Monsters' Crew (Crude Hill High Book 1) Read online

  ****

  River

  Vadik arrived at our meeting spot near the lake looking too damn happy.

  Caleb stared, as did Gael.

  “You went back to her place,” Caleb said.

  “I didn’t hear any instructions not to.”

  “You fuck her?” Gael asked.

  The smile on Vadik’s face vanished.

  Gael held his hands up. “Got to wonder. One minute she can’t stand us, the next she’s offering you a space in her bed. A guy’s got to be curious about the sudden change of heart.”

  “No, I didn’t fuck her.”

  “But you want to,” Caleb said.

  “I think it’s safe to say we all want a piece of her,” I said, speaking up.

  School would be starting in half an hour. I didn’t want us to be arguing about these little facts for too long.

  Caleb stood tall. “So we all want her?”

  We all responded with a nod. Me? I didn’t completely know the other guys’ deal with Emily. I only knew my interest. It wasn’t so much interest as curiosity. I didn’t know who I was trying to kid. I wanted her, period.

  I’d noticed her a few years ago. Her long, blonde hair captured my attention. Then the curves of her ass. I happened to love a nice, juicy ass, and Emily, she had one. It had gotten bigger in the past two years, and her hips as well. Her body was a wet dream.

  “It appears that way.”

  “Is this going to be a problem?” Caleb asked.

  “I don’t see why it should be,” I said. I looked at my best friends, my brothers. “We’ve shared a woman before. It’s not like we don’t know how this is going to go. We all want a piece of her, and so long as we learn to be nice, I don’t see why this can’t work.”

  “We’re talking about sharing a woman. Is this for a short time, or are we really going to do this?” Vadik asked.

  “I say we share her,” Gael said.

  “I don’t see why not. All four of us want her, and we know how to share. We’ve been doing this shit since we were first born. A woman will be easy.”

  “She’s not going to be easy to win over,” Vadik said.

  “That’s not a problem,” Caleb said. “We’re all very patient men. She’s got to know who she is dealing with.” He smiled.

  “Is this until graduation or after?” I asked. “Because I can see that look on all of your faces. Emily isn’t a quick fuck. She’s not a piece of weekend fun. We do this, it has to be for life. We know our parents won’t agree to this. She will only ever be able to have kids one at a time.”

  “Unless we are fucking lucky, and she gives us all twins,” Gael said. “I’m a glass-half-full kind of guy, and that’s not about to change now.”

  I shook my head. “So let’s call this to graduation. None of us make plans until after then.”

  “What about her proposed?” Vadik asked. “According to my dad, they didn’t resolve that issue.”

  “But they’re looking into it,” Caleb said. “There’s no way they’re going to allow this to go ahead, not this year. I doubt it.”

  “Just because we don’t think it will happen doesn’t mean it won’t,” I said. They had to keep their heads on straight, otherwise, they were in for a shock.

  Gael pulled his sleeve up. “It’s time we got the hell out of here. I don’t want to be late for class. I hear it’s going to be exciting.”

  “Do we have any ground rules?” I asked.

  They all stopped walking to their respective cars. I drove in with Caleb.

  “What do you mean rules?”

  “If one of us fucks her? None of us. Can we kiss her? Can we treat her like our own or do we have to wait until each other shows up?” I wanted to make sure we remain friends. They seemed oblivious to the possible repercussions of falling for the same girl. My dad had warned me last night how vital it was for me to keep my head on straight.

  “We don’t have to be in a group. That’s not going to win her over,” Caleb said. “And I’m not waiting around for you fuckers. You have a chance with her, you take it. End of.”

  That was all I needed to hear.

  Moving toward the car, I climbed into the passenger side just as Caleb fired up the car.

  “What was with all your questions this morning?” Caleb asked.

  “I want to make sure I’m clear on all the fine points. Our friendship comes first. It always will.”

  Caleb sighed. “You think she’s a problem? If you don’t want her…”

  “You don’t have a clue right now. Just drive.”

  “You think you can get away with telling me what to do?”

  “I just did.” I smiled as I turn toward him. “And you’re doing it.”

  “Asshole.”

  I was just having a joke. I rarely did it anymore. Since my kidnapping, I’d become the more serious one of the group. Seeing as Caleb was our leader, that had to say something. I remember pissing him off because I didn’t take anything too seriously I’d joke with Gael, constantly pulling pranks. It pissed Caleb and Vadik off all the time.

  We were all the best of friends, but that didn’t mean either of us had our true soul mate as a friend. Mine used to be Gael.

  Now, I didn’t know who it was.

  Vadik and Caleb were their own little unit at one point. Both of them serious. Both of them ready to take on the world, but then they were older than us by a couple of days.

  “You do want her?”

  “Caleb, I’ve wanted her for a lot longer than the past few weeks.” I rolled my head to look at him. “I just don’t talk about it as she was off-limits.”

  “She is off-limits. My dad said. Not until he’s figured out this deal.”

  “Let’s talk business.” I’d rather talk shop than my feelings when it came to Emily. We were the best of friends, but some shit wasn’t up for sharing. “Bernard Crane isn’t a Monster. He’s not even high up in the food chain, yet, if you looked at that house last night.”

  “He’s not hurting for cash,” Caleb said. “I did notice that.”

  “He runs a couple of gambling joints, deals with a few MCs.” I stopped.

  “You have a feeling he’s the one who sent the bikers?” Caleb asked.

  “I have no idea. You think he would?”

  “I don’t know. Yesterday I’d have said not a chance, but after last night, I’ve got a feeling there’s more to Bernard Crane than we want to know.”

  I didn’t like where my thoughts were going.

  “If he turns out to be a traitor, Caleb… You know what this means?”

  “Yes.”

  Emily would be the one to pay the price along with her father, brother, and mother. Even the damn family pets, but it didn’t appear as if he owned any dogs or cats.

  “What do we do?” I asked.

  “We wait. We keep a close eye on Emily, and an even closer one on our dads. We stay by their side. We stay in the loop. No slacking off. We need to give Gael and Vadik the update.” Caleb slammed his hand against the steering wheel. “I knew he was a piece of shit. Fucking knew it.”

  “We don’t know the whole story.”

  “What we do know is the fact he was able to negotiate this deal for some time. He’s had this tycoon in his pocket, and until last night, we didn’t know shit.”

  “Unless our dads did know and are keeping us out of the loop.” It wouldn’t be unheard of. To them, we are just boys, no matter how much earned our ink. They would see us as their babies, and not in a place to go taking theirs.

  “I don’t want to think about that.”

  “You’re going to have to. You need to realize that a lot of shit goes down for a reason. We’re not going to always like it, but it happens. Remember what they told us. They will always come first. Their reputation is what they will fight for.” Caleb arrived at school. Drake was at the front gates, leaning against it, smoking.

  He’d taken the hint and quieted down. I didn’t for a second believe we’d wa
rned him sufficiently. He would be coming back at us, only harder.

  Vadik and Gael were already waiting. Whenever we arrived at school, it had to be a united front.

  I followed Caleb in.

  We never used our lockers. There was no point in it, but we made one stop, Emily’s. She stood at the locker. The school-policy skirt rode just above her knees. She always wore hers at the waist and never tried to pull it up. It was always in the same place.

  “Hello, beautiful,” Gael said.

  She tensed up, turning toward us.

  “This is how you’re going to play this? You’re going to be my new BFFs?” she asked. She put her bag into her locker, grabbed her books, and turned toward us.

  We’d already gained some attention.

  A couple of the girls looked a little shocked that all four of us surrounded Emily.

  She’d been a nobody, not just because of her silence within the school grounds, but her father’s position as well. He was neither a right-hand nor a left-hand man to our fathers. He was nothing more than a simple minion.

  The school and rumor mill would be rife. Gael would probably play to it. Not that I’d blame him.

  She needed to know who she belonged to, and we’d waited a little too long to stake our claim.

  The thought of an old bastard waiting for her virginity sickened me and pissed me off. Also, there was a great deal of jealousy. I was River Block, one of the four heirs to the Monsters, and I wanted something I couldn’t have. This was a brand-new experience for me, and not one I wanted to think about or relish.

  I wanted this woman. I was going to have her as well.

  It had been a long time since I’d felt this way. This fire. This need, and it was all for Emily.

  “You know, we could make you the most popular girl in school.”

  This made her laugh. “Seriously, you’re going with that?” She shook her head and looked around. “In case you didn’t get the memo, I don’t want to be the most popular girl in school. Do you have any kind of idea what being seen with you four means?”

  “You belong to us,” I said, putting my hand on the locker.

  She looked at my hand. I had scars on my fingers from the training I’d taken with my knife. I didn’t have it in my hand right now, but it was in my pocket. I normally held it to help focus my thoughts, to keep me grounded, only, I didn’t need it. Staring at Emily, I realized she was all the grounding I needed.

  Well, shit.

  Emily laughed. “Good one. I don’t belong to anyone.”

  “Until your father sells you?” Caleb asked.

  Her face heated and she licked her lips. Damn, that tongue would look so good sliding up and down my dick. One day. She would belong to each of us. We could protect her. No old bastard was going to be taking her from us.

  “I have to get to class.” She turned on her heel as if to walk away, but Gael stopped her exit. “Please, move.”

  “Give me a kiss and I’ll let you pass.”

  I watched and waited. She stepped up close to Gael. I’d have given anything to feel those lips on my face, on any part of my body.

  She took us all by surprise as she drew her knee up and caught him in the balls. Gael hadn’t been expecting the blow and collapsed to the ground, grabbing his junk.

  This was going to be so much fun.

  Emily would be tamed. I had no doubt about it.

  Chapter Seven

  Emily

  There was a time I used to love gossip. It was so much fun to find out who the latest target was. Especially when I knew it wasn’t me. Of course, some of it was complete nonsense. A girl being pregnant or aliens had landed in someone’s back yard. Then there were the other kinds of gossip. The truth.

  Like the whispered words I heard today of the Monster Boys wanting little old moi. Yep. The gossip rumor mill had been swirling all day since I’d been surrounded by all four of them. It didn’t help that Gael had puckered up, and even if my virginal lips wanted to kiss him, I hadn’t.

  They were dangerous. Not that danger was a problem. It was part of my life twenty-four seven.

  What hadn’t been in my life was their attention and because of them, I didn’t know how my father was going to react. There were so many more interesting ways he could make me pay. My dad was a master manipulator and he knew how to make it so he didn’t break any rules. He once told me the world was full of loopholes, all you had to do was exploit them. Weakness was something my father constantly looked for. I didn’t know how to handle this side of him now. The part where he wasn’t the king of his castle.

  It was what Caleb, Vadik, Gael, and River had done last night. All four of them, or more importantly their fathers. They’d come into his home and took his control. That had to have consequences, and it was always those who didn’t deserve it that took the brunt of the punishment.

  I had a feeling he’d use my brother.

  Arriving at the changing rooms for physical education, I took my gym clothes and went to the bathroom. After sliding out of my uniform, I changed it for the gym stuff the school demanded we wear.

  Once dressed and my hair was tied back, I left the bathroom. Only Nancy remained, tying up her shoelace.

  “Hey,” she said.

  “Hey.”

  “So, it’s turned out to be a crazy year, right?”

  I looked at her. We didn’t do small talk.

  Nibbling on my lip, I kept on staring at her until her face went a nice shade of red.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you didn’t talk.” Nancy let out a little giggle.

  “I do talk and you know that. What I want to know is why you’re talking to me.” I folded my arms across my chest.

  “Not everyone is a bad person.”

  “We go to Crude Hill High. You know what our parents are capable of and what they do behind closed doors. Everyone here is a bad person or related to someone bad. There is no innocence here.”

  “Why are you being such a bitch?”

  “No, I’m being real. You don’t want that reality check? The only reason you’re talking to me now is because four guys turned up at my locker. I’m sure your cheer group want all the details, if not to offer me a spot on the squad, right?”

  Again, the deep red color intensified.

  I burst out laughing. “They sent you because they know you’re the nicest of them all. I get it, I do. They want all the gory details and the chance to find out how to snag one of them for themselves. You become the wife of one of the Monsters, you have it made, right?”

  Nancy stumbled over her words.

  “Don’t call me a bitch when you were using me and what’s more, don’t allow yourself to be pushed into a fucking position you don’t want.” Slamming my locker closed, I was done.

  I liked Nancy. She was the nicest of the entire school. Too nice, but it also meant she was easily manipulated, which made her at the bottom of the making-friends list for me. None of the people at this school were worth lowering my guard for.

  Arriving out at the track was our gym teacher, Mr. Avery. He held a clipboard in his hand.

  I stood at the end and shouted out my attendance when he got to my name.

  All four of the Monsters were in my gym class.

  This was new. I’d never been to gym with them here before. Shaking that weird feeling, I focused on Mr. Avery. He was one of the few teachers who didn’t seem to pretend he was better than anyone else.

  The watch he wore was worth more than his salary could afford. He probably had a long list of bribes for turning the other way when dealing with some of his football players.

  The football team was good and a few of the players would have made it as professionals. A couple whose families had allowed them to even went on to have amazing football careers. An odd occurrence, but it happened.

  Nancy joined us and Avery chewed her ass out for her tardiness. I wasn’t happy about it. I didn’t like that she was so easily used.

  In this school
, we had to keep our guard up, to fight our corner when the occasion called for it.

  “Hello, beautiful,” Gael said, the first to approach.

  I ignored him.

  A couple of the cheerleading squad held their hands up and talked behind them as if that covered the fact they were gossiping.

  There were two ways to play this, ignore or face them.

  Ignoring would be easy.

  With hands on my hips, I turned toward them, forcing a smile to my lips. I wasn’t confident about this. Far from it, in fact.

  “Hey, you’ve never been in this class before. Why are you suddenly here?” I asked.

  He reached out, putting a hand on my hip. “What do you know? I got the update this morning. The principal took me into class and told me there had been a change to my schedule. It appears we’ll be having gym together for the rest of the year.”

  “Parson, you can fuck around on your free time. In my class, you run when I say. Everyone to the line.” Avery yelled that last part.

  Running was something I hated to do. It wasn’t fun.

  Gripping my shoulders, I stretched out my neck, trying to think of anything that would be a lot more fun than running for no good reason. It wasn’t like any of us were going to be able to take this up outside in the real world.

  Running was for cowards.

  I guessed being a woman, I might get away with it. Running, though, provided a target.

  Avery screamed for us all to run as he blew the whistle.

  The jocks in my class took off at the speed of light. Before the end of this lesson, they would be throwing up. It was a good thing this was before lunch and not after it. Avery had been my teacher for two years. He was a nice coach. He’d seen a couple of the bruises on my body and had been really sweet. Not inappropriate. He was a happily married man who had no choice but to take this life after his brother dragged him into it over a gambling debt.

  He made me wish our kind didn’t exist, but like he once told me, the world needs criminals.

  For me, it didn’t, but the truth was you needed evil to have good.

  That was what I saw us all as, evil. I knew my father was responsible for killing innocent people. Their blood was on his hands and while I lived in his house, it was also on mine.