Secrets, Lies, and Summer Skies

Chapter Six

For the first time that evening, the crowds were a blessing rather than a curse. It was impossible to ignore what the man had done when I'd collided with several people on my descent. They, in turn, had bumped into others. Everyone impacted by the man's actions turned around to face him like a pack of furious, rabid dogs. A small group of older men and women helped me back to my feet, their first concern was that I was hurt. I tried to downplay it, but there was no hiding the way I kept the weight off my left foot. At the very least, my ankle was twisted. While they supported me, a few men stepped up to the man who still held Jenny against his chest.

Grayson might have been right that the club was in a bad part of town, but it didn't mean everyone in it was a risk. In fact, once the situation became clear to those involved in our dispute, a few young men were quick to extract my friend from the instigator. The commotion had sobered Jenny enough that she staggered to my side and hugged onto my arm. It was hard to be a prop to her when I couldn't put all my weight on one foot, but I did my best. After all, I wasn't about to let her get away from me again in case she wound up in more trouble than she was already in.

It was difficult to make out what was being shouted back and forth. The raised voices were barely audible over the continued beat of the music. Whatever was being thrown around clearly wasn't good because the skeevy guy drew back his fist and punched one of the good Samaritans who'd jumped in to help us. Although it started with only a few people, the argument soon spiraled into a brawl. Every time someone was bumped, it drew another person into the fight. They soon turned on each other and, before we knew it, people who hadn't even been involved in the initial argument were throwing punches at one another.

It was time to go.

Steering a drunken Jenny was never an easy task, but with an injury, it was damn near impossible. Somehow, we made it back to the bar. We hung back to let the security guards charge through. While their intention may have been to break up the fight, I couldn't help but believe their presence would only make it worse. Deciding that their fate was decidedly not our problem, I heaved one of Jenny's arms over my shoulders and removed her from the club as elegantly and quickly as I was able.

Which, honestly, wasn't remotely elegant or quick.

Only a few revelers had remained in line outside. The rest were all shoving to get a decent view of the fight. Some had their phones out to film the chaos. Sirens wailed in the distance. Although they might have been headed for any number of emergencies across town in the dead of night, my gut told me that they were on their way to deal with the mess we'd made. Together, we staggered off the sidewalk and across the street to the parking lot.

I soon discovered that any victory I felt at having escaped the club was to be short-lived.

"Are you fucking kidding?"

My car might have been a pile of junk, but I loved the stupid thing, and I'd always taken the best care of it I could. Which was why the sight of it with the windows smashed out and the tires slashed broke my heart. I could handle a drunken friend and a bruised ass, but not the sight of my baby utterly ravaged by vandals. There wasn't even anything worth taking. Whoever was responsible had torn out the stereo and, deciding that it was nothing more than scrap, had left it on the front passenger seat. They had discarded cigarette butts in the back seat and burned holes into the threadbare upholstery, and the whole thing stank of booze and urine.

As if unwilling to be upstaged by a car, Jenny proved she was the biggest mess of the evening by turning away from me and vomiting noisily through one of the broken windows and across the driver's seat. I wrinkled my nose in disgust and swallowed down the urge to follow in her lead and heave onto the asphalt.