Fallen Crest Public (Fallen Crest High #3)(58)

Budd shook his head, and the skin on his neck shifted from the movement. He brought a bat out from behind him and tapped it against his leg before leaning his weight onto it. “Well, we were going to do that.” He gestured to his brother beside him. “Brett wondered if that was smart. I think he said we should kick the pooch while it’s down. I heard he got a few broken ribs and he’s being baby-sat by his rich mommy and daddy. It was all over our school. The famous movie folks are back in Fallen Crest.”

Logan narrowed his eyes. “You think we’re some goddamn pooches?”

“You’re a man down.” He made a show of looking around. “Looks to me like no one else is around.”

“We heard there was a big party,” Brett added.

Logan snorted. “Aren’t you supposed to be banned from our campus?”

“Yeah.” Budd laughed, the sound was menacing. “They caught us twice, but we keep coming back. We’ll keep coming back, you know. That’s how we operate. No damn Kade is going to beat us.”

“That’s not what the scoreboard says inside.”

The smirk vanished from Budd’s face. He brought the bat up and began tapping it against his free hand.

I was done with this. I heard what Budd said, they weren’t going away. They would keep coming back. It was the same sentiment from Kate. I had a plan too, but right now I didn’t want to wait for it to happen. He brought the bat, but I was going to use it on him and with that in mind, I stepped forward. The movement wasn’t to close Logan out, it was to seal our ranks. Our backs would go against each other. It was the same system since our first fight in elementary.

The rest of them registered the movement and they dropped their stance, ready to start fighting.

“Mason!” someone called. It was the same voice from before.

Brett threw his brother a sidelong glance. “There weren’t supposed to be any others around.”

“Shut up,” he snapped back. “I’m aware, you idiot.”

Someone darted across the parking lot. It was a girl but not someone I recognized. Dressed all in black, her clothing looked like it was trying to devour her. She stopped before us and held a hand up as she caught her breath. Then she swallowed before she said, “Kate beat Sam up. She’s in the hospital.”

I went cold.

Sam was hurt.

Sam was in the hospital.

Kate did it. She put Sam in the hospital. My hand jerked at my side. It ached to find her neck, wrap around it, and squeeze.

Logan snapped his head around. “What?”

“Sam?” Brett echoed.

No. I changed my mind. I was going to take her friends away first and then I was going to destroy her for good.

“Was it just Kate?”

Everyone went still. The threat of violence had already been in me. That was where it was going with Broudou, but this was different. Everyone sensed it. A dark need rose now. The tension in the atmosphere doubled.

Someone I loved was hurt.

The girl flinched from my savagery, but she caught herself. She didn’t cower as she replied, “It was all four of them. I found her and got help. I found the first person I thought was a teacher. They called an ambulance and shipped her out.” She gasped again as a sudden wind rocked against her. Some hair slipped to cover her face, but she ignored it. “She was hurt real bad. She wanted me to tell you.”

“Wait,” Budd ground out. “You mean—”

“Let’s go, brother,” Brett stopped him. He stepped forward and urged his brother away. “She’s not part of this. Let’s go.”

“Yeah, but—”

“LET’S GO,” he barked at him now. “They’ve got school problems. It’s not the right time for this.” With that last word, he shoved Budd ahead. He was a few inches in front of me now.

Budd opened his mouth to argue, but it only took one punch.

He was right there. I reacted. I didn’t want to hear any more from him, so I punched him. I hit him across the face—one hit—and he dropped. He was out cold. I turned to Brett, waiting to see what he was going to do.

The other Broudou stepped back and murmured, “I ain’t here to fight any more. You need to go take care of your woman.”

It was in the back of my mind to question him. He said we had school problems, but I could see from the other goliath-sized Broudou that he knew better. I didn’t care. Not then. I needed to get to Sam. That was my first priority.

I jerked my head towards my car and said to the girl in black, “Get in my car. You’re going with us.”

Her eyes popped out, but she scrambled around the unconscious Broudou and climbed into the passenger side. Logan was already in his and didn’t wait. He peeled out of the parking lot. I sat there and waited, clenching and unclenching my fingers around the steering wheel while they moved Budd from behind my car.

One second.

Two.

They had one more second before I was going to run over him.

Brett dragged his brother clear on the last second, and I reversed, spinning around on the fourth second.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Mark was alone, waiting for us in the lobby at the front of the hospital. He stood as we rushed through the door. Nothing was asked, nothing needed to be asked. He gestured down the hallway. “I was waiting for you. They’re in a different waiting room. The doctor’s with her right now.”