Page 5 of Unspoken Lies

Elijah is going to need to be careful. As locked down as he is, as much of a dick as he pretends to be, he loved his parents. Despite the issues and added bonus that they’re sex trafficking assholes.

Groaning as I see the sign that announces that I’m entering California, I curse to myself because I still have several hours before we reach Santa Barbara. Our university plans changed over the last two years. Staying in Portland was never in the cards, and going to the Ivy League school the four of us wanted to go to doesn’t feel right without Ignacio.

We need a fresh start, so California is going to be ours.

Jared told me how torn up Liliana is about everything, but all I’ve seen is the stone cold mafia girl she’s become. One that kills people without blinking, doesn’t give a second thought about using others, and is following in her father’s footsteps as a hitman and enforcer.

I know there are nuances to every person and situation, so I’m holding my judgment for now. The odds are pretty low that she’ll attend university if she’s so involved in her father’s work. She used to be so full of life, and then Rachelle walked in and fucked it all up.

Rachelle Reyes was marked for death from the moment her mother married Emil. I know I’m the one who drugged, kidnapped, and buried her in a casket with my friends. I know I was the tool used to kill her, but it had to be done.

Seeing Ignacio distraught, screaming at us to help her when we were already on edge about our decision, was the tipping point. We all would have gotten away with this if he’d simply stayed away. Then, maybe we could have kept him and found a way to move on from this.

She’s just a girl, right? Nothing special…

“Fuck,” I mutter. I may lie to others, but lying to myself is stupid. I’m not quite delusional enough to believe it either.

It’s stupid late. The roads are empty, and I’m glad we’re moving into a house that we bought together for the duration of our schooling. We can always rent or flip it later on with how coveted the real estate market is, in Santa Barbara especially. We’re minutes from the school, beach, and restaurants.

I’m starting to believe our real estate agent’s spiel. That’s just wonderful.

The shrill sound of my phone makes me wince. It can only be one of the guys at this hour. I’m not weaving on the road, my hands are steady, so why are they calling me?

Hitting the button on my Bluetooth earpiece, I answer the phone.Relax, I only have one in, but only so I can listen to my music and pay attention to the road.

“Yo,” I grunt, my eyes on the road.

“— hello, Theo. Thank fuck. It always takes a second for the call to connect,” Elijah says. “Are you doing okay? Jared called me to ask the same.”

I’ve been on edge about them checking in with me, but I get it. No loose ends are allowed and they love me, even when I don’t think I deserve it.

“Yeah, I’m pounding down my energy drink and listening to my favorite metal bands,” I explain. “Thanks for checking in. It sucks that we’re making the drive alone. Maybe we should have just shipped the cars.”

“That’s expensive though,” he reminds me. We’ve never had to worry about money, but now his guardian is very fickle on what he allocates to Elijah. “Driving is fine, and then we don’t have to wait for them to come in. I’m just worried about us falling asleep.”

“I’m good for now,” I tell him, glad the yawn threatening me doesn’t come out. “I just want to get there.”

“You sound like me,” he teases, earning himself a slight twitch of my lips. Too bad he won’t be able to see it.

“I know, I’m starting to hit that part of the trip where I get antsy,” I confess.

“Want to hit a rest stop for snacks and a stretch break?” he asks hopefully.

While I know I can push myself to keep going, I also understand that not everyone can. Elijah must need a break. Fuck it.

“Yeah, you know what? It looks like there’s a stop up here soon. It’s a rest stop and gas station,” I say. “Let Jared know that we’re going to stop?”

The cars are flashy and expensive, but we’re all armed. Just because we appear to be preppy rich boys, doesn’t mean we can’t defend ourselves.

“Yeah, I’ll let him know,” Elijah says in relief.

Fuck, knowing him, he needs to piss and has been holding it. Tapping the earpiece to hang up, I switch my music back on, my head bobbing to the notes as it blasts. It’s filling me with adrenaline, my heart racing as I get lost in the music.

Watching for my exit, I slow the moving truck down and merge off. The guys are right behind me as I drive, a little caravan of expensive shit and us. Sounds about right.

It’s about the only thing we have left after our gamble to kill Rachelle. We all thought that freedom and the Society’s influence would be all we’d need. Turns out we weren’t completely right.

We just sold our souls to a different kind of devil.