The rumble of my bike’s engine echoes off the tightly knit houses in the run-down neighborhood that I once called home. Everything is just how I remembered it, except most of the tiny two-story houses now have boarded up windows. I never thought I would be back on this street—never wanted to either—but here I am, moving back into the one house I swore I would never set foot in again.
If it weren’t for my mother making me promise her to always be here at this house so that she could find me, I would not have bought the shithole my grandmother had owned. I felt obligated to buy it when the church she’d left it to put it up for sale. I never had any intention of living in the place that’s the center of most of my nightmares, but it’s where I figured Mom would find her way back to if she were an angel. Mom always came back here when she was fucked up on drugs. It was like she could find it even if she were out of her mind.
Every time I think about my mother, my mind always wonders about how things would’ve been different for me if she weren’t an addict. When I was young, I knew I wasn’t like the other kids at school. In my neighborhood, having a junkie as a parent was common, but most didn’t have to contend with a lunatic grandmother who was hell-bent on beating the demon out of them.
My bike bounces a bit when I turn into the driveway. The concrete is cracked and riddled with holes from years of neglect. If it weren’t for Nettie and Carl maintaining the place, I’m sure the rest of the place would be in bad shape, too.
I stare up at the brown house, and I zero in on the rusted wrought iron railing caging in the front porch like a prison. Quinn’s Honda parks directly behind me, and the girls get out of the car.
Quinn shields her eyes from the evening sun as she tilts her head up to examine the house. “You sure the two of you will be safe staying here? The neighborhood isn’t known to be a beacon of safety. Every shooting on the local news comes from this part of town.”
“He was raised here, Quinn. I’m sure Xavier wouldn’t bring us here if he thought we’d run into trouble.”
Anna’s sweet for saying that, but she’s aware this isn’t the safest place after the conversation we had with Nettie earlier.
I think the pep-talk is more to ease Quinn’s mind than her trying to get me to admit how horrible this place is.
Quinn turns to Anna, and her lips pull into a frown. “I don’t like the idea of you being down here. This place is the epitome of concrete jungle. The whole kill-or-be-killed mentality is very real in this neighborhood. It just doesn’t feel right, leaving you somewhere like this.”
Anna places her hand on Quinn’s forearm in an attempt to reassure her again. “Please, don’t worry. Xavier will be here with me. He’ll protect me.”
Warmth spreads through my chest as confidence rings in her voice.
I place my hand over my heart. “I’ll guard her with my life.”
“You’d better,” Quinn says. “I know where you live now.”
“This isn’t exactly home,” I reply coolly as my eyes narrow at the house in front of me.
Quinn glances over at Anna and raises her eyebrows. It’s clear that she wants to know the story about me and this house, but Anna doesn’t say a word. She just simply shakes her head.
“Okay then, maybe we should get your bags unloaded.” Quinn walks around to the back of the Honda.
After gathering Anna’s and my luggage, I head for the front door to face the demons of my past.
Chapter 6
Anna
Xavier sets the bags down and then fishes a set of keys from the pocket of his jeans.
My breath actually catches when he twists the knob and pushes open the front door. I don’t know what I’m about to walk into, but the tension floating in the air is so thick that I can feel it pushing down on my shoulders.
From what I can tell, Xavier is dreading going inside.
When Quinn steps up onto the porch, Xavier turns his head in her direction. “Thanks for the ride and for bringing our bags, but I think we’ve got it from here.”
Xavier turns to head inside, leaving Quinn and me alone