Dark Passions

Chapter Thirty-Eight

I froze at the voice, knowing only one person to call me by that name. Black's body was pulled off of me, and I saw Drake standing over me with a lopsided smile on his face. I was speechless. How did Drake get all the way here? Wasn't he supposed to be in the asylum? 

"D-Drake," I stammered as he picked up Black's body with ease. "How did...?"

"Asylum's are so boring," replied Drake as he tossed Black's body onto a boat. He looked over his shoulder at me. "Being around you is always filled with some type of adventure." He walked over and knelt down, studying my wounds. "Man, you must have really pissed him off, didn't you?" He tore off strips from the bottom of his blue jeans and wrapped it around my thigh and calf to cut off the circulation. Once finished, he looked me in the eye and smiled warmly. "Sorry I was late, bunny."

"You...you shot Black?" I asked, my eyes widening. Drake snorted a laugh.

"He was wide open," he said with a shrug. "Never saw it coming. I believe that's what you call a blind side." He looked over at the boat. "Don't worry; Garrison will be here shortly to collect the body. No one should find it before they arrive."

"Garrison knew?!"

"No, he didn't." Drake held up his cell phone with a cocky smirk. "He's helping the police find an escaped convict. I called him, and I'm leaving my phone here so they can track it. He'll figure out what happened. I mean, I did tell him I was about to kill someone." Drake tossed the phone over to the boat.

"Hang on, how did you know?" Drake laughed again.

"Better not ask questions, bunny. You won't like the answers."

"You didn't..." I began and he started laughing.

"No, no, bunny, I didn't. I am just really good at gathering information. Speaking of which, I heard you had little Stevie flustered in court. I'd ask him about it, but he has a hole in the side of his head right now. Don't think I'd get much more from him." Drake gathered me in his arms and stood up before looking me up and down. "You're going to get blood all over my shirt though."

"It's a sleeveless. It's barely considered a shirt," I joked as he turned and walked down the pier. Drake said nothing, but continued to smile. I looked back over his shoulder, the image of Black's lifeless eyes still imprinted in my mind. I turned back around, and glanced up at Drake. "Thank you, Drake." Drake didn't reply as he walked down the path. I leaned my head against his chest, for once feeling safe. I could not wrap my head around the fact Black was gone. It didn't seem possible. Drake blew away all fears of the future—literally. I didn't know what I was going to be doing next.

Drake carried me all the way to the parking garage and to another car. He didn't speak, and his grip was gentler than before. He carried me like I was something fragile, something that might break at any moment. He gently set me in the passenger's seat, and smiled at me. I returned his smile, and at this, he turned away.

"Drake?" I asked.

"I did check on your mom." My breath caught, and when Drake refused to look me in the eyes, I knew she didn't make it. "She was a brave woman. I know where you got it from now."

"More stubbornness than anything," I answered quietly. We sat in silence for a moment before Drake broke it.

"With Black gone, what are you going to do?" he asked, locking his eyes with mine.

"Um..." What would I do? It seemed I hadn't had a real life in so long, getting back into the groove would be hard to do. "Maybe...return to school. Or find my dad." Drake huffed.

"I suppose that's a start," he said. I hesitated for a moment, then asked the same thing.

"What are you going to do?"