Fierce(77)

But then she bumps her shoulder against mine and says, “Good on you, girl.”

“I don’t know, I don’t even know what to call what we have. We just … After all those times we got together … it just happened.”

“Oh. My. God.” Her eyes grow big. “You had sex?”

I blush, feeling scrutinized. That, and I don’t want her to feel bad. I know how she feels about me.

“This is for real? You? Autumn Blakewood? You had sex?” she squeals. “How was it?”

Wow. I did not expect her to react the way she did. Maybe she really is over it.

“It was … nice.”

“Nice my ass. It must’ve been amazing!”

“I don’t know. I never did it before, so I have nothing to compare it with. But it was … good.” I turn red as a beet again, just thinking about what I did with Hunter. Or rather, what he did with me.

“God, I can’t believe it,” Evie says, slapping her own forehead. “I’m away for like one week, and you’ve already broken most of your nerd records.”

I gasp. “What? You’re making it sound like I’m some kind of virginal geeky holy Mary.”

“You are.”

She laughs and starts tickling me, making me squirm. She hasn’t been this perky in ages, and I’ll gladly let her make me beg for mercy while she tickles me to death. It takes us a few minutes to stop laughing and giggling.

“So … what do we do from here?” I say after a while.

“Well,” she says, stretching her arms. “You seem to have a spare bed in your room, and I don’t see anyone else’s stuff lying around, so … mind if I bunk with you again?”

“Yes! Of course you can sleep here. Actually, no, I demand you bunk here.”

She punches me in the shoulder, and I drop down onto the bed. She drops down with me, lying next to me, and puts her arm around me like she used to.

“I don’t want anything to change, though,” she says, and she lifts her head. “Is that okay? Can I still be the old me? Even after …”

“Shut up. You’re Evie. You’re always Evie. And you’re always my best friend, no matter what.”

She smiles, and I grab her hand to show her that I still care. I do. I don’t care about what happened between us. I want things to be okay. I want my best friend back.

And now I have her back. On a day that was supposed to be miserable, gloomy, and sad, I somehow managed to get Evie back on my side. I should feel bad about being happy on a day like this, but I’m not. Good things can come on bad days, and I don’t feel sorry for feeling happy.

I only wish things could stay like this forever. But I’ve learned from the past that bad things are always bound to happen, it’s only a matter of time.





Chapter 25


Into the Underground



Someone knocks on our door, and we both shoot up from the bed. Jaret steps in, his face dark and concerned. “Can I talk to you for a sec?” He signals me.

I look at Evie, and she nods.

“Uh … Sure,” I say, and I get up from the bed. I glance at her one last time, feeling a bit anxious because Jaret looks like he has some bad news. Then I step outside with him.

“Hunter’s having some … problems right now. I’m not sure if I should be the one to say this, but I don’t want to lead you on either,” he says.

“What happened to him?”

He comes closer. “Look, I can’t really tell you, because my life is on the line.”

“Okay …” I swallow. My throat suddenly feels raw and hot.

“I’ve been helping Hunter, but only because he asked me to. I didn’t think it’d get this bad.”

“What are you trying to tell me?”

“Look, they forced him to do something, because they found out we’re looking for the boss.”

My eyes widen. Oh no. Oh God, no.

“What’s going on? Where is he?” I say.

“Shhh!” he says, putting his finger on his lips. “Don’t shout so much. Look, I really can’t tell you a lot. I’m sorry. I don’t want to get in trouble. If I’d known it’d get this tough, I would never have agreed,” he sighs, rubbing his hands over his head like he’s in some deep shit, just like Hunter.

Oh God. Where are they keeping him? What did they do to him?

“Is it bad?” I ask.

“No … Yes. No, he’s done this before. It’s what they always ask us newbies to do. It’s just that it’s never been this …” he swallows those last words.

“What am I supposed to do with this information if I don’t know where he is? How can I find him?” I say.