Chapter 24 - Shut Up
"Are you ready?"
"Never been more ready in my life."
"Hell yeah!"
"Just let us out already! Jeez!"
"Okay, okay, chill!" Noah exclaims, clicking on a button and opening the truck's back door. We stand behind it, preparing to jump onto the larger truck next to us. The truck we were in was moving at a very fast pace and the darkness of the night was certainly not helping. At all.
Gunshots from the motorists sounded and a few screeches, cracks and crashes were heard as some gangs from our alliance had joined in and are fending off the police. They were on bikes and brought guns with them, even grenades, in case things got desperate. They were cheering and making a gang call as if they had won which was only pushing the police to call even more reinforcements.
Fucking idiots.
"Don't worry, Ave, they got this." Vern says out of the blue, her hands on her hips, looking all confident. "They're bikers from my gang, the Red Syndicate. They'll be fine."
"Well, they sure are attracting a lot of attention. The police are already sounding their sirens! Its just bringing more reinforcements and attention from innocents." Rhiannon sneers, frowning at how noisy the bikers from our alliance are being.
"We're nearing it now girls! Get ready!" Jack's voice sounded. We gripped onto the sides of the truck, preparing to jump at any moment now. I glance back, my eyes catching Jack's glint. "Lock and load, ladies."
I wink back at him just as all three of us jump out in unison. With a loud thud and a quick rush of adrenaline, we grab onto the walls of the back of the police truck. I tighten my grip until I was sure my knuckles turned white as the truck swerves sharply, my head banging onto the side in pain. I hiss loudly, my head a bit dizzy.
Rhiannon hurls herself up onto the roof together with Vern and she offers me a hand as Vern takes out one of the policemen who had climbed onto the roof as well. They get to work instantly- lying on their fronts to open the truck's back door using lasers. I get my rifle and try my best to shoot the lock, all the while trying to keep my balance as the truck speeds up. My hair slaps me in the face as I try to focus and when the bullet finally hits it, the lock breaks open and Rain and Vern opens the doors after cutting a chunk out with the lasers.
I poke my head in from the roof and smile, my hair hanging as I light up at the sight of the familiar face. He grins back as well. "Looking good, Nikolas."
He smirks. "You sure took your time, boss." Nikolas struggles and squirms in his restraints, gritting his teeth before grinning again. "Will you let me out now?"
Vern and Rain swing themselves into the truck, carrying the lasers to cut the huge chains Nikolas was locked in. I jump in as well, jump as the driver's window to the back open and a policeman aims his rifle in to shoot at us.
"Get down!" Nikolas yells, sing his freed legs to push Rain and Vern down on the head. I hastily get down, a bullet just whizzing pass my hair. I was about to shoot back when a gang member beat me to it- shooting from his bike that was located behind us. I send a thumbs up back to him when the bullet hits the policeman right in the middle of his forehead, killing him instantly.
After a while, Nikolas is finally free and he immediately grabs Vern and Rhiannon and carries them on his shoulders.
"What the fuck?! Nikolas!"
"What the fuck are you doing?!"
I smirk, backing away and taking hold of the edge of the roof. "Enjoy the ride, girls."
Just as Rain and Vern look at me in confusion, Nikolas runs out and jump all of the sudden with the both of them screaming. Nikolas has a crazed smiling look on his face as he lands into the back of our truck while I hurl myself onto the roof, laughing like crazy. Their reactions were priceless!
The buff Nikolas laughs maniacally as he finally reunites with his blood brother, Elijah, who laughs along. They share a bear hug and the truck speeds up to catch up to me on the police truck.
"You're lucky we saved you from getting sent to lockdown, brother!" Elijah laughs.
Nikolas reaches for a machine gun, pulling on its lock before pointing it towards a horde of police cars heading for us with their sirens on. "Thanks, Elijah."
"Don't thank me. Thank the boss."
Nikolas looks up with a smirk, his brown hair flailing in the wind. His green eyes twinkle. "Thank you again, boss!"
I smile, looking up at the starry night before finally heading to the front to where the driver was. I jump onto the top of driver's roof, startling him- the truck swerving a bit. I bash open the driver's window using the back of my rifle and poke my head in.
I smirk at him, pulling a piece of folded paper from my pocket and tossing it onto his lap. "You've got mail!" I mock before suddenly pulling away and jumping onto the roof of the opposite truck, looking back and winking at the smirking driver. Noah reaches out his hand through the window, rapid gunshots piercing the night air as I high-five him back.
Mission success.
**
An hour in and we finally got the police off our tail, hiding in an alley between two abandoned buildings at the rundown part of town. I reload my rifle, glancing at my ammunition before sighing and looking back at my group.
"I've used up all of my ammo. How about you guys?"
Jack flips his rifle a few times and locks it before glancing back at me. "I'm all dry too."
"Same." Noah responds, placing his sniper beside him.
"No difference here too." Elijah mutters, checking his Hawk Eagles and reaching for his shotgun to check it as well.
Adam opens his armor vest, stretching at the same time. "Mine's only got 2 sets left. That won't bring us far." He glances at his assault rifle and Barrett. "I would've given some if it weren't for the Barrett using too much ammo. The gun fucking plows through bullets like its none of its business."
"That was so fucking fun!" Nikolas suddenly cackles out loud, hands on his hips. "We should do that again!"
"No, we're not!" Vern and Rain yells in unison, still shaken up by what Nikolas did.
"Shut the fuck up, Nikolas." Noah groans, ticked off. He points an accusing finger at Nikolas. "If it weren't for you firing that damn machine gun like crazy, we still would've had tons of ammo left!"
Nikolas rolls his eyes. "Its not my fault you guys didn't stock up much on ammo."
"How were we supposed to know that you were gonna fire away like a thundering rainstorm!?"
As they continued to bicker back and forth, I could only merely chuckle at their antics. I reach into my pocket and threw it at Nikolas. Although he wasn't paying attention, being the overly sharp person that he was, he instantly caught it easily. Nikolas wasn't one to let his guard down. Nikolas raises his brow before smirking.
I smile at him. "I believe that belongs to you."
"It does. Thanks, boss." Nikolas snickers as he puts on his necklace, the 'F' pendant dangling. "I was wondering where it went."
Nikolas is a very buff man whose body resembles that of a bodybuilder- okay, not that buff but he's certainly bigger in size compared to the others. He usually sports very short brown hair that's neatly trimmed but now its a bit longer and he has green eyes that could bore into your very soul. He has a knife scar on his face and more on the rest of his body. His body is also littered with all sorts of tattoos. He's very good-looking with a quite childish personality although he's merciless and loves to brawl.
Elijah yawns, throwing a cigarette box to Nikolas. "Bro, you better be prepared when get back home."
"Why?" Nikolas pulls a cigarette out and lights it. He tilts his head at Elijah as he inhale from the smoke. "Something special going on at my house?"
"Nah. Your wife, Violet, has been balling all day ever since you get captured. She cares a lot about you."
Nikolas chokes on his smoke. "Shit! I forgot about Vio!"
"Forgot about her? I thought you were head over heels for her?"
Nikolas narrows his eyes in focus. "I am." He closes his eyes as he thinks. "I'll just have to make it up to her. Okay, I've decided. I'll bang her when I get home. Its about time I give her a child."
My jaw drops at his bluntness. "You haven't banged her yet although you've been married for 5 years?"
"I have. Lots of times already. Huge applause to my crazy sex drive. I just wear a condom during all those times." Nikolas looks away. "I just wasn't ready to be a father. Plus, I love it just being the two of us- she can scream all she wants." Jack throws a rock at Nikolas which he easily dodges with a light laugh. "She's hinted me multiple times already how she wants to be a mother but I've always let it slide. But I guess, after hearing that she's been crying, I should man up and give her what she wants."
"Well, I'm glad that you've got that figured out." Noah interrupts, a frown on his face. "But I would really appreciate it if you would keep it PG."
An evil glint appears in Nikolas' eyes as he smirks. "You know, Violet really loves it when I get rough with her. She says that my big di-"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" All of us scream at the same time as Nikolas erupts in laughter.
"Now I really regret saving this brother of yours, Elijah." Adam mumbles, his eye twitching while he ruffles his dark blue hair.
Elijah shrugs with a chuckle. "Don't blame me for my brother's stupidity."
They continue to chat and argue like they had not just went into a mini war with the police. I close my eyes and enjoy the night breeze- my mind wandering back to the night before. I instantly blush at the memory of Law. I shake my head furiously- will there ever be a time where I would not remember him when I close my eyes?
As I was occupied with my thoughts, footsteps bounced off the walls of the alley and we instantly prick up, stopping whatever it was that we were doing. The footsteps stop and I notice a pair of boots in front of me. I look up and couldn't hide the smile that grew. I immediately jump and hug the life out of him.
He laughs and hugs me back. "That was one interesting way to send me a mail, doll."
"How else was I supposed to give it with you being the driver and not attracting unwanted eyes?" I snicker and he tilts his police hat with a smile. The rest of the group smiles and continue their chat like it was no big deal. "Its been a while, hasn't it? Chief of Police, Reed Fervor?"
"Indeed it has. Last time I saw you was 2 years ago."
I look down, a sad smile replacing the happy one before. "Yeah. During the execution."
"I don't think I ever got the chance to say this, Ava, so I'll say it now." He sighs and grips my left shoulder with a guilty look. "I'm sorry I killed your father."
"You had to sooner or later. It was an execution and it was your job as chief." I put on my best fake smile and grin. "You were Dad's old friend and you used to go on a chase around town trying to catch my father. I don't know how it happened, but you both somehow bonded even as enemies. I'm sure Dad didn't mind getting executed by you."
My father and Reed had an odd relationship. They were friends yet enemies at the same time. Sometimes, they would go for drinks together and catch up on each other's life. They both used to answer the same thing every time someone asks why they're even friends- "Outside of work, we're friends. We're just two normal people bonding over a couple of drinks.".
They were close and they used to go on chaotic chases around town- during the chase, they're two different people. One's a wanted man and the other a chief. They both weren't the type to mix personal matters with work. That's why they're friends.
When Reed finally catches him, they both knew the chase was over- there won't be another one. But it was more like Dad gave himself up to the police to save us. So when Reed finally had to execute Dad that stormy night, he was crying- a lot. He had to kill a friend. Their friendship dated back to their early teenage years when they were just starting out- when Dad was just an outlaw and Reed was just a cadet's son.
Reed was grateful it was raining heavily the night he had to execute my father- he could hide his tears with the raindrops. But Reed was a man of his word as they both once had a deal where if somehow, Dad finally gets executed, he wants Reed to take care of his family. So Reed, being the chief, managed to work out the fact that he had executed the whole Carter family- thus being called a hero.
But a hero doesn't kill an old friend. Which was why Reed despises his nickname.
Reed manipulated and deceived the whole world that the Carter bloodline is gone and that The Family was finally in ruins- when in fact, he actually saved us. He gave us enough time to run away and hide in the shadows without being chased. He provided us space to cope with the fact that our leader was gone.
"If anything, it should be me thanking you, Reed." I bow down and close my eyes. "Thank you so much for everything you've done for us!"
"I was just carrying out a friend's last wish." Reed lifts my head back up with a sincere smile. "I was more than happy to oblige." I smile back and finally feel like a weight has been lifted off my chest. I've been wanting to thank him for so long. Reed looks up and gazes at the stars. "I'm thinking of visiting his grave tomorrow. I haven't had a drink with him for some time now." Reed looks back down at me with a playful grin. "Think he'll love Jack Daniels?"
I grin back. "He definitely will."
**
"Hey."
I jump in my seat and look up just to meet with a pair of steel eyes. I instantly heat up, thinking back to the secret message he had left me just two days prior. I blink rapidly and look down. "H-hi, Law."
I hear him chuckle before I felt the bench dip a bit as he sits himself beside me. Law then rests his head on my shoulder, peeking at the open book on my lap. "What're you reading?"
I flip the book over to show him the cover. Its 'I've Got Your Number' by Sophie Kinsella. Law nods and just continues to rest his head on my shoulder while I resumed my reading but honestly- with a handsome guy who had confessed and secretly hinted that he was going to kiss you for real next time, you can't focus. Which was exactly what happened to me.
I was too distracted by Law to do any sort of reading to the point that I was stuck on the same page for about 15 minutes already.
Thank God, some people decided to join us.
"Hey, lovebirds." Roman teased, walking over to us with a small squad behind him- Rhiannon, Vern and Dom. "Enjoying the peace?"
"Yeah.. until you came and spoiled it." Law scowls while all of us snicker.
We are under a huge tree on the school grounds and like always- we're skipping class. We're always skipping that the teachers just don't care anymore. Don't even get me started on Law too. That guy misses way too many classes. The tree's quite far from the school building and the field but that's what makes it special. It was peaceful.
"Well, I wouldn't have come here but Dom has an interesting announcement to make."
"What is it about?" Law asks, pulling away from my shoulder as I close my book. "Don't tell me you just got laid. I've had enough of that."
"No! Not that." Dom exclaims, horrified. "Besides, I have my eyes on someone else."
I wasn't sure if my were playing games on me but I was sure that I caught Dom smirking while giving a quick glance at Rhiannon but it was gone just as fast as it had appeared.
Interesting.
Vern shares a look with as if telling me that she had seen the same thing and I raise a brow at her. I glance at Rhiannon but she doesn't seem to have noticed anything as she has her arms crossed. But I do notice how Dom's standing awfully close to her. If they both hated each other, of course Dom would have stayed away.
Clearly the dense one here is Rhiannon.
Vern continued to inspect the both of them when Roman suddenly slings his arm around her. Her eyes widen as her jaw drops. I watch in amusement as her face slowly reddens and how she looked down at her feet as if they were the most interesting things in the world.
Dominique doesn't seem to be the only one having a secret crush right now.
Yeah, speak for yourself, Ava.
"Anyways, what I was about to announce is that there's a beach party coming up this weekend. Its specifically for teenagers and young adults and its going to start at 3 and runs all the way to the early hours of morning. Its like a festival to say the least." Dom takes out 6 pieces of paper that appears to be tickets. "You would need tickets to the party but since I have a lot of connections, I managed to get 6 tickets for free. I'm planning on inviting all of you. People say its going to be the biggest party of the year. So are you guys in?"
"I'm in either way. They were pasting posters and showing commercials of the party all over town so I'm quite hyped for it!" Roman cheers and he looks over at Vern, a few locks of his deep red hair falling onto his face. "Are you coming, Vern? Please join."
Vern blushes even more and all of us except for the oblivious Roman smirk. "S-sure. Sounds like fun."
"How about you, Rain?" Dom asks out of the blue, looking at her expectantly. His ocean blue eyes were twinkling with hope.
Since when were they on a nickname basis? Haven't they always been mocking each other?
Rhiannon shrugs. "Well, I guess I can. I'm free this weekend anyway and since Vern's joining, I won't mind."
Dom's grin widens but he manages to hide it perfectly. "Great!" Dom suddenly claps his hands. "Oh yeah, I forgot! Everyone going to this party are recommended to bring a partner."
Oh, I see his plan.
He's planning on cheating Rain into going on a date with him. Cheeky bastard.
"My date's Vern. Its settled!" Roman says excitedly and Vern seems to just had her heart ripped out of her judging by her shock. But I'm sure she wouldn't mind, she would happily accept even is she wouldn't say it out loud.
"Huh?! Who am I supposed to bring?" Rhiannon groans, pinching her forehead. "I might as well go single then. They said recommended but not compulsory. But at the same time, I don't want to look like an idiot."
Dom sneakily places a hand around Rhiannon's waist. "I won't mind going as your date, Rain. I don't have a date either."
"Wait, you don't have a date? I thought out of all of us here, you'd probably bring around 10 dates with about 50 backups."
"Nah, I haven't searched for one yet but since you're so coincidentally dateless like I am, I'll gladly go with you."
"Whatever. I guess its fine." Rhiannon rolls her eyes. "Anything to not go alone."
Dom hums happily. "This seems like its going to be a first date, isn't it?" Rhiannon doesn't respond and that only makes Dom happier. At least she isn't rejecting or denying him.
"Well, enjoy your time there. I am not going."
"WHAT!?"
Roman and Dom literally just shrieked at the same time and Law had to close his ears from the pain. Law scowls at them while they continue to gawk at him like he's crazy. "I said I'm not going. I have better things to do than going to a stupid party."
Dom huffs at him. "Don't be such a party pooper. Why do you not want to go? I just said its going to be the biggest party or festival of the year."
Law raises a finger. "One, because it sounds like a complete waste of time." He lifts two fingers. "Two, I'm sure Av-"
I suddenly cut in. "I'd love to go, Dom."
Law stops mid-sentence and he pauses for a few moments. "Okay, I'll go. Sounds like fun."
Dom smirks. "Huh? I thought you said you didn't want to go, Law. If you decide something, you should stick to it! I bet you're only going because Ava is going." Law glares back at Dom while gritting his teeth but it was obvious because of the light blush dusting his cheeks.
I decide to play along and look at Law with a concerned look. "Law, if you don't want to go, its fine. I can always bring someone else as my date. I'm sure Evan wouldn't mind going as my partner."
"That is most definitely not going to happen no matter what!" Law yells, gripping my shoulders with a furious look on his face. "Your date is me and only me and I already promised a second date so this party is going to be it. I'm going whether you like it or not."
"That's quite a bold confession you just made there, Law." Rhiannon mocks, chuckling.
"Can't believe you have the guts to say that with 4 other people watching." Vern joins, smirking.
"I see that overconfidence can make someone do crazy things sometimes." Roman snickers, playing along.
Dom cackles, an evil glint in his eye. "Aren't you embarrassed to have this obnoxious person as your date, Ava dear?"
"Fucking shut up, guys!" Law shouts, annoyed by their antics as they run away while laughing before Law could catch them. But he was certainly embarrassed because of the huge blush on his face.
I laugh lightly before placing a hand on Law's cheek with a smile.
"I'd love to go with you as my date, Law."