“I heard someone say they were tipped off that there was a huge drug deal going down tonight,” a guy with purple hair said. Blood streaked down his cheek, and it looked as though he had an earring yanked out of his lobe.
Oh my fucking God!
Was Maxx in there? Was he a part of the drug deal gone bad? I left the group of people and moved forward.
“Aubrey, I wouldn’t go down there!” April warned, but I ignored her. I walked to the police boundary and watched as people were thrown to the ground and arrested. I looked for Maxx in every face that was hauled out of the club and put into vans.
I recognized Marco, Maxx’s friend, being led out by police. He was yelling and snarling, and I could see him fighting against the man who held him by the arms, leading him toward a patrol car.
If Maxx had been inside, there was only one way he’d be coming out. In handcuffs.
I knew then that I couldn’t wait to see if Maxx was among those being pulled out of the club. I couldn’t watch as the man I loved was carted away. I stumbled back, barely able to see through my tears.
“Hey! Aubrey!” I heard April yelling behind me. I stopped and turned to her.
“What’s wrong?” she asked when she saw my face.
“Nothing. I’m fine. I’ve just got to go.” I started walking toward my car. She called my name again, but I kept going. I had returned to the numbness. My heart felt like lead in my chest.
I made it to my car and got inside. I sat there for a while, the flashing police lights illuminating the interior of my car. I gripped the steering wheel, unable to turn the engine on. I had really thought this time would be different.
The saying goes,Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
It was the goddamned truth.
I finally pulled away from the club.I should go home. I’m exhausted.But instead I drove back to Maxx’s apartment. My heartache seemed to always lead me there. I slowly walked up the steps and went inside, noting absently that I must have left the lights on when I had left.
I stared around the space, the numbness starting to fade.
Then came the fury. The anguish. The moment when my heart shattered into a million pieces. I screamed. And then I collapsed in a heap on the floor.
chapter
thirty-nine
maxx
icouldn’t wait to tell Aubrey about the gallery. I hoped she’d be proud of me.
I went to put my key into the lock of my apartment door and was surprised to find that it was already open. I went inside and saw that the lights were on even though I remembered turning them off before I had left to go to see Landon.
“Hello?” I called out¸ but no one answered. I walked back to my room and stood just inside the door. Nothing jumped out and caught my eye as being off, but I could tell something was different. Then I saw it. The pills I had only just stashed on the shelf earlier that day had been crushed on the floor.
I knew instantly what had happened. Aubrey had been here. For some reason she had gone through my stuff. Anger flared to life, an age-old response that I couldn’t really control. How fucking dare she come in here and look around like I was a damn criminal! Who the hell did she think she was?
She was the woman I loved.
But clearly, she had come here and dug through my shit because she suspected something. She hadn’t trusted me.
And that hurt like a knife to the heart.
I grabbed my phone and quickly dialed her number. It rang and rang, sending me to voice mail.Fuck.I had to find her. I had to explain.
I gripped my hair in my hands and berated myself for my idiocy. I should have flushed the stupid pills down the toilet as soon as Gash had given them to me. Why hadn’t I gotten rid of them? Because I was a goddamned addict who needed my crutch.
I was staring at the white powder that had been my vice when I heard the front door open and then slam shut. And then I heard a scream, loud and painful. It was the most horrible sound I had ever heard.
I rushed into the living room and found Aubrey in a crumpled heap on the floor. I dropped to my knees by her side, terrified by the sight in front of me. “Aubrey!” I grabbed ahold of her shoulders and pulled her up. She was sobbing, her entire body shaking.
