Burn for Burn
Page 21
“You’re late, Kat,” she says. Then she notices Mary with me, and her grip tightens around her car keys.
I hurry out of the car and walk over. I’m excited and relieved that Lillia’s here but trying to hide it. “She needed a ride,” I whisper. “Don’t worry. It’s cool.”
“Kat—” Lillia’s giving me the evil eye. “I’m not saying anything in front of her!”
I guess Mary can hear us, because she calls out, “It’s fine. I can go.” She climbs out of my car.
I hold up my hand for Lillia to give me a second, and I look back at Mary. I say, “Leave Jar Island tomorrow morning like a scared little baby?”
“I am scared. I’m scared out of my mind.”
“Of Reeve Tabatsky?” I’m actually pissed now. This girl needs to get a backbone, stat. “He ain’t shit. I won’t let him touch you.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about.” Mary covers her face with her hands. “It’s me. I’m the problem. I—I just can’t get over it. I can’t move on.”
“Well, yeah. You don’t have any closure. The wrong hasn’t been made right. Reeve’s never gotten what’s coming to him.”
Lillia shakes her head. “Forget this. I’m out.” She clicks her car alarm. The headlights flash on and off like a lighthouse, and the doors unlock.
I sidle up to her car door and cover the handle with my back so she can’t open it. “Don’t leave now. You wouldn’t have come here if you didn’t want to get Alex as badly as I want to get Rennie.”
Mary slowly approaches us. “What did Alex do to you?”
Lillia hesitates before saying, “He didn’t do anything to me. He did something to my sister.”
Yeah, Nadia and me both. Not that I’m scarred or anything. It was just a stupid hookup. It could have been more, but he screwed that up. I’m over it. Almost.
Mary says, “I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to intrude. I’m going to go. And listen, I promise I won’t tell a soul. You can trust me. I know more than maybe anyone else on the island how this kind of thing can weigh you down. I just . . . I think it’s really cool you both are going to do something about it.” She turns around and starts walking away, back toward the ferry. “Good luck.”
Lillia and I look at each other. “Wait!” I call out. Mary turns around. “You want in on this, Mary? Help us . . . and we’ll help you take down Reeve.” I’m afraid to look at Lillia, because I know she’s probably pissed at me right now. But she doesn’t say anything. And she doesn’t leave, either.
“Why would you do that? You don’t even know me.”
Mary’s staring at me all intense and unblinking, and it throws me off. It takes me a sec to recover. I say, “I don’t have to know you to see that you’re a total mess over whatever happened, like, years ago. And, hey, it wouldn’t be a free ride. You’d have to get your hands dirty too. But we’d be in it together. The three of us.”
Mary looks at me and Lillia for a long moment. So long that I start to get antsy. At last she says, “If you help me get Reeve, I’ll do whatever you want.”
Lillia doesn’t move. Her lips are tight and she’s shaking her head. “I don’t know.”
“Think about it,” I tell her. I’m so psyched, I’m practically bouncing on my toes. “Mary’s new. No one even knows her, much less suspects her. Plus, with one other person, it’ll be easier on both of us.” She doesn’t look convinced. I throw my hands into the air and say, “You trusted me enough to come here, didn’t you? All you have to do is trust me just a little bit more. I’ve got a good feeling about this.”
Biting her lip, Lillia says, “So we’re going to get revenge on Rennie, Alex, and now Reeve? You’re basically asking me to take down everyone in my group.”
Maybe you shouldn’t be friends with such ass**les is right there on the tip of my tongue. But I swallow that down and go with diplomacy. “I hear you,” I say, nodding. “You’ve got the most to lose. I get that. So we’ll take care of Alex first.” Pointing, I say, “Let’s go scheme where we’re not out in the open. My boat’s parked down that way.”
Immediately Lillia says, “No way, Kat.”
“You still haven’t learned to swim yet, Lil?” I tease.
She flushes. “I just don’t see the point.”
“It’ll be safer if we talk on the water,” I say. “No chance of anyone overhearing us.”
Lillia rolls her eyes and unfolds her arms to gesture around. “Who’s going to hear us?”
Lillia Cho. Always thinks she knows best. “Lots of rich old men bring their mistresses here,” I say. “And also, security. And cops. I mean, if you’re willing to risk getting arrested, I—”
“Maybe you should have picked a better place,” Lillia snarks back.
“Let’s just go to the boat,” Mary says. “I mean, we’re here now.”
“Fine,” Lillia groans.
I lead the way along the dock, with the moon at my back. Mary’s next to me, and Lillia a few steps behind.
As we walk, my mind is racing with possibilities. How we can do this, what will be the best way to get started. I’ve already given it some thought, just in case Lillia did show up tonight. But now that Mary’s in the mix too, I’ve got to make a few quick adjustments. All I know is that I have to seem prepared, for Lillia’s sake, to put her mind at ease. That girl is as skittish as a cat in a thunderstorm. One hiccup and she’ll bolt.
When Mary asks me if I own one of these boats, pointing at the souped-up yachts, I barely hear her. She has to ask me again. Shaking my head, I say, “Not exactly.”
Because I work at the club, I get to park my boat for free. But not here with these boats, obviously. Mine’s tied up back behind the gas pumps on an older stretch of dock where my boss keeps his junkers, the broken old boats he’s bought cheap to strip for parts.
“Be careful,” I tell them. “The planks along this dock are half-rotted, and there’s lots of rusted nail heads poking up through the cracks. I think I still have a splinter stuck in my heel. This jerk pulled his yacht in too fast and made a wake so big that it rocked me right off my boat.”
I hurry out of the car and walk over. I’m excited and relieved that Lillia’s here but trying to hide it. “She needed a ride,” I whisper. “Don’t worry. It’s cool.”
“Kat—” Lillia’s giving me the evil eye. “I’m not saying anything in front of her!”
I guess Mary can hear us, because she calls out, “It’s fine. I can go.” She climbs out of my car.
I hold up my hand for Lillia to give me a second, and I look back at Mary. I say, “Leave Jar Island tomorrow morning like a scared little baby?”
“I am scared. I’m scared out of my mind.”
“Of Reeve Tabatsky?” I’m actually pissed now. This girl needs to get a backbone, stat. “He ain’t shit. I won’t let him touch you.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about.” Mary covers her face with her hands. “It’s me. I’m the problem. I—I just can’t get over it. I can’t move on.”
“Well, yeah. You don’t have any closure. The wrong hasn’t been made right. Reeve’s never gotten what’s coming to him.”
Lillia shakes her head. “Forget this. I’m out.” She clicks her car alarm. The headlights flash on and off like a lighthouse, and the doors unlock.
I sidle up to her car door and cover the handle with my back so she can’t open it. “Don’t leave now. You wouldn’t have come here if you didn’t want to get Alex as badly as I want to get Rennie.”
Mary slowly approaches us. “What did Alex do to you?”
Lillia hesitates before saying, “He didn’t do anything to me. He did something to my sister.”
Yeah, Nadia and me both. Not that I’m scarred or anything. It was just a stupid hookup. It could have been more, but he screwed that up. I’m over it. Almost.
Mary says, “I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to intrude. I’m going to go. And listen, I promise I won’t tell a soul. You can trust me. I know more than maybe anyone else on the island how this kind of thing can weigh you down. I just . . . I think it’s really cool you both are going to do something about it.” She turns around and starts walking away, back toward the ferry. “Good luck.”
Lillia and I look at each other. “Wait!” I call out. Mary turns around. “You want in on this, Mary? Help us . . . and we’ll help you take down Reeve.” I’m afraid to look at Lillia, because I know she’s probably pissed at me right now. But she doesn’t say anything. And she doesn’t leave, either.
“Why would you do that? You don’t even know me.”
Mary’s staring at me all intense and unblinking, and it throws me off. It takes me a sec to recover. I say, “I don’t have to know you to see that you’re a total mess over whatever happened, like, years ago. And, hey, it wouldn’t be a free ride. You’d have to get your hands dirty too. But we’d be in it together. The three of us.”
Mary looks at me and Lillia for a long moment. So long that I start to get antsy. At last she says, “If you help me get Reeve, I’ll do whatever you want.”
Lillia doesn’t move. Her lips are tight and she’s shaking her head. “I don’t know.”
“Think about it,” I tell her. I’m so psyched, I’m practically bouncing on my toes. “Mary’s new. No one even knows her, much less suspects her. Plus, with one other person, it’ll be easier on both of us.” She doesn’t look convinced. I throw my hands into the air and say, “You trusted me enough to come here, didn’t you? All you have to do is trust me just a little bit more. I’ve got a good feeling about this.”
Biting her lip, Lillia says, “So we’re going to get revenge on Rennie, Alex, and now Reeve? You’re basically asking me to take down everyone in my group.”
Maybe you shouldn’t be friends with such ass**les is right there on the tip of my tongue. But I swallow that down and go with diplomacy. “I hear you,” I say, nodding. “You’ve got the most to lose. I get that. So we’ll take care of Alex first.” Pointing, I say, “Let’s go scheme where we’re not out in the open. My boat’s parked down that way.”
Immediately Lillia says, “No way, Kat.”
“You still haven’t learned to swim yet, Lil?” I tease.
She flushes. “I just don’t see the point.”
“It’ll be safer if we talk on the water,” I say. “No chance of anyone overhearing us.”
Lillia rolls her eyes and unfolds her arms to gesture around. “Who’s going to hear us?”
Lillia Cho. Always thinks she knows best. “Lots of rich old men bring their mistresses here,” I say. “And also, security. And cops. I mean, if you’re willing to risk getting arrested, I—”
“Maybe you should have picked a better place,” Lillia snarks back.
“Let’s just go to the boat,” Mary says. “I mean, we’re here now.”
“Fine,” Lillia groans.
I lead the way along the dock, with the moon at my back. Mary’s next to me, and Lillia a few steps behind.
As we walk, my mind is racing with possibilities. How we can do this, what will be the best way to get started. I’ve already given it some thought, just in case Lillia did show up tonight. But now that Mary’s in the mix too, I’ve got to make a few quick adjustments. All I know is that I have to seem prepared, for Lillia’s sake, to put her mind at ease. That girl is as skittish as a cat in a thunderstorm. One hiccup and she’ll bolt.
When Mary asks me if I own one of these boats, pointing at the souped-up yachts, I barely hear her. She has to ask me again. Shaking my head, I say, “Not exactly.”
Because I work at the club, I get to park my boat for free. But not here with these boats, obviously. Mine’s tied up back behind the gas pumps on an older stretch of dock where my boss keeps his junkers, the broken old boats he’s bought cheap to strip for parts.
“Be careful,” I tell them. “The planks along this dock are half-rotted, and there’s lots of rusted nail heads poking up through the cracks. I think I still have a splinter stuck in my heel. This jerk pulled his yacht in too fast and made a wake so big that it rocked me right off my boat.”
