Page 23

AJ

After my first text had gone unanswered on the day I dropped her off, I shot off another text the next day. I glanced at the message again as I downed some breakfast. Not even read.

Maybe she’s just busy.

It wasn’t the first time my texts had gone unanswered for a day or two since we’d met. I’d worry about it if another day passed with no answer. Until then, I’d head down and get some work done.

I strolled down the stairs and onto the mechanic floor, seeing the others already doing repairs. I grabbed the clipboard with vehicle pickups for the day on it and snagged the top one, checking the car’s details. Not too far from here. Easy bus routes to get there. The perfect first job.

I made my way up the road to the bus stop and kicked back on the bench there, putting in my earbuds and cranking up the music as I waited.

A few minutes later, the bus pulled up, and I got on, making my way to the back.

The bus rides were fast, and before long, I was walking over to the car, twirling the keys on a finger as I walked around, inspecting it. Any dents noted on the description matched up, so it was good to go.

I handed the guy his payment and slid inside, starting it up and driving it onto the busy roads.

It was running smooth as I sped up to get onto the freeway.

There didn’t feel like there was anything in the engine that would cause concerns, but I knew the guys would still go over it fully before throwing it into a shipment.

I weaved in and out of traffic, checking the responsiveness of the steering and the braking power. Both seemed to be in decent shape as well. I pulled off onto the exit that would lead me back to the warehouse when I hit a long line of traffic.

Traffic backed up even more as I got closer to the docks. Which wasn’t usual.

“What the fuck is going on?” I muttered as I rolled the window down and leaned my head out to see around the box truck in front of me.

I saw flashing lights from cop cars and other emergency vehicles. They were parked down a maintenance road leading to the water’s edge. The cops were carefully directing traffic around the blockade, which explained the long backup I’d been sitting in for the past thirty minutes.

Seeing the cops running around and the way they were attempting to put up covers to block people on the road from watching made me uneasy. They didn’t typically do that unless it was a fatality.

Maybe some dude had gotten hit off his bike. That shit happened all the time in LA. But before I could think much of it, an officer made eye contact with me. I leaned back and settled into the seat of the car again.

A weird sense of dread washed over me, but I shook it off.

I cranked up my music as I turned my eyes back on the road ahead of me. The line of cars moved slowly past the scene. Soon, I was rolling down the ramps and into the shipping dock that Takumi owned, parking the car close to the front so he could easily take it into one of the empty bays inside.

I walked into the shop, looking to where Takumi usually sat to hand him the keys, but he wasn’t there. I glanced around the shop and saw all three of the guys gathered around the small TV in the break room. I joined them, curious about what they were watching instead of working.

“What are we watching? Hope there’re subtitles,” I said with a chuckle to Ken.

It looked like the news when I stood behind them and glanced at the screen. The news anchor was talking in Japanese, so I didn’t understand what was being said until I heard a distinct word that sounded a lot like Raven.

“Yo, what the fuck did he just say?” I asked Ken, my eyes not breaking from what the cameraman was filming—the police and rescue teams putting what appeared to be a body on a stretcher. There was a cloth draped over it already, but I had a bad feeling.

“He said they’ve identified the body as Raven Kobayashi,” he replied as he glanced over his shoulder at me.

The air in my lungs felt like it was burning as I kept watching, and a photo of Raven appeared in the screen's corner. There was no doubt.

It was my girl.

The person I had gotten close to was just found dead in the water near the shop I lived in.

She had been so paranoid that someone was following us that night, even though I was sure no one did.

The yakuza man she was with must have somehow found out that she was fucking around behind his back and killed her for it.

The location was no doubt a warning shot.

They had found us, and he knew where I was. Why he hadn’t killed me too beat me.

I stepped back, and Ken eyed my reaction as I fought to contain the anger and sadness I felt building inside of me.

I couldn’t lose it here, not in front of these guys.

I needed to get out of here, and fuck if I was going to ask for time off.

I took the stairs two at a time to get to my room, ducked inside, and grabbed my keys.

I didn’t stop when Ken said my name; I stomped out the doors and over to my car.

Sliding in, I revved it before peeling out of the lot.

My mind was racing with my emotions. I couldn’t believe she was really dead.

Fuck, I should have texted her again that day. Maybe I could have stopped this from happening.

I sat there with that thought, but then reality settled in.

I couldn’t have known the kind of danger Raven had put herself in.

She was a smart woman; she must have known the risks she was taking, being with me, and she had done it anyway.

I knew her death wasn’t my fault, but damn did it still hit harder than I’d have thought it would.

Someone I’d been developing feelings for was suddenly ripped away from me, and I didn’t know how or when it had happened.

Lost in thought, I didn’t even realize that I had driven to the damn gym, but now that I was here, I felt how angry I was. Hitting something wouldn’t be a bad idea right now.

I stalked into the gym. It was midday, and hardly anyone was around as I made my way to the corner with the boxing equipment. I pummeled the punching bag that I usually went to, the sheer force of my blows causing it to swing violently back at me each time.

I kept losing the people I cared about. What had happened to Raven was the exact reason I’d left Rosalie behind.

To keep her safe from people like the man who had just taken Raven’s life.

And while my demons hadn’t taken her away from me, it didn’t mean it wasn’t fucking with me mentally.

It didn’t hurt any less because in the end, while I didn’t love Raven like I do Rosalie, I had still let her in, and I had still cared about her.

I still felt the feelings she’d had for me. How much she wanted to get away and how much she was sacrificing for her family. She had deserved better than what she got.

If I ever crossed paths with that man again, I’d beat the shit out of him before throwing him to the cops.

Man, I’m so pissed!

“Son of a bitch!” I growled and hit the bag so hard that the bars holding it toppled backward and the whole thing crashed to the ground with a loud bang.

Some of the gym workers came running over, and I stood there, heaving in breath after breath as they eyed me warily while getting the equipment back upright.

Pretty sure one of them asked me to take it easy on the equipment, but I wasn’t paying attention.

The world was closing in on me, and I fought that feeling of darkness creeping into my mind once more.

I pushed past them and stormed outside. The weather was turning again.

It rained a lot more in Japan than in LA.

The sky opened up, and rain poured down as I got inside my car.

I sat there, letting it idle as I cranked up the AC, trying to cool down.

I decided to drive back to the warehouse, my mind still full of emotion.

Memories of the videos of Rosalie from the championship rematch played in my head. They had filmed her as she was beaten, and I could vividly remember her crying out for me to help her.

Did you call for help too, Raven? I’m sorry I wasn’t there to save you when you really needed it, baby. I guess I’m not a hero after all.

I drove down into the parking lot and got out of my car. All I wanted to do was get a cold shower and eat before I tried to sleep off the lingering anger I had about Raven’s death.

Suddenly, I saw a car round the corner and drive right toward me.

Something about it set warning bells off in my head.

I’d never seen this car before, and random people didn’t just drive over to this far corner of the docks like that.

When it came to an abrupt halt in front of me and the driver's door opened, I thought I was ready for whoever jumped out at me.

But I’d never expected the person to be a woman who looked very familiar.