“I know.”
Lindsey and Duke are watching me as I march over to them. My emotions are on a roller coaster ride tonight, and right now they’re approaching the peak of anger. The sight of Lindsey takes me right back to yesterday morning when I discovered my ruined guitar.
“Did you come here to admit what you did?” I say, wasting no words once I’m in front of her. Duke and Garrett are on either side of me, and I can feel the presence of Trevor and Adrian behind me.
She has a sheepish expression on her face, but there’s still defiance in her eyes.
When she hesitates, Garrett says, “Go on.” His tone is more commanding than I’ve ever heard it.
“I’m sorry I broke your guitar,” Lindsey says finally, not meeting my eyes.
“Destroyed my guitar,” I clarify.
“Yes, destroyed it. And your new outfit.”
“Why did you do it?” Here, my anger gives way to hurt. I’d known it was her, of course, but the confirmation stings. I’d considered her a friend as well as a roommate, and it’s painful and bewildering that she could do what she did.
With a small shrug and a look to the side, she avoids my question.
“Tell her what we talked about,” Garrett prompts.
“I’ll pay you back,” Lindsey says, sounding like a petulant child.
“We told her how much the guitar was worth. How much does she owe you for the clothing?” Duke asks.
“I spent seventy dollars on the outfit.”
“Add a hundred to the amount we discussed,” Garrett says. “And if Autumn doesn’t see it in her bank account by the end of the month, she’ll take you to court.”
Even with all of the noise in the bar, the whine in Lindsey’s voice comes through. “I don’t have that much right now.”
Garrett glares at her. “You should have thought about that yesterday before you damaged her personal property.” Turning to me, he asks, “Do you have anything more to say to her, Autumn?”
I shake my head. I want to scream at her, but this isn’t the place, nor is it my style. Something will probably come to mind later that I’ll regret not saying, but right now, I’m done with her, and I’m so grateful to the guys for confronting her so that I didn’t have to. As long as she pays me back, I can put this all behind me and try to forget about it.
As if reading my mind, Duke says, “This is a small island. I know your family, Lindsey, and I happen to know the owners of the company you work for. If you don’t pay Autumn for the damage, I’ll have a talk with some people.”
She screws up her face. “Are you threatening to ruin my reputation?”
“I’m not making any threats. There are consequences for behavior, though,” Duke says in an even tone.
“Someone should have taught her that back in preschool,” Trevor mutters behind me, making me almost crack a smile.
“I’ll pay the money,” Lindsey says before she abruptly turns and heads toward the door.
My shoulders sag when she’s gone, a physical tension I hadn’t realized was there, releasing all at once.
“She’s a piece of work,” Garrett says, shaking his head.
“Why didn’t I see that she was capable of this?” I wonder aloud.
Trevor hugs me to his side, rubbing my shoulder. “People can be on their best behavior and hide their ugly sides until something provokes them.”
“But I didn’t do anything to her.”
“I didn’t mean to imply that you did. Adrian and I were the ones that set her off, and she’s responsible for her own deranged behavior. I’m just glad you’re out of there.”
“That’s for sure,” Duke says.