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She sighed. No, he didn't have to tell her to choose someone. She screwed things up for herself enough that he wouldn't get the chance to.
"What are you frowning about?" Jezebeth asked. "Is it because I'm inviting Dexter's boy toy over, but I'm not asking about yours?”
Mykie almost choked on her saliva. Oh, how close she was to the truth.
Jezebeth continued, seemingly believing she was choking over the comment directed toward her. “Don’t think I don’t have comments saved up after I let the one into the apartment earlier!”
"He's not my 'boy toy'," Dexter muttered.
"It's best to leave the boys to their own devices right now. Renly's not too happy with me as we speak," Mykie said, hoping to pull the attention away from Dexter.
"Why? What happened with Loverboy?" Jezebeth asked.
Mykie proceeded to tell her best friends about the last twenty-four hours or so. From the dinner where she told the last of the boys about being a part of the Cantil to her disaster meeting at Harper and Co., before finishing with only hours ago when she was told to leave Renly's house. She left out the parts about Ryker and especially the breakfast with Zack. They would think she was crazy for sitting and hearing him out.
"But did you do it?" Jezebeth asked around a bite of pizza. She was referring to Earl Harper's murder.
"If I had done it, do you think I would stand here and make up a story about Vultures taunting me about it?" Mykie asked in an exasperated tone.
Jezebeth rolled her eyes. "I just wanted to make sure."
"I just have a question before you continue," Noah said sheepishly. "What's a Vulture?"
"They're a little less secretive than us," Dexter explained. "But there's a lot less that the public knows about them."
Jezebeth snorted. "That's because they use our name for anything illegal they do. They think they're all tough, but they're too chicken-shit to attach their own name to things."
"That's beside the point, all right?" Mykie said in a clipped tone. "All you need to know is that we're two different groups, and we're enemies. If you can, stay far away from them because they have no qualms to use and abuse anyone to get what they want. Their symbol is a bird and ours is a snake.”
Noah nodded. "I'll remember that."
"I still can't believe my father..." Jezebeth gulped. "That my dad would work with them. I thought I knew him better than that. Maybe if I would have pulled my head out of my ass and talked to him more, or maybe if Meredith and I were around more—"
"Shh," Dexter said quietly, catching her around the waist and pulling her into his side. "It's not your fault. Your dad made his own choices, both with the Vultures and how he handled being caught by Chance. You don't have to let those choices haunt you for the rest of your life."
She tucked her face into the side of his neck as she sobbed. "It's just so hard..."
"I know," he said quietly. That's all he had to say to her as he held her close and let her cry on his shoulder. Mykie knew that Jezebeth wouldn't get over it in just a matter of a week or two, but this was the first sign that Jezebeth gave that she was blaming herself for her dad's death more than him.
Mykie shifted from one foot to the other, suddenly feeling awkward watching the couple hold each other like their lives depended on it. She imagined that Noah was feeling it tenfold.
She waited until she caught Dexter's eye over Jezebeth's head before she gestured with her head out of the kitchen. Dexter took the hint and guided Jezebeth out of the room. It was likely that he brought her to her room so she could be alone and cry.
Mykie sighed and went over to grab two slices of pepperoni pizza. She came back over and pulled out a chair at the table across from Noah. "So much for a chance to get you two talking."
He set down the wing he had in between his fingers. "Do you think he'll be with her for the rest of the night?"
"Honestly, I don't know. It all depends on whether Jezebeth wants him around. It's a high probability that it's a 'yes', though." Mykie tilted her head. "You know what we deserve? A couple of drinks to wash away today."
Mykie stood up and grabbed the bottle of Vodka Jezebeth had bought and stored in the fridge. She was betting on the girl forgetting if she finished it or not and just buying another one if she found it missing. Next, she grabbed two glasses from the cupboard over the counter.
"I don't know if this is a good idea," Noah protested weakly.
"Nonsense. What else are we supposed to do? Wallow in misery? Come on," she said, grabbing the two glasses and the bottle of alcohol. She ushered for him to follow behind her. "Bring the wings and paper towels, too."
She led him over to the abandoned board game and sat down in the space Jezebeth vacated. She took the two glasses and filled them to a decent amount each. "How about we pick up where they left off, and whoever loses money takes a drink? Sound good?"
Mykie held one of the glasses out to the nineteen-year-old. She could see the indecision in his eyes, but with a little shake of his head, he took the glasses from her hand and sat down.
