Corrupt(53)

But it was no use. They came anyway, and I couldn’t look at any of them as they started to fall.

“What the f*ck is the matter with you?” he yelled in my face, and I winced. “Why didn’t you tell anyone?”

“I did!” I cried, glaring at him through blurry eyes. “I told everyone! My mother called the school, and…”

I trailed off, clenched my fists under my arms.

“So help me God…” he warned when I didn’t finish.

I filled my lungs and forced the rest out. “And your father is partnered in three real estate ventures with the Andersons, so—”

“Goddammit!” Michael tore himself away, turning from me as he swore.

Kai shook his head, heat turning his dark eyes fierce. “Unbelievable,” he gritted out.

I didn’t need to explain further.

Yeah, I’d tried to fight back, tell my mother, the Crists, the school, even Trevor…but in the end, even despite the protests of my mom and Michael’s, the business relationship between Michael’s father and Miles’ parents was more precious than my honor.

Miles was told to stay away from me, and I wasn’t permitted go to the hospital to take a drug test for evidence. The incident never went to the police or even left our respective homes. I had to look at him every day in school, knowing what he almost did to me and wondering, if he and his girlfriend had raped me, would I have seen any justice then?

I bowed my head, trying to hold back my silent sobs. God, I wanted to kill him.

“Stop crying,” Damon ordered, glaring down at me.

He then looked up at Michael, his eyes narrowing. “What are we going to do?”

What are we going to do? What could we do? Even if the Horsemen had power in this town, they didn’t hold any over their parents. Evans Crist had convinced my mother not to publicize the issue, and what was done was done. Astrid and Miles weren’t going to be investigated, and if they were, there was no evidence now anyway.

Unless….

Unless that’s not the kind of payback Damon was talking about.

Michael breathed hard, shifting back and forth, and then his eyes fell on me.

And I saw his chin lift and his eyes turn resolute. “Ask her.”

I stilled. What?

He cocked his head, daring me as the rest of them slowly turned to me and waited.

What the hell? What was I supposed to do?

And then I realized what Damon had just asked. What are we going to do? It was my decision.

They’d all had each other’s backs tonight, and now they had mine. But they weren’t going to do my shit for me.

No, Michael never would. He’d never handled me lightly, and he was going to make me deal with this. And if I didn’t, I may as well have them take me home now.

I bit down, glaring through the windows of Sticks again. Miles leaned into his girlfriend, wrapping her thighs around his waist as she sat on a stool, and kissed her while pawing her breast. She giggled, and he backed away with a smug smile on his face, having no care in the world as he walked up to the bar and got a pat on the back from a teammate on the way.

I glanced at Astrid again, seeing her laughing with her friends and fluff her long red hair.

They thought they’d won. They didn’t fear me.

And I locked my teeth together so hard it hurt.

I didn’t know what I was doing, but f*ck it.

Rubbing my knuckles along the corners of my eyes, I wiped away any remaining tears, making sure my mascara hadn’t run.

Grabbing the back of my sweatshirt, I pulled it over my head, slipping my arms out, and tossed it to Kai. I mussed the hem of my tight, gray tank top, bringing it up to show an inch of stomach, and fluffed my hair, trying to give it some temporary volume or sexy chaos or whatever.

“After you see me take him into the bathroom,” I told them, checking the rest of my clothes, “give me a minute and then follow.”

And then I looked up, checking for confirmation that they’d heard, and froze.

“What?” I asked in a low voice.

Four sets of eyes stared, their intense gazes falling down my body as if they’d never seen a girl before.

Kai tried to look away, but he kept stealing glances with narrowed eyes, as if he were almost angry, and Damon looked at me like I was naked.

Will’s eyebrows rose, and then he shot Michael a look, forming an “o” with his mouth and blowing out a long breath.

But turning my eyes on Michael, I saw his jaw flex and his fists clench. Who knew what he was thinking, but he looked mad. As usual.

I rolled my eyes at them.

I guess it felt kind of good. In fact, I hadn’t thought about my scar one time since I’d come out with them tonight. I never felt sexy, but what I liked even more was that it didn’t take much to get their attention. No mini-skirt, barely any make-up, and no games. I just took off my sweatshirt, and suddenly I wasn’t a little girl anymore.

Of course, that fact wasn’t difficult to forget when the tank didn’t leave much to the imagination with the low-cut neckline. And given the temperature outside, I didn’t even want to know what they could make out through the fabric.

Forcing a huge-ass smile to psych myself up, I grabbed Will’s flask out of his hands and spun around for the door.

“Hey!” I heard him bark behind me.