The whole drive was excruciatingly silent, but it gave Mia some time to do some thinking.
So Elana wasn't his sister. It was his friend's Caleb's sister, the one he had threatened to abduct. So had he? If so, was that the real reason he didn't want her driving them home, perhaps because they weren't actually going home, but going to some crazy biker crib or wherever Eli stored himself when he wasn't at the school or at the club?
Okay, she was probably overreacting. Despite his many flaws, Eli didn't strike her as a kidnapper. A bully, a criminal and maybe a gang-member, yes, but not a kidnapper. Plus, Eli seemed to have a soft spot for the girl. Whatever their situation was, it wasn't kidnap. But then what was it?
"Eli?" Mia hesitantly asked as she drove to the address he had provided. "Who is this Caleb guy and why isn't he taking care of his own sister?"
"Wouldn't you like to know." Came the reply from the back seat. He was sitting next to Elana, making sure she felt comfortable. Funny thing was, she was perhaps the most comfortable of the three of them. The tension was thick inside the car, but Elana was happily oblivious to that.
"Actually, I think you would like to know as well," Mia said, gripping onto the steering wheel tighter. "From what I heard from your conversation with the voicemail of your friend's phone, you don't have a clue where he is either."
"I am one second away from knifing your backseat up with my pocketknife if you don't shut the fuck up and just drive," Eli said, leaning forward so his mouth touched her ear. "Or maybe you'd like me to use that knife on your tongue instead?"
Swallowing hard, Mia kept her cool. He was just feeling cornered by her snooping, so he threatened her. There weren't any realness behind his words. She hoped.
"Calm down, Eli. I'm just trying to understand you."
"Don't."
There were a couple more minutes of silence where Mia thought some more. She was debating whether or not she should tell Eli what she knew about him; that she knew he was the genius. In her rearview mirror she saw Elana signing away, Eli responding with some brief gestures. Mia suddenly wished she understood ASL so she could know what they were talking about. Where had he even learned to sign? Where had he learned anything?
Finally they arrived at the address Eli had provided, and Mia was shocked to see that it was an actual building, not just a trailer or something. It was a scrappy apartment complex, located in the worst neighborhood she had ever been to, but it was a building nonetheless.
Eli grabbed his duffle bag before he practically wrung the door open on her car. "Thanks for the ride, now drive home before the thugs see your wheels and decide they like them."
He didn't wait for her reply, just took Elana's hand and begun leading her out of the car and onto the curb. Mia knew she shouldn't, but she just couldn't leave things there, so after a second of hesitation, she jumped out after him, quickly locking her car up good. "Eli, wait!"
He glared over his shoulder and rolled his eyes when he saw her running after him. He didn't wait, only kept walking towards the building. "Jesus Christ, I've heard about chasing pussy, but chasing dick... Go home, princess, don't make me say it again. I still got that pocket knife."
"I don't care," She replied and stalked after him, ignoring his other comment. "I have to talk to you."
"I told you, people don't come to talk to me, they come to fuck. And I'm not in the mood," He flatly replied, unlocking the front door. He led Elana in who despite all their arguing didn't notice a thing. She was continuously smiling, perhaps just happy to be home.
"Eli, will you just stop and talk to me for one second?" Mia tried, following him in through the building before the door closed. "I just need to ask you something—"
"The temple of inspiration is closed for today. Come back tomorrow."
"Eli!"
"What?!" He roared, whipping around. He stopped dead in the hall and glared down at her. The piercing in his nose glinted in the dimly lit, dirty hallway as his nostrils flared in rage. "Why can't you just leave me the fuck alone? You that horny, huh?"
"Stop it," Mia growled, clenching her fists. "Why do you have to be like that? Why do you always have to be like that?"
"Like what, it's my fucking nature." He turned away and walked after Elana who had proceeded down the hall and was impatiently waiting in front of a door. He unlocked it for her and she darted inside.
Mia followed.
Elana was yanking on Eli's jacket while doing some gesture Mia couldn't see for his frame. Eli sighed tiredly, but then turned around and looked at Mia when he spotted her still following. "You gotta be fucking kidding me. Did you just walk into my apartment? I could legally spank your fucking ass for that."
"Is this even your place?" Mia asked and looked around. The furniture looked old and used, just like the walls and floors did. It seemed like an unsanitary place for a kid to grow up, but then again, Elana appeared to be perfectly healthy, not even as much as malnourished. She couldn't hear or speak, but that was probably a birth-given.
"It's more mine than it is yours," He coldly replied, trying to ignore Elana yanking at him. "Now, am I going to have to literally throw you out on your rich ass or do you want to remove your Prada heels from my doormat yourself?"
"Eli, please, I wouldn't run after you like this if it wasn't important," Mia tried again. "I really need to talk to you."
"Talk, fuck, milk for information. Didn't get enough last Friday? Want to test the ultimate borders of your pussy by coming here and begging for more?"
Elana now tapped her chin repeatedly with three of her small fingers while still yanking Eli's sleeve, trying to get his attention.
"Two seconds, princess," He murmured, quickly placing a kiss atop of her head.
"Eli, please," Mia pleaded again. "Why can't you just stop that act?"
"Stop what act?" He growled, turning to her again as he dropped his duffle bag in the living room, dropping his keys in a bowl. Elana followed him and kept yanking him on his sleeve while doing the tapping on her chin with her fingers. "You think you got me all pinned down after fucking me twice? You're something else, princess."
"Eli—" She was cut short when Elana persistently kept dragging and yanking on Eli's arm, stomping her foot. "What does she want?"
Eli sighed exhausted and ran a hand through his hair before he walked into the kitchen. "She's just thirsty."
Mia looked at Elana who trailed behind him, waiting impatiently while he pulled a glass out from a cabinet and filled it with cold water from a bottle in the fridge. Even though he was already doing it, Elana still kept tapping three fingers against her chin. It looked like a 'W', Mia thought, and it made her wonder; "Tapping three fingers on her chin... does that mean water in ASL?"
"Yeah." Eli handed her the glass of water and placed another kiss on her head before she begun gulping down the water in heavy drags. When she was done, she ran off into a room Mia guessed was hers, closing the door with a little thud. Eli then turned to Mia again and crossed his arms. "Look, if you want a quick fuck, begin stripping. I'll be there in a few minutes, you can start by yourself if you want."
"God, stop it!" Mia yelled, now losing her patience. "Just cut the damn bullcrap and own up to it already!"
"Own up to what? That I'm fucking sick of your pussy following me around? Yeah, I can do that. You want that in writing?"
"I—" Mia paused when an idea suddenly popped into her head. "Yeah, I would like that, actually. Can you make it out to Mia, and not 'princess' or 'baby'?"
"What?" Eli snapped when she fished a piece of paper and a pen out of her bag and handed it to him. "Are you serious? You want me to fucking jog down that you're a stupid bitch who can't get enough of my dick?"
"In whichever way you want to phrase it, I don't care," Mia said, pursing her lips. "That's assuming you actually can spell it, though."
Eli glared at her for a long moment, steam practically seeping from his ears, before he grabbed the pen and paper and fired the paper up against the wall. He gripped the pen with his left hand and then begun writing while repeating what he was writing through gnashed teeth; "Dear fucking Mia; You scream like a fucking bitch when I fuck your rich pussy. Leave me the hell alone, you horny wrench. Sincerely, Elijah," He spelled out his name phonetically for her, she noticed, before he stalked up to her, instantly making her breath freeze. He grabbed her hand, shoved the piece of paper into her palm, before grabbing her chin and forcing it upwards to meet his eyes. "Now fuck off, bitch."
Shoving her away violently, Mia nearly lost her footage, but managed to regain balance in the last second. She glared up at Eli's retracting figure that was heading for the kitchen again. Without waiting, Mia searched through her pockets until she found the page from Zoe's book. Comparing the handwriting, they came up identical.
"I KNEW IT!" She exclaimed, holding up both papers to Eli who glanced over his shoulder. "You're him! You're the fucking genius everyone is looking for! You solved the Fermat's problem!"
Whipping around, Eli stared at the two papers before he stalked up to her with a lethal look in his eyes. He ripped both pieces from her, glaring at the one piece from Zoe's book. "Where the fuck did you get this?"
"Zoe's math book," Mia breathed when he clenched his jaw. "You don't remember? Maybe you're not that big of a genius after all."
He pressed his lips together, suppressing a growl. "This doesn't prove anything."
"It matches the handwriting on the blackboard, don't act stupid. We both know you're a helluva lot smarter than what you appear to be."
He curled his lip back and then angrily crumpled the page in his hand before hurling it away. He then turned to Mia and startled her by grabbing her by the throat and hammering her violently up against the wall, losing the final shred of his temper. She stifled a scream and clutched her hands over his when he started closing it around her airway. She couldn't breathe.
"You fucking stay out of this," He seethed, leaning so close to her face, they were but a mere millimeter apart. His eyes were burning with anger. "You stay out of my life! If you tell anyone about this, I'll do more than just fuck your pussy, you got that? You won't be able to fucking walk again!"
"Eli!" Mia rasped when she started to see black dots in her vision. "Eli, l-let g-go!"
He snarled at her before he eased his grip on her throat, allowing oxygen to seep down her throat. Mia heaved in the much needed air and coughed, still restrained by his hand, but at least now she could breathe.
"You don't tell anyone," He repeated, lowering his voice. "Say that you promise, and I won't hurt you."
Mia was trembling, but she still couldn't back down. Not now, not when the truth was finally out; She had to be out of her mind. "N-no, Eli. You're not this person, I know you won't hurt me. I won't tell anyone either way, I just want to know why," She whispered, swallowing hard. She felt like crying, looking at his determined face, like his life depended on not telling anyone about his amazing gift. He looked like he was ready to kill her if the secret got out – hence the choking.
Eli clenched his jaw again before he took a controlled breath, clearly trying to battle his anger. He was shaking as well. Not for the same reasons Mia was, though. She felt like she had poked a beast inside him, a beast he was trying to keep in checkmate.
'Mia, why does Elana keep saying Beastie?'
Mia blinked twice when she remembered what Valenches had said – well, what Elana had said, really. Was there really a darker side inside him, a beast? Had Elana seen it, and if so, why wasn't she traumatized or scared of him?
"Just leave, Mia," Eli said and stepped away from her, almost backing away as if creating distance was the safest thing he could do for her right now. "Go, fuck off, I don't ever want to see you here again."
"Eli—"
"GO!" He roared, veins popping up against the tattoos on his neck. "I don't need you fucking psychos examining my head or poking needles into me again! Just fuck off, fuck off!"
"Eli!" Mia gasped in shock, covering her mouth when he ran both his hands through his hair, pacing back and forth. "Have you been examined before?"
He stopped up when he realized his mistake. "Get out, now. I swear to God..."
"Eli, please, I just want to help you. Please," Mia whispered, daring to take a step towards him; that was the wrong thing to do.
Eli whipped his head towards her and looked possessed as he took the three steps that separated them and grabbed her by her throat once more, mashing her up against the wall. "You really want to help me? Then get down on all fucking four. I'll take your help from there."
Widening her eyes, Mia swallowed hard. How the fuck could she even begin to be aroused right now when he was threatening her? "I-I..."
"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" He hissed, inching closer to her face. "Getting on your hands and knees on this floor while I fucked you senseless from behind? Well no one is stopping us, baby. Elana is in her room playing, and she can't hear us. So let's do it, let's take a fast one on the floor."
"Eli, stop!" She tried when he yanked her off the wall and started pulling her out to the open space of the living room. "I don't want that, I just want you to—"
"To what?" He snapped, pulling her closer to him so that she was forced to plant her hands on his chest to not lose balance. "It's always the same shit with you broads, so which one is it?"
"W-which one is what?"
"You want me to be a genius or do you want me to fuck you?"
Mia blinked up at him in shock, watching his cold, emotionless face—façade. This wasn't him.
"Neither," She whispered. "I just want you to be you."
• • •
Don't we all?