Misguided Truths: Part Two (Misjudged #4) (17 page)

“Nice?”
Huh
. I hate that fucking word. Even more than I hate beef jerkys. Well, I guess I should’ve prepared myself for a response like that. And, I guess she has every right to mock me after I used that same word to describe our time together back at the ball.

“You’re never gonna l
et me forget that, are you?” I break my gaze away from hers, and wince as I pour us both some champagne. Alright, I think she knows that I was expecting maybe something different to leave her mouth than that word, but I’m gonna try again. “Alexis, it was—” Remind me the next time I plan on spending some alone time with my girlfriend to be that I should always switch my cell phone to silent.
Always.
I think it’s safe for you to assume that I’m feeling pretty pissed right about now. I grab my cell, ready to curse at whoever’s on the other end of the line, but when I see Brad’s name flashing on the screen, I know I’ve gotta take his call.

I quickly glance to Alexis, and smile apologetically while I stand and walk away to answer him, “Hey, man,” I say once I’ve connected the call. “Tell me it’s something important.”

“You need to meet with somebody in Seattle. They’re going to message you in ten minutes with a location. They wouldn’t say anything else, but from the way they were talking, it sounded like they have something.”

I start pacing
back and forth by the wall, and try to think how this is gonna work out. They wanna meet today? They wanna meet with me now? Awesome. Well, that’s sure as hell fucked up the rest of my plans for the day. Am I gonna go? I can’t not go. It could be the news that I’ve been waiting for, and no matter how much I wanna spend the day and night with Alexis, this has gotta come first.
Man, she’s gonna be pissed.

“Thanks, man,” I answer after a brief silence. “I’ll wait for them to get in touch.” I drop my cell phone dow
n from my ear, and slide it inside my shirt pocket while looking over at Alexis. Well, the strawberries appear to have been a good choice if nothing else. Okay, I’d better go and get this over with.

“Hey, what’s
wrong?” she asks while getting on her feet, walking toward me as I make my way back over to her. “Brandon?” I feel her shake my arm to grab my attention, but she already has that. I’m just trying to figure out what I’m gonna say to her. I let out a sigh, and rake both of my hands through my hair before lifting my face to look at her.
Just do it. She knows how important this is for you. Just tell her you’ve gotta bail on her.

“I’m so sorry, I have to go. Listen, I’ll be back in a few hours. Damm
it! I’m so sorry, beautiful.” I lift my hand up to cup her face, and I can already see the brightness within her eyes beginning to fade.

“Wait, why?”
Yeah, you’re not the only one who’s disappointed about this.

“A buddy of mine just got a call from someone
back in Olympia, he thinks …” I run my hands over my face, and take another deep breath.
Man, I really wanna stay with her
. “They said they have some information that might be able to help me.”

“Then go.
Why are you still even standing here?” Is this girl for real? She’s encouraging this? Don’t get me wrong here, I’m relieved that she’s telling me to go ahead, but I don’t want her doubting me or think that I’m making excuses or something.

“Because I don’t want you to think that …”

“I know, but listen, I’ll be here when you get back. Just go! You could get everything you need to help clear your name. Just freaking get outta here! I’ll clean all this up.” She gestures toward everything that’s scattered over the blanket, and I can tell that she means it. She’s not upset at all. I knew I made the right choice to give us a chance. I’ve known all along that she’s a very special woman.

I lean forward, kiss her on the cheek, and
then make my way toward the clearing, “Seven o’clock, be ready! Wear what’s in the bag!” I call over my shoulder one more time, and then run up into the campus grounds to go and find out if today’s the day I’ll finally get some answers.

***

Well, they messaged me. Why am I not over there and talking with them right now? Well, maybe it has something to do with our meeting place. I called Rye when I left Alexis back at campus, and then I tried Neil’s cell phone when Rye didn’t pick up. Did I come here alone? Yeah. Yeah, I did. Believe me, it wasn’t my intention to meet with them alone, but it’s just worked out this way.

Neil told me that he’s
busy doing something that he can’t get out of, and when I tried Rye’s cell phone again, it went straight through to his voicemail.

Yeah, you see that? Well, I haven’t stopped shaking since I got their message, telling
me where they wanted to meet. I’ve tried about five times to go over there, but each time, I haven’t been able to walk more than two steps ahead of me without having the sudden urge to hurl.

The alleyway is
directly opposite to me on the other side of the street, and I think that I must’ve been here for almost thirty minutes already. I know if I wanna find out what they have for me then I’m just gonna have to forget this was the last place I saw Holly alive.

It’s been a few days since I last had
any flashbacks, but being here is bringing everything back, and it feels like it was only yesterday it happened. I can see her smile as we walked inside together, the look of embarrassment that washed over her face when I dedicated the bands last song of the night to her, the way she looked when she was dying in my arms.

Pretend it’s not the same place. Get the answers and then you can leave. This could be it. This could be what you’ve been waiting for.

I pinch the bridge of my nose with my thumb and index finger as I stand, and keep my eyes down to the ground as I head across the street. The way the knots are twisting in my lower abdomen, and the way my chest is tightening up, isn’t making it so comfortable to walk. I’ve gotta do this. I have to.
I need to do this.

When I reach the entryway, I pause my steps, but then I hear a couple of people talking further down the dark space. That must be them. I inhale a deep breath, stuff my hands in my pants pockets, and head straight toward them.

As I near the two guys, I slow my pace down and when they see me, they turn around and—
wait
. Why are they walking away from me? Maybe they’re not the people who I’m supposed to be meeting with. Brad didn’t give me any names, so it’s not like I can even call after them. When they completely disappear from my view, I turn back around when I hear footsteps approaching me from behind.

“
Are you Brandon?” A tall guy asks, slowing when he’s almost right in front of me.

I guess this is the guy,
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m Brandon.”

“I have something for you,”
he tells me, and thoughit’s dark, I can see his mouth turning upward before h
e—
what the fuck?
“You want another one?” He asks as I hit the ground, lifting my hand up to the right side of my face, the side he’s just struck with a neat left hook, His sneer was dark, and when I turn my head to the side, I see another guy approach us. Then another, another, and another. Five. There’s five of them here. Four are standing around me, and I see another standing by the entryway.

It’s not light enough for me to see his face, but I’m damn sure he looks familiar. I dunno. I’m not sur—
“My turn.” I hear another guy say, louder this time, and when he kicks me hard in the stomach, I hear a crack and feel excruciating pain crossing over my abs. Shit. No.
Fuck no.

I shuffle away from them,
further into the darkness. It was a trap.
Fuck
. How did I not see this? I should’ve known when they told me to meet them here. I lunge forward to take a strike at the one closest to me, but somebody grabs a hold of my arms, keeping them behind my back while pulling me up to stand, “You’re messing with the wrong people!”

Fuck!
If he didn’t just break my jaw then he came pretty fucking close.
Dammit!
Another. I should’ve stayed with her. I try to fight back, and I even manage to get in a couple of punches before the taller guy floors me with a head-butt. I fall to the ground, blood spilling out from my nose and down my shirt, “We’re not done with you yet!” One of them snipes, but I have no idea which way the voice is coming from. It could be from my left, it could be from my right. Sharp pains are shooting through my skull from the way he’s just smashed my face against the brick wall. The small light that was visible before is becoming darker, my pulse speeding, my eyes closing, and all I can think of is Alexis, waiting for me to get back so we can finish our date, and then … everything goes dark.

Well, I guess you could say the meeting didn’t quite go to plan, huh?
Damn, my head hurts.

I know. I was stupid for going to meet with that guy alone. I get that. No, I do. I should’ve realized as soon as I was told the meeting place that it wasn’t gonna turn out well. But, wouldn’t you have done the same thing if you were in my position? Alright, you wouldn’t have, or at l
east, you would’ve taken somebody with you, but at the time, I didn’t have that option.

Should I have stayed with Alexis and asked for them to meet with me some other time? Well, in hindsight, yes, but I didn’t know it was a trap back then, did I?

It was a warning. What else could it have possibly been? You can’t tell me that it was a total fluke and that five guys just happened to be there, ready to jump on the first guy they saw.
Exactly
. But, you know what this means? Yeah, it means I’m getting closer to finding out who did all of this. Why else would they do it? They know I’m onto them, and it’s only gonna be a matter of time before I expose them for who they are and what they did.

I glance to my left when we stop at some lights
, and find myself smiling at what I see. It hurts to do anything, but watching the concentration flitting over her face when she’s driving is kinda hot, “Why are you looking at me like that?” Alexis asks when she catches me.

“No reason,” I answer, a wide grin forming over my lips as I turn and gaze out
the window when the lights change back to green.

Each time I woke up
, I saw her right by my side, and when she went to grab herself a coffee on the few occasions I insisted she took some time away, the nurse told me that Alexis refused to leave my side even once the whole time I was in a coma. Oh, and that she was apparently my wife while I was in there. Honestly? Yeah, I freaked out, but if it meant that I could see her beautiful face every time I opened my eyes then it was definitely something I could deal with.

I’ve learnt a few things abo
ut her over the past few days. She’s in no way a morning person until she gets that caffeine fix of hers, I can tell you that much. Other than that? Well, I know she loves me. You think that I’m being bigheaded? Nope. No, I’m not. I’ve heard her say those three little words a few times when my eyes have been closed. Does she know that I know? No, she doesn’t. She didn’t say it once when I was awake, and though you know as well as anybody that I take great pleasure in winding her up, I don’t think this is the kinda thing to joke around about.

“You do understand what this means, don’t you?” I turn in my seat the best I can as she parks up in the student parking lot. “I’m the invalid here
, so technically that means I get to choose which side of your bed I get to sleep on.”

“You do?” she asks
, and twists in her seat once she’s switched off the ignition. “I’m not so sure you’re in any condition to make demands, Brandon.”
Oh, I do.

I rest my head against the back of the seat
, and reach my hand out, lightly stroking my fingers over her thigh. Man, I love it when she wears those tight jeans, “Oh, I am. You see, I’m in a lot of pain and there are only certain positions I can lie in.”

“Which side are you claiming?” S
he asks while narrowing her eyes right on me.

“The right side,” I answer
as I shrug my shoulders. Do I wanna laugh? Yeah, I do. The scowl that’s now displaying over her face shows just how much she didn’t appreciate my answer. I know she likes to sleep on the right side, but I have a perfectly good reason why I’ve chosen it.

“The right side? Are you serious? I always sleep on the right side.”

“Not anymore. At least, not while I’m in your care you don’t. You see, I figure if I’m on the right side then I’ll still be able to wrap my arms around you each night before we go to sleep. The other side will cause me way too much pain. Unless you want me to be in pain. Do you want me to be? Is that your intention? Because if it is then I’m gonna have to ask you to turn around and take me straight back to the hospi—”

“Okay! Alright! I get it!” she throws her hands in the air
before tapping me in the chest, making me wince when another pain shoots through my upper body. “You can have the right side of the goddamn bed!” I laugh when she slams her hands against the steering wheel, and instantly grimace when pains start to shoot through my whole body.
Note to self: no laughing.
Her smile fades, and a look of sympathy crosses into her eyes. “Come on, let’s get you inside.”

***

We grabbed some of my things from my dorm before we made our way over to Alexis’ place. Why am I taking my things over there? Well, because if I don’t have somebody watching over me for the next few weeks then I would’ve had to stay in the hospital. But, I couldn’t think of a better nurse to have then Alexis. I tried to bribe the nurse who’d taken care of me while I was in the hospital to sneak me a uniform for Alexis to wear, but apparently it wasn’t an option. I begged to differ, but she wouldn’t budge.

“Is the pain still bad
?” Alexis asks when we reach the main door.

I lean up against the wall before she takes her arm away from around my waist s
o she can let us inside, “Yeah, but I’ll be okay once the bruising goes down some more.”

I look like the kid from out of that movie. Y’know, the one who got turned into a blueberry by
those little dudes with all that candy? Yeah, that one. Those guys did a good job on me, but it’s not over yet. Not by a long shot.

We make our way through to Alexis’ room, and while she walks further inside, I pause when my eyes land on the bag that’s still sitting on her bed. The one holding the dress I got for her last week. I close my eyes and shake my head for a brief second. If I’d have stayed then we would’ve had the best time, I know we would’ve.

“Are you okay?” she asks when she comes to stand in front of me, stroking her fingers across my cheek while trying to search my eyes. I was, right up until I envisioned how last week could’ve panned out. "Do you need some more pain relief?”

I shake my head
, and swallow past the lump in my throat when I think back to what actually happened instead. The doctors told me that I was lucky to wake up. Whoever did this meant to hurt me as bad as they did, and I’m lucky to be here, I know I am, “I had our whole weekend planned out, Alexis,” I tell her, and slowly walk over to sit down on the bed, clutching my right side with both hands. “After the picnic, I was taking you on a boat ride before dinner, and then to the theatre in the evening.”

“To the theatre?” She sounds surprised.

“The tickets your dad sent. After you'd left the day they arrived, I took them out from the trash and kept hold of them,” I explain as I turn toward her. “Would you have gone with me?”

“Yes, I would have.
Why did you go alone to meet with them, Brandon?” She asks, and I shake my head while breathing out a sigh, before taking a hold of her hand and squeezing it gently. It’s the same question I asked myself when I realized what was going on.

“I figured if I headed straight there, then I could get back sooner. I wanted to take you out.” No. I’m not gonna tell her that Neil let me down. I mean, he didn’t. He already had plans
, and I couldn’t expect him to drop what he was doing just so he’d come with me. In a way, I’m thankful that he was busy, because at least that way he didn’t get caught up in what went down back there.

She shakes her head
, and her eyes become glazed, “I shouldn’t have told you to go. I should have made you stay,” she turns away. “When do you want to go and report it to the cops?”

“Are you kidding?” Is she crazy? Get the cops involved? Not a chance. No fucking way. This is b
etween me and those responsible; nobody else. “Alexis, I can’t report it. That would be like giving them the message and telling them I’ve given up. I’m not giving up. I’m seeing this through to the end.” I don’t like the look she’s giving me now. She’s the crazy one for even bringing this up, but she’s eyeing me as though I’m the one who’s completely lost my mind here.

It takes me a couple of attempts to stand, but when I manage to get
back onto my feet, I head toward the door and walk through to the living area, “You can’t let them get away with this, Brandon!” Yeah, I knew that was coming. We’re gonna have a fight about this, I know we are. “What do you mean you’re seeing this through to the end?”

“Alexis, just drop it, please?” The last thing I want us to be doing is arguing over this. She knows I won’t give up. I’ve told her loads of times that this has always been my number one priority.

I sit down on the couch, moving a couple of the cushions to the side, trying to make myself a little more comfortable, “Tell me what you meant.”

She takes a seat beside me, but I keep my focus right ahead
, and feel my jaw starting to tense up. She’s not gonna let this drop, but she’s gotta realize that I’m not just gonna roll over and let them win this. Yeah, they won the battle this time, but I plan on winning the fucking war. She needs to understand this, “I’m not letting them get away with this. I’m gonna find out who’s behind all this. Holly and what happened to me. They ruined my fucking life, Alexis. They took everything away from me! They almost beat me to death, and you know what was going through my mind the whole time?”

“What?”

“You! You were going through my fucking mind, and you wanna know why?” I lift my head, and twist around until my eyes are staring directly into hers. When she nods, I know I’ve gotta tell her exactly what I’ve been thinking. I wasn’t gonna admit to how scared I was, or how scared I am just thinking about what could’ve happened, but she’s given me no other choice. “Every kick and punch they threw at me, every time they took a swipe, all I could think about was you, and how I might never have a chance to see you again. I thought it was too fucking late to tell you how much I’m in love with you, and too fucking late to taste your sweet lips on mine. Alexis, I fucking fell in love you and—” I immediately stop talking when I see movement to my left.

Shit
. Well, I sure didn’t expect to be telling her like this, but, yeah, I have. I’ve fallen in love with her. It’s hardly the best way to declare it, especially when we have an audience right to the side of us. Neil and Rye are both standing outside their bedroom doors, watching us.

When I focus my attention back on Alexis
, I see that she’s now smiling at me, “Well, that was one hell of a romantic way to tell her, bro!” Rye starts walking over to us with a wide grin plastered over his face, and Neil slowly follows behind him.

“You’re not gonna give up?” Neil asks, and I know what he’s thinking. He’s thinking the same thing as Alexis, and I know they care, but they’ve gotta understand something here. I
’ve already lost Holls because of these people, there’s no way I’m gonna let them take me away from Alexis. “Do you really think that’s wise?”

“I’m never gonna give up until those
assholes pay for what they did.” I keep my voice calm, but at the same time, I make it known that I won’t be persuaded on this.

Everyone’s attention is drawn toward the main door w
hen Alyssa comes running into the room, “I saw your car in the parking lot! You’re back!”

“It looks that way,” Alexis smiles
, and she takes a hold of my hand again. Yeah, it wasn’t the greatest time or place to tell her how I feel, but at least we’ve put an end to the discussion about getting the cops involved.  

Because I’ve been laid up for the best part of a week, and it’s gonna take me a little while to recover, it doesn’t look likely that I’m gonna be able to perform in the college show with the rest of the guys after all.

When Alexis’ birthday is mentioned, I know I’ve gotta do something to make it special, and as Neil and Rye head out to meet with Corey and the other guys for band practice, I summon Alyssa out into the hallway.

“What’s up?
” She asks, her eyes wide.

“Your father owns hotels, right?” I ask, and yeah, I’m a little nervous asking this if you want me to be totally honest. When she nods, I clear my throat before I continue. “Do you think that it’s likely that I might be able to get a discount on one of the rooms, say, in a couple of weeks?”

“What’s wrong with our place?”
Yep, she’s an airhead alright.
“Oh!” I nod and smile when what I said finally seems to be sinking in.

“Yeah, but you need to keep this between just the two of us, alright? I don’t wanna spoil the surprise,” I tell her firmly. I know Alyssa just as well as the rest of the guys do, and she loves to gossip. She can’t keep a
nything to herself. I sometimes wonder how she and Alexis get on so well.

“I’ll call my father.”