Unwritten Rules (Rules 1)

“Yeah, yeah. I got it. He’s bad. Do we have any idea who did it?” I wince and shift in my seat. I know from the burning sensation that they must be quite obvious under my hair.

“We’re on it. We suspect the North Side, but it doesn’t add up. Ian is Haze’s ally. He wouldn’t pull the trigger on an attack like that without consulting him first.” He glances at me. “We’ll figure it out. I promise.”

I’m slightly amused by the way Kendrick talks to me like I’m supposed to know who the hell this Ian is. I need a “street fighters for dummies” lesson fast.

Kendrick’s car pulls up into Maria’s driveway, and I’m relieved to see her white car is nowhere to be seen. I’ll have a lot of explaining to do when she comes home from the hospital tonight. My cousin shuts off the engine and we walk to the front door side by side. Kendrick tells me about Kass not coming home either. Apparently, she texted him not to worry. He says he suspects it has something to do with a boy.

“Good for her,” I reply. After everything Blake put her through, she deserves it. Of course, I refrain from saying the last part out loud as Kendrick isn’t aware of Blake and Kass’s secret.

We stop on the porch to unlock the door. When a cold breeze blows my hair off my neck, Kendrick stops dead in his tracks. I frown.

“What the hell is this? What happened to you?”

Shit. Shit. Shit.

“What is what?”

“Your neck. Oh my God.”

He brushes the hair off my neck swiftly before I can step back. He balls his hands into fists, making them look like white-knuckled weapons.

“The bastard attacked you?” he says through gritted teeth, the look in his eyes making my skin crawl.

I consider lying for a second. I don’t want to cause any more problems than I already have. When I get a quick glance of my reflection in the kitchen window, I’m forced to face the obvious truth—nothing can get me out of this one. What could I possibly say to justify the bright red marks on my neck? I got into a fight with a curling iron?

“It wasn’t Haze. He was gone when I woke up. He wanted me to wait for him.” I finally come clean, my eyes dropping to the ground.

“Then who?” Kendrick shouts, anger flowing out of him profusely.

“Kendrick, calm down, please.”

He’s about two seconds away from punching the wall.

“Who?” he screams again.

I give in. “Tanner.”

“I’m going to kill him.” He unlocks the front door and rushes inside the silent kitchen. I follow him, terrified that he might do something stupid. Against all expectations, he gets his phone out of his pocket and starts typing.

“What are you doing?” I try and see the screen.

“Texting you,” he grumbles.

“But Haze has my phone.”

Kendrick looks up from his phone, and we lock eyes.

“Exactly.”

I glance over his shoulder, finally getting a clear shot of the message.

Winter: Your brother lays a finger on my cousin again, you’re both dead. - K

Lovely.

I remember turning off my phone last night, and although I’d like to think Haze won’t see it, I also know I’d be dumb to think he hasn’t tried to snoop. Even if—thank the Lord—my phone has a password, the locked screen will allow him to read Kendrick’s text. My cousin storms out of the room seconds later and I collapse onto a chair, cursing.

It’s official, life hates me.