Four (Their Dead Lives,1) (9 page)

Might as well.
Shrugging, she left Kelsey with the others and went to join Jerry, Kale and that idiotic asshole.
 

Scot’s eyes were locked across the bar on Kale, who silently poured them drinks. Though she desired to avoid Scot, the tension flowing between him and Kale was deliciously intoxicating.
 

With one elbow on the bar, Jerry’s belly was peeking out from under his shirt as he poked at Scot. “So you’re Kelsey’s ex?”
 

“Who are you?”
 

“Most call me Jerry. You get to call me Jermaine. Bump it.” He held out a loosely-formed fist.
 

Scot glanced at Sadie. “Is he for real?”
 

Sadie nodded silently.
He doesn’t deserve my voice.

“
All right,” Scot said and he bumped Jerry’s fist.
 

Kale leaned forward. “Hello, Sadie. Nice to see you again.” He turned to Jerry. “Pleasure to meet you, Jer.”
 

Jerry shook Kale’s hand. “You’re Korean, right? I adore the East.”
 

“Yeah — well, born and raised American.”
 

“Cool beans. I adore the West.”

Kale laughed in Sadie’s direction. “He’s funny.”
 

“Why am I funny?” Jerry took an obnoxiously loud slurp of his orange juice.

“Look, Jerry,” started Scot.

“Jermaine!” Jerry stomped his feet.
 

“Fuck me sorry sideways,” snapped Scot. “Can’t wait to speak with you later, but Kale and I here, we have some important shit to work out.”
 

“Hey, wait.” Kale stretched across the bar. “They can listen. It’ll be good, maybe even therapeutic.”
 

“I really don’t want—” Scot tried but failed to convince Kale otherwise.

“Oh, I love story time!” Jerry clapped.
 

“This is a good one. It’s full of love, betrayal, and all that good shit.” Kale slid a devilish grin in Scot’s direction. “What my pal and I here were discussing was this: he decided to bang my girlfriend.”

“She wasn’t
really
your girl—”
 

“Silence, Scot. Jesus!” Jerry commanded haughtily.

Kale laughed. Even Sadie smiled. The others in the bar looked at them.
 

Scot’s face burned red. “This is horse shit,” he muttered.
 

Succulently satisfying.

Jerry turned back to Kale, resting his chin on his fists, giving him his full attention. “Please continue.”
 

“Thank you, Jer. Anyway, he betrays our friendship, sleeps with my girl, and leaves Kelsey. No reason. Just left.”
 

“Well, that’s rude,” pouted Jerry.
 

“You don’t have the full story,” Scot interrupted, finished his drink and slid his glass to Kale for another. Kale caught it, frowned, but poured.
 

“What’s the full story?” Sadie couldn’t help but ask, knowing Scot was full of shit.
 

“Ugh.” Scot rubbed his face. “Fine. You want to do this here? With them? Fine. I found out my
bestest
bud, Kale here slept with Kelsey. So yeah, I left without saying anything. I left and screwed his girl. We’re all to blame.”
 

Kale said, “You’re shitting me, right?”
 

“I saw your texts. I had the proof. You took the love of my life from me, you sack of shit.”
 

Incredulous, Kale shook his head. “Oh, Scot. Oh silly, stupid Scot. Just drink.” He slid the full glass back to the idiot, spilling some of the liquor.
 

“What do you mean, Kale?”
 

Sadie grabbed Jerry’s arm, tried to pull him away. “Time to go back to Kelsey.”
 

“No, I wanna listen.”
 

Not wanting to hear anything else out of Scot’s mouth, Sadie turned her back and left.
There can be many POVs on one situation. And Scot’s POV is nothing but bullshit.
When Scot had vanished from Kelsey’s life two years earlier, Sadie had needed to comfort Kelsey for months. He’d broken her friend’s heart, so she didn’t care what else had happened.
He’s just making excuses.
 

She walked over to the table where Jeff, Howard, and Angela were sitting. She remembered Jeff from high school; he’d been much plumper then.
He’s
quite attractive now. Manly.
Maybe his shredded clothes and cuts were what did it for her. Either way, she felt a pulsating attraction to him, which she knew was a stupid feeling to have, given something very serious was likely going on.
 

“How’s it going over there?” Jeff asked her.

“Boys being boys.”

“I’m hoping they don’t fight.”

Before Sadie could say anything, Howard jumped into the conversation. “So, um, Jeff,” he started, his bony body shifting nervously in his seat. “What exactly happened to you?”
 

Jeff kept his eyes on Scot and Kale. “Not sure I follow.”

“Not sure if you follow? You come in here all torn up, rambling about the Vaults. What happened?”
 

The Vaults?
Sadie had almost forgotten about them, maybe because she didn’t know anyone who’d won a spot in the sanctuary, maybe because the news just stopped reporting about them.
Out of sight, out of mind.

Jeff refused to make eye contact with Howard. “It’s all a misunderstanding.” He stood and walked over to Alec and the others before Howard could speak to him again.
Thanks for scaring him off.

“How was that a misunderstanding?” Howard asked Angela.
 

Angela shrugged. “Any idea what your boyfriend is saying to my boyfriend over there?”
 

Howard chuckled in embarrassment. “Kale isn’t my boyfriend.”
 

“Oh. Oops.”

She’s not bright. No wonder she’s with Scot.
Sadie smiled politely at them before joining Nicole, hoping Jeff didn’t think she was following him. He seemed to have bigger things on his mind anyway.
What happened to him?

They all gathered around the lounge in the corner of the bar. Nicole next to Alec, Kelsey on the edge, with Jeff standing over her.
 

“So tell me, Jeff, why do you have the nickname Homer?” Nicole beseeched him.
 

Alec smiled, his head swayed.
Wasted.
“She has been hounding me all night.”

“Your nickname is Homer?” Sadie asked him.

“Yeah, well it was in high school.”

“I remember now.”
 

“Oh, we still call you Homer,
Homer
.” Alec waved a hand as his chin dropped groggily to his chest.
 

“So spill it, Jeff,” said Sadie. “Or rather, Homer.”

Jeff huffed and put out his hands in a gesture of surrender. “Okay, all right, it’s because—”

“You son of a bitch!” The shout rang across the room and everyone turned to the bar. Kale launched over the counter, smashing into Scot, sending them both to the floor. With Scot pinned underneath him, Kale arched his clenched fist back. Scot stared at him in shocked anticipation. Kale swung.
Scot’s face blasted to one side. There was a sickening crunch.

Get him.
 

Scot cursed, flailing and kicking. He launched Kale off, but Kale landed upright. Standing on his feet, Kale heaved, leaning forward like a bull ready to charge.
 

Scot gave one of his famous smirks.
Always hated those.
 

“I’m gonna punch that stupid smirk off your face!” Kale rushed forward, head low, slamming his shoulder into Scot’s stomach. They both flew back. Scot smashed against a wall and must have felt a sharp burst of pain because when he raised his face, his mouth was wide in agony.
Lovely, lovely.
 

Kale pinned Scot to the wall using one hand. He cocked his other fist back, letting it linger just a few inches from his target’s face.
 

Blood dripped from Scot’s nose. “Come on, you piece of shit.” His voice was breathy, lacking air. “Hit me again.”
 

Kale hesitated.
 

“Hit me!”
 

Kale pulled Scot, yanking on his white t-shirt. “How could you sleep with Brit? How could you do that to me?”
 

Scot, even with blood oozing down his face, smirked. “How? By carefully sticking my penis right in her—”
 

Screaming inarticulately in fury, Kale shoved Scot harder into the wall. He slammed his fist down—again, once more, a fourth time.
 

Blood flew from Scot’s lips. He was drunk, beaten, and helpless; Sadie almost felt bad for him.
Almost.
 

Scot rolled his face back to eye Kale. “Do it again. Hit me again,” he slurred.
 

“Enough!” Jeff stepped past Sadie, rushing between them. He grabbed Kale’s shoulder. “Get off him.”
 

“What, you’re on this guy’s side now? He doesn’t even trust you!” Kale released his grip on Scot, dropping him to the floor. “I trust you, Homer. I believe you.”
 

Scot fell limply to the hardwood floor. While he was still in the process of collapsing, Angela was already running to his aid.
 

Kelsey stood stiffly next to Sadie. Wanting to make sure she stayed put, Sadie latched onto Kelsey’s arm.
We should not be involved in this.
 

Kale swung Jeff’s hand off. “I’m out of here. Howard, Let’s go.” He stormed for the exit.
 

Jeff chased after Kale, trying to placate him. “I’m on all your sides. He doesn’t deserve a beating. He might be an asshole sometimes but—”

“But what?” Kale looked directly at Kelsey. “He thinks we fucked. That’s why he left you. That’s why he took my Brit from me. He’s a selfish prick and you deserve better. Don’t ever go back to him.”
 

Atta boy, Kale.
Before Kelsey could respond, he left, walking briskly to the parking lot.
 

Howard staggered after him, dropping a glass. “Bro, legendary!”
 

Sadie went to the doorway to watch.
 

Jeff stood on the patio, while Kale fumbled for the keys to his truck.
 

“You’re too drunk!” Jeff called.
 

“Screw off, Homer. Tell Scot he can screw you off too!” Kale hopped in the truck and started it. Kicking up dirt, he sped for the exit. The truck made it a mere 10 feet before it abruptly swerved off the road and careened into a telephone pole. The front of the truck collapsed and crumbled, smoke rising from the wreckage.
 

Alec rushed up behind Sadie and Jeff. After he saw the crumpled truck, he yelled, “Holy shit,” then grabbed his mouth, worried that Nicole had overheard.
 

She’s still against swearing?
 

Jeff raced off the patio, sprinting for the truck. Alec followed. Soon, Nicole and his brother hurried out, attracted by the commotion, Brian cursing at the sight of the smoking truck.
 

Enough people were helping Kale and Howard, so Sadie went back inside the bar for Kelsey.
Oh, damn it, girl.
She was next to Scot in the lounge area, while his
actual
girlfriend
was busy getting ice.
 

“So you think you’re Rambo all of a sudden?” Kelsey smiled at him, examining his bleeding face.
 

“You should see the other guy.” He smiled weakly, his head wobbling.
 

Kale never suffered a scratch.
 

“Look, Scot,” Kelsey sighed, “you think I cheated on you? With Kale?”
 

“That’s what your phone said.”
 

Kelsey’s lips thinned in irritation. “You’re so far from correct it’s ridiculous.”
 

“I saw what I saw.”
 

“No, you always see what you want to see. You should’ve stayed and talked to me, not stuck your dick in Kale’s girlfriend.”
 

He stubbornly avoided all eye contact. “I need to go.” Struggling to stand, Angela returned in time to help, dropping the ice, and giving Kelsey an equally icy stare. She then helped Scot hobble to the doorway. He gave Kelsey one last look, mouthing, “Goodbye.”
 

They left, passing Sadie without a word.
Smart kid.
 

Kelsey sighed and slapped her thighs. “Well, let’s get the hell out of here.”
 

“Finally.”
 

Jerry trotted up to them, slurping his orange juice. “I don’t know about you two, but this night is fantastic so far.”
 

“Oh, hush, Jerry.” Sadie grabbed their arms and marched them outside.

Jeff and Alec were helping Kale and Howard out of the crumbled truck. They both seemed fine.

“Let me go.” Kale yanked away from Jeff.
 

“Listen, bud.”

Kale threw both hands at Jeff’s chest, but his aim was off and the shove was weak.
 

Jeff is a beast. You can’t move him.
His cold blue eyes dug chillingly into Kale’s dark brown ones. “Buddy—”
 

“Get away from me, Homer!” Kale kicked dirt at him.
 

As they argued, Sadie, Kels, and Jerry reached Jerry’s sedan.
 

Jeff’s roar froze everyone. “You don’t get it!”
 

“Oh, I get it. You all hate me. You all always have!” Swinging his finger at Alec, Kale finished with, “This reunion was such a piece-of-shit idea.”
 

Jeff stepped in front of him. “We have work to do, Kale. We always have, and you were right back in high school, but now
we
have to stick together.
” Making his way farther from Kale, Jeff’s eyes moved from Alec to Scot. “We leave as four.”
 

Sadie had heard the boys say those words a few times growing up.