Make You Beg

I couldn’t sleep last night. I just kept picturing her crying. Screaming. Scout inflicting pain on her just so when I get her back, she won’t be the same. Because he knows it, and I know it. I’m getting her back! I’ll burn this fucking town down and bury everyone until I have my doll back.

“There he is.” Rellik slaps my chest.

I hand him my joint. “Let’s go.”

I slide my hand into the front pocket of my Graveyard hoodie and pump my hip into Derek. “Hey, man.”

He looks up at me with surprise. “Law …”

“Listen.” I throw my arm over his shoulders and pull him into my side. “I need to talk to you.” He tried to yesterday, and I ignored the fucker. Now I’ve got time.

“I don’t want to be late,” he rushes out, his short legs picking up speed on the sidewalk.

“Late?” I snort. “You’re going to be absent.” Removing my arm, I grip the back of his neck, and he scrunches up his shoulders as I haul him off across the manicured lawn to the indoor practice field.

We enter the door, and I shove him into the locker room. He almost pees himself when he sees Rellik and Dax already present.

“Look, guys.” He throws his hands up. “I don’t want any trouble.”

I slam his back into a wall, pull out my knife, and hold it to his neck. He starts whimpering. “For every answer I don’t believe, I’m going to cut you.”

“Cut me?” he squeaks.

“Do you understand?” I push the tip of the blade into his skin right under his ear, giving him a pin poke with the tip, making a thin red line roll down his neck.

He nods frantically. “Yes. Yes.”

I move it back to his throat. “Start talking.” He swallows nervously and looks from me to Dax. Then Rellik. “They’re not going to save you.”

“I …”

“I want to know every detail of that night at Death Valley. You know the one.”

He nods. “Yeah, sure, uh … She—Henley came inside with Scout. She was really drunk. They sat down at the table, and I offered her a Molly. I know she likes to roll. Scout said she had had enough. She snatched it from my hand and then also took my drink and washed it down with that.” His eyes drop to the knife I have at his throat. “I tried to tell her…”

“Tell her what?” I shout.

His body shakes against mine. “My drink. I had made it for someone else. My friend …”

“What the fuck was in it?” I demand, knowing where this is going.

“LSD,” he rushes out.

I let go of him and take a step back, lifting the knife to scratch the side of my head, “You’re telling me that you gave her a Molly and LSD that night?”

He places his hands out in front of him. “I didn’t know …”

I slam his back to the wall and press the tip of the blade to his cheek this time. “Yes or no?” I growl.

“Yes. Yes.” He licks his lips. “Kids do it. It’s called candyflipping. But usually, you do MDMA first and then LSD hours later once the …” When I push the tip of the blade into his face, he stops rambling.

“How much did she drink?” Monroe asks him.

“I had just made the drink, and she downed it,” he says softly.

Dear Lord, it’s a miracle she didn’t die. “Then what happened?”

He licks his lips nervously. “Scout got a text or something and walked away to check his cell. She went the other way. I think they were fighting about something. I tried to chase after her, but she disappeared.”

“To the chapel,” Monroe states, nodding once.

I take a step back, removing the knife from him, and he slumps against the wall. “That still doesn’t explain why she said it was you and not Scout. I understand that she saw Scout kill Brenda …”

“What?” Derek asks wide-eyed.

I ignore him. He needs to catch up. “But why lie about who it was?” I point out.

“Maybe he convinced her.” Rellik shrugs. “Threatened her. She loved him and all that shit.”

I shake my head. “She would have known the evidence didn’t add up, and it would never stick. If that was the case, why call the cops in the first place?”

“Have any of you ever done LSD?” Derek asks.

“No,” we all answer in unison.

“LSD can give you one hell of a euphoric trip or a terrifying experience. It’s made to give you extreme mood changes. And you never know which one you’ll get. She was already convinced she saw you there.” He looks at Dax. “So when she walked in on what Scout was doing, the LSD altered her mind to see you. Maybe hear your name …” He bites his bottom lip. “Ultimately, it was a bad trip. And maybe when he realized that she wasn’t really seeing him, he ran with it. Probably let her believe whatever she wanted to. Knowing that you two were friends, too, and she wouldn’t go to the cops, turning on him. And he knew.” He nods his head quickly. “He called me and asked why she was so fucked up.”