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My blood ran cold. It was the guy who’d attacked me. Why would he say such horrible things? I didn’t move and held my breath. About a minute passed in silence, and I slumped to the floor on my knees.
Jesus, if you’re anywhere, please let nothing else go wrong today.I prayed hard.Please, please, please.
The door burst inward, and I scrambled backward. I was frozen in fear for a moment, then shot to my feet and stumbled away a few steps. The crazy guy who’d come after me the other day was standing in the doorway, glaring. His unwashed blond hair hung in lanky chunks around his thin face, and he looked sick, like he hadn’t eaten in a week. There was a sheen of sweat on his forehead despite the cool air outside.
He tilted his head and frowned at me, and he reminded me of a skeleton on a pirate flag. “What the fuck? What are you doing here?” His scowl turned into something murderous, and his hand went to his pocket.
“Uh, Ethan is helping me out,” I said. It was true and I couldn’t think of anything else with him glaring at me.
“Why would he do that?” The man wasn’t much older than me, if he was older, but he had hard lines around his eyes.
“Because we’re friends.”
He laughed, an abrupt ugly sound. “No, you’re not. We’re talking about that assclown, Shep, right? He doesn’t do friends. He barely talks to me, and I’ve known him most of my life.”
“Well, I’m one of his friends,” I muttered, getting angry. Who was this person to judge me or Ethan?
He stared at me while tugging on a strand of his hair, then straightened up suddenly with a small, nasty smile. “You’re buying from him, right? Coke? Weed? What’s he selling to you?”
“No,” I said immediately, then inwardly sighed. I should’ve saidyes, then maybe he would’ve left me alone. “I don’t do drugs.”
He took a step toward me. “Then what are you doing here? Stuck-up pricks belong on the other side of the river, even if they’re paying out the ass for blow.” He tugged his hand out of his pocket and there was something gleaming in it—a folded up knife. I rubbed my chest and took another step away from him, but much farther and I would bump into the bed.
“Please leave.” Shame clawed through me because my voice wavered.
He shook his head quickly. “No, for all I know you’re in here stealing.”
Another wave of embarrassment smacked me as I glanced around. “What would I want to take? Even the TV looks like it’s been through a tornado.”
A snarl crossed the man’s face, and I thought maybe he deserved to get angry about that comment, but there really wasn’t anything here that would be worth breaking in to steal.
“His stash, fucko.” He pointed at me with the knife, but thankfully the blade was still safely tucked away. “If he’s selling to you, he has one.” He glanced around with interest, clearly the real thief between the two of us.
“I wouldn’t steal.”
“Why?” He tossed the knife between his hands. “Because you’re too good to take what you need?” he asked, eyebrows diving. His body quivered and his left hand tightened into a fist. His thin fingers showed off the bones under the skin, and I couldn’t help the way my stomach twisted and felt sick. “Well, Shep’s not here now to save you from what you deserve.”
“Stop,” I said, but he launched forward, and I caught a fist to the side of my face. Pain lit up my nerve endings, but adrenaline also slammed into me, making my skin tingle. I didn’t like violence, but I wasn’t about to stand around and let myself get beaten when reason had been tossed out the window.
I shoved him, and he came in swinging again, but I managed to throw my arm up and catch his fist.Smash!More pain. He did it again. The jerk was fast and swung with the other fist holding the closed knife. My jaw ached as he connected. I was dazed as he struck one more time and hammered my temple, and then he dragged me out of the trailer onto the lawn, which was exactly where I didn’t want to be. If my parents or anyone from the church were trying to find me, I was screwed, because there was only a small stretch of grass between the trailer and the stone fence, then the river and on the other side....
He tossed me to the ground, but I was able to get to my feet before he could pounce on me, and I ran a few steps away. Tav, the big bearish man with steely blond hair I’d met earlier, stepped out of his trailer and stomped toward us. I backpedaled, but he held up a hand toward me and was staring at my attacker.
“Do you want to get kicked out of here, Murph? Because this is a fast way to get that to happen, you stupid shite,” Tav roared.
“Stay out of this! It has nothing to do with you.” My attacker—Murph, apparently—flipped him off.
“What are you doing?” Tav asked.
Murph spat on the ground, and I grimaced because it nearly hit my foot. “This prick was in Shep’s trailer.”
“So? He can have whoever he wants in there. Ain’t your business, is it?” Tav got between me and Murph, and Murph tucked his knife away and his shoulders slumped. He wasn’t brave enough to try to swing at someone twice his size. “Real question is, what were you doing busting into his trailer, Murph? We don’t steal shite in the park or did you forget that?”
I thought I saw someone across the river, but the sun was in my eyes, and I couldn’t be sure. Holding in a moan, I backed toward the side of the trailer. “I shouldn’t be outside.”
“Go the fuck home, rich boy!” Murph shouted.
I cringed.
