Trouble at Brayshaw High (Brayshaw High 2)

Fuck. Did he hear that?

“Fuck you, Brayshaw. Just getting some time in with my girl, here. Dark corners are my favorite—”

Royce swings before Collins sees it coming, landing a hard one across the jaw.

I step back, giving him more room, and Collins shoots me a glare, rubbing at his jaw.

Collins lifts a hand, pointing at Royce as he starts walking away – he knows better than to pick a fight with them here. “Let’s go, Rae,” he commands but doesn’t stand there waiting.

Royce does, however, and as soon as Collins is around the corner, he steps closer to me.

“Back off, ponyboy,” I force past my lips, taking a step away. “None of your business.”

“It is my fucking business. We brought you in, trash,” he slurs angrily, but it’s the ache laced in his tone that has a twinge hitting against my ribcage.

“We gave you a place, twice, and you wanna fuck us over? You wanna fuck my brother, then let the guy trying to fuck our family stick his dick in you?” He creeps closer. “You’re loosening it up real good, now aren’t you? Trying to get on your mama’s level?”

“Enough,” Bass barks, now joining the party.

I grow rigid. The last thing I need right now is for him to spill what he knows.

I slide my eyes his way right as Royce spins to face him.

“Fuck you, Bishop. Bet your ass was in on this shit too, huh?” He gets in his face. “Poor little punks like you two stick together, don’t you? I should kick your wannabe ass.”

“You’re drunk.” Bass blinks at him. “Just go.”

“You go, bitch.” Royce grips his belt stepping closer, his eyes narrowed to slits. “Don’t forget where you are.”

As if this isn’t bad enough, the door to the restroom flies open and Vienna appears.

She jerks to a halt at the sight of us all, her eyes wide, lip still bleeding.

I freeze where we stand, we all do, minus Bass.

No, no, no. Fuck!

I told her to wait five minutes ... five fucking minutes ago.

Finally, Vienna jump starts and rushes away.

That kicks Royce back into motion and his head snaps my way, but I can’t bring myself to look at him.

He’s motionless a minute, but then a light laugh leaves him, and he stumbles off. “Well, fuck me, baby girl...”

Bass slowly follows him down the hall, glancing back at me once on his way.

I fall against the wall and close my eyes. “Shit.”Cap and me down two shots and just as we drop the glass and get ready to go find Royce, my shoulder is bumped, bloody tissues tossed in my face.

Vienna squeezes by us, blood trickling down her lip and slightly smeared over her T-shirt. “You’re welcome,” she bites out in a hissed whisper. “And you owe me one.”

Captain whips around, looking down the dark hallway that leads to the girl’s bathroom, where Vienna disappeared to and just came back from.

Royce rushes from the same hallway, headed right for us with a fierce expression, but my eyes cut behind him.

Raven steps into the light, her face blank, but her eyes are wild.

Her eyes snap up, crashing into mine with a fire so bright my shoulders stretch wide.

If she could reach, she’d catch me across the jaw.

My baby is jealous, and she wants to fight about it.

Suddenly her eyes leave mine, and her feet carry her away, back to the bitch who is gonna burn.

Collins hisses something at her, gripping her wrist and I push forward, but Cap stops me with a tight grip to my shoulder.

He dips closer to her with a hard expression, but she jerks away with a solid fuck you mouthed in his face.

A zing shoots down my spine.

The fuck is going on here?

In the next second, we’re exiting the club.

“We’re missing something,” Royce slurs right as we hit the pavement out front, not entirely convinced but desperate to believe it. “We need to find out what.”

The driver we hired for the night, one of our guards from the warehouses, rolls up and we silently slide in.

I agree, something is fucking wrong. There’s a reason for this and we need to find out what it is, but it’s not just with her actions, but Graven’s and our dad’s, too.

But back there? That was what tonight was about, bringing her loyalty to light by playing off her weakness, just like Maybell said.

Tested.

Reacted the only way she knows how.

Impulsive. Uncontrolled. Reckless.

Mine.Like clockwork, the skinny fucker slides out the gate of the warehouses right at midnight to make his check-in call. He adjusts his leather fucking jacket, those dumbass headphones around his neck, like always, and pulls out his phone.

“We should jump his punk ass.” Royce sits forward.

I grip the steering wheel tighter. “Grab him.”

“Why?” Royce laughs. “Not like he won’t come in on his own if we tell him to.”