“Yeah, it is. Something healing about this place.”

We didn’t talk anymore. We didn’t have to. We both understood that words really weren’t needed.

CAGE

I hadn’t seen Eva in two weeks. One more week left to go and I wasn’t sure I could make it. Ace had left me alone when it came to the partying thing. We had also started talking again. We were cool now. I was going to see if I couldn’t make this living arrangement work until Eva was ready to move up here. It helped me save money.

Tonight the team that had been working the camp was heading to go play some pool and drink a few beers. Everyone was ready to unwind. The kids were exhausting. After two weeks of it we all needed a break.

“You riding with Trey? He’s the dd tonight.” Ace asked as I stepped out of my bedroom. I wanted a beer. But I also wanted to be sure and get home in time to call Eva tonight.

“Just make sure you got your phone. You can call your girl from there. Take it outside or something. You can’t drink and drive.” He was right. I tucked my phone down safely in my pocket and grabbed my wallet.

“Yeah, I’m riding with Trey,” I said.

*

Trey drove a van. Not a mini van like a real legit van. It was open and I watched as two other players climbed in behind a female. Shit. I didn’t know girls were gonna be riding with us. Maybe going was a bad idea.

“You coming?” Ace asked as he stepped into the van and looked back at me.

I needed some down time. It wasn’t like Eva would forbid me to go places were girls would be. She’d never told me I couldn’t go to Live Bay. I was the one being ridiculous.

“Yeah, I’m coming,” I said, and crawled in behind him.

The female with us was Hayden. Figures. She lived here and I’d seen here with more than one of the guys on the team. Apparently she liked to jump around. I closed the door behind me and sat down beside Louis.

“We’re all here, let’s roll,” Ace called out from the back. He’d crawled in beside Hayden.

*

The bar was empty until we got there. The name of it was The Dawg House. Seeing as our mascot was a Bulldog I figured this place must be an exclusive place for the college. At least ten pool tables filled the place as well as several flat screens on the walls and a few dartboards. This wasn’t bad.

The bartender was already filling mugs of beer and lining them on the bar. I followed the crowd and picked up one.

“Coke for the dd,” the bartender called out and Trey walked over and took the soda from the guy fixing drinks.

This seemed safe enough. I wasn’t up for pool yet so I walked over and sat down on one of the couches facing a larger flat screen that was turned to ESPN.

“Want company?”

I looked up to see Hayden taking the seat beside me. “No,” I replied.

She only laughed and crossed her legs then took a sip of her drink. I focused on the television. I’d ignore her until she moved on. I wasn’t on her team roster. She needed to go play elsewhere.

“You know we can be friends,” she said leaning into me.

I took another drink of my beer. “Not interested,” I replied. If I looked her way I’d be able to see down her damn shirt. The girl needed to wear more clothes. She had a nice body and she knew it. She showed it off well.

“This hard to get thing is seriously turning me on,” she whispered and leaned into me closer. Her chest was pressed against my side now. I didn’t want to push the chick but she needed to back off. I’d said no more than once.

I turned my head to tell her to get the hell off me when her mouth landed on mine. What the fuck? I froze shocked for a moment before pushing her off me and standing up. “What’s your deal? Damn girl back the hell off.” I knew I’d drawn a crowd. Stalking over to the pool tables I picked up a que stick and looked over at Trey. “Rack ‘em.”

He only nodded.

I managed to enjoy the rest of the night. Hayden stayed away and the other females that showed up weren’t flirting. I’d even played one in pool. She’d been cool even when I’d beat her. I wasn’t one to let a girl win just because she was a girl.

I glanced down at my phone and realized it was ten minutes past eleven. Shit. I dropped the pool stick on the table and headed outside to call Eva. I was ready to hear her voice.

After the third time I called and she didn’t answer I left a message. She must have been exhausted. I’d call tomorrow. She needed her sleep. I walked back into the bar and Ace stood there watching me.

“You talk to your girl?” he asked

That wasn’t really his business. I didn’t answer.

“Here, take a beer and let’s play some pool,” he said handing me a beer that was sitting in front of him.

I took the beer and decided I’d play some more pool and then see if I couldn’t get Trey to take me home.

Chapter Twelve

EVA

I stood at Jeremy’s window and knocked. I was numb. I wasn’t sure how I’d gotten over there in the dark. I wasn’t sure why I was here except I needed him. I needed him to look at the text messages I’d just gotten from some unknown number and tell me he saw them too. I wasn’t dreaming or hallucinating. Oh God, let me be hallucinating. Please. Please. Let me be hallucinating.

Jeremy’s window slid open. His sleepy face looked confused. As if he thought he were dreaming. “Eva? What’s wrong?” he asked, pushing the window all the way open and stepping out of it to stand in front of me.

I couldn’t talk. I just handed him the phone.

He looked down at it, confused, then looked back at me. “You’re scaring me, Eva. Is your daddy okay? Talk to me, girl.”

I shook my head. “It’s not my daddy,” I managed to croak out.

Jeremy slid his finger across the screen on my phone and the light from it lit up the small dark space outside where we stood.

“Holy shit,” he muttered, and slid his finger across it again. “Motherfucking bastard,” he swore. I knew he saw it too. I hadn’t been hallucinating after all. Oh God. I felt my knees give out. I curled up on the grass underneath me, pulling my legs up to tuck them under my chin. No, no no, not this. I can’t handle this. Not now, I can’t. I can’t.

“I got you, girl. Come here.” Jeremy was on the ground with me. He was pulling me against his chest. I didn’t want to know. I didn’t want to believe it, but I had to ask.

“Did you watch the video?” I asked in a low whisper.

He moved the phone, and I heard the sound of the noise in the background of the video. I knew what he was seeing. It was burned into my brain. Every moment of it would haunt me for the rest of my life.

“I’m going to kill him. I’m putting a bullet through that fucker’s eyes.” Jeremy threw my phone from both of us, and he pulled me tighter against his chest.

“He was… he was…” I couldn’t say it. I couldn’t forget it.

Cage touching a girl’s bare chest, Cage so close to a naked girl’s face, he was about to kiss her. His chest was touching hers. Cage… Cage getting in a car with a girl dressed like a whore, and Cage kissing a girl. She was gorgeous. She was older. She wasn’t me. She was as beautiful as he was. Then he’d… he’d made out with her against a pool table. Then the picture of her in his bed with them both naked and all wrapped up together. Oh God, I was going to be sick.

I pushed away from Jeremy and threw up into the grass. I felt Jeremy take my hair and say soothing things to me, but they didn’t help. I kept throwing up until all I had was dry heaves.

“Come on, Eva. You gotta stop. Don’t think about it,” Jeremy begged.

My body was weak and spent. I sank back against him and closed my eyes. I had to forget what I’d seen. I had to block it out.

We sat there in the darkness while I whimpered, the images flashinh across my brain. I’d missed his calls earlier tonight because Daddy had gotten sick. It was an hour later when I’d finally been able to go back to my room. I had been tempted to call him, but I’d worried that he’d be asleep. But then an hour later, the unknown sender of the texts began sending them to me. With each horrific image, my heart was torn out of my chest and shattered. I would never be the same. Ever.