callan
Halfway to Redwood Academy with Sakura—who had been acting weird since we’d had sex—in my passenger seat, Jett’s name flashed across the screen of my phone. I stopped at a red light, ran my hand over my face, and groaned. I couldn’t have one fucking peaceful night to myself. Either he or his daughter had to fucking ruin it with their bullshit.
But I needed to figure out where he had been hiding out. Because he wasn’t at his house.
“I need your help,” Jett said in a rush over the phone. “The mob is looking for me.”
Surprise, surprise. I wonder why.
“Why would they be after you?” I asked. “You pay their bills.”
“Look, Callan,” he said. “They think I’m betraying them. I need you to talk to them.”
I could only imagine him pacing around a mansion and running a hand through his electric-white hair. If he was calling me to ask for help, he must’ve been shitting himself about this all day.
“Sure,” I said to buy myself time. “I’ll talk to them. Stay put.”
Fat fucking lie.
“Where are you?” I asked.
“Are you stupid?!” he shouted over the phone. “I can’t tell you. You work for them, idiot.”
Wonder where Georgina got her mouth from? I rolled my eyes.
“You’re going to need to trust me, Jett.” I tapped my foot impatiently. I wanted to get off the phone with him as soon as humanly possible. Sakura was with me. “At least tell me the town,” I reasoned.
“White Beach.”
Ahh, he was hiding out at the infamous Harleen beach house. Now, it’d be easier for me once I finally had the time to dedicate to cutting every inch of his body up, giving him the hell that man truly deserved for raising such a bitch.
“Sounds good,” I said and ended the call.
Thanks for that fucking information.
While I’d wanted to put Jett six feet deep last night, I had spent the entire afternoon and evening trying to figure out what the fuck had happened in Redwood. Georgina had called her brother, and her brother had called me to let me know that Blaise was being questioned by police.
Over murdering someone.
Blaise Harleen.
Blaise fucking Harleen.
He might try to act tough, but he wouldn’t have killed that bitch. He didn’t have the balls. He probably even hadn’t held a gun before, never mind thought about murdering some slut from Redwood Academy. I just couldn’t get over the fact that they had questioned him.
No matter who had done it or why, I needed to keep Sakura safe. She was my number one priority.
Once I pulled up to the school, I parked in the back, where Poison had disabled the cameras. I wanted to bring Sakura home myself, but I knew that I couldn’t. We would never be able to be together how I wanted. At least, not in this small, judgmental town.
Sakura leaned over the center console and kissed me. “Good night.”
Just as she was about to open her door, a car pulled up directly behind us. Headlights glared into the car and reflected off the rearview mirror, royally pissing me off. I seized Sakura’s wrist so she wouldn’t move.
Who the fuck is this?
A moment passed. Then two.
“Sakura, hand me my gun.”
Eyes widening, Sakura yanked open the glove box without speaking a word. With a shaky hand, she pulled out the gun and handed it to me, then looked behind us. “Wh-who do you think that is?”
“I don’t know,” I said, gazing into the mirror to get a better look. “Stay here.”
“Callan,” she cried, grasping my forearm. “What are you going to do?”
“When I get out, get into the driver’s seat,” I said, hoping that she would do as I asked. If I watched her get hurt by whoever the fuck this was, I’d fucking kill myself. “If anything happens, drive off and don’t look back.”
“But, Callan …”
“Please, Sakura,” I said harshly.
“O-okay,” she whispered.
I opened my door, stepped out of the car with my gun drawn, and watched Sakura shift to the driver’s seat. After I closed the door, I stepped forward and spotted Gunther Zurn standing in front of those high beams.
Fury rushed through me. Not only had this fucker waited an hour after school to talk to Sakura, but now, he was following us. He had some fucking nerve to confront me like this, especially after the skatepark.
“Leave Sakura,” he ordered, voice shaking.
Gunther Zurn’s voice never shook.
“Get back into your car, Gunther,” I growled. “And go home.”
“No,” he said, pushing his shoulders back. “Leave Sakura.”
My hand tightened around the gun, but Sakura was in the car. I didn’t want to scare her.
I stepped toward him and shoved him back toward his car. “Leave now, Gunther.”
He squared up to me, shoulders back and gaze strong. “If you don’t leave her alone, I’m going to …” He stuttered and paused. “I’m going to …”
“You’re going to go home,” I finished. “And act like you didn’t see shit.”
“No,” he growled. “Stop using Sakura, or I’m going to ruin your life. I’ll tell everyone what I saw. I’ll get you fired, thrown in prison …” He reached behind himself and pulled out a gun. “I’ll kill you if you lay another hand on her.”
Sakura shrieked from the car. “Callan! Callan, please, don’t!”
Gunther ran his hand through his hair and paced back and forth. “She’s fucking screaming. She’s fucking screaming at you. You don’t deserve her.” He waved his gun in the air. “You don’t fucking deserve her.”
“Gunther, please, stop!” Sakura said, shuffling out of the car.
“Sakura!” I shouted. “Stay in there.”
“You see!” Gunther said, barreling toward her. “She doesn’t want to—”
Before he could come within five fucking feet of her, I pulled the trigger and killed him.