Fighting Shadows (On the Ropes #2)(14)

FOR SIX MONTHS, I MANAGED to avoid my family. I’d wanted a fresh start, and that was exactly what I’d gotten. For the first two weeks, Till had blown my phone up with texts wondering where the hell I was. It had taken a month before Eliza had started messaging. I’d never engaged their conversations, but I had at least let them know that I was fine and okay. I understood why they were worried, but I was committed to my new life.

Alone.

I’d severed every possible connection they’d had to me. They didn’t know where I lived, and I had even stopped going to the physical therapy sessions Till paid for each week. Instead, I’d started working with one of the PT students at the college. It was only once a week, and I knew I needed more if I ever wanted to walk again, but my head and heart were what needed the most healing.

Living in Eliza’s old apartment had its perks. The memories were abundant, and they carried me through more than just a few lonely nights. However, it also had its downfalls. It wasn’t wheelchair accessible, so it made even the simplest of tasks extremely difficult. I also had all of those memories haunting me but absolutely nothing tangible to ground me.

I missed her.

I missed Till.

I missed Quarry.

I missed Slate.

But most of all, I missed Flint Page.

I was wasting away. Hell, I’d thought I was half a man months earlier; I wasn’t sure there was even a proper fraction to describe myself anymore. It wasn’t just my physical appearance, either. My desire to fight was gone. Once my nemesis, wallowing became a way of life.

The only thing I was actually doing well in was school. Despite my advisor’s recommendation, I was taking the maximum amount of hours allowable for a freshman. I f*cking loved the distraction. School was probably the only aspect in life in which I didn’t have to struggle. It had always come easy for me.

My life might have been a mess, but it was at least simple. I had a schedule that drove my day. Wake up, go to school, come home, do homework, study, go to sleep. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

However, with a single knock on my front door, everything I had worked so hard to maintain crumbled in front of my eyes.

But like a second bullet to the back, it also changed my life.

“About f*cking time,” Slate said, pushing me out of the way as he strode inside.

“What do you want?” I replied with an attitude I never would have dreamed of using with Slate before that moment.

“Did you join a cult?” he asked, tilting his head to the side.

“What? No?”

“Then what the hell is that dead animal on your face?”

I rubbed the scruff on my chin. “Did you come here to critique my grooming habits?”

“No. But I would have brought you a razor if I had known you were having such a difficult time getting your hands on one.”

I rolled my eyes. “How’d you find me?”

“Leo followed you from class about six months ago.”

“Awesome,” I mumbled.

“Till got worried after he knocked on the door of every dorm on the first floor of the entire f*cking college. Don’t worry. I didn’t tell him where you’re living. Your secret’s safe. You really should have given him your address. That was a dick move.”

“Why? So he could have busted in here like you? I’m doing my own thing right now. I needed some space.”

He walked over to the couch and flopped down, stretching his long legs in front of him, crossing them at the ankle. “So let me get this straight. You decided to just disappear and take some space. To hell with your family. Flint’s the only one who really matters, right? You’re more important than the people who love you and miss you, right?” He popped a knowing eyebrow. “It must run in the family. Seems to me that’s exactly what your mom and dad did to you.”

My head snapped to the side, and rage boiled my blood. “That’s not at all what I did! I am not my parents!”

“Could have fooled me.” He shrugged. “Just for future reference, you can have space and family. Phone calls and the occasional visit wouldn’t f*cking kill you. But this little disappearing act you pulled is killing them.”

I shook my head. He didn’t get it. And short of spilling all of my dirty laundry at his feet, he never would.

“Awesome. Good pep talk. You done?”

“Nope, not even close.” He smiled and pushed to his feet. “Your brother has been blowing up your phone this week for a reason.”

“I’ve been busy.”

“Well unbusy yourself. Your mom showed up at Till’s with the cops on Monday and took Quarry.”

“What!” I yelled, never wishing that I could fly to my feet more. “She can’t do that!”

“She can and she did. The law got involved, and Till has no formal custody agreement. Even though she abandoned you boys, she is still biologically your mom. Quarry’s only fourteen, so he defaults to her until a court date can be arranged.”

“You have got to be shitting me,” I breathed.

“We got a whole legal team involved and managed to get Till weekend visitation while we worked out a court date for next month. But that still means Q is gonna be living with your mom during the week until then.”

“Son of a bitch.” I raked a hand through my hair. “Is Till freaking the f*ck out?”