We stared at each other intensely, and for a moment I felt uncomfortable. There was no emotion on his face, just indifference.
“You know what? Yeah, I’m bringing her.”
32
June
“Where? Where? Where?”
I kept asking questions that got no answers. The only thing that they seemed to care about was getting away from that place and the seedy characters surrounding it.
The guy stopped in front of a shed with a clear plastic window. It seemed like a box office. He grabbed a crumpled-up notebook and wrote down numbers. It was too dark to read what he wrote, but I heard terrifying roars in the distance.
“Where do we have to go?”
“I’m gonna show you that my life is no joke, White. I wanna see if you still want to get in my way.”
There was no time to argue. James turned a corner, and a group of sports cars caught my attention.
I panicked, which only got worse when James pulled a pair of keys from his leather jacket. After opening a car door, he got in, and I was alone. Everything was clear as day.
“Listen, I didn’t ask to participate in this loser version ofThe Fast and the Furious, I just wanted to—”
“Stick your nose into everyone’s fucking business like always.” James finished my sentence, and I didn’t know why, but I’d already flung the car door open and sat down in the passenger seat.
Without saying anything else, he turned on the engine, and in a few seconds we got onto the track with two other sports cars.
“Tell me why . . .”
“If you wanna get out, open the fucking door and get out. If you’re gonna stay here, keep your mouth shut.”
My breath was locked in my throat. What was I supposed to do?
I looked out the window; the guy with the ponytail had a pistol in his hand, and my brain went haywire.
James didn’t say anything. Weirdly.
He threw his jacket on the back seat, leaving him in a tight-fitting T-shirt that accentuated his sculpted physique. His chest moved quickly under the black fabric.
“You okay?” I asked him.
He looked confused. “What kind of fucking question is that?”
“You heard me. I want to know if you’re okay.” He lowered his head without answering.
“Just tell me what you’re doing here. Is it for money?”
He curled his lip like he was insulted by my insinuation. “Yeah, they earn money.”
“Do you need money?”
Nobody at school needed money. What were we doing here?
“No, of course not,” he denied coldly.
“Why—”
“Adrenaline, you ever heard of it?” He stared at me so coldly for a few seconds that I shut up.
