AllFreeNovel
Share Us
24 - Jason
Dante’s warning gaveme the creeps. I’d been looking forward to getting away with Vincent for the weekend; even though he was going to be working, I enjoyed having the alone time with him. I’d have peace and quiet during the day so I could work on my laptop while Vince slept, and since he was away at night — well, I could work then too, if I was unable to sleep.
Which I likely wouldn’t, now that I had Dante’s warning on my mind.
“Maybe I shouldn’t leave this weekend,” I said. Aiming down the scope of the paintball gun in my hands, I pulled the trigger.
Missed.
Lucas scoffed. “Don’t do that. You’re worrying over nothing. Dante is just being cautious.” He took aim, fired, and hit his target perfectly. Yellow paint splattered across the old car door we were using for target practice.
“Well, don’t you sound optimistic for once?” I grumbled. I sounded like a jerk but I was so tired. I’d been trying to keep myself distracted from my younger brother’s upcoming birthday, and all the pain and guilt that brought with it. But this wasn’t the kind of distraction I wanted.
Lucas put up his weapon, resting it against his shoulder. Although the summer’s heat still had us in its clutches, gray storm clouds were gathering on the horizon. There was a prickle of electricity in the air, a feeling of unease. Maybe it was only my imagination, but even the dogs seemed agitated lately.
Was it a gathering storm? Or was it Reagan creeping around, watching our house, trying to cause trouble? I’d been checking the cameras every morning, but the old man hadn’t returned to the property since we got back.
“What are you scared of?” Lucas said, in a calm tone that made me feel even guiltier for snapping at him. “Is it the sideshow? Are you afraid of something happening while we’re there?”
Taking aim, I fired three rapid shots. Finally, I was successful, and blue paint splattered across the door. But it didn’t feel satisfying.
“It’s supposed to be a big crowd,” I said. Despite being an “underground” event, the meet up that weekend was likely going to attract car enthusiasts from all over the county. Hundreds of people, all gathered together in the middle of the night, outside the city limits. It was hardly a recipe for safety. “You could lose track of each other. Jess could get lost. You could all get separated and then...” I didn’t know where my tangent was leading me. Looping my arm through the gun’s strap, I let it dangle from my shoulder as I took a seat on the back porch.
Lucas sat beside me, his arms resting on his knees. I didn’t say a word, but I couldn’t help staring at the faint bruises on his wrists. It had been a couple days since the incident at the outlet mall, and he’d barely spoken about it. At least not to me.
He noticed me staring. He lifted his wrist, holding it into the sunlight as if to see it more clearly.
“You know, I was always covered in bruises when I was younger,” he said. “I broke so many damn bones as a kid, it’s amazing I’m still functional.” He flexed his scarred fingers. Some of them were stiff, and some were crooked. They were big hands that showed the years of hard work they’d been through. “But it occurred to me that if I get bruises now, it’s usually something minor from work. Or from fucking around...” His rare smile was contagious when he turned it towards me. “I’m in a better spot now than I’ve ever been. Safer. Happier. And it’s because I have all of you.”
I was shocked to hear him speak so plainly. Lucas didn’t like to discuss emotional things and I didn’t blame him. But when he did finally venture into those discussions, they always felt genuine. Too raw to be insincere.
He didn’t linger on the topic. He sat up straighter and waved his hand, as if he was trying to brush the words away. “My point is, we’ve always taken care of each other. We have to trust each other.”
“I do trust you,” I said quickly.
“Then trust that we’ll be safe this weekend. We’ll look after ourselves, we’ll be cautious. Besides, you need the time with Vince, and he needs you too.”
“Damn it.” I shook my head at him in disbelief. “Since when do you give good advice?”
He widened his eyes in mock offense. “I give flawless advice. It isn’t my fault that y’all barely listen.” He shoved me playfully and I shoved him back, our words dwindling off into laughter, then silence. But after all the shoving, his arm remained resting on my thigh.
