“Shut up,” I grumble as the microphone screeches.
“I have six ready for pickup,” the man says and then disappears.
Six? Jesus. I hang my head. Thank God for Medicaid, but how long am I going to have to take so many pills for? Maybe I should have been paying more attention to the doctor as I got dressed at the hospital. And what did I do with the discharge papers they gave me?
Ugh. I’m a mess.
I go back to nibbling my nail, avoiding Jax and the silent car until the pharmacist returns and shoves a bag through the opening.
“Have a good night,” he says.
“We don’t have to pay?” Jax asks, grabbing the bag.
“No,” I huff and snatch it from him. “Thank you,” I holler, leaning over him.
Somehow, Jax still smells fresh after being a carpenter for the day. His cologne is something like black velvet, tinged with the salt of his tan skin. It’s fucking amazing. And equally irritating. I quickly recoil back into my seat and avoid his eyes on my cheek as the pharmacist clicks the microphone off without saying anything.
“Why didn’t we have to pay?” Jax puts the car in drive with a genuine look of confusion and… disappointment?
“What is thiswe?” I tear into the bag to distract myself while hoping that whatever’s in it can save me.
I have to be on my feet for the next eight hours, and I think the only real sleep I got in the past forty-eight hours was while I was in the hospital. I amsore.If I didn’t know any better, I would think I had the hangover of a lifetime—or was run over by a truck. Every muscle I try to stretch aches, and I’ve had a headache behind my eyes ever since I took a shower. This medication better do something. Maybe it can make it so I don’t like how Jax smells as well.
“Weas inwedisposed of a body,” he says sharply.
“Actually,” I pop the cap on one of the orange bottles, “you’re the one that carried it into the woods and set it on fire. So, if anything—” I dry swallow a tiny oval pill—“it’s just you that will get charged with disposal.”
“Accessory after the fact,” he growls.
“What?” I open another bottle to find huge ovals and frown. How the fuck am I supposed to swallow this?
“Accessory after the fact,” he repeats, “is what I would be charged with. And tampering with evidence. And failure to report a death. Oh, and abuse of a corpse.”
I still, flicking my eyes in his direction.
His jaw is taut, gaze trained on the road. “If you’re trying to make me the fall guy here, you might want to understand what the hell you’re pinning on me.”
“I was kidding—”
“I’m not,” he interrupts, his voice turning dangerous. “That’s ten to thirty-five years in prison if convicted. And if you try to put me in a cell, you better be prepared to spend it with me, because I’m not going down alone.” He cuts me a sharp glance. “Are you getting thewepart now?”
Chapter Sixteen
Jax
My mind is elsewhere as Caleb fires a thousand questions at me about what to say to James. We’ve just pulled through the gates at home, the long driveway lined with garden lights that look like they were placed by an architect who’s never felt joy, and Caleb hasn’t taken a breath since I picked him up after dropping off Kira.
‘What do I say when he asks why I called you instead of him when I ‘wrecked’ my car?’
‘What do I say we were doing all day and night?’
‘What if he asks who else was racing?’
They’re valid questions, but I don’t care about appeasing James right now. I shouldn’t have let Kira go into Bell’s. That was never the plan. I had every intention of convincing her to let me take her home. I was going to figure out how much she’d typically pull in on a Saturday night and then just give her the cash, if only so she doesn’t croak and draw attention to our little problem.
But if I’m being honest… no one should have to go to work after having a heart attack—or tear. Especially Kira.
It’s easy to see she’s been grinding her whole life just to barely hold it together. It’s in the dollar store curtains on a duct-taped rod above the windows in their tinderbox of a home. It’sthe way the kitchen sink was spotless regardless of the chipping enamel. It’s the fucking weekly meal plan on the fridge with prices next to the ingredients. I have no idea how long their father has been out of the picture, but by the looks of it, Kira has their meager existence down to a grueling science.
