One Tiny Secret

Chapter Twenty Five

By the time I arrive at The Brick House, I’m already fifteen minutes late. Damn. Parking in the first spot I see, I rush from the car, only to find there’s a line leading up to the entrance. As I wait, I hear the band playing one of my favorite songs, and I grumble to myself.

Reaching the front of the line, the bouncer checks my driver’s license and Sharpies the back of my hand with a big fat X so everyone inside knows I’m a minor. I murmur my thanks before heading into the club.

This place is a huge step up from Larry’s bar. It has a very trendy feel to it with red-bricked walls that have been spray-painted by local graffiti artists. The house lights are low since the band is on stage, but there’s a lot to love about the look of this place. One of the big differences between The Brick House and Larry’s is this bar is clean. Thankfully, it’s warm inside, which means I can ditch the sheriff’s jacket.

There’s a variety of costumes on display, but I notice something strange. Numerous people are wearing black-and-red skeleton hoodies along with a bright red skull mask. I guess I missed the morbid memo on that one.

“Do you want a red reaper costume?” a guy just inside the club asks.

“What’s that?”

He shows me a plastic bag that contains the hoodie and mask. “It’s for people who didn’t come in a costume.”

“No thanks, I’ll stick with the one I’ve got on,” I reply.

“Suit yourself,” the guy states before asking the person coming in behind me the same question.

“Dani? What are you doing here?” someone in one of the skull hoodies asks, coming up beside me. The person’s voice is muffled behind the cheap-looking plastic skull, so I can’t really tell who it is. Parker pulls back the mask, which is actually attached to the hoodie, revealing his face.

“I might ask you the same question.”

He laughs. “This bar is right around the corner from my school. Where do you think us college students go? Besides, I saw your friend’s band was playing here tonight and decided to stick around.”

“I called you earlier, but you didn’t pick up,” I say with an eyebrow raised.

“My reception sucks in here. I hope it wasn’t anything important,” he says.

“Not really. My car just broke down on the way here, and I was stranded, which is why I’m late.”

“Ah, shit. I’m sorry. Is everything okay now?”

“Yeah, everything’s peachy,” I answer in a mocking tone.

“Hey, let me buy you a drink. I know it won’t make up for it, but it will at least calm the nerves,” he says, placing his hand on my arm.

I laugh, showing him the Sharpie X on my hand and shrug. “I’ve been branded.”

“Don’t tell me that’s really going to stop you.”

I flash him a mischievous smile. “Probably not, no.”

He grins. “Pumpkin ale? They have it on draft.”

“Sure, what the hell.”

“That’s what I’m talking about,” he responds, taking the sheriff’s jacket off my hands before he drifts into the crowd toward the bar.

When I hear the band queuing up for their next song, I wade through the sea of people in the direction of the stage. The closer I get to it, the more I notice that a lot of people are wearing those red reaper costumes. They all look like members of some creepy cult.

I laugh to myself when I notice Alex and her band mates wearing the same skeleton spandex outfits they did at Gunnar’s party. I bet Alex fought tooth and nail not to wear that out in public again. I’m relieved to see her having fun on stage and not in any danger. I try to yell out her name to get her attention, but the beginning of the song drowns out my voice.

Looking around at the crowd, I see I’ve been completely surrounded by people dressed in those hoodies. It’s like I’m being walled in by them and they’re closing in on me. I’m not usually claustrophobic, but the heat from all their bodies is beginning to have an effect on me. Not to mention their getup is giving a serious case of the wiggins.

I back up and a few people fill in the space I leave in front of me. I continue to move back, squirming my way through the mass of bodies that has corralled around the stage. Bumping into someone, I stop and begin to turn around to apologize, but the person grabs me by the waist and pulls me into their arms.

“Easy, Dani. It’s just me.” I hear the person’s muffled voice as I’m presented with a cup of beer. It sounds like Parker, but I can’t see his face because he has his mask pulled down. He begins to sway back and forth to the music, not quite matching the rhythm of the song.

“Why are you wearing that, Parker?” I ask, taking the drink from his hand.

“Don’t you like it?” he inquires, beginning to feel around my waist, leading down to my right leg. He’s definitely not being shy right now.

“Seriously, Parker?” I ask, moving his hand away when it gets dangerously close to my inner thigh. I feel him tense after my rejection, releasing a breathy groan close to my ear.

His hands come up and clasp gently around my shoulders. “You’re killing me in that outfit. You know that?”

“Quit being so dramatic. And I thought we were slowing things down.”

“I didn’t agree to that,” he says, sliding his gloved fingers gently up and down my neck.

I can’t lie and say I hate this feeling, because I don’t. I just dislike that we’re in public, causing me to feel quite exposed and a little dirty. The moment he starts maneuvering those digits down my shirt, I smack his hand.

“Parker, what’s gotten into you?” I start to turn my head, but he stops me, forcing me to keep looking forward. His grip is tight around my neck and chin as he grinds his pelvis hard into me. I release a small moan and want to pull away, but feel incapacitated.

“Parker, you’re hurting me,” I whine under the pressure of his hand. My breathing becomes labored as he puts more force into his grip, squeezing my windpipe. I start to feel lightheaded from the restricted airflow, and my drink slips from my fingers as they go numb. As it crashes onto the floor, I grab for Parker’s hand and try with all my might to tear it away from my throat.

“I’m not Parker,” he whispers. The music and crowd noise are muffled, but I hear his voice clearly right next to my ear. “Do you think this is how Mr. Whitman felt as the fumes filled his lungs and he suffocated?”

Terror surges through me at the sinister tone in his voice. My scared eyes meet Parker’s when I see him making his way through the crowd, drinks in hand. I try to scream, but nothing comes out except a high-pitched wheezing sound.

“Hey, what the f*ck do you think you’re doing?” I hear Parker yell in our direction, pushing through the mass of people, trying to hurry over to us.

“See you soon, Dani,” the person says close to my ear, then lets me go.

I release a cough as I slump to the floor, trying to catch my breath. I feel someone grab me and I look up to see Parker’s worried face in front of mine.

“I think…that was Unknown,” I choke out between wheezes. Before I have a chance to say anything else, Parker dashes away in hot pursuit.

There’s a break in the music followed by a rowdy reception. The cheers are deafening within this small bar and I worry I might be trampled if I don’t get up soon.

It takes me a minute to realize I’m kneeling in my spilt beer. The cold, wet feeling on my knees causes me to roll back and rest on my calves. As the crowd settles, I notice everyone in my immediate area is staring at me. A couple of people even ask if I’m okay. How exactly am I supposed to answer that when none of them saw what happened?

I pick myself up off the ground, and the instant I make it to my feet, hands grab the sides of my arms.

“Are you all right?” Parker asks, trying to catch his breath.

“Did you catch him?”

“No. The bastard’s fast. I lost him in the alley behind the bar. Wait—Unknown’s definitely a ‘him’?”

“Yeah. At least, the voice sounded like a guy’s.” I pause, looking dejectedly into his eyes. “I thought he was you.”

“F*ck. I’m so sorry, Dani. I should have been with you.” He cups my face in his palms and strokes his thumb across my cheek.

“He had me in his hands,” I whisper and hear my voice shake. Parker wraps his arms around my frame and hugs me close. He doesn’t say anything, but continues to hold me.

“Parker Reed.”

I hear Alex’s voice sound behind us. I can tell by the level of snarkiness in her tone that she’s not happy to see him.

“Hey, Alex,” he replies, but sounds puzzled by the way she said his name. I back away from Parker’s embrace and turn to face her.

“Huh, definitely didn’t see this one coming,” she laughs to herself, but I sense there’s some dissatisfaction behind that statement.

“This isn’t what it looks like,” I respond, and I’m met by Alex’s quirked eyebrow. Her judgmental eyes are quite the ball-breaker.

“Hold on, I’m confused here. What isn’t what it looks like? Because I thought I was just helping a friend who had too much to drink,” Parker replies, sending me a knowing glance.

Alex rolls her eyes, seemingly over the conversation. “Did you guys at least enjoy the show?”

“Yeah, it was great.”

“You didn’t see it, did you?” she asks.

“No, we did. You guys rocked it,” Parker says, but he sounds even less convincing than I did.

“Well, thanks for coming out, anyway.” Alex grabs me in a hug. “You, me, conference later, okay?” she whispers. Then she pulls back, a forced smile on her face. I know she wants to talk about why I’m still messing around with Parker. If only she knew what was really going on.

“Definitely.”

“Parker, always a pleasure,” she states, waving lazily at him with a squinty-eyed smile.

He smirks. “Feeling’s mutual.”

“Riiiight. Well, I’m going to grab a drink with the band. Do you guys want to tag along?”

“I think I’d better get Dani home. She sipped on a few too many of my beers.”

“Yeah, I feel completely blitzed,” I say after sending Parker a quick scowl.

Alex’s eyes dart back and forth between Parker and me. “Riiiight.” She stops on me with a pointed stare. “Conference later.”

I feel the sting of her words like a jellyfish’s tentacle. “Got it.”

“So, that was sufficiently awkward,” Parker comments when he’s sure Alex is not within earshot.

“Yeah, she pretty much hates your guts for what you did to me.”

“Good to know for future interactions.” Turning his attention solely to me, he asks, “Why didn’t you tell her what just happened to you? You can’t keep avoiding that these things are actually happening.”

“I’m not avoiding what’s happening. I just don’t want to put anyone else in danger.”

“Don’t you think it’s more dangerous for people if you don’t tell them? I mean, you told me, right?”

“You were different.”

“How?” he asks, folding his arms in front of his chest while staring at me.

“I really don’t feel like getting into this, okay? I was just attacked by someone, and then grilled by one of my best friends about you. I think I may be a little overemotional at the moment.”

“But she didn’t say anything about me.”

“She’s a girl. She didn’t have to. We say a lot more with a glare than we do with just words.”

“You can say that again,” he murmurs.

“Anyway, I think I’ve had my fill for the night. And it seems like Unknown got what he wanted from me. So, I’m just going to go buy a souvenir T-shirt and head home.”

“I still owe you that drink,” he says.

“Fine, but I have to be home by midnight. Father’s orders.”

“Okay, but not here. There’s this cool little bar directly across the street from my school. It’s literally a block from here. I might be able to score us some free drinks since I know the owner,” he replies with inflection on the free drinks part.

“Free drinks are always good. Besides, if we stay, then Alex will know we lied to her, and I’d never hear the end of that.”

“All right, let’s grab your jacket from behind the bar and then we’ll head out,” he says.

“I’ll just wait for you here.” When I see his forehead crease after my response, I add, “I’ll be fine. Just hurry back, okay?”

“Are you sure?”

I release a hollow giggle. “Yeah, I’m sure. I can pretty much guarantee that if I go to the bar and we bump into Alex, we’ll never be able to get out of here.”

“Good point. I’ll be right back, all right? Don’t move,” he says before hurrying off.

I feel exposed standing near the entrance alone. Most of the activity in the club is around the bar or on the dance floor. The only other people here with me are a couple massively making out on the wall beside me, and the guy who offered me a costume earlier. I feel dirty thinking back to when Unknown had me in his arms and was trying to feel me up. I want to burn this costume and proceed to pour acid all over the places his gloves touched my bare skin.

The sloppiness of the kiss happening next to me is beginning to gross me out. It sounds like someone’s slurping up an ice cream sandwich that started to melt. I decide to move away from the wall and wait closer to the door for Parker to return.

I tense when I see several people wearing that red reaper costume approaching me. I have flashes of one of them grabbing me and dragging me outside kicking and screaming.

Snap out of it, Dani. Unknown is gone…Parker chased him off. After the last of the group passes by and out the door, I release the breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

“Sorry it took me so long, I wanted to change out of that stupid hoodie for obvious reasons,” Parker explains, coming up beside me with my jacket in hand.

“Thanks for doing that.”

“No problem. Ready to go?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

Parker holds the sheriff’s jacket open so I can slide into it. He quickly rubs his hands up and down my arms after I’m cozied up in the jacket to get me all warmed up before we head out into the cold. I can’t help but wish he was this attentive all the time.