Then he disappeared inside, locking the door behind him.
I stood there, staring at the door for a while longer until the guard led me out. I didn’t pay attention until we were in the cold and the door was shut in my face. I couldn’t believe what had just happened.
Jace threw me out. He meant it.
I drove home that night and went straight to bed. Tray called, but I didn’t call him back. My heart was breaking. I didn’t even notice if Mandy was mean to me or not the next morning. I remembered a faint good morning from her. I didn’t care. Then I got to school and I almost got back into my car as I looked up.
It was homecoming. Fuck me. I already had a headache and when I got inside, another headache came at me. Mandy darted over. She grabbed my hand. “Did you hear?”
“Uh—” I guess she had been nice that morning. I still didn’t care.
“Pedlam’s coming here to play. Their football field got tilled last night. Can you believe it?”
“What did you just say?”
“Their football field was tilled. Can you believe that? I heard that their gymnasium got tarred, too. Seriously. Who’s crazy enough to do that shit?”
Yeah. Who was crazy enough? My body went numb. “Excuse me.” I went right back out to the parking lot and spotted Tray in the back corner, getting out of his SUV.
I went over to him and opened his door again. He glanced up. “Hey.” I pushed him inside and got in beside him. I didn’t wait for him to say anything. I started right away, “You tilled their football field? You tarred their gymnasium?”
“Yeah.” He was looking at me like I’d gone crazy.
“Are you stupid?”
“What are you so pissed at? You knew we were going in there to do some damage.”
“Not this. Not damage that’ll launch an investigation.” A different fear from last night settled in my chest. It dug deep, and I knew it wouldn’t to be leaving any time soon. “I didn’t know you were going to do damage like that. I thought you were to deflate their basketballs or something? Not tar their gym.”
“Why are you so bent about this?”
“Because I have a record.” How could he not have thought about that? “Because I could go back to juvie. I don’t want to go there. I hate it and…” I stopped. I could lose my family. I lost one last night. I couldn’t lose my other one. It was me, only me. I was back to that way of thinking, but shit, who was I kidding? I never allowed myself to really let them in. I didn’t know my parents. They took off the same week I moved in. I knew Mandy, but she only talked to me half of the time, and Austin spent most of his time at his friend’s.
There was no family.
I’d be arrested. Somehow they would connect me with the vandalism last night, and I would be removed from their home. Jace kicked me out. He meant it. I didn’t have him and Brian. I shook my head. Brian wanted to be a Panther. I couldn’t do that life.
It was just me. Again.
“Get over yourself.”
“Excuse me?”
He snorted and rolled his eyes. “I don’t even know what you’re thinking, but I can tell you’re overreacting to this.” He cursed. “If anyone takes the blame, it’ll be me. You were in the dark. The other guys didn’t even pay attention to you. I told them I had a guy on the inside. That was enough for them, and trust me, no one will talk. You cut all the footage. The stupid security guards will get canned. That’s the extent of it. We didn’t hurt anybody. I highly doubt Pedlam will launch an investigation. With that security, I don’t think they’ll want the cops poking their noses around there.”
My eyes shot to his and I tried to absorb his calm. “How do you know?”
“My dad was a cop. I’m not dumb. Schools don’t keep security like that unless there’s something worth a lot of money or illegal on the premises. They won’t want cops getting curious. You have nothing to worry about.”
His dad was a cop? I had to laugh. “You would’ve been my enemy if I was still in Pedlam.” Holy hell. “How did I not know your dad was a cop?”
His tone cooled. “Because he’s not around anymore.”
“What?”
“He moved south. It’s just me. My mom killed herself before all that happened.” He bit out a hard laugh. “Hell, that’s probably why he went down the path he did.”
His mom killed herself. I froze at hearing that. Fuck. I didn’t know what to say about her. He said, “It’s for the best. Don’t feel sorry for me because of her. She was in so much pain that she couldn’t endure it. She did what she had to do.”