Michael turned his head and looked down at me, his eyes nearly black voids that I could barely make out. My heart caught in my throat, and I felt like I’d been flipped upside down.
That damn mask.
He reached into my sweatshirt pocket, and I pulled my hands out, wondering what he was doing. He took out the matchbox and held it in his palm.
“Why do you have these?” he asked. He must’ve heard them shake in my pocket, too.
I shrugged, taking the matchbox back. “My dad collected matchboxes from restaurants and hotels when he went on business trips,” I told him, sliding open the box and bringing it up to my nose. “I took a liking to the smell. It’s like…”
Without thinking, I closed my eyes and inhaled through my nose, the sulfur and phosphorous instantly making my smile.
“Like what?”
I closed the box and looked up, feeling lighter for some reason. “Like Christmas morning and sparklers rolled into one. I kept the collection close to me after…”
After he died.
I kept all of the little matchboxes in an old cigar box, but I started carrying one with me after he died.
I stuffed the box into my pocket again, realizing I’d never told anyone that before.
I peered up at him, narrowing my eyes. “Why did you bring me along tonight?”
He faced forward, staring at the house again. “Because I meant what I said in the catacombs today.”
“That’s not what it sounded like at the dinner table,” I argued. “I’ve known you my entire life, and you act like you barely know my name. What is it with you and Trevor, and why do I get the feeling that…”
He stared ahead, unmoving. “That what?”
I dropped my eyes, thinking. “That it has something to do with me.”
Michael finally took notice of me today. He’d told me things that I’d only ever dreamed of hearing, and he put into words everything I was feeling.
And then at dinner, with Trevor, he’d shut down again. Just like the old Michael. I wasn’t even in the room to him. Did I have something to do with why he and Trevor never got along?
But then I shook my head. No. That would be ridiculous. I wasn’t that important to Michael. His and Trevor’s issues stemmed from something else.
He remained silent, not answering, and my cheeks heated with embarrassment. I shouldn’t have said that. God, I was a stupid kid.
I didn’t wait for him to answer or continue to ignore me. Climbing the small incline into the yard, I stepped onto the porch, hearing it whine like a dying animal under our weight as Michael fell in behind me. Hurrying into the house, I spotted the boys flashing their lights around and exploring the various rooms.
A ripe, pungent scent hit my nose, and I winced as I looked around and took in the old house.
The place was uninhabitable.
Old furniture, stained and ripped, was strewn about, while piles of wooden debris, looking like it had once been chairs and other furniture, sat in corners. Probably waiting to be used as firewood.
All the windows I could see were broken, and I dropped my eyes, seeing garbage and puddles on the floor among small glass vials, pipes, and needles.
I twisted up my lips, hating this place already.
Why would Michael want to come here? I couldn’t deny that dark and dangerous held a lot of allure, but old filthy mattresses on the floor, stained with fuck-knows-what, and dirty needles strewn about?
This place was ugly. I didn’t want to be here.
I cocked my head, peering in front of me and seeing an open door ahead. When one of the guys’ flashlights danced across the room, I vaguely made out spray paint on a white wall inside the door. It looked like the entry to a basement.
I definitely didn’t want to go down there, either.
But then I lurched forward, a body passing mine, shoving my shoulder.
“You shouldn’t be here,” Will warned, walking past and looking over his shoulder at me. “This house isn’t safe. A girl got violated here a few months ago.”
“Raped,” Damon taunted, whipping around to stand in front of me and getting in my face. I immediately reared back.
“She was drugged and taken downstairs.” He jerked his head behind him, gesturing to the basement, with thrill in his eyes.
My breath shook as I swallowed the lump in my throat.
A girl got attacked here? I pinched my eyebrows together, fear speeding up my breathing.
“Yeah,” I heard Kai’s voice at my back, “she was tied up, stripped naked...Can’t tell you how many guys went at her. They were lining up for their turns.”
I spun around, backing up in the other direction as Kai inched toward me with a look in his eyes.
But then I ran into another body at my back and stopped. This time it was Will, his green eyes heated as he cocked his head down at me like a challenge.