Betrayal Codes

Chapter 23: Libby

Just when I thought this night couldn't get any worse, pickup line guy shows up. "What are you doing here?" I grumble, head in my hands. I'm so tired and my head is spinning. This has all been too much, too fast.

"I'm here to escort you lovely ladies out," he begins walking in our direction.

I hurry to stand up in hopes of avoiding any extra physical contact. "Please shut up," I squeeze my eyes shut. Nothing good is going to happen if he tries to crack any more of his gross jokes.

"Okay," he chuckles. "Just follow me."

I wiggle my fingers behind me, waiting for Shay's hand to find mine before I pull her up to stand. The guy takes a strong hold of Taylor and my arms, relying on me to keep a hold of Shay.

As we pass Aiden, Cole, and Tucker, Taylor puts her finger in their faces and leaves with one last threat. "I will hunt you down and you will pay. Mark my words." Then we're guided out the door.

Less than ten feet later, I feel a familiar hand on my shoulder. "Just give me a second," Cole tells our escort, pulling me away from the group. I go on high alert. I don't want to be near him.

"Libby," he turns toward me once they're out of earshot. "I want to explain. They told you the general story, but I want to tell you my side of it."

My head snaps in the direction Taylor and Shay are going, looking for a way out of this conversation. It's about fifty feet from here to there, but when I reach them, the pickup line guy will grab me again and Cole can catch up. My other option is the woods. Everywhere we go around here, there's a forest nearby. Luckily, here, the forest is right behind the mansion. It's only twenty or thirty feet and there's no one waiting to restrain me. And Cole can't catch up to me as easily.

"Look," he starts. "About what Tucker said..."

"No," I bite back. "Tucker said it all. You're a criminal, Cole. And I can't forgive that — I can't forgive you." I forgave him too easily, too many times. Now he expects my forgiveness, thinks we'll go back to how we were. All I do is forgive, forget, and move on. Wipe the slate clean, kiss and make up.

But I'm done being the forgiving girl. I know his true identity and it's not a good one. It's time to let him go.

I turn to leave, but he grabs my wrist and forces me to face him. "Don't you want to know the truth about the Band?"

"Of course! But I can't–"

"I'll tell you!" He shakes the arm he's holding. "Just stop trying to run and listen to me!"

They say curiosity killed the cat, and today, it might kill me, too, because I stop and listen.

"Peter started the Band around fifty years ago. He was young and wild. He and a group of his buddies went around committing petty crimes. One day, they met this other group of guys — this other gang — and got mixed up in a murder. The cops were after them, but they didn't want to be caught so they ran.

"They hid out in the woods for weeks that turned into months which turned into years. They had all the time in the world to reflect on the event and they decided — with their messed-up minds — that it was fun. Soon, they were committing crimes left and right, bringing together all these different gangs, and eventually, it turned into the Band of Crime.

"They developed a reputation and were hunted by the FBI, CIA, everything. But you knew that," he concludes.

"How did the kidnapping start?" I ask quietly, afraid of the answer.

"Well, while they ran around committing crimes, they slept with people, obviously. Some of the guys hung around in the area longer than others, so they kept in contact with the women they slept with. One day, a Band member heard from their one-night stand and she said she was pregnant. You can only imagine how that went down when he told Peter and the rest of the Band," he laughs darkly, not finding it funny at all.

"This was the first victim. They kidnapped the baby and, well, killed her," he explains regretfully. "They didn't want the child to grow up and start asking questions. After that one, the guys started keeping an eye on the women they slept with, keeping tabs on them so they would know if one got pregnant. If so, the Band would take the child and either kill her or raise him and make him a Band member."

It's not lost on me that he said the girls are killed and the boys live. "Why kill the girls and keep the boys?"

"The Band is completely male. They have no use for the girls."

"So..." my brain tries to comprehend this information. "So my father is part of the Band?"

Cole looks down at the pebbles on the pathway we're standing on. "Yes," he whispers. "Yes, he is."

My mouth opens and closes like a fish. My father... I clasp a hand to my mouth. I feel sick. I can hear my heart pounding in my ears and my stomach feels unsettled. I might literally be sick.

Cole sees the fear in my eyes and reaches out towards me. "Oh, Lib, I'm sorry." I pull away sharply.

I can't do this anymore. I have to go. I can't be here. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the trees lining the property, the darkness in between them. Safety.

So I turn toward the forest — towards safety — and I run.