I’m sober again.
Idiot.
I shouldn’t have smoked or let Reuben bully me into downing my drink. Why do I feel like I have something to prove to these guys?
Everyone’s attention is on me again. So I try and move it away. “You never told me your story,” I say to Zachary.
Just his eyes move. “My story?”
“You and Reuben.” I wave a limp hand. “The basement? How’d you end up there?”
Everyone stops moving. Even Apollo, who I’d thought wasn’t listening.
Cass sits back and crosses his arms over his chest as he lets out a low whistle. “Presumptuous little slut, aren’t you?”
My cheeks heat up again, but I force myself not to look at him. I keep my eyes on Zachary as he stares deadpan back at me. He takes a deep breath, and lets it out as a soft sigh before pushing away and straightening in his seat. “Our story,” he repeats quietly, looking down as he smooths his jeans over his legs. “Our story is none of your fucking business, little girl.”
My chest closes up, squeezing my heart like a fist.
“I just—”
“Gabriel will be back tomorrow,” he cuts in. “How about you start focusing on that instead of sticking that pretty nose where it doesn’t belong?” He stands without waiting for my reply.
I drop my head, willing myself to disappear into the armchair. I hadn’t meant to be nosy. I just want to understand what I’m dealing with. I get that it’s probably a horrible subject for them, but Apollo and Cass had told me theirs without biting my head off.
Maybe that’s why they spoke up yesterday, and not Reuben and Zachary.
Holy shit…what did Zachary and Reuben go through?
I hug myself and risk peeking at Reuben through my lashes. He has a hand flat on his chest, his eyes boring into me. I hurriedly look away and on instinct reach for the rosary around my neck.
Then I freeze and look back at him.
His rosary. I’ve had it this whole time. Should I—?
“Keep it. I bought him another one,” Zachary says.
I jump at the sound of his voice.
Dear Lord. Whatever nerves I had, they’re shot again. Keeping cool around these guys is impossible. It’s like trying to keep an eye on four moving targets. I’ll just have to get used to the fact that they’ll always have an advantage over me.
Strength in numbers, I guess.
I drop the rosary I’d been about to pull over my head.
Zachary hands a slim case to Reuben, and he stares at it for a few seconds before opening it. He lifts out a dull black rosary and slips it over his head. Then he tucks it away under his t-shirt.
They’re all in casual clothes today.
Zachary is wearing a button-up shirt, pale blue, and jeans that look like he bought them at a thrift store. In fact, all the guys look like they got their clothes from the Salvation Army.
I’m assuming it’s on purpose, seeing as Zachary just bought a brand-new laptop. Then there’re the two video cameras…
Either he’s rich, or he has a ton of credit card debt. I guess if you’re planning on offing someone, you wouldn’t really care about your finances.
“Do that later. I need you to set this up.” Zachary leans across and hands Apollo the laptop.
Apollo flicks his hair out his eyes as he looks up at Zachary, and then gives a grim nod.
Zachary takes out a much smaller box and goes back to his seat. He toys with it as he watches Apollo remove the laptop’s packaging and start it up.
I tip my glass against my lips and look down in surprise. It’s empty. I hurriedly wrap my fingers around it, trying to hide the fact, but I’m too slow.
Reuben gets to his feet.
“In a bit,” Zachary says as if he’s reading Reuben’s mind. “We need her to focus.”
My throat moves as I swallow. With Zachary handing things out to the guys, there’d been an almost festive air inside this strange lair. For a moment, I’d forgotten where I was. Who I was with.
These are not normal people, Trinity. Your life is the furthest thing from ordinary right now.
I drop my head and snort quietly to myself. Like I’d ever had a claim to being normal.
“Gabriel has a laptop,” Reuben says.
I start fidgeting with my glass. “Okay.”
“It’s hidden somewhere in his room.”
I nod and glance at the other boys. Cass is smoking what’s left of the weed, leaning an elbow on the armchair and slouching like he’s waiting for his photoshoot to