Simply a Greaser

Chapter 39

I was almost asleep when Buck knocked on the door, yelling for me to let him in. I tried to block his voice out with a pillow, but he seemed louder than usual, so I shouted back, "Fine! Just shut the hell up for a goddamn minute!"

I rolled out of bed and pulled on a shirt, thanking god that Buck hadn't just walked into the room. It got hot in that stupid bar.

Opening the door, I saw two people that definitely were not Buck waiting on me. They were both cops with huge frowns, two men both a few years older than me. They were probably rookies sent on a shit job to clear up Bucks of underage drinkers, which happened around once a year or so.

"Oh, uh, sorry," I mumbled, opening the door all the way. I imagined how this encounter would have gone if I had been drinking. "What do you need?"

"Name?"

"Ava Winston." At the mention of my name, they shared a quick glance.

"Just the person we're looking for," one cop said happily. "I told Clay we should've checked here first, didn't I?" He asked the other cop who just rolled his eyes.

"Let's just take her in so someone who knows what they're doing can question her. I want to go home already."

The other cop nodded, then turned back to me. "Miss Winston, would you be opposed to going to the station for questioning on the whereabouts of Dallas Winston?"

"I don't care," I replied, stepping out of the room. "Just don't cuff me."

We walked downstairs where a bunch of teens sat lined against the wall, some cuffed and others free. Two or three cops watched them, a few more searching others. I scanned the faces, seeing Tim Shepard and a few of his gang in the middle, all cuffed and with sour faces.

Steve and Evie sat on the end, closest to the door. Steve had on cuffs and he was bleeding from his lip and forehead, but nothing too bad. Evie looked like she might kill him, looking away.

One cop ran off to tell someone they were leaving and the other wasn't paying attention to me, so I slipped away to talk to Steve. Evie didn't look like she wanted to be bothered.

"What's up?" I asked, standing in front of him.

He smiled. "Hey, you get special treatment from the fuzz now? Why don't I see you in cuffs?"

"Haven't drunk or fought. Why would I be?"

"You're a Winston. That's enough trouble right there. Where is Dally anyway?"

"That's what they're askin' me about now."

"They had a time lookin' for you. Showed up at the Curtis' earlier and gave Darry a heart attack. They took us all down to the station to ask some questions. Shit, we tried to call you here and Buck said you were out."

"They really went to the Curtis'? Did anyone get into any trouble?"

"Nah, but it looks like you're about to." Steve was looking over my shoulder. "If you see anybody before I get outta jail, tell them where I am. See you later, Ava," he said quickly.

I glanced behind me just in time to see one of the cops run up behind me. He grabbed my good arm and jerked it up, pulling out a pair of cuffs and slapping them on my wrist. I turned so he old reach my other wrist and he put the handcuffs on me. He put them on loose which meant they wouldn't make my wrists as sore.

"Don't try to run again!" he shouted right in my ear, just loud enough to make it hurt. I nodded, glaring at Steve as he laughed.

The cop shoved me out the door, throwing me into a car before his partner even got outside. He sat in the driver's seat for a good ten minutes before the other cop came out, apologizing.

They argued for a minute and I zoned out until I heard my name.

"Miss Winston? Miss Winston?"

"Yeah?"

"Can we ask you a question... off the books?"

"Sure." I didn't know where this was going.

"Are you over eighteen yet?"

"Nope."

One sighed, and the other held out his hand. One cop gave the other a ten and started the car.

I leaned forward, almost touching the bars that separated the person in the back from the cops in the front. "I didn't know cops could bet on people's ages... if they were legal or not."

"Off the books, Miss Winston."

"Which of you was so interested, anyway?"

The cop that was driving slammed in the brakes, and I flew forward, hitting my face on the bars. It was hard enough to give me a nosebleed and what would probably develop into a bruise. Sections of my face started to throb.

"There's a dog," the cop driving noted, looking at the road. "Sorry, Miss Winston. We'll get you an ice pack at the station."

I was walking out of the station with an ice pack held to my face. My nose had stopped bleeding about halfway through the questioning, but it was swelling. Some cop was leading me out to Darry's car. I felt bad having to call him, but I didn't know who else to call.

I was getting to leave early because they had caught Dally at Sylvia's house. I knew that there was something he'd done he hadn't told me, but I didn't know what. 

Darry was asleep in his truck, leaning back on the seat, snoring loudly. The cop said goodnight and left, going back to the station. I got into Darry's truck and shook him until he woke up. 

"Oh, sorry," he grumbled, starting the truck. He paused, looking at the ice pack I held to my face. "What happened?"

"Just don't worry about it. Thanks for gettin' me." 

He pulled out of the parking lot. "Did they find Dallas?"

"Yeah. He was at Sylvia's." 

Darry shook his head. "I know he has better spots to hide than that." 

"What'd he do to get into so much trouble anyways?"

"He got into a fight at the DX. Soda said that the cashier told him Dallas threatened the socs with a knife." 

"That idiot." 

We pulled up to his house and got out. "Hopefully the kids won't press charges." 

"He'll have to spend time in jail either way," I muttered, walking through the front door.