Chapter 15

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Michael

"That's the prick from the campus parking lot. The one who shoved your girl down," Kaleb tells me, pointing at the broad guy wearing a number twelve football jersey like I didn't notice. I send my brother a look.

But aloud, I say, "She's not my girl."

"Well, why didn't you say that last night? I wouldn't have minded her riding me until dawn."

He wants me to kill him.

"Is this how you felt?" I ask, turning to Daniel.

"Yes," he answers, still looking down at the summer camp through his binoculars.

"I'll never flirt with Charlie again," I promise him.

"Charlotte." Daniel corrects me, still hating her nickname .

"This is why I don't do relationships." Kaleb laughs.

"Why are you here?" I glare.

"The timber yard is behind schedule, so I can't take the load until Tuesday. My brother from another mother, you get the pleasure of my company for two more days."

"It's not your company or your pleasure he wants."

My head shoots back like I've been slapped. "Daniel Cromwell, did you just make a joke?"

My big brother grins at me.

"If Charlie asks, you're at Kaleb's house?" I ask about his alibi.

"If anyone asks, we're all at my house. Alcohol and cards," Kaleb pipes up.

My mind rolls back to the last time we needed an alibi. "Cooper still being a pain in the ass?"

Kaleb chuckles. "The fuck face formally known as Officer Cooper, is running for a spot on the town council."

"The man still thinks he's the police," Daniel adds.

"The man's a joke," my younger brother says.

"He is." I nod. "He's also the only one outside of family who knows what we are. Show the man some respect."

"I'd like to show him the end of a shovel."

Daniel grunts in agreement.

I'm the odd man out. After the stunt he pulled with taking Charlie and the restraining orders, it's probably not an argument I'm going to win. Who knew getting rid of a restraining order would be so hard? If I ever hear the words "processed means processed" again, it'll be too soon.

Talk about taking your job seriously. We had to wait weeks to get it lifted, only to find out that Charlie had gone home to her family.

The man deserves what's coming. But one of us needs to be the voice of reason. "The man's too close to kill. Give it enough time. His life is falling apart, and our dad has made him a town pariah. He'll kill himself eventually."

My brothers share a look. "We'd rather do it," they echo.

What are they, fucking twins?

A commotion at the back door draws our attention . . . Lara. Number twelve jumps out, scaring my girl.

Okay, so maybe she is mine.

Wearing a replica of my mask! The only person who gets to terrify her with that is me.

"He dies tonight." I don't even know when I stood, but I can't just sit here and watch. My body twitches with the need to kill something, to watch as he struggles for his last breath.

"Err, you might want it to be him." Kaleb points, offering his binoculars.

Lara stands near the keg, chatting with another girl. It's not her who Kaleb is pointing at. Behind her, another jersey-wearing prick, number nine, fills a red plastic cup with cheap beer . . . and a tiny pill.

She can't drink that.

I'm panting before I even start running. Rage fills me to the core. Never have I understood the term seeing red as much as I do right now. Because that's all I want. His blood everywhere.

"The girl with the curly hair, too, take her drink," Daniel calls after me.

But it's too late. Even from here, I can see the other girl lift her cup to her mouth, taking a small sip.

Lara smiles her thanks, then takes her own drink.

I'm almost there.

Pulling down my mask, I stagger out of the woods with my eyes locked on Lara, too rushed to be careful of the forest foliage.

My appearance startles everyone, including Lara. My nervous girl drops her drink, and the alcohol spills out, seeping into the soil quickly.

"Fuck, dude, that was good. You got us good," the kid at the keg says. A dead man talking.

"Mine was better," their little leader says, walking over with his arm around another girl. "It's always better when you make a pretty girl scream." His arm might be around someone else, but his eyes are on Lara. No, they're on the mess at her feet, and he looks pissed.

Why the fuck would he care if she didn't drink her beer? Motherfucker.

We're killing four tonight ?

Still fueled by adrenaline, I reach out a gloved hand and take hold of Lara's. Towering over the jock, I stare at him through the eye holes in my mask until he swallows, moving out of the way without a word.

Pussy.

Everyone else has gone back to dancing, if you can call some of this dancing. I'm pretty sure the two near the tree line are fucking.

I want to reach out my other hand for the girl who has already drunk some of the spiked drink, but my tongue feels swollen at just the thought of touching someone.

The heat of Lara's small hand in mine reminds me that I can. I guess it just has to be the right person.

Just like they always do, one of my brothers saves me. Kaleb walks out of the trees, hockey mask in place. He does a double take at the couple grinding against a thick tree. Within seconds, he's beside me, taking charge of the other girl and guiding her into the cabin.

Lara and I silently follow.

Once in the cabin, I don't know what to do. This isn't something I've ever done.

Releasing Lara's hand, I glance around. Candles, beer bottles, red cups, and trash are scattered throughout the kitchen.

It's a mess.

But the sight is a welcome one. Memories of Halloween two years ago fill the room. My rage starts to fade, and my cock twitches at the thought of what happened here.

Kaleb bends low, whispering to the other girl. The music swallows his words, but I know he'll take care of her. We're killers, not animals.

"Umm, do you want a drink?" Lara shouts, drawing my attention.

I shake my head. This mask is definitely not coming off. I point at her, asking if she does.

My girl nods, her hair slipping over her shoulder in a thick braid. She looks pretty, her large jacket covers her upper body, but her ass and legs look perfect wrapped in tight jeans. The black sneakers make me smile.

Grabbing a bottle of beer, I move around the kitchen, searching for a bottle opener, but I don't see one. Bracing the lid on the edge of the counter, I hit it quickly to knock it off.

"Clearly not your first time." Lara laughs. "Making good use of your college years, I see," she flirts.

I don't respond, unsure of what to say. "I never went due to the anxiety of leaving my brother" doesn't exactly have the right ring to it.

I cringe under my mask.

At least she's flirting. Even with me masked, she feels the pull between us.

Lara's smile drops, seeing Kaleb lead her friend out of her room. "She's fine," I say. Lara jumps. It could have been the voice modulator on my mask or the hand I slide inside her open jacket to rest on her ribs, but I don't ask to find out. "He'll take her home. The cups were spiked," I tell her.

But that only makes her worry more.

My hand slips away, and for the first time ever, I miss the warmth of touching another person.

We step out onto the porch when red and blue lights color the dark sky.

Daniel.

Not wanting to get caught out here, especially in this mask and outfit, I loop my arm around Lara's waist, lift her, and jog into the woods.

The air whooshes out of her lungs.

She feels small and fragile in my arms as I run, ducking and turning for several minutes until the lights of the party and the police are nowhere in sight.

Happy we're a safe distance, I set Lara down. She turns on me as soon as her feet touch the ground.

"Where has he taken her?"

"I don't know," I answer honestly. "Probably home."

"And I'm supposed to believe that your friend will just take a drugged girl home and not hurt her?"

"Yes."

"No!"

She turns, taking a step in the camp's direction. That's not happening. The cops are there, and so are those college kids.

Footsteps start approaching, so we need to move. Gripping her hand, I turn her to me. "No," I tell her sternly, the modulator making my word that much sharper.

Her hand pulls, slipping from my grip.

She needs more. Twisting her slightly, I bring my hand down on her ass three times in quick succession.

Wide brown eyes stare back at me in disbelief, like she can't believe I just did that. Funny, me neither.

Our eyes lock, but I refuse to back down first. The footsteps get closer, and finally, Lara blinks quickly.

Biting her lip, she takes my outstretched hand, her shorter legs moving quickly to keep up as I guide her deeper into the woods where no one will pass us trying to rush back to campus.

Once hidden in the forest, our walk turns slow, silent, and comfortable. Maybe the small spanking she got was enough of a reprimand that she now hates me. Not that Lara knows it's me under the mask.

My heart hammers in my throat when the college campus peeks through the trees. I don't want my time with her to end. Stepping out of the woods, I keep my hold on her hand as we cross the main road.

The closer we get to the building, the more my resolve is tested. I don't want to let her go.

But I can't put it off forever, no matter how slow we walk. At the building entrance, Lara turns to me.

"Thanks for walking me home, big guy. Sorry I gave you trouble."

I nod, and Lara's lips twist like she's debating something. She doesn't leave me waiting for long. Reaching up, she braces herself on my shoulder. My whole body tenses, ready for the pain to hit, only it doesn't.

Too stunned, I almost miss the way she presses a small, sweet kiss to the side of my mask.

"The whole mask thing is kind of growing on me too." She rolls her eyes.

"Go straight to bed," I order.

"Yes, sir." She grins.

And with those two words, my resolve crumbles. Standing alone in the darkness, I watch as my girl heads inside, turning to give me a small wave.

My girl.

That's what she is.

My princess.