When Mrs. Gomez and her daughter arrived to pick up their puppy, Luke gave Agatha an expression that said,I hope I never see you again.
Agatha, who went to the Gomezes happily enough, gave him a decisive look in return. It said,I’ll be back.
Luke received a text from his high school informant, Dylan Montgomery, near ten thirty on Friday night.
Dylan
I’m at a party and your sister is here, too. You asked me to let you know if I saw her smoking, vaping, or getting drunk. Sorry to say this, but she’s pretty drunk.
Luke cursed and texted Dylan back.
Luke
Thanks for telling me. Party address?
He’d been watching sports after finishing a take-out meal from the Junction. Trust Blair to ruin a perfectly good evening.
In his closet, he pulled on Nikes and a hoodie over his track pants and T-shirt.
Dylan texted him the party’s location before he reached his truck.
Fifteen minutes later, he arrived at a large piece of property set out in the country. The ground around the house had become a parking lot, packed with at least seventy-five cars.
Once again, Luke’s parents had their hands full with a headstrongchild. In some ways, they were too kind to know how to restrain a kid like Blair.
Luke did not have that problem.
He entered the house, ignoring the confused and questioning looks of teenagers. The whole thing was so stupidly stereotypical. Kegs of beer. Liquor bottles covering the dining room table, surrounded by shot glasses and spilled alcohol. Thumping music. Kids dancing with their arms in the air. Other kids making out in corners.
He wasn’t interested in shutting down this party or in calling the police. He was only interested in extracting one very frustrating person.
He walked through downstairs rooms jammed with people and the smells of perfume and sweat. Kids darted out of his way. He didn’t see Blair, so he let himself out through French doors that led to the back deck—
There she was, in the corner, wrapped in the same blanket as a teenage boy who had his tongue down her throat.
Luke’s temper shot upward. “Blair,” he said loudly as he approached.
The two of them jerked apart. Blair looked at him with glassy eyes. For a long moment, neither teenager moved nor spoke, then Blair had the nerve to giggle. “Hey,” she slurred, throwing out her arm. “Look who’s here, everyone! My older brother. He’sa lotof fun. The party can really get rockin’ now.”
He was not amused. “We’re leaving. Same choice I gave you in the alley. Do you want to come with me on your own two feet, or am I going to have to carry you out?”
Exaggerated eye roll. “Are you kidding? I’m not going anywhere. This guy ...” She patted the side of the boy’s face. Her forehead wrinkled with confusion. “What’s your name again?” she whispered to him.
“Carson.”
“This guy Carson here is a really good kisser.”
“We’re leaving,” Luke said.
Her expression turned pouty. “I’m having fun.”
“Will you be walking out of here? Or will I be carrying you?”
“Why are you even here? You don’t care about me.”
“Sounds like you’re choosing for me to carry you out.” Luke hunched over and tapped his shoulder. “Jump on.”
She tossed aside the blanket. “I’ll walk, you ... you ... monster!”
