Wreck Me (Corrupt Legacy Series #2)

“Then do something.”

“I won’t, Dane. Take responsibility for your actions.”

“Fuck you and fuck this. You know I’m the best driver there is. Get me back in. I carry the damn DD Motors.”

He arches an unimpressed brow at me. “You want to get back behind the wheel? Then work on your attitude. This was all on you, son.”

“Don’t call me that. I’m not your son.”

He flinches. “I’m the only father you have. Do you want to end up like Bobby?”

“Don’t talk about him,” I yell, losing my composure by the second at the comparison and reminder.

“He was a natural, and he ended up a broken man because nothing filled that heart of his.”

“Stop talking.”

“I’m done having to hear your mother cry herself to sleep, terrified she will get a call that you died as well. And your sister… I know you love Jasmine, but if loving her means she will grow up fearing her brother can’t control himself, then she’s better off without you. I love you. I raised you like my own, but this has to stop.”

“You stole his wife right under his nose, playing the classy best friend to perfection.”

Cocking his head, he taps the smooth island surface with one finger. While I try to rile him up, he is the definition of composed.

“Maybe one day, you’ll finally understand it had nothing to do with betraying him. Your mother and I relied on each other while we had to watch the man we both loved not care about anything.”

“Sure.”

“Bobby never took accountability for his actions. Is that how you want to be too?”

“Get out.”

“I will let you know what I decide.”

“Whatever.”

He closes the front door behind him, and I watch him approach my mother, who’s in the middle of the manicured lawn, holding my sister in her arms. Surrounded by palms and the sea behind, they should feel nothing but at ease. But how could they when I am the storm threatening to shake and rip their foundation from the ground?

They’re in a hushed argument when I head to them.

“This void in his heart… the darkness in his mind. I’m afraid nothing will help,” my mom says, sighing deeply.

My chest constricts. Yes, Mom. At times, I wish I had never been born at all.

My little sister points at me, fussing. They both remain silent, watching me as I take her from my mother and over to the playground. I swing her for a bit, then I bring her inside and to the nursery. After I feed and change her, Jasmine falls asleep in her crib, her beautiful little face drawn in complete serenity. My heart twists as I tuck her in. I want to be a good brother and role model for her, but I can’t. My recklessness and impulsiveness will always hinder that.

Locking myself in my bungalow, numbness conquers me. The open living space does nothing to soothe me. I am trapped in the darkness of my mind.

My place consists of a small kitchen and a living room with a U-shaped leather couch. In front of it sits a rectangular table and a flatscreen TV that I use for gaming. A shiny black bar spans the right wall. On the opposite side is my bedroom with a king-size bed resting on a platform. And in the corner is my bathroom. Big tinted windows surround the bungalow, offering me a view of the garden and sea. I may live in the Golden State, but there’s nothing golden about me.

I reach in my pocket for a smoke and light it, pulling from the cigarette until the first bitter hit fills my mouth. Bracing my hand on the window, my head drops. Done with the pity party, I flick the cigarette into the ashtray in the corner of the room. So fucking tired of everything, I curl into bed and fall asleep.

Heat grills my side, and I scoot up in bed. Black smoke surrounds me, and my body rocks with a coughing fit. Surrounded by flames, my foggy mind gets the facts.

Ah, fuck my luck. The first time I don’t set a fire on purpose, it lights my ass on fire.

Hysterical laughter breaks free, but my survival instinct is stronger.

I throw a chair against the floor-to-ceiling glass and dash outside. Shards and flames lick at my skin. I hiss, letting out a string of curses. Sitting on my ass on the grass, I watch it all burn down, like my life, like my dreams, like everything.