Leave a Trail (Signal Bend #7)(38)

“You look like you’re gonna be sick, dude.”

Nolan blinked and focused. “Hey, Badge. Nope. Already was.”

Ah. Okay.

“I’m so busted, right? We waitin’ for the Sheriff or whoever? Five-O?”

“‘Five-O’? Seriously? You livin’ the thug life now?”

Nolan shrugged, his face shaped into a caricature of nonchalance. “M’I gettin’ busted?”

Now Badger shrugged. “Len’s trying to fix it. Let’s just wait and see. He knows that kid’s dad, so hopefully not.” He elbowed Nolan, who oof ed and rubbed his arm. “What’s up, dumbass? Bringing vodka to school? You trying to get your ass expelled?”

“Been doing it all semester. Nobody noticed until today.”

“Why? What’s goin’ on?”

“You kiddin’?” Nolan’s head flopped toward him, and his face arranged itself into something like disbelief. In another setting, watching the kid try to make his facial muscles work would be funny.

“Okay. Fair enough. But dude, you gettin’ expelled isn’t gonna make things easier. And shit, I guess you beat that other kid bad and started a riot. You could end up in juvie over shit like that. What’s your mom gonna do then?”

“Kinda wack that you’re lecturin’ me, dontcha think?” He was slurring his words, but not too bad.

Maybe sobering up some.

“Maybe. Or maybe I know because I was hiding in junk, too. You drinking a lot?”

“Some.”

“Every day?”

“Yeah. Why’s that a big deal? All you guys drink ever’ day. Most of you get drunk ever’ day.”

“Yeah, but we’re not sixteen. And we don’t do it at work.” In Badger’s case, that wasn’t true, and Nolan gave him an exaggerated look that called the bullshit out for what it was. “Okay, yeah. But that was me bein’

f*cked up. Fucking things up bad. Almost losing my patch because of it. Doin’ shit I regret more than anything. Maybe something like you starting a brawl that could get you locked up.”

“Hunter said somethin’ about Hav. S’why I got into it. Usually I ignore the asshats. They were givin’ me shit about bein’ Goth—which I’m so not—and talkin’ shit about my dead dad. I wish I’d killed that f*cker.

I was tryin’.”

“What did he say?”

Nolan shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. Deserved what he got.”

Badger didn’t push for details. “I believe you. Gotta pick your battles, though, and time your fights.

Lunchroom? Probably not the best call.”

Nolan got serious. “You gonna tell my mom? She’s just gettin’ to be almost normal again.”

“Think we’ll have to if you get arrested, dumbass. Otherwise, we’ll talk to Len, get his take.”

Nolan nodded and slouched down in the chair.

“Nolan, what’s goin’ on?” He’d asked before and had gotten a flippant answer. But this time Nolan sighed and answered him straight.

“Lonely. I miss Hav. I miss the way my mom was. I miss you guys. Everybody’s different. Everything’s wrong since Hav left.”

“He didn’t ‘leave.’ He died. Not his fault.”

“Turns out the same way, though, doesn’t it? ‘Cept there’s no hope he’ll come back. Just gave me and my mom everything we ever wanted and then disappeared forever and took it all with him.”



oOo



A few hours later, Badger parked his bike at the B&B. The lot was fairly full. It was the start of the weekend, and the rooms were all booked. He sat in the saddle for a few minutes, thinking things through, and grappling with a need that was pulling hard on him. His chest ached, and his head buzzed. Not that he could do anything about it even if he folded. They’d taken his stash, and he’d have to go far—at least Springfield—to buy more. Or he’d have to break into Tasha’s clinic and steal it, and if he was ready to do that, he might as well put his gun in his mouth himself.

The other thing he could do was go to Adrienne, which always eased his body, mind, and soul, and that was his intention. But f*ck, he’d been hurting her, again, with his need of her. He had to settle down and not be at her constantly like some kind of wild animal.

Len had worked things out with Darryl Benes, and they’d been able to take Nolan from the high school with only a ten-day suspension, which he was going to spend at the B&B with Badger, doing grunt work for free.

They’d dropped Badger off at the clubhouse, and Len took Nolan home on his own, planning to talk to Cory and ease Nolan’s way a little.

Every day, it seemed like something new got f*cked up. Badger couldn’t see a bright side anywhere.

The Horde were bent over to Julio Santaveria and his Perro Blanco cartel, doing their bidding even though he’d killed Havoc and had torn the ever-lovin’ shit out of Show, Len, and him. He was f*cked up, Show literally wanted to kill him, the town was turning against the club, and now Nolan was f*cked up, too. He was right. Everything was different. Everything was wrong.

Not everything. Inside the main house was his bright side—a girl he’d loved for a long time. A beautiful, bright, kind girl who loved him back. The only girl he’d ever felt comfortable with. And she honestly didn’t mind the way he looked, or even the way he was. He had to make sure he did everything he could to be right for her.