get all Iâm a rebel on me, then Iâd just have to see it through.
Suddenly, his phone chimed as it vibrated on the dashboard. Both of our gazes flashed to the blinking screen.
âAnswer it,â Cam said.
âYou know,â I said, nodding at the phone. âItâs dangerous to keep a loose device on the dashboard. It could cause a serious injury if we were in a dangerous accident. But then again, itâs the quickest way to reach it, if not on this middle compartment thing here.â I felt myself beginning to blab â but I couldnât stop. I desperately tried to stop my stupid mouth from moving, but sadly it couldnât be done. âI think this situation is why they invented this middle compartment. It makes sense if you wanna put CDs or phones or drinks orââ
âCan you just shut up and answer my phone?â Cam spat at me.
My gaze flashed on him and widened. He was staring at me with blazing white-gray eyes.
Not wanting to anger him any longer, I reached for his phone with shaky hands. What had I gotten myself into? Iâve never been treated so harshly by Cam in my entire life. Including the time when I accidentally shaved off his eyebrows! Now he was getting mad at me because I wouldnât answer his stupid phone? What gives?
As I touched the screen, a text flashed repeatedly. It was from someone named âBoss.â Did Cam have a job or something?
âItâs a text message,â I said in a dull voice.
Cam sighed. âWhat does it say?â His fingers clenched the steering wheel as he sped down the highway.
Dutifully, I opened the text message.
He wants some money from Pedro , the text read. Get him some .
Money? Why would his boss want some money? Was it possible that his boss wanted him to come into work and, I donât know, work? Or was it something as ridiculous as robbing a bank?
âYour boss wants some money,â I said, air-quoting around the word money .
Cam stared at me for a long time. Apparently not believing me, he grabbed his phone from my hand and looked at it himself. Once he saw the text, a flash of recognition crossed his face. He tossed the phone back on the dashboard and stared straight ahead.
As we drove, I made sure not to say another word. I really didnât like being the butt end of Camâs hostilities. Just this morning weâd been laughing and talking. Now he was bossing me around and calling me pet names. If he were my boyfriend, I wouldnât have minded those names, but laced with amusement and annoyance in his tone, I didnât much like the pet names at all. Or the way he kept snapping at me.
It was only when we drove into a dark, wet alley â cliché but true â did my heart beat quicker. Cam stepped out of the car and headed down the long, narrow passageway.
âWhere are we going?â I asked, jumping out of the car and going with him. Yes, yes, I know I'm screaming to myself, " Are you crazy? Stay in the car!" But it was scary sitting in an expensive car in the middle of nowhere in the dark with creepy gang members huddling at the street corner. I was much safer with Cam even if he werenât acting like himself.
Cam shot me a look of pure annoyance. âGet out of here or you will get hurt.â His words were like an icy whip, slashing at me with an incredible force.
A normal person would take the hint and run. I mean, a crazy person wouldâve been outta there in no time. But I stayed where I was, not knowing if I were out of my mind or just plain stupid. âNo,â I said simply.
Cam actually growled and then bolted back at me. He skidded to a stop, inches away from my face. Clenching my neck into his strong grip, he pulled me closer to him and growled again. I let out a tiny squeak.
âYou must be mentally retarded or just plain insane if you think Iâm gonna let you come with me in here,â he snapped through clenched teeth. âYou get
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