Page 72 of East

She doesn’t respond, just stares ahead with glassy eyes.

I get out of the car, walk to Wick’s house, and knock on the door. Hard.

No answer.

I knock harder.

“Wick! I know you’re in there!”

A muffled “coming!” calls through the door. The sound of multiple locks unlatching, and then the door opens to Wick’s face.

His nearly black hair, normally slicked back, hangs in his face. His eyeliner is smudged and has deepened the already dark circles under his eyes. He’s wearing a white ribbed tank top and athletic shorts. He blinks several times and rubs his eyes. “Aus?”

I place a hand on the door. “We need to talk.”

“It’s late. Didn’t you close Jade tonight? I figured it was because of Kin.”

“In a way it was, and I’m very sorry about the loss of your brother, Wick. But I need to have a quick word.”

“It’s late,” Wick repeats. “I already told the cops everything I know.”

“And that led them to Thea Storm’s house. They’re ransacking it as we speak.”

He widens his eyes. “Thea?”

“The girl you took home last night.”

“Yeah, I know who you’re talking about. But why would they think she’s a part of this?”

“Apparently she grabbed a pair of your brother’s shoes on her way out this morning.”

He scratches his head. “What?”

“His shoes. The silver sneakers. She said they looked like they weren’t your size, so she figured you wouldn’t miss them.”

He squeezes his eyes and rubs at his temples. “She just…took my shoes?”

“Your brother’s shoes. She said her heel had broken off the night before?”

Wick furrows his brow. “Oh, right. Kin left them here a few nights ago. He’d gotten them dirty, so he changed into a pair of flip flops while I rinsed them off. I guess he forgot to grab them on his way out.” He pinches the bridge of his nose. “But I’ve got to level with you, Aus. I’m super high right now. I’m having a hard time processing everything.”

“All you need to process is this. You need to go to the cops and tell them Kin’s shoes were here last night. That there’s a logical explanation as to why they were here and why Thea grabbed them.”

“She stole my property. That’s not exactly good.”

“It’s a hell of a lot better than a murder charge. And you obviously won’t press charges for her borrowing the shoes.”

He cocks his head. “What if I do?”

“Then I’ll beat your ass.”

“Sounds like coercion.”

I grit my teeth. “Call it whatever the fuck you want. But it wouldn’t be right. You wouldn’t even have known the shoes were missing if I hadn’t just told you.”

“Yeah, well maybe the shoes were important. And maybe she should have thought twice before coming all the way over to my place and deciding at the last minute she wasn’t in the mood. Fucking bitch.”

Those last words make me see red, and before I can think anything of it, I land a right hook to Wick’s arrogant jaw.