The neon lights of the city began to glow as night settled in. Streetlamps flickered to life, the old bulbs buzzing. Car headlights lit up the roads; an expensive car with high beams would illuminate the sidewalks and the entrances to back alleys where there was no light, just garbage and potholes. At this hour, just after the sun had set over the mountains, every street looked the same. If one didn't know where they were going, it was easy to get lost. Despite the dark and the threat of getting lost in the cement maze, the streets remained busy with tourists and locals. Restaurants overflowed with music, laughter and delicious smells of dinner. Groups of friends gathered outside of bars, cigarette smoke drifting up towards the sky.
On a street much like all the others, people on the sidewalk stepped to the side, their brows furrowing with worry and confusion as a young boy stumbled past them, his right hand covered in dried blood, and torn gauze. His damp hair was a mess, his clothing still damp with pool water. His dark eyes on the sidewalk in front of him. Evan wasn't quite sure how he did it; how he got away from Brian. He remembered it as a blur; remembered running down the alley and down another street. He remembered looking back and seeing the black Cadillac and Ryan's car speeding after him. He remembered bullets flying past him. He had turned again, making his way down the small street. His lungs were burning, his cracked ribs aching with every breath. As much as he wanted to stop, Evan knew he couldn't; he was dead if he stopped.
Even if Brian didn't kill him, he may as well if he wanted to make him into a mindless killing machine. As he ran, the thought had occurred to him that he should have pulled the knife out of Jonathan's shoulder and kept it. With it, he could have slit Brian's throat and be done with it. The violent thought had caught him off guard; was he already the 'dangerous boy' that Brian wanted him to be?
Evan remembered finding himself on a street with three-story apartment buildings and climbing onto the nearest fire escape. He had climbed to the hot roof and collapsed to the cement, heaving for air. He must have passed out for when he came to, the sky was ablaze with colours as the sun began to set. He was sweating, his hand stinging uncomfortably. He had sat up, peeling back the gauze that was stuck to his palm. The blood was partially dried, but some of it was still like a thick dark goo that made it painful to pull the gauze back. The deep cut and the stitches looked angry, the skin around it red. "Fuck…" Evan had sighed. The image of blood in the clear blue pool water flashed through his mind and a sob instantly ripped through him. He cried till he couldn't breathe, till all he could do was stare at the city in front of him. It was only when he finally convinced himself enough that it was worth it that he got up and managed to climb back down. Then he started walking.
Now, Evan was certain he was lost. Nothing looked familiar. He was aware of people looking at him and his bloody hand. No one was going to say anything to him though, why would they? He looked dangerous. Evan found himself smiling a little at the thought.
"What's so funny, kid?" Evan stopped, turning to look at the group of men that were standing outside the bar he had just passed.
"Nothing." Evan said quietly.
"What happened to your hand?" Another asked.
"Nothing."
"Doesn't like nothing. What happened?"
"Nothing."
"Is that all you can say?" The first snapped, taking a step towards Evan. The street suddenly didn't seem as busy as Evan thought it was. "He asked you a question. What happened to your hand?"
"Nothing."
"Are you mocking me now?" The man snarled. Evan shook his head. He could smell the alcohol on him now that he had gotten so close. He shoved Evan, nearly sending him falling to the sidewalk. He grabbed the collar of his red jacket, dragging him into the alley by the bar. He pinned Evan to the wall, punching him hard in the face. Pain shot through Evan, forcing a cry of shock from him. The man's friends had followed them, cheering on their friend as he hit Evan again, and again. He finally let go of Evan, letting him drop to the pavement. He gasped for air, his head hurting. Blood streamed from his nose and a cut on his cheek from the ring on the man's hand. His vision blurred with tears. He managed to get up only to be punched hard in the stomach; the air pushed from his lungs. He collapsed again. The world spun around him. Rolling onto his stomach, Evan's blurry gaze landed on a metal pipe, the metal rusting and chipping. The man and his friends laughed and spit at him. Without realizing what he was doing, Evan's bloody hand curled around the rusting pipe as he pushed himself back up to his feet and swung with all his strength. Blood flew from the man's mouth as the pipe collided with his head. The man stumbled back, looking at Evan with shock as he swung again, sending him crashing to the pavement. As he went to swing again, the others grabbed Evan, punching him and grabbing at the pipe in his hand. Evan struggled, turning his head to bit into the arm of the man who stood in front of him as he reached for the pipe. Blood filled Evan's mouth as he bit down. The man screamed and pulled back. Evan spat skin and blood onto the pavement, taking the opportunity to run. This time, he didn't leave his weapon.
Keeping his head down, Evan was running again for the third time that day. His head spun, blood dripping down his face. His bloody hand holding the rusty pipe became slick with sweat and blood. A stitch had torn. He took turns at random. He was incredibly lost. He doubted that even in the daylight he would be able to find his way. He feared he'd just look monstrous in the light, bruised, bloody and damp from pool water; looking more like a drowned corpse than a living boy.
Stumbling around a corner, Evan stopped. Across the street was a chainlink fence and beyond it was the cement river bank. He let out a deep sigh. If Craig and the others were looking for him, they would look here; unless they already looked here. A jolt of fear went through Evan at the thought. Would they be looking for him? What if Jonathan already lied to them? They wouldn't be looking for him then...Unless they wanted to kill him.
In a panic, Evan ran across the road to the fence. He tossed the pipe over the fence, followed it. He left blood on the chainlink fence as he climbed it. He dropped painfully to the cement on the other side, falling onto his back and almost rolled down the bank. "Fuck!" Evan cried as he struggled to stop himself from rolling down the side of the bank. He came to a stop just before the small polluted river. His right hand stung painfully as he pushed himself back up, hurrying to get the pipe. He decided to stay down by the river, figuring it was the best place to be. No people, no open streets. He could hide here.
He kept walking beside the river, not sure where he was going. Maybe he'd find a map in the morning, but right now, he just wanted to find a place to lie down. Exhaustion was quickly catching up to him. A helicopter flew overhead. Evan looked up but it was too high to see any details. Lowering his head, he kept walking. No one was looking for him. Jonathan had framed him; why would they believe Evan? He was just some stubborn kid who didn't talk much. Jonathan was family. No one was looking for him.
His legs felt heavy. He could have sworn that he had lost feeling in his right hand. Exhaustion caused him to stumble multiple times. He took a deep, shuddering breath as he struggled to keep walking. He imagined himself walking all night. He imagined he would still be walking when the sun rose over the city. What else could he do? He was lost.
The sound of early morning traffic woke Evan. His body ached as he rolled to sit up, the cement scratching against his skin. He had collapsed under a bridge. His right hand was numb; the dirty gauze hanging limply from his wrist. Staring at it, he felt that it made him look like a zombie; a monster. The torn stitch and the dried blood made him wince. He knew if it wasn't numb, it'd hurt like hell. Pushing himself to his feet, Evan continued following the river. The sky overhead was beginning to lighten, the street lamps starting to flicker out one by one. He walked past a bouquet of flowers wrapped in red paper, the petals wilted and crushed. It must have been thrown away by someone.
Headlights suddenly blinded Evan. He lifted his bloody hands over his eyes. An engine roared. As the car got closer, he scrambled up the cement bank in an attempt to get away. Looking back over his shoulder, he saw a second car following the first. Praying they weren't there for him, he sprinted as fast as he could. The first car came to a screeching halt. Evan reached the fence but climbing it proved useless. He could barely close his right hand around the chain link. He fell back, losing his balance and collided with the pavement, once more rolling down the slope. He came to a stop near the first car, it's bright red paint now visible to Evan. Behind the red Ferrari, was a black and yellow charger.
"Evan!" Marcel's door opened. Evan pushed himself back up, heaving for air. The world spun. He watched Marcel and Daithi get out of the Charger. His gaze turned to the Ferrari as Craig got out, his hands up to show he was unarmed. Smitty also got out but he had a gun.
"I didn't do it!" Evan screamed, tears welling up in his eyes.
"Jonathan said you did." Daithi said sternly. Evan shook his head. He felt sick. He ran a hand through his damp hair, sweat dripping down his neck as tears spilt from his eyes.
"He's a liar!" Evan wailed. He wasn't sure why he was even bothering trying to convince them. It was useless, they wouldn't believe him. "He's been working with Brian for a long time! He manipulated me! He made me write down the code and he stole it! He has it! He shot Tyler!" The image of Tyler's body floating the pool flashed through his mind, bringing on new sobs. "I saw it happen! I didn't kill Tyler!" The world was starting to spin around him. He couldn't stop thinking about Tyler's bloody body and Jonathan pinning him down, wanting him to tell him something that he already knew and the picture Jonathan had taken of him, claiming him. "I didn't kill Tyler!" Evan stumbled forward, reaching his bloody hand towards Craig in desperation. "I saw him do it...I saw it happen." The world was spinning faster. Evan could hardly breathe. Everything hurt. He took another step and his legs gave out from under him. He collapsed to the cement, the world going dark before he felt the impact.
The red flowers around the pool danced in the strong wind. The sky was dark. Evan's gaze was on the bright blue water that rippled. A shadow moved behind him.
"You did this." Evan whispered. "I'll kill you." He turned to face Jonathan and the gun in his hand. Jonathan pulled the trigger. Evan staggered back, a look of shock spreading across his face. Jonathan pulled the trigger again, the gunshots echoing through the backyard. Shells fell to the pool deck. Evan fell into the pool, blood turning the water as red as his jacket. Arms wrapped around Evan, pulling him underwater.
"Take care of them for me." Tyler whispered.
Late afternoon light shone through the curtains. The window was open, letting in the breeze and the sounds of Los Angeles. On the bedside table was a small vase of yellow buttercups. Evan's dark eyes flickered open, his gaze on the white ceiling above him. He turned his head slowly, looking at the yellow flowers. Then his gaze moved to the pig mask on the dresser across the room; Tyler had left it behind. Tears welled up in his eyes. He forced the painful thought from his mind and sat up, wincing when he put pressure on his right hand. It had been cleaned and wrapped tightly in fresh gauze. Someone had changed him out of his dirty, wet clothes into warm, dry pyjamas. His red jacket and new clean clothes were folded neatly beside the mask.
Taking a breath, he sat up slowly. Every movement reminded him of the ache in his muscles.
"C-Craig?" Evan called out weakly. There was no answer. He pushed himself out of bed, throwing the heavy blanket off. He winced as he stood up, the ache almost overwhelming. He made his way over to his jacket, doing his best not to look at the pig mask. Beside the jacket was a neat pile of a folded towel, a wash cloth and an unopened bar of soap. Stuck to the soap was a bright yellow sticky note that said 'have a bath when you wake up; you'll feel better" in Craig's writing. Glancing at the door, Evan picked up the towels and soap and headed towards the door. The apartment was silent save for the faint sound of music coming down the hallway. He stepped into the bathroom and quietly closed the door, turning on the bright white light.
When the bath was full of hot water, he slowly sank into the water; his pyjamas in a pile on the floor. His skin began to turn red from the heat. His right hand wrapped in gauze hung limply over the side of the tub. He ran his left hand over the cut on his cheek and the bump on his cracked nose. The blood had been washed off his face. He dropped his left hand into the water, sinking deeper. Closing his eyes, he remembered falling and the bloody pool water splashing around him. He remembered struggling to turn and find his way out of the water. He remembered Tyler's body, the way his blonde hair had floated in the water and the hole in his skull. He remembered Jonathan's scream when the blade had sank into his shoulder and the blood.
He let out a shuddering breath.
Opening his eyes, Evan lifted his right hand, looking at the white gauze wrapped tightly around it. If Jonathan wanted to kill him, to break Tyler's family apart, then Evan would have to do something about it. He would kill Jonathan.
"Where is Jonathan?" Everyone's head turned to look at Evan who stood in the entrance to the living room. He wore the clothes that had been left out for him, his right hand curled around the red jacket.
"Not here." Smitty finally answered. "None of us have seen him since yesterday...Before Tyler…"
"I didn't do it." Evan said, making his voice as strong as possible. "Jonathan did it."
"Why?" Daithi demanded. "Why would Jonathan kill Tyler? He didn't hate him." Evan looked down, his left-hand curling into a fist.
"He never did, at least what we saw of him." Brock added.
"He was kind to you, Evan." Marcel pointed out. Jonathan didn't even have to be in the room; he had Evan trapped. Nothing he could say would make them believe him.
"Tell us what happened, Evan." Craig said. The others glanced at him, looking shocked and confused.
"Jonathan told us what happened. This kid's dangerous, Craig!" Daithi snapped. "You didn't listen to me when I said that we should have just left him!"
"I want Evan to tell us what happened." Craig demanded, his voice rising with anger. Evan stared at Craig with wide eyes. "That's why we went looking for him, Daithi! You want to know the truth too!"
"I do know it! He stabbed Jon! He shot-"
"Shut the fuck up!" Craig suddenly got to his feet, lunging at Daithi.
"Hey knock it off!" Smitty managed to get between them, shoving Craig back. "Daithi, just fucking listen to Evan! Craig, cool it. We all loved Tyler." Craig muttered something before sitting back down. "Just tell us what you can remember. We aren't going to do anything till we've heard your side of the story. Tyler would do that."
"It was this mansion up on the hill...I think it was Brian's." Evan finally said after a few moments of silence. "Tyler told me to wait in the car so I did. Then I heard a gunshot." His chest tightened, his voice broke. Grief crashed over him. He wanted Tyler back. He wanted him to be there, to tell them all that Evan was telling the truth. "I-I got out of the car...and went into the backyard of this house where Tyler had gone...There was a pool and so many flowers...Tyler's body was in the pool. Then Jonathan attacked me. He-He manipulated me before...He got me to trust him enough to write down the code."
"You what?" Craig cried.
"I didn't give it to anyone. He made it seem like I would feel better if I got whatever was upsetting me off my mind by writing it down! I put it in my jacket pocket and then it was gone!" Evan took a deep breath, tears falling down his face as he looked down at the floor. "I was in the office the day that we were shot at. I know Jonathan knows the code because it's his phone passcode. He left it in the office...and Brian called it."
"Did you answer it?" Marcel demanded. Evan nodded weakly. "Did you make a deal with him?"
"No."
"Why didn't you tell us?" Craig sighed. Evan parted his lips, wanting to tell them that he thought they wouldn't believe him but Marcel spoke up first.
"How can we believe you?" Marcel snarled. "You're still alive and Tyler's dead and the code hasn't been used. So how the fuck are we supposed to believe you? All of that makes it seem like you made a deal with Brian!"
"I didn't make a deal because I made a promise to Adam!" Evan suddenly cried. "Only Jonathan knows the code because he doesn't care about me or anyone else! He breaks his promises. He shot Tyler in the face. He and Luke, they tormented me...Jonathan wanted me to tell him and Brian the code...He wanted to make sure he got the numbers right. I refused...And Jonathan would have tortured me if I didn't stab him. I'm sorry, I took a knife from the office. I'm so scared of Jonathan." Evan fought back sobs. He glanced at Lui who sat on the couch, his empty gaze on the window across the room. Why wasn't he saying anything?
"It would explain Jonathan only wanting Tyler and Evan to go…" Brock suggested.
"Unless Evan is in on it too." Daithi crossed his arms.
"I'm not!" Evan cried. "I'm not! Please!"
"How did you get away?" Smitty asked. Evan took a breath.
"I ran."
"You ran away? No one shot at you?" Marcel's brow furrowed in disbelief.
"Brian caught up to me. He was there when Jonathan shot Tyler. He didn't want them to shoot at me...He simply asked me if I wanted to join him...And I said no." Evan said quietly. That wasn't entirely true, he hadn't said anything to Brian; just ran away. He almost felt ashamed. At the time, he hadn't wanted to listen to it, but now Brian's words wouldn't leave his mind just like the code wouldn't.
"He just asked you? Nothing else?" Craig asked with disbelief. Evan nodded.
"What else did he say?" Daithi asked.
"He said that he…" Shame turned Evan's face red. "That he likes me and wants me to work with him...He said that he would give me anything I wanted." He couldn't bring himself to ask if the other things that Brian had said, about Tyler and Craig, were true.
"Jesus…" Craig ran a hand through his hair.
"He also said that Jonathan wants to kill me." Evan added weakly. Lui looked up at him.
"Jonathan said you wanted to kill him." Marcel pointed out.
"Because he killed Tyler!" Evan yelled, making the others jump. "I didn't kill Tyler! I don't even know how to shoot a gun! I loved Tyler! Jonathan didn't! He lied! He lied to all of you! Why won't you believe me?" Sobs violently shook his shoulders.
"Because Jonathan said the exact same thing!" Daithi cried.
"Because we don't know you, Evan." Craig sighed, ignoring Daithi. "I want to believe you, I really do. But Jonathan is family...He's been there for us." Evan looked down, unable to stop the sobs. Not even Craig would believe him. "If you can prove to us that you're telling the truth...Jonathan only told us what happened too."
"How?" Evan whispered.
"He called me." Craig said. Evan felt sick. They were taking Jonathan's word, not even a face to face conversation, over his even though they had found him terrified and out of his mind with exhaustion and grief wandering along the river, clearly having experienced something traumatic.
"Can you prove it Evan?" Marcel asked. Evan glanced around the room, his gaze landing on Lui who was staring back at him, a strange expression on his face. "Cause if you can't…"
"I know this is hard, Evan but please. You have to try. I know you're a good kid." Craig tried to force a gentle smile but it disappeared.
"We should just have left him where we found him. He's been more trouble than good since Tyler dug him up out of the desert. Tyler's dead because of him now." Daithi cried.
"It's not entirely his fault." Smitty pointed out. "It was Tyler's choice to go alone with the kid." Lui got up, reaching for his phone on the table. Evan watched him.
"We don't know for sure if it was Evan who did it." Craig snapped.
"Do you think he did it, Craig?" Daithi demanded. Craig was silent, staring at Daithi.
"Evan." Lui suddenly spoke up; catching the other's attention. Lui's hand held his phone tightly. "Did Jonathan take a picture of you?" Evan's breath caught in his throat. He nodded.
"What?" Craig looked confused.
"That means nothing. Jonathan takes a lot of pictures of us." Marcel said. Lui shook his head and turned his phone to show them the picture that Jonathan had taken of Evan at the museum and the caption underneath. It was in a group chat of some kind, the names only symbols. Evan hadn't noticed that before when Brian showed it to him. Who else had his picture? "What the fuck?"
"What is this, Lui?" Daithi demanded. Smitty looked at it only for a few moments before looking away, a pale look on his face.
"You all know what me and Jonathan, even Smitty, did before we joined Tyler...This was how we collected our money. We take a picture once the job is done, post it and then got an e transfer or location of where to get the money from whoever was paying." Lui explained. "Here's your fucking proof. The kid isn't lying."
"That could just be because he killed Tyler!" Daithi sounded desperate.
"It's for the bounty Brian set on him!" Lui shot back.
"Did you know all along? How long has that picture been up? Can you take it down?" Craig was full of questions, suddenly getting to his feet. He took a step towards Evan then stopped, looking back at Lui who shook his head.
"I didn't know. I haven't checked this chat since I started working with Tyler. Jonathan and I promised we wouldn't look at this chat anymore, and he obviously lied. This is the first time I've looked at it...only because Evan said that Jon wants to kill him." Lui took a deep breath, his eyes watering. "I don't know how long this has been up...Probably since the day Tyler told Jonathan to keep an eye on Evan if I had to guess. And no, I can't take it down." Lui tossed his phone down onto the table, Evan's smiling face in the picture staring up at the ceiling.
"Evan's not dead though. Has he gotten the money for the code then?" Smitty asked as he sat down in one of the armchairs. Lui shook his head. "Then why did he post it?"
"It was Brian who put the bounty on Evan...He wanted him alive or alive enough to give him the code. But Brian doesn't have Evan obviously." Evan leaned against the wall, his eyes on the phone. He didn't care that they were talking about him like he wasn't in the room. All he could think about was finding Jonathan. His left hand gripped his right, putting pressure on the top of his hand. "But, apparently Jonathan has the code...He didn't tell Brian the code, did he?" Lui asked Evan who shook his head. "So he's just keeping it. And he's claimed the money on Evan's head without actually taking him to Brian or killing him yet." He noticed the confused expressions on everyone's face. "That means that no one is allowed touch Evan. Only Jonathan is allowed to kill him."
"Disturbing." Marcel said quietly, glancing at Evan who didn't meet his gaze.
"Very...Brian won't pay him...He doesn't have Evan." Lui took a deep breath, glancing up at the others. "Jonathan must have another way of getting the money." Evan didn't say anything, but the code's numbers spun through his mind. What if Jonathan was going use the code somehow?
"What's it for?" Evan suddenly asked, surprising the others and himself. "What is the code for?"