Bitter Kisses (It's Just High School #3) - Thandiwe Mpofu Page 0,45

pretty sure the thing in my chest is beating harder than ever. I close my eyes, ruffling my brother’s hair.

“We’re going to get her back,” Liam murmurs lowly.

“Yeah.” I don’t address the hoarseness of my voice, but I know after this, she’s going to need Liam.

She’s going to need both of them.

A father sells his daughter to ruthless assholes who don’t have any qualms in abusing their own blood.

My mother helps, and then there’s the whole marriage shit with one of the Bishop’s twins of which my brother has a fucking hateful say about.

It’s all fucked up but to me, only Mia matters. I don’t fucking care if I see tomorrow or not. Mia is all the essence of everything alive in me.

Cole ruffles both our heads, a low and dangerous chuckle sounding from him. “So, we war,” he says.

“We fucking war!” Liam echoes.

“You’re damn right it is!” I seethe. “We war because she’s fucking mine!”

Every fiber of my being agrees, echoing the declaration that’s now out in the universe. Come what may tonight, she will live.

Cole and Liam nod wordlessly.

“Right, let’s do this,” Liam says. “We meet back here in ten?”

“Yes,” I murmur. “Don’t fucking touch anything in there.”

“Sure, Boss J,” he mock-salutes but the heaviness of this moment is too much to even crack a smile.

I watch as Liam walks off. As soon as he hits the sidewalk with some people, he starts sauntering, an easygoing mask falling over him like an armor to war.

“You lied to him, didn’t you?” Cole mutters silently beside me. I stare after my brother.

“One day, he’ll get over it.”

Grabbing the keys from the ignition, I walk back around and use the smallest key on the chain to unlock the hidden latch on the floor of the van.

“Oh fucking shit,” Cole whispers. “They kept that shit?”

“Yes,” I say, grabbing my gloves on, trying not to make a face of disgust. “I knew one day it would come in fucking handy.”

“And this is the fucking day to unearth this crap?”

“This is the beginning of that day.”

I feel Cole’s gaze on me as he puts on his pair of leather gloves. “You knew they wouldn’t be here with her, didn’t you?”

I look at Cole, holding his gaze.

In this moment, we understand each other. We see the playing field the same way, as a warzone. And that’s enough for what’s to come.

I pull down my ski-mask, and so does he, then I pull up my hoodie, effectively covering my identity.

“This is nothing but a game to that animal,” I grit out. “Unfortunately, he’s playing with the wrong fucking predator.”

And with that, we pick up the package and go deliver it where it will stay as bait.

It doesn’t take that long, seeing as I had this planned right after my car blew up at that cursed race, but never had the time to do anything with Mia trying to leave me and all that shit.

When we get back to the SUV, we get in and leave.

“What about Liam?”

“He’ll find his way.”

He has to.

Chapter Eleven

Mia

“Let me go!” Kristine cries, her voice shrill and full of fear. “Please!”

“Shut up, bitch,” Sean snaps, still dragging her across the floor as they come closer. “I fucking warned you, didn’t I?”

“But I… I didn’t do anything—” Kristine stutters and my stomach twists up.

“You think I’m stupid?” Sean snarls. I see him tighten his grip on Kristine’s hair, her wince only confirms the obvious.

“Let her go!” I cry, immediately flinching at the hoarseness and the sound of fear in my own voice. “Let her go, you sonofabitch!”

“You shut the fuck up!” Sean seethes, pointing at me. “I’ll deal with you next.”

“Sean, please,” Kristine begs. “I just wanted to check—” her words are cruelly cut off when he slaps her right across the face, and I gasp.

“Let go of her, you filthy pig!” I cry, horrified as I see blood running from Kristine’s nose, the slap obviously opening old wounds. This is how they’ve been treating her. Hurting her over and over again and she’s pregnant for God’s sake! Sean only looks at me, a full-on jerk smirk on his ugly face making him look like an unhinged sociopath. “I said leave her alone!”

For my shout, he slaps her again. This time, on the other cheek and harder, I scream.

“Your fucking screams don’t fucking matter in here,” Sean says, laughing above Kristine’s cries and thrashing around. “This is Julian Fitzgerald’s nightmare, and you are the fucking star of the show but don’t fucking think