Chapter Six
Gage
Why was it every time he tried to talk to his papa, the man was too busy to listen? Sometimes Gage wondered if he was just saying it to get out of giving fatherly advice. Almost a month had passed since Caine had become Alpha and already there were changes. Repairs were rapidly being made to the cottages that were in dire need, yards were no longer overgrown with weeds, and moods were lighter. Spotting his father he zeroed in on him. “Papa, I need to talk to you for just a minute.”
Landry Delacroix was a busy man these days. He'd opened a diner in town and it was doing well. Too bad neither of his boys were interested in helping him with it. “You can talk to me while I head to da dock. I've gotta get to da diner. What's on your mind?”
“Business is really pickin' up, isn't it? Sorry I'm so busy wit' school and sports to help out.”
“It's a'right, you got your own tings you want to do. What's on your mind, boy?”
“Oh, yeah. It's Mia Lafluer. I can't stop tinkin' about her. She makes me crazy sometimes.”
“Sounds like you got yourself a crush. Is dat why you keep jumpin' from girl to girl? Got a ting for Mia but don't know how to tell her?”
“We're just friends, papa. We grew up together. She probably tinks of me like a brother.”
“You won't know unless you ask. Talk to her, boy. Find out what she's feelin'.”
“Thanks, papa. Maybe I will. Hey, this weekend I'll come help at the diner.” Football season was finally over, they'd just had their last game, so he had some free time now.
“I'd appreciate dat.” Landry nodded at his son, climbed into the pirogue he used to get back and forth, and headed into New Orleans.
“Now I just need to get Mia alone.” Prom was coming up. Maybe he could ask her to go with him. Yeah, he liked that idea. He liked it a lot. With the decision made he went in search of her. When he approached her house he nodded at her mother who was sitting on the front porch in a rocking chair. “Afternoon, Mrs. Lafluer. Is Mia home?”
“Afternoon, Gage. No, she said she needed to get away for a little bit. Took her paints wit' her.”
“I know where she is. Thanks.” He paused for a moment. “How are you feelin'? Da babe givin' you trouble?”
“You're a good boy to be worried, Gage. I'm fine, but I tink dis is it for me. I'm done havin' babies after dis.”
“You're important, Mrs. Lafluer. You're my best friend's mama. Glad you're okay. I'll see you later.” He waved and headed into the swamp to the lean-to Mia still used when she wanted to get away from everything.
Ten minutes later, Gage found himself standing outside the lean-to. His nose picked up the faint scent of paint and he knew he'd been right about where she was. He knocked on the outside of it before he ducked inside. “Hey. Been lookin' for you.”
Mia put her paintbrush down and arched a brow at him. “What for?”
Gage was suddenly nervous. What was wrong with him? He was never nervous around girls. “I, uh, wanted to ask you someting.” He took a breath then continued. “Will you go to prom wit' me?”
Mia
If someone had told her two days ago that Gage was going to ask her to be his date to his senior prom, Mia wouldn't have believed them. Still, she would have made a different choice from the one she'd already made in hopes that it was true. She hated herself in that moment because she knew the next thing to come out of her mouth was going to ruin the hope she saw in his eyes. “I'm sorry, Gage I can't. I...I'm already goin' wit' someone.”
Gage gave her a slow blink. “Who? When were you asked?”
“Cole Ambrose. He asked me two days ago.”
“Oh. I see. Well, okay den. I'll let you get back to your paintin'.”
“Gage...” Mia tried to get him to stop and talk to her but he left at a quick walk. She'd seen a flicker of...something in his eyes that puzzled her. Why had he been so hopeful that she'd go with him and why did it look like he was more angry than hurt that she was going to the prom with Cole? Since he wasn't giving her the chance to ask him, she had no way of knowing what the answer was.
She turned back to her painting but suddenly she just didn't feel it. She couldn't focus, so she put her paints away, covered the canvas to protect it from the elements, and headed back to the compound. She debated on looking for Gage, to try and talk to him, but dismissed it. He was the one who'd walked off when he found out she was going with one of his teammates. She'd waited and waited for him to notice her and just when she'd finally decided to give someone else a chance, he makes a move? What was that all about?
“You're back sooner den I thought you would be. What's wrong, sis?” Jules was sitting on the porch working on some homework for his criminal justice course he was taking. It was a college level course and it was presently kicking his ass, or so he claimed.
“Why are boys so damned confusin'?”
“Uh, you're askin' da wrong person if you want some real insight. What happened?”
Mia groaned and flopped down next to him on the porch swing. “You know I've had a crush on Gage for a while, right?”
Jules rolled his eyes. “More like forever, but yeah.”
She stuck her tongue out at him. “Well, Cole Ambrose asked me to da prom, two days ago, and I said yes. I mean, I've waited forever for Gage to notice me, and I wasn't even a blip on his radar. But den, just a little bit ago...he asked me to go to prom wit' him.”
Julius gave his sister a slow blink. “Oh. Shit. Did you tell him yes?”
“No! I told him no, cuz I was already goin' wit' Cole. He looked...I dunno, I expected him to be upset, because he'd looked hopeful when he asked, but he didn't. He looked kinda...pissed. Which is confusin' as all git out. Why would he be pissed when he's never even acted like he liked me dat way?”
“Mia, you can be so thick sometimes. How often does he go lookin' for you when you go off to be by yourself? Just last month, when Caine challenged Zachary for Alpha, and we had dat big celebration when he won, Gage got you to dance wit' him. And he danced wit' you at Homecomin' even though he had a date. I tink he likes you but tinks you don't like him. And goin' wit' Cole will make him tink it even more.”
“Ugh. Like I said, why are boys so confusin'? Why couldn't he have come right out and said it before dis?”
Julius snorted in derision. “Right. Cuz you have any reason to talk. You never told him you liked him, so why do you 'spect him to do da opposite?”
“Oh, hush. You're supposed to be on my side,” she said and bumped shoulders with him. “Fine, I guess you have a point.” She was reluctant to admit to it but it was true. If she'd been up front about her feelings this might not have happened.
“Well, dere's no'ting you can do about it now. You're a woman of your word, you told Cole you'd go wit' him, so you'll be stickin' to dat decision, right?”
“Yeah.” She kicked the porch railing closest to her a moment. “I'll let you get back to your studies. I gotta go shoppin' anyway.” She still had to pick out her dress so she could tell Cole what color cummerbund to get to match.
Mia loved the dress she'd chosen for her date to prom with Cole. It was almost as risque as the one she'd worn to Homecoming, only in a different way. Where the green dress she'd worn then was short in the front, showing off a lot of leg, her prom dress showed more skin above the waist. The bodice was a halter top with a floral detail. There was a section between the bodice and skirt where the material was sheer and gave off glimpses of her stomach. The halter-like top, which had a cut out in it that was trimmed in the floral material and wrapped snugly around her throat like a choker, was form-fitting over her breasts and showed off her cleavage. The dark purple color looked amazing against her fair skin and once again she left her hair down so it hung in waves almost to her waist. The one thing that would have made this night perfect was if she'd been going with Gage instead of Cole.
“Your date's here. Damn, sis. Dat dress...wow. You're gonna turn heads when you walk in da door. What I wouldn't give to be a fly on da wall to see Gage's reaction to it.” Julius knew the other leopard was likely to lose his shit when he spotted Mia on Cole's arm in that sexy dress.
“I'm not wearin' it for him, I'm wearin' it for me.”
“Don't mean he won't be lookin' and droolin' right along wit' all da other guys who'll be dere.”
That made her roll her eyes. “Right. Because I'll totally be da hottest girl dere. Please.”
“Why do girls always put demselves down? I've never understood it.” He waved a hand. “Doesn't matter. Cole's waitin' for you. You better get out dere before papa or Beau scare him off.”
“Yeah, yeah. I'm goin'.” She stepped into her heels and headed down the short hall to the living room where her date waited.
“Oh, Mia, honey, you look so beautiful. Now, just let me take a couple of pictures and I'll stop torturin' you and let you get outta here,” Eliza said.
Cole smiled at Mia. “You look amazing.”
“Thank you.” Mia tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and accepted the corsage he had for her before she turned to let her mother take her photos. She had high hopes for the prom even if she wasn't going with the boy she really wanted to be there with.
Gage
The tables were finally turned. All through high school, Gage had dated one girl after another. Any time there was a dance or something else going on at school, there was a girl on his arm while his best friend, Mia, was often either alone or there with her twin. This time, it was Gage who was alone. After he'd asked Mia to the prom and learned she already had a date, he'd considered asking someone else but dismissed the idea. He didn't want to have to pretend to be interested in whoever he took with him when he knew he was going to have a hard time keeping himself from watching Mia all night.
Gage's jaw just about hit the floor when Mia walked in on Cole's arm. She was breathtakingly beautiful. The deep purple dress molded to her body in a way that really accentuated her curves. He felt a surge of jealousy at the way Cole had his arm wrapped possessively around her. He had to fight with his leopard to stay where he was because the cat in him wanted to rip Cole's arm off. The urge was unsettling in it's intensity.
When Cole and Mia joined their small group, Gage faked a smile to hide his true feelings. “Hey.” He nodded at Cole before he turned his attention to Mia. “You look amazin', Mia.”
Mia smiled a little. “Thanks. So do you.” She arched a brow at him. This was the first time in forever she'd seen him without some girl hanging off his arm. “Where's your date?”
“Decided to go stag.” He shrugged as if it was no big deal.
“Really? Dat's...surprisin'.”
Gage nodded. “Yeah, I know. I guess I just didn't feel like bringin' anyone. Hey, I'll catch you later. I'm gonna go mingle a little.” He needed to get away before he said or did something to embarrass himself.
“Sure.” She watched him go with a puzzled look. It really was surprising that he was there alone. Surely he could have easily gotten a date with so many girls in school panting after him. She didn't get much time to think about it before Cole was whisking her out onto the dance floor.
Mia
Mia kept hoping to talk to Gage again but either he was avoiding her or Cole was steering them away from him at every turn. Perhaps it was a bit of both. They danced, enjoyed some of the refreshments, and she stood by while he and his buddies talked about their plans for the weekend. What was she thinking, accepting Cole's invitation to the prom? She didn't fit in with him or his friends and they had nothing in common. If she was honest with herself, she'd accepted the invitation because she'd never expected Gage to do it and she'd wanted to see him in a tux. Now she was feeling like a fool.
“Hey, I'm going to get some punch, do you want a glass?”
She glanced up at Cole from where she was sitting at their table. “”Yes, thank you.”
“I'll be right back.” He winked at her and headed into the crowd toward the refreshment table.
Twenty minutes later, her punch glass was empty and Mia was feeling...odd. “I tink I need some air.” She was warmer than she should be. Maybe she was just overheated from all the people around them.
“No problem.” Cole wrapped his arm around her waist and headed for the door.
Her steps felt off. She'd never been drunk before but she wondered if this was what it felt like. She let Cole lead her outside to the parking lot and his car. When he opened the door for her to get in she was grateful to be sitting. “I don't feel so good,” she murmured.
Cole slid into the driver's side of his car and reached for Mia. “Just relax, baby. You'll be fine. It's just something to help you relax a little, that's all.” He didn't give her the chance to respond before he kissed her.
It took a couple of seconds for his words to sink in. He'd drugged her. She was a shifter so the drugs would wear off faster than he would be expecting, but her coordination was off and she felt as weak as a newborn kitten. “Stop.” She tried to push his hand away when he slid it beneath her dress but all she succeeded in doing was to make the situation even more precarious. Her struggling caused her to slide down in the seat which allowed him to put it back so she was pinned beneath him. “No...I don't...I don't want dis...Stop...”
Gage
Something was wrong. Gage wasn't entirely sure what it was, but his leopard was all but growling at him to react; to find the problem and fix it. His gaze went around the gym where prom was taking place and he frowned. All night, no matter where he was, he'd been able to spot Mia quickly. Now it was as if she'd disappeared.
Todd Stevens, resident geek of senior year, and top photographer for both the school's newspaper and yearbook, was torn. He'd spotted Cole slip something in the cup of punch he'd given his date. Cole Ambrose was on the football team. He was one of the jocks. If he spoke up, he was likely to get his ass kicked. At the same time...it wasn't right. If the girl wasn't willing on her own, what Cole was doing was criminal. “Be a man, Todd,” he muttered to himself and went in search of the one person he was sure would listen to him. Gage Delacroix. He knew Gage and Mia, Cole's date, were friends. “Hey, Gage, I need to speak to you for a sec.”
“Not right now. I'm lookin' for someone.” Gage didn't have time for questions for an article on the prom.
“Mia, right? That's why I need to talk to you. Look, dude, don't shoot the messenger here, but, uh...a little bit ago I saw Cole put something in a punch glass and I think he gave it to her to drink.”
“What?” Gage suddenly turned on him. You saw him fuckin' druggin' her 'a little bit ago' and you're just now mentionin' it?” Gage bit back a snarl. “I'll deal wit' you later.” He made a beeline for the doors. Cole often bragged about the girls he'd fucked in his car. If he drugged Mia, that must be where they were. And if he drugged Mia...how many other girls had he done this to?
Gage stalked through the parking lot. His leopard was very close to the surface and he had to reign in his control before he did something that would ruin way too many lives. When he spotted Cole's car, his hackles rose and he approached on silent feet.
“No...I don't...I don't want dis...Stop...”
Even with the enhanced hearing of a shifter, Gage almost didn't hear Mia's words because her voice was so faint. Rage unlike anything he'd ever known filled him and he nearly tore the car door off the frame when he jerked it open. “She said no,” he snarled as he reached in, pulled Cole away from her, and threw him on the ground.
In the seconds Gage spared to look in at Mia, Cole got to his feet. “What the fuck, dude?”
Gage rounded on him. “You worthless piece of shit,” he snarled. “Is dis how you got all dose other girls to fuck you in your car? You DRUGGED them?? You sick son of a bitch.” Gage swung and in the last second he reigned in his anger just enough to keep from shattering Cole's jaw. Or worse, breaking his neck. Cole fought back, punches were thrown on both sides, and soon they had a small crowd gathered around to watch the fight. Gage could have ended the fight quickly, but if Cole really had drugged and raped other girls, he needed a real ass kicking, not a quick knock out.
Remy
Ah, Ben Franklin High. He thought he'd seen the last of this place when he graduated the year before. He wouldn't be there now if not for the fact he needed to fetch his brother. It was a shitty thing to do, it was prom after all, but Remy knew Gage didn't have a date so at least he wasn't going to tear him away from some sweet young thing. A commotion in the parking lot drew his attention as he headed towards the gymnasium where all the dances were held. He started to ignore what was obviously a fight but then he caught a glimpse of his brother. “Aw hell, what's dat fool got hisself into?” he muttered and changed direction. “Lemme through,” he said as he pushed his way through the small crowd. The other boy, Cole, wasn't looking so good. Remy didn't know what he'd done to piss Gage off but if his brother didn't stop pounding on him he was going to end up in prison for murder. “Dat's enough!”
Gage was rearing back to hit Cole again when he heard his brother's voice. He froze and turned his gaze to the crowd gathered there. “Remy? What are you doin' here?”
“Stoppin' you from killin' dat boy, by da looks of it.”
“Dis filth would deserve it,” Gage growled. “Oh, fuck. Mia.” Now that the red haze was gone his brain was working right again and he realized he didn't see Mia. He scrambled to the car and found her curled up on the seat with her arms wrapped around her knees. The tremor that went through her nearly broke his heart. “It's okay, Mia. You're okay. He won't ever touch you again.” He kept his voice soothing and gentle. He could see her cat in her eyes. The leopard was taking over as the drugs slowly left her system.
“What da hell happened?” Remy stood behind Gage and kept looking between the car and Cole, who was being helped up off the ground by a couple of the guys on the football team.
“Not now.” Then Gage thought better of what he said. Maybe the others needed to know the truth. “Cole drugged her. I heard her tellin' him no and he ignored her. Makes you wonder how many other girls he's done dis to. All da girls he's bragged about bangin' in his car.” When Mia whimpered he gentled his tone and focused on her again. “Come on, cher. Let's get you home.”
“You're right, da scum would have deserved it, but I don't reckon I want to be visitin' my baby brother in prison all his life, so it's a good ting you didn't beat him to death.” Remy hovered near his brother as he helped Mia out of the car. The way she was shaking, he knew if Cole said anything, his younger brother was likely to lose his shit a second time. Sure enough, Cole opened his mouth. “Shut your trap, fucker. Unless you want a trip to da hospital, cuz you speak and dis time I won't stop him from beatin' you half to death.” The tone of his voice suggested he was serious. “Smart move,” he added when Cole promptly closed his mouth. “I'll drive, you can come back for your car,” he said to his brother.
He ushered Gage and Mia away from the crowd but he kept his eye on the three football players who were glaring daggers at Gage. Remy remembered them from the year before. They were assholes. They were also likely to try to cause trouble for Gage with the rest of the team but he'd let his brother deal with that. Right now, he was focused on getting back to the compound. In all the excitement he'd almost forgotten why he'd shown up there in the first place.
“What's goin' on, Remy? What were you doin' at da school?” Gage asked once they were in Remy's truck headed toward the private dock the Pard owned. Mia was sitting between them but she sat closer to Gage than Remy.
“I'll tell you when I'm not drivin'.”
“Bullshit. Tell me now. It's gotta be someting serious for you to show up durin' prom.”
“Fine. It's papa. He had a bad accident, real bad. As in he might not be alive come mornin', bad.” Remy's hands tightened around the wheel.
Gage stared at him. “What? Oh fuck. What happened?”
“He got tangled up wit' some people he shouldn't have and it came back to bite him on da ass.” Finding out their father got involved with organized crime had been a bit of a blow for Remy. He'd idolized the man because he'd thought he was doing so well because of the diner he'd opened. He should have known something was up when their father got tight lipped about how things were going. He was glad when Gage didn't ask any more questions because he wasn't sure he had the answers.
Mia
She was such a fool. She should have known Cole didn't really like her as a person. He saw her as another conquest, another notch in the proverbial bed post. As she struggled to make her limbs work enough to push Cole away, Mia silently cursed herself for ever agreeing to go to the prom with him. She wasn't attracted to him and yet she'd said yes. When the weight of him was suddenly gone it took her several long seconds to understand why. Gage's voice reached her ears and shame filled her. She wanted to crawl into a hole somewhere and disappear forever. She managed to pull her dress back down and curled on the seat. She wasn't sure she could stand even if she wanted to. With her knees bent, she wrapped her arms around her legs, hugging them to her chest, and buried her face. A tremor shook her and silent tears slipped down her cheeks.
Sounds slowly filtered through the thoughts screaming in her head and she realized Remy had arrived and stopped Gage from beating Cole to death. Wait. Was Gage really so angry that he would have kept hitting Cole until he killed him? Why? She couldn't wrap her mind around it. She was too numb.
“It's okay, Mia. You're okay. He won't ever touch you again.”
She lifted her head from where it rested against her knees. One look at his face told her what she already knew; her cat was close to the surface. She wanted to shift. If she let the leopard take over she wouldn't have to think about what happened, or what would have happened, if Gage hadn't shown up when he did. She vaguely heard Remy ask what happened and at first she thought Gage was going to stay quiet.
“He drugged her. I heard her tellin' him no and he ignored her. “
Mia tuned out the rest of his words. Shame returned and a whimper escaped her. She couldn't face the crowd she knew had gathered. When Gage gently drew her from the car she buried her face against his shoulder. He seemed to understand her need to hide because he scooped her up instead of making her walk and draped the jacket to his tux over her to shield her from view.
She barely registered the drive to the docks or the boat ride back to the compound. She held onto the numbness because she knew if she didn't she was going to break down. She needed to be in her room, away from Gage, when that happened. She didn't want him to see her like that. He already knew she was weak, she didn't want to shame herself further by breaking down in front of him.
“Mia? Cher? We're back at da compound. Do you want me to carry you?”
Mia blinked a little. The boat was tied off, Remy was already making his way into the compound, and she hadn't even realized they'd stopped. “No. I can walk. Your mama...needs you.” She'd heard their conversation even if she hadn't reacted to it. She stepped away from him and for a moment she was afraid she was going to fall flat on her face. Her legs felt wobbly but she managed to stay upright.
“Mia...let me help you get home, first.”
“I said I can walk. Just...just go...I can't...I don't want you to see me so weak.” She felt the tears threatening and she didn't want him to see them.
“Fuck dat. I've known you forever, Mia Lafluer. Da one ting you aren't is weak.” He ignored her protests and scooped her up. “Let whatever he gave you work it's way outta your system before you try gettin' around too much.” With that he headed to her home first. Yeah, he wanted to get home and check on his papa, but Mia was just as important and he wasn't going to let her get hurt just because she wanted to be stubborn.
Mia knew better than to try and argue with him. If she was stubborn, Gage was even worse. Instead, she leaned her head on his shoulder as he carried her up the porch steps to her house. The second he stepped inside her family knew something was wrong.
“What happened? What's wrong?” Eliza saw Gage carrying her daughter and moved as quickly as she could.
“I'll let Mia be da one to tell you dat. It's not my place. I'm gonna carry her to her room, though. Den I gotta get home.” He wouldn't betray Mia's trust by telling her family about it. The only way he would speak up was if she kept quiet and let it eat her up inside.
Mia was grateful that Gage didn't go into detail. “I don't want to talk about it right now, mama. I just want to go to sleep.”
Eliza heard pain in her daughter's voice but she didn't push. “A'right. I'll bring you a glass of warm milk in a little bit.” Warm milk always soothed her eldest daughter.
“Thanks, mama.” When they got to her room and Gage set her on the bed she bit her lip. “Thank you...for not tellin' dem anyting. I can't deal wit' dat tonight.”
“It's not my place to tell, unless you let it eat you up. Get some rest, Mia.” He touched her cheek briefly before he left.
By the time her mother came into her room with the glass of warm milk Mia was changed into her pajamas and in bed. She took the glass but kept her eyes averted. “I really...don't wanna talk right now, mama.”
“I know, cher. It's okay. You just tell me when you're ready.” Eliza kissed her daughter's forehead and left her alone. She would have Adele and Constance sleep in one of the boys' rooms to give Mia some privacy to deal with whatever happened to upset her so much.
Mia sipped her milk and tried to keep her mind blank. Tomorrow. Tomorrow she would face what happened. Right now, she didn't want to think. If she thought too hard she would start crying and she was afraid she wouldn't be able to stop. She curled up on her bed and hugged a stuffed bear she'd had since she was little. She'd always used it to comfort herself when she was little and she hoped it would help now. It took a lot longer for her to fall asleep than she wanted it to and when she did finally doze off it was to a fitful sleep filled with dark dreams.