Something Real #NaNoWriMo

Chapter 6 - Hayden

Scarlett was only doing what was absolutely necessary to get the hell out of here and back to her old life in Cali. She didn't give a rats ass about what her mother thought was best; just like I didn't when it came to Elias.

Though I doubted anything would come of this internship, Scarlett and I would both play our parts like Oscar winning actors. My not so secret trust fund and her name getting written into the Pennington family will depended on it.

Us humans, we were greedy at the end of the day.

"Hayden?" The name shot from the front door, around the corner and back again like a boomerang.

"What?" I practically mumbled out the simple word. I couldn't muster up the strength to deal with anyone at the moment, especially not him.

Jay stalked into the kitchen with a look of utter distaste. He shrugged his fifty pound football gear onto the clean white tile with a loud thump, rolling his slender shoulders in an attempt to ease the aching in his muscles after a long, hard day at practice. With each movement he made his white v-neck only clung to his sweat soaked torso further.

"Dad upstairs?" Jay's words hung in the already stif and awkward air between us. When he spun around the grab a bottle of water from the fridge it exposed the green and brown stains covering the back of his shirt, and his ass to boot. He'd gotten slaughtered today.

I had to fight to keep the smile off my face.

"Elias is dead," I said, not moving my eyes from the chips and dip I was snacking on. "But he left you the Lincoln and his prized coin collection. I got stuck with the maid and whatever was left in his bank account."

"Shut up," Jay hissed. "Is he still in Richmond with Angel?"

I shrugged, "hasn't called to tell me otherwise."

My older brother took it as a win, hopping up on the granite countertop behind me. His black shoes scuffed against the tile on his ascent, leaving dirt behind on the previously sparkling flooring. I sat, listened as he chugged back as much water as he could swallow in one go. The sound made the chips and dip lying in wait just inches from me less than appetizing, but they tasted too good for me to give up now. "You know the case dad's working on? They're trying to get the death penalty for that guy. I don't even think it's legal anymore."

"What?"

"Yeah," Jay laughed, like it was funny. "Dad's prosecuting this guy. They thought he was the zodiac killer or something-"

"Why the hell would they think he was the zodiac killer?"

"Because he confessed," he said. Jay's tone was lighter than I thought it should have been when he spoke, "dude's literally crazy. He had an ass ton of heroine in his place. Then he tried to slit his own throat, you know, with like a Japanese sword he bought off eBay. His wife stopped him, and he stabbed her in the chest. I think he killed his kids, too."

The frown on my face had to have looked as comical as Jay sounded. "Why do you know all this?"

Jay choked on his water.

The coughing fit that followed left him hunching over, spewing water all over the place, or so I assumed. I didn't feel like turning around to help him. Out of the corner of my eyes I could see the droplets accumulating on the floor with every cough that ended just a bit shorter than the last. He fought with his airways, straining for a quick breath every few seconds before he finally gulped in the air, and thus, he finally shut the hell up.

"Sorry," his voice was gravelly. "I heard dad talking about it. He's been on and off the phone for weeks."

I could literally feel my eyes roll to the back of my head. He'd always been a slut for gossip, even when we were kids. He'd follow me around, asking again and again who'd beat me up at school just so he could spread the rumor. He didn't give two shits if I had a black eye because of it, he just wanted the attention.