Take Me Tomorrow (12 page)

Perfectly Still. Calm. Deadly.

I held my silver necklace to stop my hands from shaking. Phelps’ men had slowly left the school, but the students lingered, waiting for parents to pick them up. I could’ve walked home, but I sat with Lily as she told me everything – which was practically nothing.

She didn’t know what had happened. She only knew Miles had “accidentally” taken tomo, and he was arrested for questioning. Her mother had spoken to him once before she went to the police station. She had yet to return, and Lily was a broken twin.

“I just don’t know,” she repeated, but her voice didn’t shake. Now that Phelps was gone, she was calm. It was unlike her. Too unlike her.

I dropped my voice before I spoke up,
“But you knew Pierson.”

She shifted, but she began to braid her hair as if that was why she moved. I recognized the move because I did it whenever I was trying to cover up my motions. She knew something. She just wasn’t talking.

“Tell me what’s actually going on,” I pressed.

Her bottom lip turned white
when she bit it.

“Lily—”

“I can’t.” She confirmed everything in two words. She knew. She just didn’t know that I did, too.

“I can’t either,” I muttered.

Lily’s shoulders sprang up, and her brown eyes flickered over my face. She didn’t pale or speak, but she didn’t have to because someone else did.

“Sophia.”

It was a boy who interrupted us, and it wasn’t a voice I recognized until I saw his face. His defined jawline was impossible to forget. He looked like a man among boys.

“Anthony,” I stated, re
membering the blonde from the Homecoming party. “Hey.”

He tilted his head, but he only looked at me.
“You look tired.”

I shrugged as he shuffled his black bag from one shoulder to the other. I stood
up to survey the empting courtyard. I didn’t know where Anthony had come from.

“I didn’t see you at the assembly,” I managed
.

He moved closer.
Too close. “I didn’t see much of you at the dance.”

My heart sunk. That was right. He had seen me at the dance. He knew t
hat I should’ve been in custody, but I wasn’t − and he wasn’t either.

I squinted at him
, but he continued to smile. My gut twisted as I stepped back. “I left early,” I excused myself cautiously.

H
e seemed to be suppressing his laughter. “Me, too,” he agreed, never looking at Lily. She hadn’t moved. “I saw you talking to Phelps.”

I
didn’t have time to respond before he spoke again, “What did you two talk about?”

“That’s none of your business
,” Lily spoke up.

It was the harshness of her tone that stopped me. Lily, the hyper girl who had introduced us, had practically snarled. I studied her reddened face as I slipped my body between the two.

“What’s going on here?” I asked.

“Nothing,” Anthony remarked, raising his eyebrows too mechanically. He had forced it, and his innocence came off as anything but sincere.

“Then, we’d rather be alone,” I said, but he didn’t move. “We’re talking.”

He squared his shoulders in the way a dog’s fur rose when it was trying to look bigger than it actually was. “I don’t mind listening.”

I heard the rush of footsteps first, and the shout of my name followed. I didn’t have time to turn around. Broden’s hand was on my arm, and I stumbled as he yanked me back. He was in front of Lily and me before I could stop him.

“What are you doing here?”
Broden growled at Anthony. In seconds, Broden rolled up his green sleeves, and the veins on his arms stuck out with adrenaline. He wanted to fight.

“Broden.” Anthony whistled low
, “You’re still here,” he spoke as his emerald eyes moved over Broden’s clothes. “Nice shirt.”

Broden’s eyes were wild
. “What do you want, Tony?”

Anthony
− or Tony − lifted his pointed chin. “How’s the arm?” he asked, a look of accomplishment crossing his stare. “It looks like it healed up pretty well.”

It was only then that I realized Broden’s splint was gone. His arm had healed, but he held it up like he was willing to fracture it again.

“You know,” Anthony’s words lingered, “I didn’t believe the rumors until I saw you. Now, I know he’s back.”

An animalistic hum escaped Broden’s throat.

Anthony smirked, “Wasn’t too hard to find yah.”

“I wasn’t hiding,” Broden snapped.

“You weren’t,” Anthony prided. “You never were one to sell out Noah for anything.” Noah’s name echoed. “I suppose I could’ve inflicted more pain.”

My knees shook. Anthony was the one who hurt Broden. Not Noah. Not the government. Anthony, or Tony, or whoever he was
, had done it.

“He’s not here,” Broden said, stepping back. I stepped back with him, and Lily jumped up to join us.

“You expect me to believe that?” Anthony asked. “I know why he’s back,” he said, “and Phelps himself brought me back from Phoenix to prevent that.”

He was a jailbreak. Miles and Broden had been right all along, even before they knew it. Anthony was a criminal just like the rest of us had become.

In that second, Anthony leaned over to look at me. “I have a feeling you know exactly what I’m talking about, Ms. Gray.”

“I don’t know you,” I spat back, “or who you’re talking about.”

Before I could continue, Broden held up his arm, “You should leave, Tony,” he said, gesturing to the kids around us. They were starting to stare. “Don’t think Phelps has forgotten your involvement in this. If you screw up now, he’ll only send you back.”

For a split second, Anthony’s dark eyes widened, but the look dissipated. Even his facial expressions mimicked Noah’s. They could’ve been brothers.

Anthony straightened up. “It was good to see you,” he spoke like a professional. Perfectly still. Calm. Deadly.

Neither of the boys moved. They only glared at one another until Anthony spun
around on one heel. “See you around campus, Sophia,” he called over his shoulder as he walked away.

I didn’t breathe until he rounded the corner of the building and disappeared out of sight. Broden leapt forward,
anticipating a chase, but he bounced back and turned to us. His face was burning. “You two okay?”

I was the first to respond,
“Who was that?” I spat, looking from Lily to Broden. They both dropped their faces. “Who’s Tony?”

Broden shushed me as he grabbed my arm. “Let’s walk and talk,” he said.

I only obeyed because I didn’t want anyone hearing us any more than they did. We picked up our backpacks and walked straight toward the exit. Only Lily looked behind us. She was paler than I thought was possible for her tanned complexion. Even then, she wasn’t quiet. “I didn’t recognize him—”

“You should’ve,” Broden interrupted, practically stomping next to us.

“He shot up two feet, lost one hundred pounds, and his face morphed,” Lily ranted back. “You can’t blame me.”

“So, when did you recognize him?”

“I didn’t,” Lily squeaked. “Miles didn’t either.”

Broden and I stopped. She had heard from her brother.

“Miles?” I repeated. “Is he okay?”

“We shouldn’t stay here.” Her words were rushed as she forced us to continue walking. Somehow, in all of the chaos, we had silently agreed to head to my house. We had thirty minutes to discuss things with the noisy roads blocking our conversation.

“I don’t know if he’s okay,” Lily managed finally. “The police came to our house and took him.” Miles wasn’t arrested at the party, after all. “My mother hasn’t been back from the station since.”

At least half of her story was true.

“Anthony,” Broden repeated the name as he shook his head. “I should’ve known it was him when you said he was from Phoenix.”

“They said he was in high school,” she defended. “Isn’t he twenty?”

“Twenty-one.”

That explained the jawline.

“I still don’t know who Tony is,” I interrupted.

Lily’s eyes flickered to me before she glanced at Broden. His jaw popped as if he were preventing it from locking. “He’s—” Broden stopped himself. “She knows,” he said to Lily.

She squeaked and covered her mouth like she could hide her shock.

I tried not to roll my eyes. Of course she was involved. “So, you can tell me.”

“He used to be involved with Miles,” she stuttered, “and Noah.”

“He’s Noah’s cousin,” Broden clarified.

He was a Tomery, too. I hadn’t been imagining the resemblance. They were related by blood.

“And now
, he works for Phelps,” Broden grumbled, rubbing his face. “Noah isn’t going to like this.”

Lily grabbed my hand. “I wouldn’t have introduced you two if I had known,” she said it like it was an apology. “But he requested you.” My heart skipped. “Now, I know why.”

Phelps had directed it. He knew my father, and he knew my friends. I was guilty by association, and he had counted on me being too naïve to realize it.

“I didn’t know,” Lily continued as we neared my house. “I didn’t know that you were involved.”

“Me neither, Lily,” I said.

“Enough of that,” Broden interrupted as we neared my house. “We need a plan, and you need to go home.” For once, Lily was the one being told to stay away.

She opened her mouth as if she would argue, but Broden held his palm up. “You need to wait for Miles,” he clarified his directions, a luxury I had only recently gained. “I can handle Noah.”

Lily
grabbed her braided hair. “So, he is back.” Apparently, she hadn’t seen him at the party. Not once. And the others had left her oblivious, too.

“I didn’t think I had to say that,” Broden spoke so quietly that I barely heard him.

Lily nodded as her eyes moved over the street. She looked as if her legs would crumble beneath her at any moment. “I’ll call you if Miles gets released.”

“Don’t call,” Broden said, leaning over to hug her. She gripped his back like she would never let him go. When he pulled back, he patted the top of her head. “Just come over.” He didn’t have to tell her he was talking about my house.

“Okay,” Lily agreed. Unlike me, she followed orders. She always had. “I’ll see you later, Sophia,” she said, managing a small wave as if we had a regular conversation. It hadn’t occurred to me that this was regular for her – only three years ago. As she ran away, I tried to comprehend how they had stayed silent for so long. My friends were beyond me.

“I don’t know how you guys hid it,” I managed as Broden and I continued to walk.

“We didn’t,” he said, never looking over. “You just didn’t listen.”

Stop This Now

Broden wasn’t wrong. Not completely
, anyway.

In the first year I had met him, he had ended up in the hospital. When I visited him, he said it was nothing. Even though I knew he was lying, I didn’t question it, and I didn’t question it when he returned to school and the twins acted like someone had died. Now
, I knew the Tomery’s had fled, and Broden had helped them. Miles and Lily did, too.

Although I was friends with the twins since I was seven, the fact that the twins hadn’t introduced me to Broden until high school should’ve been warning enough. They even spoke about his military school, but I had believed it was for fighting. If I had thought about it, then I would’ve seen the contradiction the day at the hospital. He
had obviously been in a fight, but he returned to our school without a warning. His parents had gotten him out. The same parents that helped create tomo. How they hadn’t been arrested was still a mystery. Everything was. Whenever I learned more, I questioned more.

No one had mentioned Noah’s cousin. No one explained why he had been arrested. No one clarified why he worked for Phelps, but I doubted anyone could. Unfortunately, I wasn’t the only one who was oblivious.

“What do you mean, ‘he’s back?’” Noah’s voice tore against his throat as he questioned Broden. “The kid is supposed to be dead.”

“Well, he’s not,” Broden said, watching Noah as he paced. “He’s here, and he’s convinced you are, too.”

“Fantastic.” Noah cursed. When he grabbed his hair, I expected him to pull it out. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” After all, Anthony had beaten Broden, and he hadn’t said anything. Even Broden kept secrets.

“I wasn’t positive,” Broden muttered, explaining how the fight had happened. He was attacked from behind. He only heard the voice, the questions about Noah’s return. Miles had found him on his front lawn.
“We’re going to kill him, right?” Broden asked.

My stomach practically dropped through me. “What?”

Noah remained quiet. His cheeks were pale, but his eyes were empty. He was considering it.

“What are you boys thinking?” Lyn asked as she crossed her arms. She had listened to the entire story with her back pressed against the wall. “You can’t kill someone. A body isn’t going to do anyone good.”

“I didn’t say we were,” Noah snapped. Lyn quieted, and he blew air out of his lips. “I don’t know what we’re going to do.” For once, he didn’t have a plan.

“You can’t do anything until you have to do something,” Lyn said.

“That’s not helping,” Broden said. “Where did you get that, anyway?” he asked. “A fortune cookie?”

Lyn’s eyes turned to slits. “Don’t come to me next time you need stitches.”

“Sorry,” he grumbled.

“That’s more like it,” she retorted, placing her hands on her hips. Her black scrubs turned her tattoos into shadows. “What you do need
is to be concerned about your next step. Anthony—”

“Tony,” Broden corrected. Noah shuddered.

“Whatever.” Lyn shook her head. “Tony will be too busy with the ramifications of the dance to come after you right now, but you need a plan for when he will. Which he will,” she added it even though she didn’t have to, “and you have to make sure he doesn’t do it through my Sophia.”

“He won’t,” Noah said immediately.

“He targeted her,” Broden argued.

Noah didn’t look at me. “He has no reason to.”

“You didn’t either,” Broden bit back.

I slammed my hand against the table to break their tension. “Stop,” I said, glaring back at their bewilderment. “I can handle myself. If the guy comes around, I’ll be fine.”

Broden didn’t listen to me. He was too focused on Noah. “He’s only doing this because of you.”

“I know that,” Noah didn’t argue, but his hand shook like he wanted to. “I just—” he paused. “We need a meeting. Now.”

Broden sprang up from his chair. “I’ll get everyone I can.”

Noah’s eyes flickered to his watch. “Three hours. At the trees.”

Broden nodded as I spoke, “But—”

“Not now, Sophie,” Noah interrupted me before I could even fathom whatever words I was about to let out. “If you want to help, then stay here and wait for Lils.” Apparently, he had a nickname for everyone.

I wanted to scream.

“I got you in enough trouble,” he muttered.

My desperate need to scream dissipated.

“That’s how you should’ve been thinking from the beginning,” Lyn said, nodding. “I swear. Using children is the dumbest thing your father ever did.”

Noah turned away. No one could see his expression but me. From my position on the stairs, I watched as his face hardened. Nothing twitched, not even his eyes. It was the first time I had seen it happen.

“If he didn’t use us,” Noah started, “we would’ve ended up in Phoenix like Tony.”

The laws. His father was using minors to carry out crimes, knowing that they wouldn’t be held responsible. His uncle, apparently, hadn’t thought of that.

“But that’s that,” Noah continued, his fingers flicking over the blade on his belt. “I’ll be back.”

“Don’t try to find us tonight,” Broden clarified as he rushed toward the door.

“I won’t,” I promised, and for once, I meant it.

Broden opened the front door before his silhouette disappeared against the sunset. In silence, we waited.

“I’m leaving in thirty minutes,” Noah said to no one in particular. Lyn left the room as if she knew he was speaking to me. He sighed as he sank onto the stairs next to me. His shoulder pressed against mine, but I wasn’t sure which one of us was shaking.

“Are you okay?” I managed.

“I’ve seen you before,” he said.

“I know that,” I responded, thinking about our conversation we had outside of my school. “You were at the hospital.”

“Not this last time,” he clarified.

His words stopped me. He might as well have slapped a hand over my mouth. There was only one other time.

When he didn’t elaborate, I dug my nails into his arm. “What do you mean, Noah?”

His hoarse breath escaped him. “When Broden got hurt,” he paused. “two years ago.” He didn’t have to remind me of the time. Broden was fighting. That was it. He almost died.

“I’m the one who dropped him off,” Noah said.

Broden hadn’t been dropped off. He was left on the pavement.

Now, I knew I was the one shaking. I stood up and grabbed the rail to keep my balance. “Why?” I managed. “Why would you leave him there?”

His eyes shot up to mine, but they were soft. “I was running,” Noah said, explaining something I hadn’t considered. The day Broden almost died was the same day Noah’s brother had died.

He never looked away. “Liam was lucky enough to get him out of Phelps’ hands.”

My heart dropped. “Phelps?”

“Who else do you think beat him up?” Noah asked. When he looked at m
y face, he chuckled. “He wasn’t in a fight over drugs. Tomo dealers don’t care about money. They want freedom.” He was more aware of the excuse Broden had used than I was. “Phelps needed my family, and he knew Broden was the only way he’d find us.”

“And he got you,” I finished.

Noah nodded. “Liam slipped up when he got him out of the station,” he said. “That’s why we had to run early. That’s why our plan—” he paused. “It’s my fault it didn’t work, and now, Tony got his hands on him, too.”

His cousin had beat Broden
this previous time, but Phelps hurt him the first time. I knew that now. Noah hadn’t inflicted pain on anyone. Not directly.

“Broden never gives in,” he managed, leaning his face against the railing. “I’d be dead if he did. My entire family would be.” His eyes moved over me. “But you’re the only person who could be there for him,” he said as he pulled something out of his jacket. “I watched you sit with him all night.” He pointed to his head, but his hand remained curled. “The hair. I told you I should’ve recognized it.”

When he lifted his hand to his mouth, he muttered, “Ibuprofen.”

I ignored him. “I thought you fled,” I said. “How could you have watched us?”

“I didn’t see you,” he sighed. “I saw you.” He emphasized the word, and I knew he was talking about the tomo he was on, even as a preteen. “I saw my future coming, and I did nothing to stop it,” he said. “I let it happen.”

“But—”

“But,” he repeated, flicking his hand in the air, “I will now. I can stop this now.”

I didn’t like his tone. It was the way it hung in the air. It was the way his lips moved to the side. It was the way his body didn’t move. He was planning an attack.

“What are you going to do?” I asked.

“That’s the million-dollar question,” he responded, avoiding a direct response. “That’s what I’m going to do.”

“You aren’t making any sense.”

“I don’t have to,” he said, and then, his eyes flashed.

He didn’t take Ibuprofen. He consumed tomo, and he wasn’t trying to hide it anymore.

I shot forward, but he saw it coming. He moved to the side, grabbed my arm, and swung me into an embrace.

“Noah—”

“I’m going to fix this,” he said, sounding delighted as his hand threaded through my hair.
“You have nothing to worry about.”

I pushed myself away, hopping down the stairs to keep myself from falling backwards. He watched me without any sense of concern. He knew I wouldn’t fall. He knew more than that. He knew what would happen tonight.

“Why do you take it?” I asked, trying not to scream at him. “Why do you have to take it?”

“I don’t have to,” he said, hopping down the stairs. He was inches in front of me. “I want to. I like to,” he paused as he moved toward the door. “You wouldn’t understand.” He hesitated to open the door. “Someone like me has to take it.”

“Someone like you?” I repeated.

“Someone like me,” he continued as he opened the door. The night air rushed inside. It smel
led like the oak trees after they roasted beneath the summer sun all day. They smelled like they were waiting for winter. “Someone who doesn’t know if tomorrow will come would rather live every day twice than live it once.”

“No one knows if tomorrow is coming,” I argued, but he stepped outside.

He stretched his arms above his head, and his back rose as he sucked in a deep breath. “Tomorrow can take me,” he said. “I don’t need today, anyway.”