Dark Entity

Chapter 4.2

Reminder: This is a book preview and only contains the first five chapters. My chapters are pretty long, so I've broken them down into sections. I hope you enjoy! Feel free to comment but no hate, please. Be mindful of trigger warnings in the Authors Note.

Jackie got back to the motel around six. She hurried to Collin's room and knocked on the door, fidgeting anxiously as she waited for him to answer. As soon as the door opened, Jackie rattled off, "Has she been here?"

"Yes. She just left, not ten minutes ago. She went back ta the room ta shower before she goes out."

She breathed a sigh of relief and handed Collin the folder that contained her notes on the café. "Here is everything I could dig up on the place. It's actually a pretty good read. I'm going to try to talk some sense into Ginger." She took off jogging before she had even finished her sentence, and Collin shook his head, chuckling at her candor.

Jackie nearly tripped over the threshold, rushing into the room. She shut the door and checked to make sure Ginger was in the bathroom before plopping down on the bed to wait for her to come out. It wasn't long before she came bouncing out of the bathroom, wearing only her towel. "Are you going to talk to me now, or are you still pissed off at me?"

Ginger walked over to her bed, where she had her clothes laid out neatly. "You can save your lectures for someone else. I think it's more than a little hypocritical if you ask me, and I'm not in the mood to listen to it." She dropped her towel and started to get dressed.

"You're my best friend, Ginger. I'm worried about you."

"Friends... I remember us being a lot more than that, Jackie. But that's when it suited you, right? You never minded my promiscuity, then. The fact that you want to judge me now, is a blatant insult." She finished putting on her clothes, then walked over to the sink. She started brushing her teeth as Jackie walked up and sat down on the counter beside her.

"I never meant it that way, you know that! The way you've been acting since we left home, isn't normal behavior for you, Ginger. You propositioned Collin, for God's sake, and in public! Now, you want to run off by yourself to a club and pick up the first guy who talks to you. How could I not be concerned?"

She finished brushing her teeth, then turned to Jackie, "What's the problem? You act like this is the first time. I do it all the time."

"No, you don't! You always go out with one or more of us, and when you take those men home with you, Hawk is always there, in case you need him. What exactly was your plan for tonight? To go home with a stranger?"

"Maybe. You know what, I don't have time for this." She picked up her brush and the blow-dryer and started fixing her hair.

Jackie waited patiently for Ginger to finish with the blow-dryer. As she turned off the noisy machine, Jackie begged, "Please, Ginger! Think about what you're doing. I only want you to be safe."

Ginger pulled out her make-up and went to work on her face. "I am thinking about it, and I'm gonna enjoy banging some guy in the back seat of his car."

"Fine, I get it! You don't care, and I'm wasting my time. Will you at least tell me where you're going so I'll know where to start looking if you don't come back?"

Ginger whipped her head around to give a smart retort, but stopped short, when she saw Jackie's face. She was shaking, her eyes glued to her knees, and tears ran freely down her cheeks. Ginger sighed softly and whispered, "I'm sorry, Jackie. I didn't mean it." She hugged her friend. "I know you care about me. I'm just being a bitch. I'm fine, really. I just need some time away, that's all."