Rule 33 - Swayze

Three days.

We had three full days away from the park, camp, and the other Risky kids. It was pure bliss. I didn"t find myself missing it even one bit. The memory of Ruth"s corpse flying through the air over and over replayed on the edge of my mind at all times, but Domino and Koi pulled me back to them each time I started to think too heavily about it.

Fabian texted me during those three days to let me know that the police, after some convincing, were ruling it an accident. I"d seen the body, there was no way they"d be able to tell that it was a single stab wound that actually killed her. Mattias was going to toss her family some money and everything would go away, as if nothing happened. That was how Risky Rush Park worked, after all.

In the morning after that first night, I got to meet Johnny Blue officially. He was everything I could have imagined based on their text messages. Tall, good-looking, flamboyantly gay. He knew we were all here because of something dark, but he didn"t ask about it. Instead, he kept us busy going through Domino"s old photos, taking us to restaurants, and going out of his way to host us. I thanked him on our last evening there and he played it off.

"You don"t have to thank me for anything. Domino really is a blessing to this world, as your boyfriend likes to say." He was the first person I"d ever met who didn"t use that word toward me as a weapon. It was one thing for men to be gay, but bi? Our little town wasn"t ready for that. Our families certainly weren"t. Johnny, however, loved that Koi and I were unashamedly together. It was freeing.

Koi had gone up with Domino to shower. I"d opted for a vodka and root beer with Johnny instead.

"She is." I nodded. "She wants to do a lot of good."

"She already has. I don"t know a single person who has met that girl and not thought of her as something magical. Well, except her own family, apparently." He rolled his eyes.

"Has she told you anything about them? I grew up with her siblings, they are some of the shittiest people I know."

"She never talked about her life before we met. It was one of her hard no"s. What are they like?" He leaned forward on his knees.

"Marisol is a real, royal cunt. I don"t think she"s ever truly been happy even once in her life. She is twins with Mattias. He"s alright to hang with, but if he"s at risk of losing anything, he"ll do whatever it takes to make sure that doesn"t happen." The look on his face as he pushed that emergency stop each and every time to eject Ruth flashed in my mind, and I shuddered and took a large gulp of the vodka.

"So just your standard, run-of-the-mill rich asshole." Johnny nodded.

"You know it. I lost my kidney and Koi lost one of his eyes and Mattias was able to clear the park as safe within a week of both incidents."

"You know, I"d always wanted to go, but every time I brought it up, Domino would make me promise not to do it. I thought it was just one of her weird things. She"d never told anyone she was an heiress to that whole dynasty." He shook his head. "I"m beginning to understand why. Wasn"t there another brother? The one who came and got her?"

"Fabian. He was in my grade in school. He"s the only one I can stand for long periods of time. He"s the peacekeeper mostly. We used to be really good friends, still kind of are. I know who he truly is though, and he"s pretty unapologetic about it. We have an understanding."

"And what"s that?"

"Koi and I have free reign of the park, and I keep my mouth shut about all the fucked-up shit I"ve seen them cover up."

"Is it worth it though?"

That was the question of the day. I"d been thinking it over since I left Ruth"s body, torn in two and splattered all over the concrete. I hadn"t cared that much when I lost my kidney. It was just part of the Risky Rush experience. Koi felt the same about his eye. But now I"d watched and helped them cover up a murder. How many times had they done that before, and would I be asked to do it again? I sighed deeply.

"This is our last summer at the park. Camp Frisky isn"t that much fun anymore and we"ve both got jobs waiting for us once the season is over."

"And what about Domino? Where is she gonna go after the camp closes for the winter? She told me she"s sleeping in one of those cabins. And she won"t go back to that home."

I pursed my lips in thought. "Maybe we could all get an apartment together or something. I don"t know." I brushed my hair back and tugged on the plugs in my ears. "Did she tell you why?" I asked, referring to her distaste for her childhood home. I"d been inside the Risky mansion. It was nice.

"Did she tell you?" He raised an eyebrow. I cringed. No, but Koi had mentioned it. Johnny sighed.

"Well, you"re bound to find out anyway, with Koi knowing. Her uncle tried to molest her. Thankfully she escaped before he could. This is the same uncle that"s now married to her stepmom and they all live in that house. Domino ain"t going anywhere near that place so long as he"s there."

I took in his words. Her uncle? I"d met the bastard.

"It"ll all depend on her what we do. What we want and what she wants don"t exactly line up."

I"d been bursting with emotions since that first night we"d had sex. I"d never felt such intense feelings toward someone before, even Koi. With Koi, it was just my best friend who had a nice cock that could get me off. It was convenient and familiar. With Domino, my little doll, it was anything but. I wasn"t supposed to be attracted to her, let alone be enamored with who she was as a person. That first night, when I came inside her right at the peak of her orgasm, I felt something.

I was in love with Domino Risky.

And she struggled to admit she even liked us.

"Well, she"s always got a home here. Although I doubt she"d take it. She loves the open road." Johnny grinned, his eyes taking on a glossy look as if remembering something.

The idea of Domino disappearing into the night again tore at my heart. No!

"I"ll do anything to keep her from leaving. Even if that"s renting an apartment just for her, not us. I just—" I gulped. "I just don"t want her to leave us yet."

"I"m sure you"ll figure it out. You need to make sure she feels safe with you both. And that you respect her past."

"How do I do that?"

Johnny stood and had me follow him to his office. He waved at the boxes. "This is her past. She"s shown you some, but not everything. Get to know some of it."

I shook my head, not understanding.

"Take a box. Go put it in your car and figure out a way to use those photos to your advantage. Domino keeps a lot of secrets, but the photos do not. You can"t lie about what"s been permanently captured in a photo. Pick one."

I looked around, reading the dates. "What do you suggest?"

"Hmm..." He walked around the room, eyeing them all. "This box came from her time when she traveled with this circus. She was with them for a long time. It"s where most of her tattoos came from. That will have some fun stuff. Or maybe this one. Oh no, this one." He paused and laughed.

"Domino has lived a crazy life. She"s met covens, poet laureates, and people who collect weird, vintage dolls. She"s been to old asylums, dark circuses, and haunted hotels. She finds the people who could use a little light in their lives and gives it to them. Honestly, any of these boxes will have something good for you to get to know her better. Just pick one."

I closed my eyes and walked around the room, stopping in front of a stack. I picked the second one from the top. Not sure why, but it felt right.

"Are you sure about this?" I asked, taking it out of the office and heading outside to deposit it in my car.

"As long as you don"t fuck this up," he said. "She deserves to feel how she makes others feel. And the only way to do it is to make her feel that way about someone… or two."

"And what"s that?"

"Loved."