“He didn’t,” flies out before I can stop it.
Questioning stares hit mine, so I get us back on track.
“Partner, you say?”
“Yeah.” He eyes me. “You ever play Bottle Bash?”
“With actual bottles we dug out of recycle bins and a broken broomstick, yeah, not this fancy shit.”
A guy on the other team grins and lifts the Frisbee. “All you gotta do is throw this thing and hit the target. We’re too lazy to count technicalities.”
“Aim wins the game.” I toss the Frisbee in my hands.
Loud laughter catches my attention and I glance behind me.
About a court’s length back, the Graven students party in front of what I’m assuming is one of their cabins.
“They won’t come any closer,” Leo says quietly.
Collins stares right at me, completely ignoring the chick sitting on his lap.
“Surprised they even come this way.”
“They usually stay back by Collins’ place, keep us separated by the trail, but after the fight yesterday...” He trails off and I meet his stare. “Seems they’re making it a point to show their ground.”
He’s wrong. Collins wants to be seen. He wants the upper hand in whatever this is, and right now the only answer he sees ... is me.
He’s gauging, watching for signs of possession from the boys to me.
He wants confirmation that to get to me is to get to them. But it won’t work.
He doesn’t realize I’m just an outsider with a closer view than others at the moment. But I’m not a part of them.
As if reading my thoughts his lip tips up and he winks before finally looking back to his group.
“Come on, Leo, girls can’t throw,” the opponent jokes, bringing us back to the now.
I spin around and raise a brow. “Bet.”
“Bet?”
“I make it, you’re my partner’s official beer boy for the night.”
The guy laughs drunkenly. “You’re on.”
I look back to Leo. “You, dear Leo, are about to benefit from having me as partner.”
He frowns and I turn back around, aim, and throw the Frisbee.
It hits the bottle perfectly, knocking it to the dirt.
They all hoot and holler and I bow, laughing lightly.
“Lucky shot?”
I shrug. “Passed a lot of time perfecting those trashcan paper tosses.”
He nods, a light laugh leaving him. “Yeah. Pretty much where I learned to shoot, too.”
“You grow up around here?”
“’Bout a mile down the street from the Bray houses. I was lucky though, Pops had a double wide instead of a single.” He laughs, but it’s bitter. Lucky is the last thing he considers his life to be.
There’s a story there, but I don’t feel like telling mine tonight so I only nod and pretend to need another drink so I can walk off.
When I glance left, a flash of white catches my eye and I squint to see better, but it’s gone.
I look around for the only pair of white shorts I’ve seen tonight, not finding any. That’s when I notice the other two are nowhere to be found.
Curiosity gets the best of me, so I pretend to survey everything around me, and when it’s more than clear nobody is watching, I head the way the white shorts disappeared to.
I go around the opposite way so that when I reach the end, I’m coming up the back side of the cabins.
I frown when I realize where I am, a large air hockey table not fifteen feet to my right.
“What the fuck?” I whisper, quickly dropping down behind a parked car when footsteps grow near. Then the voices hit my ears.
“How can you not get it open?”
“They had to have changed the fucking locks. I popped that shit a dozen times last trip. I was fucking ready for it.”
“Obviously not.”
“Man, fuck you. I tried. Don’t see you doing shit to get it.”
“I’ll bust the fucking window right now.”
“Yeah, and then every motherfucker will hear it.”
“Both of you, shut the fuck up and let’s think.”
I shift to the side, seeing it really is just the three ... standing not a foot from Collins’ cabin door.
Those fuckers. They’re trying to break in.
I look to the cabin, scanning the deck and each window.
Bingo.
I pop up and head their way.
“The answer’s easy.”
Three heads jerk my way, deep frowns taking over.
“Go back to the fucking party,” Maddoc orders, suspicion in his eyes.
“What’s the point? I already saw you guys trying to break in.” I shrug and his jaw clenches.
Royce cuts his eyes from Maddoc back to me. “Got some new fancy lock. Can’t crack it.”
“You also can’t fit any one of your big ass bodies through that shower window. I, however, can.” I cross my arms and wait.
They do the whole, ‘no way, I don’t think so’ thing and of course it’s Captain who understands I’m the only answer.
Maddoc looks to me. “This is Brayshaw business.”
“I’m nothing but a key, I’ll go after it’s opened.” I shrug, looking between the three.