Chapter Four

Cash

I remain alert as I walk around the store trying to locate the lock box that we need for tomorrow so we can put the keys in it securely, and only the person with the code can get them out. I don’t see Billy, but I do hear Lucky and him talking the next aisle over and I follow their movements until I watch them leave the store.

It's only when they have finally gone that I relax and I’m able to find the thing that I’m looking for.

“Hello Cash, I haven’t seen you for a while,” Joe greets me with a smile as I approach the counter.

“Hey Joe,” I reply. “How are you? Have you managed to convince any of your kids to take over yet?”

Joe smiles as he rings me up, “Not yet, but I’m still hopeful. Are you and all of your friends staying out of trouble?”

“Of course we are,” I reply.

He chuckles quietly as I pay, and he hands me a bag with the lockbox before stepping around the counter. “I will lock up behind you. It’s closing time, and I’ve got dinner waiting for me at home.”

Smiling, I say, “No problem, tell Mandy I say hello.”

“Will do,” he replies, as he shuts the door behind, and the lock clicks into place.

As soon as I’m back outside, I realize that Billy’s car is still here, and it shouldn’t be. He left the store a while ago. I hope it’s a coincidence and they just decided to have a smoke in the car before they head out, but somehow, I doubt that. It didn’t take me very long to notice that his car was in the lot, so the chances are he had spotted mine.

A shiver of anticipation goes down my spine.

I don’t speed up; I simply keep my pace as I walk to my car. My eyes are sharp on my surroundings, I’m not about to get caught off guard. Especially not by Billy.

Sure enough, as I get to my car two dark figures dart out from the tree line, heading straight for me and showing no signs of stopping. I drop the bag with the lock box to the floor and lift my hands preparing for the impact.

Billy and Lucky don’t even attempt to talk, they are intent on causing harm and two against one isn’t exactly fair odds. Fortunately, I’m not your average fighter and I have been training with Jensen, that gives me a slight advantage but it’s still not great odds.

Fuck.

For a few minutes, I manage to hold my own, landing as many hits as I block, but Billy gets mad that I’m dodging his hits and starts to swing erratically. A hit lands, causing a stab of pain through my eye, and blood starts to drip into my eye, shit. The hit landing seems to fill both of them with renewed vigor, and they come at me with more force. Lucky manages to jab me in the side, and I curse; that really fucking hurts; if he has broken my ribs, I’m going to be pissed.

I can’t stop fucking fighting. I have no idea how far they are willing to take this. As I fight, I begin to feel backed into a corner, and that cold starts to take me over.

I stop feeling the pain of the hits, easily pushing it away as I fight back more fiercely. I strike Lucky hard, making blood spurt from his nose as he stumbles back, his eyes widening. My attention turns back to Billy. He strikes out again and splits my lip.

My control snaps.

I advance, catching him with an uppercut as he dodges the hit from my other fist. Lifting up my leg, my booted foot meets his chest and shoves him backward, making him land on the floor with a thump, and I quickly follow after him, not allowing him to get up. I have no idea where the fuck Lucky is, but I need to knock one of them out if I have any hope of surviving this. Billy bucks beneath me, trying to throw me off as I strike, he lands a couple of hits on my side as I rain hits down on him.

The cold darkness takes me over completely.

“Cash!” Lucky shouts loudly, snapping me out of my haze.

I stop, looking down at Billy’s bloodied face and then immediately jump off. He’s still moving, and thankfully still alive.

My chest is heaving, the anger still burning through me as I watch Lucky quickly move over to Billy and help him stand up. They are both bruised and bleeding, although Billy is in a considerably worse state.

“You’re a fucking psychopath,” Billy growls, spitting out a mouth full of blood.

I smile. It’s not a kind smile; it’s sharp, jagged, and made all the more terrifying thanks to the split lip and the blood all over me. I feel a wave of satisfaction as fear crosses their eyes, and they quickly hobble back to their car. I stay exactly where I am. My arms crossed over my chest as I watch them drive out of the lot, their tires spinning as they try to get away as fast as possible.

As soon as they are out of sight I reach into my pocket and pull out my phone, deciding to send a text rather than call, since I’m still so on edge. Not waiting for a reply, I put my phone back in my pocket and head to the trunk of my car.

I always keep a spare first aid kit in here for situations just like this. I grab some alcohol wipes out of the kit and start cleaning the cuts I know are on my face. Of course, I need to see what I am doing, so I head around to the side of the car, glance in the car window, and curse. For fuck sake, Mom’s going to kill me. My face is an absolute mess.

Not as bad as Billy’s, though I know that shouldn’t make me smile, but he was the fucker that attacked me and brought his friend along as well. It’s not my fault that I fought back.

I can’t get all of the blood off, no matter how hard I try, and I actually think I’m making it worse; it doesn’t help that it is starting to fucking sting now. Moving back around to the trunk, I throw the used wipes in there, calling it a lost cause. Instead, I grab the bottle of whisky I have had rolling around in there since Riot’s birthday, slam the trunk, and go to sit on the curb, waiting for the guys. There is no way I’m risking getting blood on my seats; I should have known better than to get a cream interior.

My arms rest on my knees, the bottle dangling from my fingers as I take a sip every now and then, the warmth of the whisky burning my throat in a pleasant way.

I don’t have to wait much longer for the guys to arrive, and I can’t help but smile as Trick’s truck comes screeching into the lot. He stops it as soon as he sees me, and they all jump out.

“You parked in the middle of the lot,” I point out drily, my eyebrow rising before I wince with pain as it reopens the cut that had only just stopped bleeding.

“What the fuck!” Trick exclaims as they all rush over to me. “What the fuck happened?”

I clear my throat and then take another sip of whiskey. “Billy and Lucky were here; they left while I was in the store, at least I thought they did. Joe locked up, and they jumped me. Lucky had to stop me from going after Billy anymore.”

Jensen’s eyes are full of his own kind of darkness, except his is always present unlike my own, and he studies me closely before he swipes the bottle off me and sits down next to me, taking a swig himself.

“Your scary side came out to play, huh?” he asks with absolutely no judgment in his tone at all.

I nod, “Lucky called me a psycho.”

The guys share a look and then grin. All of their smiles have an edge to them.

“Good,” Trick says firmly. “Hopefully, they will back the fuck off now they have seen what you’re capable of. I am done with their bullshit.”

“Same,” I reply.

“How bad is it?” Rafe signs.

Frowning, I take stock of my injuries, “My face is fucked, I thought my ribs were broken, but I think they are just bruised, so there’s that.”

“Okay, it could be worse, at least there is nothing broken,” Trick breathes on a sigh of relief.

“Your mom is going to kill you,” Luc winces as he studies my face.

I nod, “Yeah, I think I’m probably more scared of her reaction than I was fighting them.”

“I would be,” Jensen snickers, taking another sip of whiskey. I quickly snag the bottle back, making him pout.

“Uncalled for,” I retort, making him laugh.

“We’re going to have to clean you up as best we can and then hope for the best,” Rafe signs, although the look on his face says that he doesn’t think cleaning the blood off is going to do much.