Renegade Hearts (Rebels of Sandland 1)

I knew they’d be here tonight. It was their party, after all. I also knew they’d want to taunt me, ask me questions I had no answers to. Play with me like a tiger with its prey. If Danny were here, he’d have gone mad at me for engaging in their crazy cat and mouse games. But I liked the adventure. It was like a puzzle I had to unravel.

We saw the same security guy on the door from the warehouse party and showed him our mobile phone messages, which doubled as our ticket to the other side. He stamped our hands and stepped back to let us through, taking our payment as we each passed by. The lobby area was rammed, packed full of people hanging around, singing, dancing, drinking, and smoking. The sweet smell of weed hit me and I grabbed Effy’s arm, pulling her closer to the music. Liv followed behind and when we got through the crowds and into the main dance area we all stood to the side to take a moment.

There was a swimming pool, which would’ve been filled with bathers many years ago. Now, it was drained dry with porcelain tiles hanging off the sides and pot-holes on the floor. Not that it bothered anyone here. The pool was being used as the dance floor. How any of them would get out if there was an emergency was anyone’s guess. The deep end came way over their heads, but they didn’t seem to mind. The novelty of dancing in a swimming pool with no water was probably highly appealing to them. Quirky. The green algae that’d be staining their shoes and clothes didn’t quite do it for me though.

Zak had his D.J. set on the side of the pool at the deep end. Strobe lights danced across the room, giving it a creepy, electric vibe. Zak was in his element, spaced out and focused solely on the tunes he was playing. I glanced around, but I couldn’t see any of the other boys. I recognised a few people from school, but no one really stood out.

“Shall we dance?” Liv asked, walking over to the steps and lowering herself into the dance pit.

“You coming, Em?” Effy tapped my elbow in question.

“I wanna explore. This place is amazing and freakishly weird.” The gothic ceiling over the pool made it feel like we were in a vault. The black, wrought-iron arches towered over us and hinted at the grandeur or yesteryears. The finest architecture meets urban decay. I bet Finn was in his element tonight.

“You gonna go rogue on us again?” Effy said smiling. “I’m joking. Go and explore. You know where to find us when you’re done.” She turned round and lowered herself into the pool-dance area next to Liv and gave me a little wave.

I didn’t know how safe or stupid an idea it was to wander around here on my own, but I was never one to listen and I was starting to realise I didn’t like being told what to do either. Not anymore. Ryan Hardy, all those boys, had awoken something in me that I didn’t want to ignore. Curiosity killed the cat. Must be why they have nine lives.

I pushed my way through the crowds and towards the stairs that led to what used to be the changing rooms. The musky damp mildew smell was also laced with sweat. It was so gross it made me miss the sickly sweet smell of the weed from the entrance, but I powered through. I could see a sea of bodies further down the tiled corridor and I knew exactly what they were here for. The adrenaline surged through me as I moved deeper into the throng of people. Zak had his congregation gathered upstairs. Finn was off somewhere creating magic, but here was where I’d find Brandon and Ryan. This was their domain. The seedy underworld o

f fighting.

I managed to force my way into a room that was packed full of men and women, all ready to witness something mind-blowing. After what Chase had said about Ryan setting up the betting scams, I expected to find him in here, but I didn’t. Three guys I didn’t recognise were taking bets and money was being handed over left, right and centre. There were odds being called out, but it meant nothing to me. This room was dingy and musty, dark and depraved. It gave me feels right out of the Victorian England it’d been built in. Where morals were loose, men were corrupt and only the strongest survived.

I noticed a few of the men glance my way, looking me up and down and spending a little too long on my chest. I’d worn tight skinny jeans and a tight cropped vest top, but my boobs weren’t that out there. I looked down, ready to adjust myself just in case and I saw a familiar muscular tattooed arm snake its way around my waist.

“I can’t believe you came all the way down here to watch me fight. Are you my lucky charm?” Brandon breathed into my ear as he spoke in a low, and what was for him probably seductive manner. He ran his other arm around my middle and pulled me into him, burying his face into my hair and taking a deep breath.

Being held against him like this I could truly appreciate how solid he was. He was like a machine; hard, tense and ready to go. But he didn’t give me butterflies like Ryan did. Having Brandon cocoon me like this just made me bristle with irritation. He had no right to put his hands on me and I wasn’t here to see him. Not in the way he thought, anyway. Sure, I wanted to see him fight. I was curious. But I wasn’t here to catch his attention. My senses were on red alert, waiting for someone else.

I grabbed his hands to move them off me and he laughed.

“Saving yourself for after? Do I get the prize when I win?”

“What prize?” I snapped back and tried to turn my head to look at him, but he was so close I could barely move.

“You.” He chuckled at himself. I don’t know why, he wasn’t funny. Then he leant down and planted a kiss at the side of my neck.

“Back off, Brandon. I’m not interested,” I said through gritted teeth.

“I like it when you fight me,” he whispered. “But you’ve seen the way I fight, little Winters. You’ve gotta know by now, I always win.”

“Not me,” I said, keeping my head high and my body stiff.

“I’ll win you round eventually.” He loosened his grip on me and then he kissed the top of my head. “Like I said, I always win.” He came to stand in front of me and waggled his eyebrows like he expected me to giggle or melt into his arms. I kept my expression neutral and looked straight through him. “Ooo that’s cold, Winters.” And then he laughed at himself, again. “Cold. Winters. See what I did there?”

I rolled my eyes. He had the bantering skills of a seven-year-old.

“I would laugh at your feeble attempt at humour, but I’m sure you have enough girls around you who fake it. You don’t need another one.”

He threw his head back and laughed. “No need to fake anything with me, baby. I’m the real deal.”

Then he stalked away, high-fiving and patting people on the back as he did. I watched him swagger towards the hay bales that’d been set up to create a makeshift boxing ring. He was like a messiah they all made way for. A God that commanded an audience but gave the clear message that they needed to stay back.

Noticing I was watching him, he winked at me, then took his T-shirt off and stood there in his jeans, taking deep breaths and getting himself into the zone. His chest was ripped and covered in tattoos, and he flexed his muscles and jumped on the spot, limbering up for his fight. He rolled his head and shook his arms out, then nodded to a guy to the left of him, who handed him a bottle of water. There were no boxing gloves or rings for this fight though. This was raw, untamed, bare-knuckle fighting. If you took a hit, you didn’t dare go down. Going down meant you’d never get back up. This was dog-eat-dog.

I could feel the ripple of tension in the air as Brandon’s opponent entered the room. Then I felt heat at my back again, only this time, my body melted from the iceberg it’d been literally minutes ago, into a pool on the floor, and I felt myself lean into him before he’d even spoken.

“I thought I told you, you don’t belong here.” Ryan stood behind me, his breath fanning the side of my face as he spoke. I took a deep breath in, inhaling his scent that swirled around me. Like a drug, it calmed my shredded nerves and made me sigh instinctively. “Keep making little noises like that and I’ll throw you over my shoulder and get you the hell out of here before you cause any more trouble.”