Chapter 8

*****

"Where the hell have you been?"

Going to school – despite it being as massive as it was – meant running into my friends at sometime no matter how hard I was trying to avoid them; that time happened to be today. Personally, I was proud of myself, I had managed to avoid them for eight days before now. I used to suck at hide and seek...

"Hey, Claire. Is your hair curlier?" I smiled at her.

"Don't give me that crap." She glared at me causing me to back slightly and looked at Shiloh for help. He smirked, clearly happy at my position.

"Okay – okay – I told Jordan to tell you –"

"And now you will tell Jordan." Ah, geez... I smiled as Jordan frowned at me from beside Claire. "You know our house got broken into last week?" he asked.

"What? It did?" I faked shock hoping they did not see right through it, because they usually could.

"Yeah, they pretty much emptied it out. Our TV, play station, fricking grill, who the hell steals a grill?! Even your closet, bastards must have been the same size as you." He grit his teeth. Emptied it out? Those jerks... "Where the hell have you been?" he asked the same question Claire just had.

"I told you. A friend. He's having serious health problems so I just have to... take care of him and his daughter, she's four and he can't even walk right now." I said.

"Nice story but –" Shiloh's hand fell on my shoulder as he stepped in front of me so we were at eye-level, "You have no friends we don't know about and your lying sucks. I'm still surprised you're becoming an attorney."

I sighed defeated as I pursed my lips. I was used to my friends' teasing about my choice of profession. "Fine... I can't really tell you..." I couldn't drag them into it, and really, I did not want them to know anything. I mean, 'Hey, I killed someone and now some criminals are threatening me to make me sell drugs for them' didn't make me look too good.

"You can't tell us?" Claire sounded hurt.

"Yeah... I just need you to trust me right now." I said.

"Fine." She smiled. I smiled as I hugged her before my eyes widened when I saw marks on her shoulder.

"So what's his name?" I smirked as I stood back. She seemed confused before she gasped and pulled her collar over the spot on her shoulder.

"Who? I- I don' know what you're talking about – there – there is no him." She stuttered not looking at me.

"Shiloh, help me out –" my mouth dropped open as I saw him swallow and look at the cars, "Oh – oh my God!" I exclaimed, "I'm gone for a week and you two hook up?!"

"Uh, you weren't gone for a week, I saw you run the other way in the hall a few days ago." Claire glared at me. I gave her a guilty smile.

"Still, you two?" I asked shocked.

"Yeah, pay up." I frowned at Jordan but reached into my pocket and handed him ten.

"You bet on us? Really?" Shiloh gave me a pointed glare.

"Technically I bet against you, some friends you are making me lose money..." I muttered before I laughed as Claire smacked my chest, "I'm joking! I mean... this is weird but I could see how you two would... no, actually, I can't." Jordan and Shiloh laughed as I got another smack from her.

"It's pretty simple," Shiloh smirked.

"Are you calling me easy?" My eyes widened. Well, that escalated fast.

"No – no, Babe, I mean – I meant –" Shiloh shot me a helpless glance and I chuckled deciding to help him out.

"Calm down, Claire. He just meant it was a simple decision to ask you out because he always talked about you anyway." Okay, that was somewhat true. He always said she was annoying and how she acted like she was too good for him because of all the girls he slept with, but it was him talking about her non-the-less.

Jordan had always told me he found it absurd that the pair were friends. I guessed it was really because of me since I hung out with Claire and then used to help Shiloh with his homework in high school which led to the three of us hanging out together all the time... it also led to me listening to their constant bickering towards each other and Claire calling Shiloh a 'Man Whore' every chance she got while he called her a 'Vamp'.

I was actually really interested in seeing how their relationship went; I knew that no matter how much they hated each other sometimes, if either needed help, they would be there. The same went for me.

"Don't you lie to me, Richardson." Claire pretty much growled my surname through her grit teeth.

"Claire, I'm not." I smiled pretending her growl didn't faze me.

"Alex, we were headed to lunch, how about –"

"There you are, Alexander." So much for keeping them away from everything I've been dealing with... My friends stared behind me surprised and I felt my body stiffen as his hand landed on my shoulder. "Oh, you didn't tell me you had any friends. It would have been good to know considering that you kept us waiting for twenty minutes."

I clenched my teeth feeling his hand squeeze my shoulder.

"I just ran into them... lost track of time. Uh, guys, I have to go." I said.

"But lunch –"

"Some other time, Claire, I promise." I cut her off giving her a smile but she wasn't looking at me, her eyes – like Jordan and Shiloh's – were stuck on Sergio.

"Sorry, our friend is incredibly rude. I'm Jordan. You are?" I frowned as Jordan ignored me.

"Diego. Just some taxi driver I use." I spoke before Sergio could. "See you guys later." I grabbed Sergio's arm and dragged him off, he pulled his arm from me and I walked ahead before he could say anything.

When I was sure we were out of anyone's sight, I turned to him.

"Stay the hell away from my friends!" I hissed.

I cried out when he shoved me back so I hit the wall and his hand secured around my throat but it didn't tighten.

"The next time you fucking waste my time, my going near them will the least of your worries. I have a fucking business to run and I will not let some dealer screw my work up. You may be selling better than a lot of people but I won't hesitate to show you exactly where you stand in all of this." His voice was venomous. "Where's my fucking money?"

I grabbed it from my pocket and shoved it into his chest; it just ended up falling onto the grass.

"Fuck you! You act like I want to do this shit for you, go to hell!" I hissed.

"Did you not hear me?" he let me go letting out a humourless chuckle before he pulled his phone from his pocket.

"What are you doing?" I asked, alarmed while beginning to follow him but him pointing his gun at my chest kept me from moving any further. I stepped back a little watching him dial a number before he brought his phone to his ear without glancing at me.

"Clyde? I need you to take care of someone, don't kill them, just... rough them up." My eyes widened as he smirked my way.

"No –" I began.

"Some blonde kid. He drives the silver Toyota at the campus entrance; he's wearing a blue Nike shirt... No, just enough to get him in hospital... Yeah, don't worry about our dealer, I'll deal with him." He hung up.

"Call him off!" I yelled not moving because his gun was still aimed at my chest, "Call him o-ff!" My voice cracked as my worry and desperation broke through.

Sergio looked at me unfazed at my yelling and outrage. He had the same calm, neutral look on his face he always did.

"You brought this on him." I felt my chest tighten as motioned the gun at me before he slid it back into its holster under his jacket, "Ah, you better hope Clyde's in a good mood, sometimes he gets carried away." He retracted his lips as he sucked air through his teeth.

"Please. Please call him off." I said desperately. I didn't even care about the shame in begging him.

"Don't act so pathetic, Alexander." He frowned, "I warned you. More than once. Now you can meet me at Clyde's car in five minutes or you can expect Jordan and Claire to end up the same way Shiloh just has – more likely worse than him." Just has?

He walked away without another word and I stood staring at the money on the ground. Why did I keep pushing him? I felt my chest tighten even more as a sick feeling turned in my stomach when I heard distant sirens. I stayed frozen for a minute trying not to throw up.

I grabbed the money and shoved it back into my bag before I walked around the building. I saw Claire in tears beside Shiloh's car, Jordan getting his bleeping lip checked out by a campus medic while I couldn't see Shiloh but I knew where he was: on the ground in the middle of the crowd of people, probably as some other campus doctors tried to help while they waited for the ambulance. I wanted to go over to them and apologize, help but when I glanced to the street and saw Clyde's car parked across the road, I knew I was pretty much out of time.

I walked across the road and climbed into the back of the car. Sergio started the car, it was just us, and began to drive.

I pulled his money from my pocket and dropped it beside him on the passenger seat before I leaned back and looked out of the window clenching my teeth.

I should have kept my damn mouth shut. This was my fault. Jordan probably tried to intervene. I wanted to hurt Sergio. I wanted to kill him. How could I let them do this? I had the overwhelming urge to just cry... but I wouldn't show him any weakness. He was a bastard...

"You hungry?" He asked not looking at me.

I couldn't believe him.

"Are you fucking hungry?" he repeated calmly, his voice edging making me realise he was about to lose his patience with me considering that his voice was always on the same level even when he was saying something that made him seem angry.

"No." I muttered. I actually was, but I was too disgusted and sick to eat. I jerked forward as he stepped on breaks and stupid me, not having put my seat belt on ended up hitting my head against the passenger seat headrest.

I heard him scoff a laugh before he cleared his throat. "We have an agreement and I have... issues with people disobeying me, or disrespecting my authority. I don't regret what I have had to have done for you to take me seriously, and I can do so much worse to you and your friends so you can either take this seriously or you can make this so much worse for yourself than it has to be." He said.

"I want you –" his snort cut me off and I grit my teeth as I clenched my fist frustrated, "I want your guys to stop trailing me and I want you to stay away from my friends and I'll keep selling your shit while I pretend to respect you." I said.

"My men will not stop trailing you, they do that to all of my dealers, just so that if there's a rat he gets what he deserves – or what they think he deserves." He said, "Your friends on the other hand, that's done as long as you stop disrespecting Ben and follow my orders, know your place." He said.

I frowned. "I want to know that Shiloh's alright." I muttered.

"I'll have Clyde check on him." He replied. "So, you hungry?" he asked.

"We're not friends. I don't speak to you unless it's about work." I said glaring at him. He laughed turning back to the road.

"Suit yourself." He said as he turned into some fast food place's drive thru.

*****