‘Did you not hear me weeks ago? Not to go there? Does Evelyn Wallace know?’
‘No. I dunno.’
‘And this thing… it’s what? You two goin’ steady?’
I shake my head. He’s so fucking antiquated sometimes. ‘As in, is she my girlfriend?’
He raises his voice at me. ‘Yes, you little punk, are you two just fucking or is this a serious thing?’
‘Why are you yelling at me?’
‘Did you sleep with her yet, AJ?’
‘And that’s your business, why?’
‘DAMAGE CONTROL!’ Echo roars in my direction. ‘In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m tryin’ not to make things worse for us out here! You sticking your dick inside Hollie Palmer, that’s tantamount to civil war!’
Echo doubles over at the waist, holding his head in his hands. He lets out another shaky breath, like the magnitude of this thing is overwhelming. For a moment, we sit in silence.
‘Yes, I’m sleeping with her,’ I say quietly. ‘For about a month now. No, Evelyn Wallace doesn’t know yet. Not as far as I’m aware. And, yes, it’s serious, until Chase fucked everything up for me tonight.’
‘How so?’
‘In high school, we weren’t exactly nice to Hollie. She found out that I did something I’m not proud of, courtesy of Chase. That’s why I wanted to give him a beatdown. She left. Went back to Canyon. So, I guess now she’s mad at me.’
More silence.
‘Chase Brennan had it coming,’ Echo says calmly.
More silence.
‘Look, she might break up with me after this, but don’t ask me to break up with her, all right, because I’m not gonna.’
Echo shakes his head. ‘You’re like your father. Even if I asked you to break up with her, for the good of Rapture, I doubt you’d listen to me. You’re too much like him for that.’
I bristle. I hate my father and don’t consider myself to be anything like him. ‘I am not.’
‘You are, you’re a rebel. You were born a rebel, like your daddy was. People tell you not to do shit, it makes you more determined to do it. Lo had your father’s independent streak in addition to being a rebel, which is precisely the reason you’re still here and he ain’t. You got some of your mother’s blood in you. You care about other people, which is why you stuck around.’
‘The hell that got to do with anything?’
‘It means I’m the one who has to deal with the fallout. How do you think Evelyn Wallace is gonna react when she finds out her stepdaughter is fooling around with a tattooed auto mechanic from Rapture? And a member of Hell’s Venom, no less. You think that’s gonna help our situation out here, AJ?’
‘It’s not just fooling around,’ I mumble.
‘Do you love her?’
I go quiet. Tense up.
‘Because if you’re serious, and you’re in love with her, I’m more inclined to back you, AJ. But if this is just a way for you to fuck around and get your rocks off, then that’s not helpin’ anybody.’
‘Did you not hear me just now?’
‘If it was any other girl on the planet, I’d say,son, go ahead, smash that. Roll between the sheets. But this isHollie Palmerwe are talking about. I will always back you, AJ, but you’re walking a line. It will look like a cheap shot. Like us tryna get revenge on the mayor and her desire to see this place steamrolled to the ground. You’re making it personal. This place could go up in smoke. So, if this is just about hooking up with some girl like you always do, then you should break things off with her now before they go any further.’
I know Hollie is mad at me, but there is no way I’m breaking things off with her. ‘And what if I love her? What if she’s it for me?’
He doesn’t answer straight away. ‘Then, like I said. I’ll back you. One hundred per cent.’
