SUCCUMBING SALVATORE

cut the tension with a knife

~chapter 21~

Grayson switches the engine of the car off and taps his hands against the steering wheel.

"I'm not planning to kill you Cara" he snorts and I roll my eyes taking off my seatbelt and I open my door

"Why have you took me to an abandoned building" I say and he ushers me to follow him past the burnout cars and rows of rusty motorcycles.

"Come on, I just want you to meet my friends" he says taking my hand in his and i look over his shoulder to see a man with tattoos smoking.

"Yo Jared, this is Cara" says Grayson and the Jared guys nods curtly at me before taking a drag from his cigarette

"He doesn't speak much" he says and I nod trying not to feel creeped out by this place, "you know about my motorcycle gang friends right?"

"Oh yeah, I see you with them sometimes" I say stepping over a piece of broken glass and he tugs me closer to him as he opens a metal door

"Come on" he says and we walk down a hallway which has flakey paint on it and a distinctive smell of oil and cigarettes.

He opens another day and we come into a more clean room which has a bar at the other end of it and a large pool table.

"You're part of a gang?" I ask him and he shrugs taking out a cigarette and shrugs, "sort of, I don't so drugs but I take part in the motorcycle part" he says

"They're are drug dealers here?" I ask him in a hushed tone and he shrugs again and smirks at me, "not all of them are, Jared and a few others are"

"Right..." I say looking around the dark room and I look behind the bar to see an older woman watching me as she pours a glass of scotch

"That's Mary, she's nice, makes the best bacon breakfast" he smiles at her and she nods at us both with a twinkle in her eyes

"She's like my second mom. If my parents knew I was here they would kill me" he laughs, "Mary's a bit more cool than my mom" he jokes

"What does your mom do?" I ask him and we walk to the bar together, he looks at me as he sits onto the barstool next to a guy in a leather jacket.

"She's a lawyer, my dad is a doctor" he says and I nod hoping he doesn't ask me what mine do, I'm not in the mood to tell him my tragic life story

"Cool" I say and we both look up as Mary comes over and smiles at me, "hi Grayson, who's your friend" she asks and he smiles

"I'm Cara" I say shaking her hand and she nods winking at Grayson, "you're very beautiful my love" she grins and I blush

"Oh thank you" I smile and she nods wiping her hands on a dishcloth, "what can I get you two?"

"Just a Pepsi for me Mary, what would you like Cara?" He asks and I ask for the same thing, she nods and leaves us alone again.

"So what do your parents do?" He asks me swivelling around on his stool and I look up at him, "my parents are dead, my Uncle looks after me"

Might as well burst the bubble of truth

"Oh I'm sorry Cara" he says taking my hand and then he smiles standing up, "game of pool?" He chuckles and I roll my eyes