Tiny Dark Deeds: Chapter 8

Dorian

Thatcher’s sister took over our lunch table again today, and though I appreciated what she was doing, I didn’t appreciate the ass-kissing bitches she brought with her.

And that was a catch-all term.

The guys, in fact, were the absolute worst and were quick to attempt to talk to Thatcher, Wells, and me instead of paying attention to Bow, i.e. the reason they were there. Thatcher’s sister had a peer group (mostly student council and other academy kids) who ran their own searches around Maywood Heights. They were looking for Sloane and her brother just like the city officials, and I think the only reason the parents let that fly was because they were escorted by local law enforcement.

These were also one of the few activities the guys and I could take part in where our parents didn’t blow a fucking gasket. We could help look for Sloane, but only on their terms, and Legacy’s participation in the search party had fuckers coming out of the woodwork across the campus to help. They wanted to find the long-lost Mallick girl.

Ass-kissing just came with the territory.

These fuckers were wearing shirts now. Slogans like Team Dorian + Sloane and other nonsense splayed across both girls’ and guys’ backs when Wells and I entered the lunchroom that day. Thatcher was already at our table. He and Bow’s search party groupies were inside today with the weather changing.

Things were getting cold.

I tried not to think about what that meant, things getting cold. We didn’t know where Sloane was, but that didn’t mean she and her brother were chilling in a forest somewhere. There were other places they could be, shelters…

I tried to think like two kids needing their space, but I couldn’t imagine the two had many resources. I mean, my grandpa had been providing for them until recently.

Wells pounded Thatcher’s fist, our buddy looking grateful as shit to see us. Thatcher had his collar popped, his tie loose, and about a million chunky rings on his knuckles to accompany his Court ring. Thatch touched ours together. “Bout fucking time,” he said, stealing a slice of pizza off my tray. It was mine and Wells’s day to cover lunch. He leaned forward. “I’m about to beat a bitch.”

A circulation of our table told why. We normally had groupie bitches, but usually, they were Court. They were part of the brother and sisterhood Legacy partook in.

Lately, it’d been a damn free-for-all. People were all over the place and trying to get a piece of us, a piece of me. They claimed to want to help, but they spent more time all over our jocks than actually listening to Bow who was at the head of the table. She was conducting some kind of meeting, but as soon as Wells and I arrived, the little attention she had shifted to us and Thatch. We got the normal song and dance of phony-ass concern. They wanted to know how we were faring and holding up.

They wanted to know if we had news.

The thing was, none of this shit was genuine. These people were benefiting off us, our popularity, way more than we were getting anything from them, and that pissed me the fuck off. These people thought this was a joke.

Which meant they thought my life was one.

The only thing keeping me in check during these ass-kissing lunches was the fact Bow was running them. They obviously weren’t doing much, but that wasn’t the point. This was something she clearly felt she needed to be doing, her own way of dealing with the fact that Sloane was missing. No one respected that more than me, and I supported anything she wanted to do. She was my sister just as the boys were my brothers.

But her meeting couldn’t wrap up quickly enough.

The end of it got the boys and me the usual attention, some girls actually crying. They were apparently overcome with emotion regarding Sloane’s absence.

“I can’t imagine what you’re going through,” one of the chicks said to me, the one crying. She rubbed her nose. “You and Wolf? Will he be back to school anytime soon?”

I got that one a lot, girls offering to swing by and bring our buddy cookies.

And other things.

They weren’t shy about asking me to pass the message regarding their company along, and the last time one had suggested it, I really did almost lose my shit.

Bow had had to intercede.

She did the same today, telling the girl she’d see her tonight. I guess they were doing another search this evening, Murphy’s Park from what it sounded like. That was the last place I wanted to be, some history there, history with Sloane and Bru.

I simply directed my gaze frontward as Bow guided the chick away. Thatcher’s sister had her arms full of flyers, and the guys and I helped her get the rest of them off the table.

“Thanks,” she said, but mostly to me. She’d been hesitant to talk to me, shy. Thatcher’s sister may be more soft-spoken in general, but she wasn’t shy when it came to telling things like it was. Lately, though, she’d been tiptoeing. “We’re conducting another search tonight. Murphy’s Park if you want to come, Dorian.”

I’d heard that, but besides not wanting to fucking go there, I didn’t see the point. They’d already searched the park, her group, the authorities…

I didn’t want to tell her any of this was pointless. For all we knew, Sloane wasn’t even here in town anymore.

Don’t do that pessimistic shit.

“I’ll be there,” I said, head lowered. I shoved a fry in my mouth, but Bow wasn’t leaving.

“How have you been?” She put her flyers down. “I heard the parents saying you hadn’t been sleeping so…”

It was nice my business was all out there, and I was sure that’d all gone through the parental network just like anything else.

Thatcher and Wells stayed silent across the table, and I panned away to smile at Thatcher’s sister. “I’m good. Like I said, I’ll be there tonight.”

She nodded, leaving things at that. She took her stuff, and with her gone, I had Thatcher clear the table. All that had remained besides us were Court people at this point, but I needed to talk to my buddies alone.

“I’m worried about Wolf,” I said, getting right into it. I leaned in. “He’s talking about going out on his own. He mentioned shit last night before you guys got there.”

When Wells and Thatcher arrived, we’d all gone into cheer up Wolf mode, so we hadn’t been able to talk. At least, candidly. We’d eaten pizza, played videos games. There might have been a little porn involved, but I’d done homework when all that started. I didn’t want to look at other girls.

They weren’t any others.

Noa Sloane had everything, my mind and my fucking body now. It was fucking frustrating as shit, and if I wasn’t so worried about her, I’d be pissed at her. I could probably nut off to a picture of her at this point before any kind of time spent with the best porn. She had my heart and mind.

Wells had been texting before I spoke, Thatcher too. They both immediately stopped, and Thatcher pushed my tray over. He’d acquired it and eaten half the fucking food. “What? Like before? That shit before when his parents caught his ass in California?”

Needless to say, none of us had forgotten that time. It’d been scary, for all of us. “I don’t fucking know. I just know if we don’t find her soon, he’s going to do something stupid, and I might be right there with him.” I was beyond hiding feelings at this point. Emotions. “We’ve got to do something.”

“What? You know our hands are tied.” Wells cuffed his arms, his jacket off and laying across the lunch table. He pulled fingers through dark roots, a sharp contrast to his normal blond. Seemed like he was growing it out. His jaw shifted. “Why didn’t he tell us about her? We might have been able to prevent this. All of it.”

I thought about that too, how all of this could have probably been prevented had Wolf just told us about her. If he’d told anyone about her. I shook my head. “I gave him reasons to doubt her.” He hadn’t trusted her or was at least trying to figure out if he could. He’d mentioned that, and even though our friend hadn’t shared exactly why he’d kept things from us, I had a big feeling it had to do with me. “It’s my fault. I thought she was caught up in shit involving my grandpa. Wolf was trying to prove he could trust her, I think. He was trying to help me. He was…”

Wells tapped my shoulder with his fist. “We don’t know Wolf’s reasons, and even if they had something to do with you, whatever, man. It’s not important.”

But it was. It was everything. I squeezed my arms. “He’s going to go rogue. I know he is, and I’m about to lose my shit too. I just don’t get why she’d fucking leave.” She ran again instead. She ran from me again. I placed my fingers to my mouth. “I just don’t get it.”

She had to know the chaos it would cause and the fury that would arise in me.

I mean, I told her I love her.

She was physically cutting me apart on the inside and, little by little, driving me to do something stupid. Something like lie to my parents again, which was the opposite of what I wanted to do. I really wanted to regain their trust, but the fact of the matter was more could be done. My grandfather had offered to help, and he should be.

He owed her that.

I still didn’t trust my grandfather, but like shit with Charlie, I was willing to milk that fucker for all he was worth. If Grandpa wanted to help, he should be fucking helping.

I might just go to him again if something didn’t change soon, and the thought made me ill. I didn’t want to lie to my parents.

I didn’t want to lose any more of their respect.

“Maybe she just needs time.”

Wells had been about to say something and me too actually. I didn’t know what he’d been about to say, but we both stopped since Thatcher had spoken. Thatch had a fist to his mouth, his gaze studying the table.

I sat up. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m saying what I said.” Thatcher lowered his fist, shrugging his big shoulders. “There’s probably a reason she left, and maybe she just needs to work that shit out.”

My buddy was never one to have, well, emotional intelligence. In fact, out of all of us, he was probably the one with the least amount. He spent a lot of time fawning over his own ass, so needless to say him coming to bat for Sloane and supporting her potential reasons for taking off was surprising the shit out of me.

With all eyes on him, Thatcher’s jaw shifted. “Maybe we just need to give her time. She might come back on her own is all I’m saying.”

“The fuck are you talking about?” Wells dropped an arm over Thatcher’s chair. “It’s been a week, bro.”

“Yeah, and she still might come back.” He opened his hands. “She might if we give her time.”

“Yeah, well, it doesn’t sound like Wolf’s going to be giving that to her. He’s not, and I won’t.” I pushed the rest of the food toward him. He could have that shit. “I’ll get at y’all later.”

I got up, grabbing my jacket. Thatcher had his hands laced behind his head, and Wells was frowning at him. He socked Thatch in his arm before he got up too, joining me. If Sloane needed time, she would have been back by now, and I’m not just going to sit on my hands. I would work on things that weren’t in my control.

But not today.