Vigilante

  Diane nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  “A public apology.” Call me twisted, but I wanted witnesses when he had to admit that he’d done something wrong. It wasn’t enough, but it was a start.

  She held my gaze—maybe to see if I was joking. “Okay.”

  “I can’t believe this.” Mom shook her head. “He hits my daughter and gets away with it. His father was a bully too, you know. Quite a few girls in our senior class said he’d raped them, but nothing ever came of it. The Carsons are a long line of entitled assholes.”

  “Language,” I admonished with a faint smile. “It’s all right, Mom. Drew will get what’s coming to him.”

  “How do you know that?” Diane asked, a strange expression on her face.

  I looked her in the eye. I couldn’t tell her it was because I intended to make sure of it. “The whole school saw what he did to me.”

  “Mr. Carson has hired security for his son.”

  Thanks for the tip. “They have to leave him alone sometime.”

  “And then what?” she asked. There was a sharpness to her gaze that reminded me she was a cop first and my friend second. I shrugged.

  And then I’ll be ready.

  CHAPTER 24

  I wanted to go back to school on Thursday, but Mom wouldn’t let me. I think she knew I only wanted to go so I could confront Drew, because she did let me go to Diane’s class that night.

  The swelling in my nose had decreased dramatically, and it was pretty much back to its normal size. I still looked like a raccoon with darkness under both eyes, but the bruising had started to fade, as well. It still hurt some, but was healing, and now that I could breathe normally I wanted my life back.

  When I walked into the dojo that night, every girl there cheered at the sight of me. It was awesome. They hugged me and asked about what happened, and if the Pink Vigilante actually came to my rescue. I had to force myself not to smile at Zoe, or even make eye contact.

  Apparently Drew had been looking for me earlier that day so he could make his apology. I guess he really wanted to make sure he had an audience, which was weird, because I couldn’t imagine him wanting anybody to witness him saying he was sorry for something.

  Then again, I guess it was just like when celebrities apologized for doing something stupid, or saying something wrong. They never seemed to mean it—it was just damage control.

  After all the girls said hi, Diane approached me. She smiled. “It’s good to have you back, but don’t think for one minute that I’m letting you spar tonight.”

  “Yeah, I know.” I hadn’t been allowed to do anything strenuous since the weekend, and I was starting to feel restless and antsy from lack of exercise. “Maybe I could work with the Wavemaster?”

  She considered it. “Sure. Just take it easy.”

  I nodded. So, no pretending the poor punching bag was Drew.

  We were sitting on the mats, listening to Diane speak when the dojo door opened, the bell tingling. We all turned our heads, and a collective “oh” echoed throughout the room.

  I stood and everyone else followed me. Drew smiled, but it looked more like a smirk than anything actually friendly. He was on our territory. Invading a space that was close to sacred for all of us.

  “Sorry to interrupt, girls,” he drawled. My spine stiffened at the mockery in his tone. He looked right at me, and his smile grew. He’d liked seeing what he’d done to me, the asshole.

  “What do you want, Mr. Carson?” Diane asked, stepping forward.

  Drew’s smile wavered a little when he met her gaze. He was intimidated by her, a fact that made me like her all the more. What must it be like to be that confident in your ability to take down a full-grown man? She didn’t even have her gun with her, and yet she saw Drew as absolutely no threat. She knew what kind of monster he was, and still he didn’t scare her.

  He glanced at me. “I went to Hadley’s house, but there was no one home. Then I remembered that you girls had this little class every Thursday night. I saw one of the flyers at school.”

  “Why were you at my house?” I asked. I didn’t like the idea of him knocking on my door. I’m just glad that Mom hadn’t been home. She would’ve told him off, and God knows what he might have done in return.

  “To apologize, of course.” He almost looked sincere, except for the malicious glint in his eye. “Hadley, I just want you to know how much I regret what happened at the cemetery on Sunday. I was wrong to hit you. I have no excuse, except that this Vigilante person has been harassing me and my friends for over a month now. I was paranoid, and I let myself believe that it was you who threatened us. I’m very sorry I hurt you, and I hope you’ll forgive me for it.”

  He was sorry for getting caught, but he wasn’t really sorry he’d punched me. I don’t think he was capable of the same kind of regret mentally healthy people experienced. In fact, I was pretty sure that Drew had never been sorry for anything in his life. I’d known for a while that he was a psychopath, but realizing this while looking into his eyes was something else. There was nothing redeeming in his gaze, no hint of humanity. He wasn’t capable of contrition, and he thought he was better at faking it than he was.

  I held his gaze—stared right into those dead eyes of his. “I understand that you were afraid of me, and that’s why you lashed out. I didn’t mean to intimidate you.” His face tightened a little as I verbally poked at him. “Of course you would suspect me of being the person frightening you and your friends after what you did to Magda.”

  He sneered at her name. “She wanted it. All I did was give it to her.”

  Fists clenched at my sides I took a step toward him. The only thing that stopped me was the fact that every girl in that class took that step with me, backing me up.

  It was amazing to see the realization that he was outnumbered in that asshole’s face, and that no one in the room was afraid of him.

  “Why,” I asked, “would you think that any girl would want a slimy douche like you touching her? You can take your apology and shove it up your ass.”

  Drew’s face hardened, his eyes like cold stone. “My lawyer said you wanted an apology.”

  “I guess I did. I wanted it and you gave it to me.” I shoved his words back into his face. “I’m sorry, Drew, but you’re just not that good at it.”

  The girls laughed, and for a second Drew let slip the monster he really was.

  “I should have broken your fucking jaw.” He took a step toward me, and that was when Diane intervened.

  “Your father already had to bail you out once this week, Mr. Carson. Do you want me to take you downtown so he can do it again?”

  Drew’s upper lip curled into a sneer. He barely looked at her, all of his attention was on me. “Maybe you’re not the bitch in the ski mask, but one of you is.” His gaze traveled across the girls behind me. “Come for me again, and I’ll make sure you’re reunited with your precious slut, Magda.”

  Fuck my nose and fuck taking it easy. I pulled my fist back, but just as I was about to knock several teeth down his throat, Diane grabbed my arm.

  Drew smirked at me, and I kicked myself for letting him bait me.

  “You need to leave,” Diane told him. “Or I will arrest you for making death threats.”

  “It wasn’t a threat,” he said, backing toward the door. “It was a promise.” Then he turned and walked to the exit. “Oh, and Hadley? Tell your boyfriend that includes him too.” He opened the door and was gone.

  “That’s it,” Diane seethed. “I’m going to arrest him again.” She took a step toward the door.

  “Don’t,” I said. “His father won’t miss the bail money, and the charges won’t stick. Why put yourself through the hassle?”

  She stared at me. “To show him that he can’t go around threatening to kill peop
le?”

  She wasn’t that naive, was she? “Haven’t you been paying attention? He does whatever he wants.”

  Her jaw clenched. “It’s time someone put an end to that.”

  “Yeah,” I agreed, staring at the door. “It is.”

  * * *

  I went back to school on Friday. When I walked past Drew’s locker, I noticed that it was freshly painted without so much as a scuff on it. He still walked around like he owned the place, with Brody, Jason and Adam at his side. Though, it did seem like things weren’t as perfect as they had been. Drew’s buddies looked at him with resentment. He was the only one of them the Vigilante hadn’t cornered yet.

  I also noticed, as the days went on, that the crowd that normally gathered around Drew in the cafeteria, or outside, had grown smaller, so I was surprised when he announced that he was having a Halloween party, and that it was open to anyone who wanted to come. It was just like last year.

  Last year. That had been the party where they raped Magda. After the attack she’d done all the right things. It didn’t matter, though. She’d gone to the police, and they’d conducted an investigation that turned up nothing, despite photos and video showing up online. Drew told everybody Magda had wanted to party with them.

  The sad part was that some of what he said was true. Magda’d had a crush on him—obviously we had no idea of his true character back then. She jumped at the chance to hang out with him. Maybe she thought they were going to make out. She might have even hoped for sex, but she had not wanted his buddies to join in.

  Afterward she tried to put on a brave face. She tried to ignore the things people said, and did to her. She knew she hadn’t done anything wrong. She went to therapy, and she did the work. She wanted to be whole again. She wanted to be okay, but almost every day Drew, or somebody else, did something to humiliate her. Eventually, it just became too much. She had survived for months—to the point where I thought she was actually getting better. I was wrong—she was only getting better at hiding how bad things really were.

  There hadn’t been any warning. People always say that there were warning signs before someone committed suicide, but that’s not always true. Believe me, I tried to find them. I went back over the weeks and months looking for any clue. I tortured myself with it, thinking I had somehow missed the signs that I hadn’t been a good enough friend. I hadn’t been a good enough friend at times. Sometimes I was an awful friend, but lately...well, I was beginning to realize Magda hadn’t killed herself over something I said. I didn’t have that kind of power, and it wasn’t all about me. I’d made what happened to her about me—me not being there for her, me not being a good friend, me, me, me.

  And this revenge thing? That wasn’t all for Magda. It was for me too. For both of us—and all the girls who had been abused before, and those whose abuse I might be able to prevent. Maybe I had some kind of hero or martyr complex. I was okay with it.

  I was going to go to Drew’s party. Pretty much every girl from self-defense class was going to go. Gabe tried to talk me out of it, but only because he’d violated the restraining order Drew had against him by punching him at the dance, and if he showed up at the party he would be in big trouble.

  “You’re going to get yourself killed,” he said, raking a hand through his long hair. “He said he wanted to kill the Pink Vigilante, and you’re basically going to go there and offer yourself up.”

  “I know it sounds insane. If I were you, I would think I was totally nuts. But you weren’t there at the class that night he showed up. The things he said about Magda...”

  Mentioning his sister was not a good idea. Gabe’s face hardened, and his eyes took on an angry glint. “I should be the one to go after him. Am I supposed to just sit back and let you be the one to avenge my sister?”

  My eyes widened. “I’m not trying to take anything away from you.”

  “No? Because so far you’ve been taking revenge that ought to have been mine. I should be the one to give them payback.”

  “Gabe, Drew’s father would make sure you were tried as an adult and sent to prison for a long time. Your mom and Teresa can’t lose you. We’ve been through this before.” Several times, it felt like.

  He nodded, his gaze averted. “I know. I don’t fucking like it, but I know. I just...I just wish I could’ve done more for her. I didn’t even see how depressed she was.”

  “Neither did I, and I saw her every day.” Well, not quite every day. Toward the end—just before she killed herself—she started to spend more time alone. She told me she was studying, but now I realize she was just putting distance between us so doing what she thought she had to do would be easier for her. And maybe for me.

  “Is any of this actually making you feel better?” he asked.

  “Yes.” And it was true—to an extent. At least I felt like I was able to do something. I understood Gabe’s frustration and how helpless he felt. He’d gotten into fights with all four of the guys after the attack. He’d done his part for Magda then. And he had done everything he could to make those bastards pay. He fought them. He went to court and testified. He spoke out to the news outlets, and on TV. Even when Drew’s lawyer threatened him with harassment, he still tried to get justice. It hadn’t worked. It took a pink ski mask and video to make people wake up. It was because a girl was behind it that people noticed. By definition we were weaker. Usually girls were the victims of such degradation, or guys did it to other guys. Occasionally girls did it to other girls, but hardly ever did girls do it to guys. I’d broken some kind of unspoken rule, and that’s what got me noticed. That’s what got Faceless involved. I was supposed to be the weak one, and so far my record was three for three.

  What was I going to do to Drew? No idea. Oh, I’d had all kinds of fantasies about what I’d like to do, but nothing that struck me as perfect. Hopefully it wouldn’t involve him punching me in the face, because a couple weeks had passed since he broke my nose and it was pretty much healed. I really didn’t care to get it broken again. He would probably get drunk—he usually did. That would make it easier.

  I tried not to think about the fact that regardless of what I did to him, it probably wouldn’t make a difference. I was never going to make him sorry, not really. I could humiliate him, get some payback, but no matter what I did he would never be sorry for what he’d done to my friend. He wasn’t capable of it.

  Maybe that was why I didn’t know what to do to him. You couldn’t make somebody who was incapable of feeling, feel sorry for anything.

  I agreed to call Gabe if anything happened. He insisted on parking not far from Drew’s house so that he would be close. I was going to the party with Zoe, Anna and Caitlin and their boyfriends. I had backup. The three girls—especially Zoe—had learned a lot in class. All of the girls had.

  My costume was simple—I was Harley Quinn. I’d considered going as the Pink Vigilante, but that might be seen as me baiting Drew, and I didn’t want to invite more trouble than I had to. The costume was snug, and revealed a little more skin than I liked, but it was extremely flexible. So, if I had to fight, my movements wouldn’t be restricted. It wasn’t like my costume was the skimpiest one there, either. There was a naughty nurse at the party, along with a slave Princess Leia and a sexy policewoman. There were other superheroes too. Zoe was Catwoman, and Anna was Black Widow. Caitlin was a vampire, but she was wearing leggings and sturdy boots. We looked pretty kick-ass.

  The problem with wearing snug clothing was that some guys took it as an invitation. Now, if a guy walked in dressed like Captain America, and he looked good in the suit, I would stare at him. I’m pretty sure I would admire his muscles and other...attributes. I couldn’t blame teenage guys for looking at my chest. However, I didn’t feel the least bit bad about jabbing hard in the throat the one who actually tried to touch me.

  Zoe stood beside me, drinking water from a bottle she br
ought herself. The four of us had made an agreement not to drink anything that was given to us. That was how Drew had gotten Magda. Soda that was still in the can was okay, and I helped myself to a Diet Coke. Thank God for the pop top—it was pretty much tamper proof.

  “Ugh,” Zoe said. “He’s dressed like a gangster.”

  I followed her gaze. There, surrounded by a crowd, was Drew. He wore a pinstriped suit and a fedora, and had a cigar clenched between his teeth. Obviously he’d gotten some of his fans back, because the crowd around him was bigger than it had been lately.

  At that moment Drew looked up, his gaze meeting mine. He smirked. I smirked back. The expression on his face was almost comical. He hadn’t expected that. Then I looked to his left and laughed. He turned his head, and I laughed a little harder.

  Two guys—and I could tell they were guys because the skin below the hem of their crop tops had hair on it—stood not far from Drew. They were dressed in drag—bad drag—but that wasn’t what made me laugh. It was the pink ski masks they wore beneath their Halloween-store wigs that made me incredibly happy. I pulled out my camera and took a picture just as Drew shoved one of them, his face flushed with rage.

  Everyone laughed at the guys—well, almost everyone. People were still laughing when Drew and his friends forcibly kicked them out. One grabbed at the door frame as they lifted him off his feet. His wig was only half-perched on his head as he shouted, “No man is a match for the Pink Vigilante!” Then his wig fell to the floor. Brody picked it up and threw it out the door.

  “Oh my God!” Zoe grabbed my arm. She was laughing so hard, tears threatened to ruin her makeup. “That was awesome.”

  “It was,” I agreed with a grin.

  Caitlin and Anna ran up to us. “What the hell was that?” Caitlin asked, laughing.

  “I think it was Corey Smart and Andrew Lawson,” Anna informed us.