mad.”
“Why are they going to find out?”
She pushes a hand over her hair in frustration. “It’s campus policy. Any time you’re the subject of a hate attack, your parents get called. A girl on another floor got a nasty note written on her message board and her parents were called.”
I can tell she’s agitated. I run my palms over her thighs. “Okay. So why will they be mad? It’s not your fault.”
“They won’t see it that way.”
The defeat in her tone makes me want to gnash my teeth together. Maybe it’s not just the two dudes that need a midnight visit. Maybe her parents do, too. But I can’t punch her dad in the face, can I? That seems to cross the line, even for me.
“I think what we both need is some food. Let’s get pasta over at Spinneli’s and then go home and fuck like bunnies.”
I start to slam the door shut when she yells, “Wait.”
I swing it back open. “What?”
“Are we getting extra-cheesy garlic bread and the deep-fried ravioli?”
“We are now.”
That puts a smile on her face. The smile remains because we get all her favorite foods, plus a custard for dessert. She eats everything. When we get home, I feed Tuesday and then lock her out so that I can have my dessert.
After she falls asleep, I call a gym body to come and watch over Erika. I meet him outside.
“Sorry that I’m not letting you in.” I hand him a Benjamin. He slides it into his pocket.
“No problem, man. I’ll just sit here on the floor. It’s cleaner than the mat at the gym.”
“Don’t let Morry hear you say that,” I warn. She takes good care of the place.
He holds his hands over his head. “I was joking. Anyway, like I said, this is fine.”
