Shep.
In such close proximity to Justin and Prince, Harlow wouldn’t risk turning around to acknowledge him. Instead, he kept track of Shep’s whereabouts by following the sound of his voice and the strike of his sole on the sidewalk. Unless Shep was swinging his baseball bat and had a personal score to settle Harlow wasn’t aware of, Harlow wouldn’t be in any danger.
“I just want to say that I’ve been watching your little temper tantrum—and so has my video recording, by the way—and you’re an even bigger dick than Evie made you out to be… and I’m not talking ten inches of stiff meat good, either. We’re talking full-on, crusty, cheesy giant dick oozing nasty splooge. How old are you, anyway? You need to grow the fuck up.”
Under other circumstances, Harlow would have intervened and scolded Shep for using strong language in a situation where tempers were already high, but if he was honest, he enjoyed the way it made Justin’s eyes bug out and his mouth contort with trembling rage.
“Who the hell are you?” Justin demanded.
“I’m Shep.” Shep came to stand at Harlow’s side. He had no bat, but he did have his phone out. If what he said was to be trusted, it was recording video of what was going on. “I’m pretty sure, based on what I’ve heard from Evie and what I’ve seen in all the hidden security cams I have set up around the building, thatIwas the one you wanted to throw over the railing—not my brother, Simon, who, as far as I know, is one hundred percent gay.”
Hidden security cameras? Harlow looked at Shep from the corner of his eye, surprise clenching in his chest. Was Shep bullshitting? If he was, to what end?
Prince set Justin down, but only enough so his feet fully met the sidewalk. Harlow saw why. Now that Shep had appeared on the scene, Justin’s attention had shifted from escaping his bodyguard to destroying Shep through the intensity of his stare alone.
“And you know what, dickface?” Shep continued.
Now that Harlow knew Shep was recording, he objected. “Shep, language.”
“What? Heisa dickface.” Shep took another step forward, approaching Sklyar and Prince without putting himself in striking range.
Good job,Harlow thought.It seemed as though Shep’s training, however rudimentary it had been, had paid off.
“Anyway, dickface or not, I’m going to tell him what.” Shep flipped from speaking to Harlow to addressing Justin. “You think you can lie your way out of what you did? That you can use your big Hollywood name or whatever to get off scot-free for what you’ve done? Well, suck my dick, dickface!”
“Shep…”
“I’ve got everything you did on video, and I’ve got you lying about it on video, too. You wanna go up against a judge and charm your way out of what’s on tape?” Shep pointed at his cell phone. “You’re gonna have to be a damn good actor to get yourself out of this one, bitch.”
“Shep.”
“What?” Shep grumbled. “You’re not my dad.”
“Video doesn’t prove anything,” Justin jeered. “I bet your stupid grainy footage won’t show anything. There’s no way you can prove it was me, because itwasn’t.”
“Yeah,” Shep said sarcastically. “I’m sure that there’s gonna be a ton of debate over whether it was you or not. I mean, gosh, it’s not like anyone knows your face or anything. It’s not like the population at large is familiar with your appearance, or like, there are any witnesses that would have seen you going in and out of the building. It’s definitely not like it was recorded that your own bodyguard has doubts about your involvement in this. If you didn’t go inside, if youdidn’tpush my brother down the stairs, then why wouldn’t your bodyguard deny your involvement right away? Why wouldn’t he just, you know, tell Harlow he was crazy and leave with you? And besides.” Shep’s tone turned vicious. “Why the hell would you be in Aurora right now when you have scheduled appearances on the East Coast?”
Justin turned up his nose at Shep. “Prince, we don’t need to stand here and take this. This kid is deranged.”
“Hey, Mr. Bodyguard, dude.” Shep lifted his chin in greeting. “Super cool job, by the way. I totally get the whole conflict of interest thing, so it’s fine if you want to stay silent for now, but uh, since you travel with Justin everywhere,whyare you in Aurora anyway? Like, can you explain why you’re right here, where Evie happens to be staying? Because it’s kind of abigcoincidence that I have Justin on camera throwing Simon down the stairwell and also footage of him leaving the building, coming to stand by you, and putting on the clothes he’s currently wearing if he wasn’t here to throw me down the stairs. Like… okay, sure. Let’s say I’m deranged, and it was all some hoax I created that somehow led up to this very moment where I’m confronting Justin in person. You know, because that’s totally logical.” Harlow imagined a well-timed eye-roll. “So, what coincidence brought you to Aurora? To this very place? Tell me—curious minds want to know, or whatever.”
The kid had Justin backed into a corner, and he knew it. For a teen who seemed so apathetic on the surface, Shep was a beast when it was needed of him. With a focus on physical training while he continued to hone his technological and argumentative skills, he’d be unstoppable.
“Don’t tell him anything, Prince,” Justin demanded. “We don’t owe an explanation to a troublemaker like him. All he’s trying to do is make us look bad.”
“All he’s trying to do is makeyoulook bad,” Prince retorted. “I have no part in this. I was told to wait outside while you went to check on Ms. Warwick, despite my protestation.”
“And there we have it.” Shep shook his head. “Justin, why did you throw my brother over the stairwell? I mean, I know you thought he was me, but why don’t you go ahead and just fess up now so we can make this easier later? What was going on in that big, blown-up head of yours?”
“I didn’t throw anyone over any railing!” Justin seethed. “Stop trying to make me look like a criminal!”
Shep clicked his tongue thoughtfully. “Criminal? Nah, I don’t think that’s the right word. I think the word you’re looking for is would-be murderer.”
With a growl, Justin lunged at him. If it weren’t for Prince’s hand on his shoulder holding him back, Harlow had no doubt that Shep would be on the ground, suffering Justin’s fists. His technique was impressive—by pushing Justin to the point of irrational anger, Shep brought to light all of the ugly parts that Justin kept hidden from the public eye. Shep had, effectively, dismantled his filter. Harlow couldn’t tell if it was by luck, and that their personalities simply clashed so much Justin had lost control, or if it was intentional.
Either way, he found himself admiring Shep’s tenacity and ability to keep a somewhat-level head in the face of adversity and potential danger.
“So?” Shep asked, continuing to goad. “What is it? Did Evie hurt your little fee-fees by running away and leaving you without your ticket to the big leagues? Did you get butt-hurt because she wouldn’t tell you where she’d gone and was ignoring you even though you’re like, oh-em-gee,totallyBFFs?”
