“Aaron’s all loaded up in the van,” Hael says, studying me, his honey-brown eyes dark. He hesitates for a second before adding, “and he’s asking for you.” My heart twists into a knot as I watch Oscar take some antiseptic gel and squeeze it onto a cotton round. He swipes it over my face and arm then applies some bandages.
“I’ll add tetanus shot to our list of things to do,” Oscar murmurs, releasing me and stepping back to lean against the opposite wall. He crosses lean, muscular arms over his chest as I notice that his nipples are pierced with little swords. Interesting.
I stand up, yanking my shirtsleeve down, and exit the bathroom, following Hael downstairs and outside, into the crisp, fall air. Jack o’ lanterns flicker in the yard across the street, but the magic of Halloween is dead to me right now.
Victor drives us for once while I sit next to Aaron in the middle row. He’s groaning, mumbling things under his breath, but at least when I grab his hand, he squeezes back.
“Bernie,” he whispers, his head leaned back on the seat. I frown, scooting closer to him and then glancing back to check on Callum in the last row, leaned over with his hood covering his freshly washed hair.
“You okay?” I ask him, and he lifts his head up just enough to look at me, a frown darkening those perfect pink lips. He’s still holding the bat, like he can’t bear to let it go.
“I’m okay,” he replies, but I’m not sure that’s true. He killed somebody tonight. For me. He’s bound to be a little fucked-up. Callum smiles, like he can sense the direction of my thoughts. “Just to be clear: I’m not upset that Danny Ensbrook is dead. I’m upset that I did it with too many witnesses, and that I put as all at risk. I’d kill the world to save you, Bernadette.”
My cheeks flush, and I look down, running my tongue over my lower lip.
“I appreciate it,” I say, and even though our situation tonight is beyond fucked, I can’t help but like what he’s just said to me. Like I said, I’ve grown up in the dark, so I appreciate the shadows. His darkness is beautiful to me, like a night sky bereft of stars. The sun is just too bright, and it burns. I belong here, in eternal midnight.
Cal reaches up and takes my other hand, giving it a squeeze as we snake through town toward Nurse Whitney’s house. He doesn’t let go until we pull up outside a modest two-bedroom with fresh paint and a Lexus in the driveway, a vehicle that’s certainly way above the paygrade for a school nurse of any kind, most especially one from Prescott High.
Vic and Hael climb out, leaving me in the car with Aaron and Cal, and knock on the front door. Slowly, hesitantly, the door opens, and I can see a crack of light from inside. Nurse Yes-Scott was smart enough to leave the chain-lock in place, but surely, she must know that that won’t stop the Havoc Boys. If they want into her house, they’ll get in.
Speak of the devil and he shall appear …
Hael shoves his boot into the open door to keep Whitney from closing it. In the same breath, he hefts up a pair of bolt cutters that he’s holding by his side and snaps the lock in its sharp jaws. He shoves the door open and steps inside while Victor comes back to help us with Aaron. I’m fully prepared to get under one of Aaron’s arms and brace him until we get in the front door, but Vic just grabs his friend under the legs and around the waist and hoists him up into his arms.
My brows go up as I watch Vic carry him toward the front door and up the few steps that lead to the porch. Aaron Fadler is no lightweight; he’s built and muscular, but Vic carries him like he weighs little to nothing at all, setting him gently down on Nurse Yes-Scott’s pretty yellow couch. Well, that’s ruined. I sneer at her as she stands nearby, wringing her hands.
“He really should be at a hospital right now …” she says, sweat beading on her forehead. She’s dressed in a loose white t-shirt and lace-trimmed black silk shorts, clearly ready for bed. Her blond hair is piled in a messy bun on her head, her