The Berserker

Chapter 9

He was drunk. That much I recognized. The question was what should I do? I couldn't hurt him extensively, not with so many others watching. I just wanted him to stop. Grabbing his jaw, I squeezed his face tightly pushing him away.

"Satisfied?" I asked narrowing my eyes at him.

Jack laughed in his drunken state, and I wiped my mouth letting him go. "That's funny?" I got up grabbing my empty can of pop walking to the lake. I submerged it filling it with water and walked back.

"Atla ... what are you doing?" Chelsea asked unsure.

"Waking him up," I replied covering his eyes. I poured out the cold water on his head, and Jack gasped in shock and then yelled. I smiled dumping the rest of the water into the sand. "How's that for funny?"

"Ahh hah," Jack continued to gasp starting to shake. The rest of the group was stunned before Damon burst out laughing.

"Ooh ha ha. Damn! Atla's good. Dude props to you for taking initiative, but damn Atla is tough."

Carmel grabbed him a towel to dry off, and I remained standing. They found it funny, but I didn't. I started to walk away needing a place to calm down.

"Hey, where you going?" Damon asked.

"I'll be back. I need to make a phone call," I answered coming up with an excuse.

"Is she okay?" I heard Carmel ask as I walked away. I didn't stick around long enough to hear anyone's response.

Where I was walking I had no clue, but I knew my way back. The only reason why Giacomo wasn't knocked out bleeding from his nose is because he's Chelsea and Maya's friend. The fact that I didn't prevent him from touching me like that frustrated me even more. Pulling out my phone, I opened it to Peyton's number, but my thumb hovered over the dial icon.

Wasn't I just making a big mess out of nothing? This wasn't something I had to tell him.

I shut off my phone, and put it in my back pocket. I smiled wryly. Letting HIM control me even when he's dead, how pathetic am I?

Footsteps sounded behind me, and I scoffed. They stopped, and I turned to face Justin.

"What do you want?" I asked coldly.

"I'm checking up on you. Earlier in the lake, you didn't look too good," he replied putting his hands in his pockets.

"I'd prefer not to interact with you and your boys outside of the jobs," I told him walking past him.

"Why did you stop? Stop doing jobs I mean." Justin asked me, and I stilled looking over my shoulder at him. Sneering, I closed the distance. "How old are you?"

"I'm twenty-three."

"How long have you been doing this?"

"Three years. Why?" Justin shifted slightly uncomfortable.

My wry grin got bigger. "Then you haven't reached that point."

I turned away bored with this conversation. Justin was still a kid. In fact, all four of them were.

Justin followed behind me closely asking, "What point?" and I laughed. "The point between sanity and insanity. When you reach that point, then you can come ask me why I stopped kid."

"I'm older than you," Justin stated with a matter of a fact voice.

"Kid, your number of years is lacking."

He didn't say anything else as the group came back into view. I received some inquiring looks and ignored them.

"Everything alright, Atla?" Maya asked standing next to me. She wasn't hiding her concern very well.