Grievance: Volume 1

  “Okay you got us here, now can we hurry this up? Some of us have a whole student body to deal with,” Kristen said as she searched her closet. Her image blurred and he thought he caught a glimpse of ruffled panties. The video stream of Connor’s jaw dropping meant he saw it too.

  “Kristen, you do know we can all see you, right?” Connor asked already sounding frustrated.

  Emmitt could never do the abstinence thing. There were too many girls and too many opportunities. Connor wouldn’t be so damn temperamental if he got some.

  “Kiss it, jerk,” Kristen said mooning the camera.

  “This must be how you won the popular vote,” Tristin said sticking her finger down her throat at the bottom of Emmitt’s screen.

  Kristen froze and clicked her screen. Emmitt was busted. He thought he could include Tristin without her sister finding out, but he should’ve known Tristin couldn’t keep her mouth shut.

  “Tristin, what part of silent didn’t you understand?” Emmitt asked.

  “What is she doing on?” Kristen asked.

  “We needed extra back up.” Emmitt made Tristin’s screen public and the three videos streamed at the top of his screen.

  “Well, call someone else. I’m not doing this if she’s involved.”

  “Would you shut up? Everything is not about you,” Tristin yelled.

  “You both need to shut up. It’s too damn early for your twinemy crap,” Connor shouted, causing both the girls to gasp.

  Emmitt seriously started to worry. He’d seen Connor lose his temper before, and it was like he became a different person. The kid had a serious split personality thing going on. Thankfully, he rarely ever let himself get upset enough to let it out.

  “Well, look who decided to grow a pair,” Tristin smirked.

  “Yeah, a blue pair,” Kristen laughed.

  “Emmitt, I’m out. Call me later,” Connor said visibly insulted.

  “No! Nobody is out. We’re all here to help Hannah and you all should be able to put your issues aside for one day. Now can we please go over the plan?” Looking at their scowling faces, the thought occurred to him that he might have been better off hiring professionals.

  “If these two can be civil,” Connor said.

  “Look, I’m just here to help,” Tristin said.

  “Oh, don’t act like I’m the one with the problem, when I’m sandwiched between the two of you.” Kristen folded her arms, turning her back to the camera.

  “Kristen, it’s just one day. Can we call a truce and let all the drama pick back up tomorrow? For Hannah?” Emmitt asked.

  Kristen turned back to the camera and took a deep breath. “Don’t make me regret this,” she said.

  “She won’t,” Emmitt answered for Tristin. “Tristin?”

  “What do you want a damn pinky swear? I said ‘I’m cool.’ Just tell me what to do.”

  “Tristin, you’re our back up. Stay close to Sean and let us know when he’s heading our way,” Emmitt said. “Kristen will set up the meeting and Connor will be there to grab Hannah.”

  “And who’s going to help Connor?” Kristen asked.

  “I’ve got that covered,” Connor said.

  “And I’m working on a couple of other pieces that could tie Sean up a bit after school. The important thing is for you all to look out for one another; steer clear of Sean and make Hannah think it’s just a regular day.”

  “What if she approaches us?” Kristen asked.

  “There’s very little chance of that with the way she’s been dodging all of us,” Connor said sharply. Emmitt knew he was still angry about Kristen being tight-lipped about what she knew about Hannah, but whatever it was they would all know by the end of the day and Emmitt hoped it would calm him down.

  Connor checked his watch. “We better get going, I’ll text you at lunch,” he said before logging off.

  “All right, Angels, I’m counting on you two,” Emmitt said gaining an eerily synchronized “bird” from Kristen and Tristin.

  ***

  Kristen turned off her webcam and paused as she grabbed her skirt. The images of Hannah’s bruises had been eating away at her for two days. Telling the boys would’ve ignited a war, but she needed to tell someone, someone who would know how important it was that no one found out. She hated turning to her sister, but decided to check her own pride to help Hannah.

  Kristen got dressed and waited in the hallway for Tristin. She immediately wanted to run when her door finally opened.

  “We said truce,” Tristin said as she paused in the doorway.

  “It’s not about that,” Kristen said. “I need to tell you something that you can’t tell anyone, even the person it’s about.”

  “Why would I care about any of your secrets?”

  “It’s about Hannah, she’s in trouble.”

  “Like preggers trouble or trouble-trouble?”

  “Trouble-trouble,” Kristen said.

  “What is it?”

  “If Emmitt and Connor found out, I don’t know what they’d do.”

  “Will you just tell me what it is already?”

  Kristen wasn’t sure Tristin could be trusted; she just hoped she cared enough about Emmitt to want to keep him out of jail.

  “I think Sean’s hitting her,” Kristen blurted out. “I was over there Saturday and she passed out in the tub so I helped her to bed, but when I was changing her clothes she had bruises everywhere.”

  Tristin’s jaw looked tight enough to shatter her teeth.

  “This is why you can’t tell Emmitt. You saw Connor. He already looks like he’s on the verge of killing someone, and Hannah’s already got so much crap about her out there.”

  “Does she know that you saw them?” Kristen asked.

  “Yeah, she’s been texting me nonstop, but I don’t know what to say to her. I know she’s going to be waiting for me when I get to school. I want to help her. I just don’t know how.”

  “Stick close to Connor. She won’t talk to you if he’s around,” Tristin said.

  “But how do we help Hannah?”

  “By hoping she’s a good enough liar to fool those two. Tomorrow we can start figuring out a way of getting her dumb ass away from Sean.”

  “What if she doesn’t want that? I’ve seen the way he controls her.”

  “That’s where the details come into play. I’m guessing you didn’t have the balls to get any photos of the bruises,” Tristin said.

  “No.”

  “Of course not,” Tristin said pulling a pen and notepad out of her backpack. “Well the good thing is she doesn’t know that. Here, write down everything you saw. I’ll need colors, body parts as much as you can remember.”

  “How’s this going to help?” Kristen asked taking the pen and pad.

  “Don’t worry about it. I have my ways of getting what I want.”

  Kristen rolled her eyes, and swallowed her insulting reply. Anything to help Hannah.

  Chapter Two

  Dax/ Hannah

  Watching Noelle shift through his playlist reminded Dax of why he enjoyed riding by himself.

  “Would you just pick a song and let it play?” he said rolling his eyes.

  “It’s not my fault you don’t have anything good,” she said checking her phone for the tenth time. “Isn’t it part of your job to have current music?”

  “My collection is current. Most of the artists in there are the stars of tomorrow.”

  “Whatever.”

  Dax had been watching her fiddle with her jewelry and stare out the window as if she had something or someone on her mind. She seemed nervous and he wanted to know why.

  “So where’s the BF this morning?”

  “He had to get to school early to help with the display cases.”

  “Since when is he on student council?” Dax asked fully knowing the answer. Connor was a part of anything Kristen was doing, which was probably what had Noelle jumpy.

  ??
?Can I ask you something…off the record?”

  “Hell, yeah,” Dax said enthused. He couldn’t help it. Morning drama was his all-time favorite. Anything going down before eight was guaranteed to have something to do with the bedroom.

  “Say you had a favorite shirt that you wore all the time and someone borrowed it without asking, would you be able to tell it had been worn?”

  “If it smelled different,” Dax replied.

  “No, I mean would it feel different, like maybe the neck had been stretched or something.”

  Dax wasn’t a fashion enthusiast and neither was Noelle.

  “Is this really about a shirt or is this just a really bad analogy?”

  “Off the record?”

  “I thought we already established that.”

  “Look this is very sensitive information that could get a friend of mine in a lot of trouble.”

  It had to be a Sean issue. It was no secret that Noelle didn’t exactly have many friends. Before she got with Connor she was just a wannabe who hung out in the library. Dax had taught her the basics of social climbing, which she’d put to pretty good use.

  “Just ask your question. I’m sure whatever it is, it isn’t newsworthy to me,” Dax lied. Anything could be newsworthy if spun by the right reporter.

  “All right. So this girl I know hooked up with this guy and now she’s worried her boyfriend will be able to tell.”

  If Dax had an antenna it would have been pocking the roof of his Beetle.

  “That depends, is she still hooking up with the other guy?”

  “No.”

  “So what you’re asking me is if her boyfriend will be able to feel the difference?”

  Talking about girl parts really creeped him out, but it was his journalistic duty to get through it.

  “I guess so.”

  It was the gift that kept giving. Not only had he confirmed that Sean and Noelle were over, but he also might’ve had a lead that Connor was actually attempting to do the deed. The wheels were churning with ideas of a whole new exposé as he pulled into the student parking lot.

  “Why are you grinning?” Noelle asked, causing Dax to tone down his excitement.

  “Nothing. I just think it’s weird that you would ask me. I know I’m pretty, but that doesn’t mean I actually know how your stuff works down there.”

  “It’s not my stuff,” Noelle said defensively. “I was just curious when she told me about it.”

  “Well, sorry, I can’t help. Tell her to Google it,” Dax said before getting out of the car.

  He had developed too much of a soft spot for the girl and it went against everything he held sacred about delivering Crissana’s dirtiest secrets. His story wouldn’t carry much weight if she and Sean had really called it off, but he still needed something to burn Sean with. Emmitt wanted results, and Dax wasn’t about to fail him. What he needed was a way of outing Sean without dragging Noelle down with him.

  “So how do you know she isn’t still seeing the guy?”

  “He went back to his girlfriend,” she said a little sullen.

  Dax had no intentions of becoming a Dear Abby, but he decided since he was off the record he could do a little good. “Look, tell your friend to stop being a dumbass, keep to her own boyfriend for as long as she can, and don’t worry about the fit.” He grinned. “A good tee shirt snaps back to its normal shape after a good wash.”

  He scanned the parking lot noticing immediately two cars missing, Connor and Kristen’s. He was certain God didn’t love him enough to drop another secret affair in his lap, but he sure liked the thought of it.

  ***

  Hannah looked for Kristen’s car as soon as Sean pulled into the parking lot. She couldn’t even concern herself with how she was going to get away from him. She had to find Kristen and somehow convince her to keep quiet about what she saw.

  “You all right?” Sean asked startling her.

  Hannah had imagined every scenario possible and there wasn’t a single one where Kristen didn’t see her bruises. She found her clothes in the hamper and the wet mop in the hall bathroom. She gave serious thought to walking over to Emmitt’s when Kristen didn’t answer her phone, but she couldn’t face him and Connor, not in her current state.

  “I’m fine. I just need to find Kristen so she can copy my Government notes.”

  Sean had been true to his word so far by not hitting her again. They even had a decent Sunday just watching movies. He was so attentive to her bruises, helping her pick an outfit that would cover everything. She could tell he felt bad.

  He parked close to the entrance and got out to open her door. “I’ll see you at lunch?” he asked. Apparently she had also gained freedom in their new deal. Whatever it was she didn’t have time to question it.

  Hannah kissed Sean goodbye and waited at Kristen’s parking spot. It wasn’t even eight and her long sleeve shirt felt like a sauna. All the girls passing by gave her fall-inspired outfit a curious glare. A week or two of recovery and she’d be back to her shorts and skirts, though her bald spot would take a lot longer to grow back.

  The bad memories never let her forget, but she still celebrated every ‘hit free’ day. Sean was changing, things were getting better. Hannah couldn’t wait for the whole thing to be a fading memory, but first she had to deal with Kristen.

  Ten minutes passed, and there was still no sign of her. Hannah spotted Connor pulling into the parking lot and her chest tightened. It was the wrong reaction to have at the thought of seeing her oldest friend, but the fear of him knowing anything about Sean terrified her. Emmitt would be pissed if he ever found out, but Connor, he didn’t really have an off button when he got upset.

  Kristen and Tristin pulled in behind him and they all headed straight for the overflow lot. There was no way she could approach Kristen with Connor around so she headed to her locker, hoping she could catch up with her before lunch.

  Chapter Three

  Kristen/Dax/Hannah

  Kristen was so nervous she could puke. She’d slipped out of gym five minutes early so she could pretend to be passing Hannah’s class as she came out. Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she jumped.

  Stop looking so

  damn nervous.

  She looked around and found Tristin at the end of the hall. The bell rang, before she could reply and she waited on the side of a row of lockers. Once Hannah stepped out into the hall, Kristen took a deep breath and headed in the opposite direction, toward the cafeteria.

  “Kristen!” Hannah called. Kristen stopped.

  Sean was headed their way with Tristin tailing him from a safe distance.

  Kristen turned around and motioned for Hannah to stoop down. She immediately ducked and Kristen guided her into the band room.

  “Don’t get up yet,” Kristen said, peeking out the window until Sean and Tristin passed. “Okay, you’re clear.”

  She and Hannah locked eyes, and Kristen teared up. She still couldn’t believe this had been going on under all of their noses, and there was also the question of how long. Kristen hugged her friend, feeling as though it was the only thing she could do at the moment. “I know you don’t have long, but I really need to talk to you.”

  “I wanna talk to you too.”

  “Who do you have sixth period? I’ll get you a hall pass and text you where to meet me.”

  “I’ve got Trig. With Ms. Burrell.”

  Kristen hugged her again. “I didn’t tell anyone,” she whispered.

  “Thank you.”

  When Kristen finally released her, Hannah wiped away a few tears.

  “I better go.”

  “Okay. I’ll hang out here for a minute so no one gets suspicious.”

  Hannah waved goodbye before slipping out the door and Kristen let out a nervous breath before texting Connor the good news.

  She waited another couple of minutes before stepping out into the hallway, and she immediately regretted it when she saw Br
ian heading her way.

  She grabbed the straps of her backpack and lowered her eyes to the ground as she stomped passed him.

  “Kristen,” his voice made her shiver. She couldn’t look at him. Her tongue even felt numb. “I promise I wasn’t trying to follow you. Connor asked if I could help him out with your…project and I told him I’d check with you first.”

  This was ridiculous. She hadn’t done anything to feel uncomfortable about. He was the one who cheated. Kristen lifted her head and straightened her spine only to meet his sad face. She was still so angry at him, more than she was with Tristin. Kristen expected her sister to be a heartless bitch, but she never thought Brian would…

  She shook the flashback of the two of them from her head. “I don’t care what you do anymore. Just don’t be at Emmitt’s when I’m there,” she said before stomping away.

  ***

  “I don’t know about this,” Dax said to Emmitt over Bluetooth as he adjusted his yellow wig.

  “Come on, dude. You said you’d help me out.”

  “That was before I knew you were asking me to risk my reputation. Rumors are fun and all, but I don’t want to lose credibility with my followers by posting false stories.”

  “Dax, please? I’ll return the favor. I swear. I just need you to spin something serious enough to make the staff question him about it,” Emmitt said.

  Dax huffed and checked his watch. Emmitt could’ve texted him this morning or last night. Even if he did agree to do it, what story could he make up that would get the administrators’ attention?

  “Before I agree to anything, I’m gonna need to know the whole story.”

  “There is no story, we just need a window.”

  “We? Who else is working this operation?” Dax asked.

  “Are you gonna help us or not?”

  The pieces were coming together now; last week’s meeting at Emmitt’s, Kristen and Connor’s late arrival, and now the smear campaign.

  “Are you guys plotting revenge?”

  Dax grinned so wide his cheeks burned. Vigilante justice led by the brother of the victim was beyond juicy.