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“Where am I supposed to go?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Figure it out. You’re on your own, kid.”
Then she walked out with my cousin Tina and left me standing there.
I was officially abandoned with no one.
I had watched my father beat my mother to death. I was shot in the arm while riding shotgun during his attempted getaway. When he was imprisoned, I was shipped to Georgia to live with an aunt who didn’t want me and a man who couldn’t keep his hands off my young body, all before the age of fourteen.
I was a fucking survivor.
Joker stepped up beside me and bumped his shoulder into mine.
“Your aunt’s a bitch,” he remarked.
I nodded, agreeing with him.
“So what’s the plan?” he asked, pushing the door open and stepping outside.
I followed him. “I guess I don’t have a plan.”
“Think we’ll end up in foster care living with another set of sick fucks?”
No way.
I was done living with strangers.
“Hell no.”
He nodded, and we went down the steps and into the parking lot just as my aunt pulled away.
“Then I guess we figure shit out on our own,” he said. “All I know is, I’m ready to do my own thing. You in?”
I was definitely in. Besides my mother, Joker was the only person in my life who laid it all on the line for me. He had a sick way of showing it, but he gave a shit about me when my flesh and blood didn’t. As far as I was concerned, we were brothers.
After collecting what little we owned, we took to the streets and survived any way we could. It didn’t matter that we had nothing. We were free, and I was a fucking survivor.
THE SUN BROKE THROUGH the sheet hanging at my window and blazed into my eyes, waking me and pulling me from my memories and nightmares. I covered my head with my pillow, hoping to catch at least another hour or two, but the second I broke through the veil, my brain started to run.
Seeing Victoria after so many years had shaken me more than I wanted to admit. And the way she looked, walked, and talked awakened something that I was still trying to push down. It was a drug run day. I didn’t have time to think about Victoria Walsh. There was money to be made, and we all had to focus on that these days.
Joker and Crow were already up. Their voices echoed from the garage, where I knew they were messing with their bikes. My bedroom was closest to the garage, which meant I could hear every fucking word they said.
We lived in the garage some days, working on our bike maintenance and bullshitting. Our bikes would never be fast enough as far as we were concerned. They would never be hot enough. The neons. The paint. When we pulled up at The Strip, fuckers knew who we were, and that was exactly how we wanted it.
Leaving my room, I went into the bathroom and showered in the hottest water my body could stand. Once dry, I pulled on a white tank and black cargo shorts. I brushed my teeth and ran a comb through my hair.
When I was ready for the day, I walked out into the hallway and past Crow’s mom’s room. We all knew what had happened there, that Crow’s mom had hung herself in that room, but it was never mentioned. The house was Crow’s, and we respected his wishes and left the room alone. We made sure no one found their way in there during our parties. I knew Crow would lose his shit if he found just one thing out of place.
I pulled my pineapple juice from the fridge and took a huge swig. Then I rummaged through the cabinets until I found my box of Captain Crunch. I pulled out a handful, stuffed the box under my arm, and filled my mouth with the Captain before I stepped barefoot into the garage.
Joker looked up when he heard me enter. He shook his head and chuckled.
“We thought you were dead. It’s about time your ass woke up.” Only Joke would kid about death. “Where were you last night? Did you find your way into some pussy?”
I shook my head. “Nah. I was fucking tired, man.”
They exchanged glances, and I knew they were hiding something from me. I ignored it. I was still trying to clear my head of Victoria Walsh, and I knew if they wanted to tell me something, they would.
