Yves Garland

Yves Garland opened and closed his clammy hands to stop them from getting numb. They tingled, the blood rushing away from his fingertips due to the stress and anxiety. The cool desert air drying his sweat made him more uncomfortable, and a bit nauseous too. It was weird he was sweating when he wasn't doing anything.

He was only sitting at the back of Grayson's pickup truck, hugging his knees to make himself as small as possible so Miles dancing like an idiot wouldn't accidentally snag him. Barely moving so they wouldn't notice him. If they weren’t thinking of him, they wouldn’t make fun of or force him to do anything moronic.

I'm not doing anything here.

Nothing at all. Just following along with whatever Grayson and the others told him to do. It was their fault if anything bad happened.

His fellow first-year and long-time friend, Tahir, had assured him several times this was normal because they were new members. Hunker down and ride it out, his best friend constantly told him whenever he noticeably wavered during their application process. Pledging was only gone on paper; everyone knew that. As long as they were freshmen, they were considered lower-class fraternity members even if they were already called ‘brothers’.

That was just it.

Think of the benefits later on, was another thing Tahir repeatedly mentioned, and the connections.

Benefits of being a criminal? Yves wanted to yell at his best friend earlier while they argued about what to do when Grayson and the others were about to fight the old men trying to stop them from harassing the ladies at the diner.

Should they have held back their fraternity brothers?

Obviously, yes. The three of them agreed on that.

But no one wanted to do it. The confident and well-built Tahir wouldn't dare to lift a finger against their seniors, concerned about his future standing in the brotherhood. Lee, who was very close with Miles and Bridger, didn't want to try convincing them to stop, fearing that they'd think he was lame and weak. As for Yves, what was he supposed to do if Tahir and Lee didn’t want to move?

I’m such a coward…If only I’m like Tahir—no, he was also scared to do something…anything…Yves closed his eyes as he remembered the scenes during the incident at the diner.

If Enrico didn't arrive at the diner on time, who knew what these guys would've done to the old men? To those two ladies?

Yves knew the answer to that.

He knew what could've happened because he had heard of the rumors about Grayson’s past, rumors that were likely true as Lee had told them. Miles and Bridger weren't saints either when it comes to women. Their three seniors would clobber the old men and probably force themselves on the women. And they'd call on Yves and the two other first-years to join them.

What would I do if that happened?

Likely nothing. Probably just follow orders.

What about now?

Yves tried to stop himself from vomiting as Tahir drove Grayson's truck off the road, heading to what appeared to be an abandoned gas station with a convenience store on the side.

The blue car the two ladies drove was parked in front of the rotting store. He couldn't understand why they went here. Didn't they notice that they were being followed? Yves feared what Grayson and the others would do to them in this isolated place.

I should stop them this time. His rapidly beating heart already told him he wasn't going to follow that thought.

This was supposed to be an uneventful drive to Las Vegas for the Greaves Technology Fair. Four hours ago they were all hanging out in their frat house at EFU Campus, having a small party with their affiliated sorority. Their sisters were leaving because it was already late, but Grayson complained loudly that he was bored. Bridger, his right-hand man, with the signature goatee twirl he did whenever he came up with what he thought was a great idea, suggested they all go to the Fair since they didn't have any classes for the week.

An impromptu road trip, an exciting and safe idea that Yves thought he might actually enjoy something with his new brothers. Furthermore, he was excited to visit the Tech Fair. Every year he'd always go there with his parents on the weekends.

But with the Adumbrae incident, they scrapped all their plans until the situation calmed down. He was supposed to stay in his rented apartment near the campus while his classes were canceled—his parents made him promise that. They didn't know he was staying at the ACO fraternity house; they didn't even know he joined a frat. And they also didn't know he had left La Esperanza and was on his way to Las Vegas.

Grayson's group decided to leave at that moment, hoping there was less traffic at the checkpoint and also wanting to enjoy driving through the desert in the dark. Enrico thought that was a good idea and said he'd follow them too; he was just waiting for another one of their brothers to arrive.

And it was good luck that Enrico did catch up to them. Actually, it was incredible luck that he knew where they were.

Did someone text Enrico? The thought crossed Yves' mind. That was the only explanation Enrico would stop at a random diner; he couldn't have spotted Grayson's truck if he was just cruising along the road. And when he entered the place, it was as if he already knew that Grayson was about to do something stupid again. Was it Tahir? Or Lee? Why didn't I think of trying to contact Enrico?

Yves stared at his cellphone screen. The upper right portion showed there were no bars. They were so far out in the middle of nowhere that no signal could reach them. With that option gone, he prayed that Enrico was racing after them at this moment.

While they were gathered outside Mr. Beefy's Diner, Enrico told Grayson—could probably even consider it strictly ordered—to wait for him while he went back inside. Bridger explained to them first-years that Enrico was going to check if there were any CCTV cameras. He'd also order food and leave an enormous tip, and maybe also try to pay off the two grandpas as an apology. Not only was it to smooth things over, but Enrico's main goal was to take names and details in case the police were going to be involved later on.

It seemed to Yves that this wasn't the first time this happened. Lee's stories about Grayson's past became more of the truth rather than rumors.

Enrico should be really angry right now, Yves thought. He should be looking for them after they ditched him when he entered the diner. But would he notice them here at this gas station a bit of a way off from the side of the road? Probably not. "What if I just walked away?" he whispered to himself.

"What'd ya' say?" Miles said, combing back his bowl cut that Lee always trash-talked behind his back.

"Nothing," Yves muttered. If he did walk away, where would he go? He could walk back to the diner and then call some of his friends for an extremely huge favor to pick him up. That was better than being here with these guys and getting entangled in something illegal.

He really didn't want to know what these guys would do to those two girls. Thoughts of helping them barely had a space in his mind as he didn’t even dare to help himself.

They reached the gas station. Tahir parked the truck on the other side of the pumps and not near the girls' car. Yves would like to think that his best friend had some sanity left in him and did it so the girls would notice their approach, giving them a chance to hide.

He still couldn't understand why they went here. Maybe they thought they'd find some help here like at the diner? But it was obvious this whole dump had nobody around.

If there was a time to say 'no' and leave the group, this was it. As he jumped off the right side of the truck and his feet touched the gravel-strewn ground, he knew in his heart that there was no way he could simply walk out on them.

"Should I just keep the truck running?" Tahir asked.

"Yeah!" Grayson said as he jumped out. "And don't turn off the fucking headlights. It's as dark as Bridger's ass here."

"How would you kno—ah! That time with the whores at brother Gio's bachelor's party? Why are you looking at my ass?"

"Oomph!" Miles tripped over something, probably a rock, and tumbled to the ground. "Argh, blasted crap! Lights! Enough of that ass talk and lights...phones...phone lights!"

Everyone except Yves laughed at Miles spitting out dirt as Lee helped him stand up. Then they all turned on the flashlights of their phones to see where they were at.

"Creepy ass place if you ask me," Bridger said, stroking the long goatee that he was proud of.

The gasoline station looked like it hadn't been used for more than fifty years. Only a few patches of dirty paint were all that were left covering the pumps and the roof overhead. Even the graffiti sprayed on the pumps was peeling off. Rust covered most of the metal sheets on the roof, reminding Yves of dried blood in this dim light.

"No one asked you," Grayson snapped. "Now, where did Blondie and her twig of a friend go?" A loud creak that echoed through the night over the loud noise of the truck's engine made them all look at the store. With Grayson leading the way, they all trooped to it, stopping for a few seconds to make sure no one was inside the girls' parked car.

"This place gives me the nasty vibes."

"It's just an old crappy building."

"Shut up both of you!"

As they stepped inside, they found four empty shelves running the length of the store—one of them had fallen on its side. There was dust and cobwebs everywhere. The windows had been boarded up by planks of wood. All of them entered. Grayson shined the light of his phone towards the end of the store. Someone stood there.

"Uwaah!" he let out a yelp that turned into laughter. "Fucking hell...It's just you, Twig Girl." That was what their group ended up calling the friend of the attractive blonde lady. "What are you doing here all alone?"

The girl with the slightly wavy long black hair was petite, but Yves wouldn't call her a twig. From her pale youthful face, he guessed she was probably near his age. She simply stood still with her hands at her sides, defiantly glaring as if daring them to approach her.

There was another creak and the door behind them closed. Yves, who was at the back of their group, gasped and turned around.

"Good idea closing the door," Miles said.

"But I didn't—"

"Nice to have privacy, man." Bridger rubbed his hands together.

"Where's Blondie?" Grayson demanded. The girl didn't say anything but only shrugged. "Is she offering you up to us? Throwing you to the wolves? Or you want to have some fun with us?"

The three seniors laughed. Tahir and Lee looked at each other. Lee had a half-hearted grin on his face and nudged his head toward the girl, sort of saying they should play along. Tahir turned around. Meeting Yves' eyes, he mouthed, What should we do?

Yves shook his head. He didn’t even know what he meant by that.

"Sure, we can have fun with you first," Miles said. "But Blondie has to join in later."

"You gals are together right?" Bridger said. "Did Blondie want you to have a taste of men that's why you're here? Doesn't she want to see what'll happen to you?"

"Yeah...why isn't Blondie here?" mumbled Grayson.

"How about the two of you give us a show and—"

"Wait a goddamn second," Grayson loudly said. He extended his hands to stop Miles and Bridger from going forward. He turned his head left and right, shining the light of his cellphone all over the room. "Where is Blondie? Is this some kind of fucking setup?"

"What are you talking about, man?" Bridger tried to push past Grayson. "Don't cockblock a brother."

"You imagining shit now?" Miles said with a tinge of nervousness in his voice. Unlike Bridger, he stepped back and also looked around the room. "Setup? Like other people are hiding here?"

Grayson ignored them both. Instead, he furiously pointed at the petite woman standing at the end of the room. He yelled, "You're with that fuckin' bitch, Aubrey aren't you?" Yves recognized her name. She was the girl Lee mentioned that Grayson had assaulted at some party that led to his arrest. Enrico raised hell and beat up Grayson after getting him out of jail using all of his family's connections. Grayson continued his outburst, "You're baiting me to do something illegal? I'm fucking on to you!"

The rest of them looked at each other, unsure of what was going through Grayson's mind. Yves slowly moved back to the door, carefully shuffling his feet so they wouldn't hear him.

"What do you mean, Gray?" Bridger said. "They got cameras here? You're overthinking shit, man. They just want a good time and—"

Grayson threw up his hands in frustration. "Why else did these bitches drive here? Unless you believe your ugly mug made their panties wet for you. That blonde bitch especially wouldn't touch any of us here with a ten-foot pole. This twig whore here might go for us if she's desperate. But no way in fucking hell they'd just go here in this ancient ass store without any goddamn reason!"

Yves noticed the black-haired girl raise her brow at Grayson's statement. He might be imagining it, but she seemed to slightly sneer at them. But why would she have that expression, unless Grayson was correct that they were really setting them up?

I can't get caught by the police here! Was his first instinct. What would his Mom say? She'd be devastated. He shouldn't have come here.

"I don't think that—" Miles began to say.

Grayson cut in, "Lee, you go check her!"

"Check for what? Why me?"

"Don't ask questions. Just go! She might have wires on her or a small camera." Grayson pointed at Yves. "You! Check this place if there are hidden cams."

Yves didn't know how to do that but he complied, going for the windows to see if he could leave through that way. If he went out the door, they'd notice and most likely stop him. But if he could find an unbarred window or at least lose planks he could remove, he could escape while the store shelves blocked him from the view of the others. He kept his ears peeled.

"Yeah, go on Lee! Don't be shy. She won't bite you."

"What if she will?" Miles laughed out loud. "What if she's like an Adumbrae?"

"Go check if she's an Adumbrae too!"

"Uh, guys? How do I that?"

“Cut her!”

“What?”

"Touch her! You'll already check for wires. Don't tell me you're fucking shy of touching a girl?" There was laughter.

Yves stopped trying to pry off the wooden planks covering a window when he heard a girl's voice speak. It was Twig Girl. But he wasn't able to hear what she exactly said because of the loud laughter. They did quiet down after hearing her talk.

"Bitch, what did you say?" Grayson raised his voice.

"I'm asking what is the thought process here," she said. Her voice was surprisingly gentle and soft that it made Yves guilty he was leaving her alone with them. "You're from EFU, right?” she continued. “You should be smarter than this."

"Smarter than—? Hey, how did you know we're from EFU? This is really a setup! You're Aubrey's friends!"

"I don't know who that is. I know you're from EFU because of your frat shirt. And I also know you're dumb."

"Dumb? Says the cunt in a room full of guys who are going to—"

"You're going to check if I'm an Adumbrae. And then what if I am?"

"Huh? The fuck—?"

"What if I am an Adumbrae? Do you guys have a backup plan?"

"You got to be shitting me." Grayson laughed. Miles and Bridger joined in. Yves continued removing the boards, trying to hide the faint creaks in the raucous. "Is that all your fucking plan to scare us off?" Grayson asked. "You led us here just to tell us you're an Adumbrae?"

"Well, no. I wasn't going to tell you that if you didn't ask."

"Are you an Adumbrae?" This time, it was Tahir's voice.

Yves couldn't make out her answer because Grayson and the others laughing and jeering at Tahir. Did she say yes? What were the chances of meeting an actual Adumbrae? But then again, why did these girls lead them here?

They might be like those stories of beautiful women enticing men only to transform into monsters to eat them. As batshit crazy as it sounded in his head, the explanation that they were an Adumbrae would fit into everything here.

Nah…that sounds stupid. "Please let this be a comedy prank show," Yves whispered as he successfully removed one wooden plank. He stared outside in the darkness that the high beams of the truck by the pumps couldn't pierce. Where are the cameras? Don't tell me that she's telling the—

Lee's bloodcurdling scream filled the decrepit store. "ARGH! My hand!"

There was a thud as an object hit the ceiling above Yves. He fell on his butt as he tried to avoid it falling. He scrambled for his phone and pointed the light on the floor.

It was a severed hand.