Chapter 202

"Yeah, just drop by any time you feel like it, Bryant. I've got no plans tonight so I'll probably be home. I'll text you my address." General Reeves said through the phone.
"Thank you, General. I'll call you when I'm on my way there." I spoke into the phone before hanging up.
It's been a few days since I last heard from Dom. If our fight the other day didn't happen, I wouldn't have thought much about his silence since we weren't the kind of friends who had to talk to each other every day to stay close but how we left things off the last time we met made me worried.
I checked his social media account to see if he was active or had made any posts lately but found nothing that eased my worries. Maybe I was too hard on him..
But what was I supposed to do?
Deep down I knew that I didn't regret what I did that day because I knew I did what I had to do to help Casey. It just didn't sit right with me that I ended up hurting one of my close friends while doing so.
Sighing, I decided to put away my phone and looked up, only to grimace.
Did I forget to mention it was the day of the party we were dreading?
I say we because I'm pretty sure that Casey silently dreaded it too.
Casey walked into the room with a minidress that stopped short just a few inches below her butt with spaghetti straps that looked like they would snap easily.
I shook my head. "Hell no."
Casey rolled her eyes at me as if she had anticipated my reaction. What else did she expect me to say? "Oh wow you look amazing, Case, all the guys at that party will definitely have their eyes on you?"
"It's just a dress, Bry. Look, it's not showing any cleavage. I picked it out because I know how you feel about revealing clothes." She pointed out, gesturing to the neckline of the dress.
She's right, it didn't showcase any cleavage, but it still didn't make me feel better about the dress.
"And this is not revealing?" I asked her, bewildered.
"Is it not?" She challenged, eyebrows raised, hands still gesturing to her dress.
"I don't know," I groaned, furrowing my eyebrows at the sight. "Can't you put on some pants?"
Casey gave me a look that said, "Really?"
I widened my eyes as if to say "Why the fuck not."
I eyed the hemline of the dress that was too short for my comfort. Casey followed my line of sight and sighed. "Come on, bro, you can't expect me to wear a dress that's knee-length and all that shit to a high school party. This is the best dress that I could think of. It's not skintight and no cleavage to meet your demands, but still risqué enough for a high school party that I want to fit in."
"Risqué?" I scrunched up my nose at her choice of words. "Really?"
She shrugged at me, walking past me to get to the shoe rack by the front door.
"Do you even know what that means?" I followed her closely as she stopped by the shoe rack and rummaged around to find a suitable pair of footwear.
"I don't know, it's the new slang or whatever. I get the gist of it but of course not the textbook meaning. Stop showing off your smart shit, everyone knows you're smart." She answered dismissively, managing to slip in a diss for yours truly in there.
I shook my head, watching her in disbelief as she took out the pair of heels Mom bought her. I remembered her telling Mom that she'll probably never wear them but Mom insisted, saying that at least she'll have one if the time that she needs one ever comes.
I've always thought that Casey would never be caught dead wearing them willingly. But then again, I never thought that she would choose to wear a dress over a pair of pants.
After putting the heeled shoes on, she took my arm and practically dragged me to the car. "Come on, let's get going."
"Can't we not go?" I tried for the 100th time.
My sister gave me a look that threatened to kill me without contact.
I raised the hand that she wasn't holding in a surrendering motion. "Alright, alright, I won't ask again."
She nodded, her eyes spoke, "Better keep it that way."
It still didn't change the fact that I was very tempted to drive her somewhere else instead of the party though.
But Casey was smart. She opened her GPS and kept me in check. When I took an alternative route that the GPS didn't show to stall for time, she whacked my arm and pointed at her phone, showing me the highlighted map.
I had to rub my arm after a few more hits landed on the same spot over and over again. At one point, I snapped and told her, "At least hit somewhere different!"
If only looks could kill, I would be six feet under. "Well, if you quit messing around and start actually driving to the party, you wouldn't even get hit!"
Okay, fair enough. That didn't stop me from pouting though. I was hurt. Emotionally and physically.
It took us 30 minutes to actually get to the party and before she could get out of the car, I grabbed her arm and stopped her to give her some last minute advices and reminders. It wasn't hard to stop her though. The fact that she didn't rush out of the car straight away, knowing that if she gave me the chance, I would probably take the car for another round around the block, once we arrived spoke volumes on how she wanted to be anywhere but at this party. Her hesitance was as clear as day.
"Stay away from the boys." I started.
She rolled her eyes, "You do know that I won't be able to do that in a house full of mixed genders. It looks like it's packed too." She gestured to the house that was practically overflowing with people.
I turned to see what she was referring to and sighed. Of course, she was right. Of course, I knew what I said was impossible to do. But a brother can wish, right?
"Don't go near anything that looks suspicious." I said.
Again, another eye-roll. "Well, duh."
"Ey, keep the sass out." I flicked her forehead.
"Ow." She glared at me, annoyed, rubbing the spot.
"Well, you hit me more!" I pointed to the spot on my arm that she had repetitively abuse during the entire car ride. "What happened to 'never hit the driver'?" I huffed.
"Well, the driver was being an idiot." She retorted.
As always, she had a point, the driver was asking for it.
After a few seconds, the playfulness between us dissipated and I held her eyes, making sure she knows I was being serious. "You know that it's not too late if you don't want to do this, Case?"
She bit her cheeks and looked at the house that had flashing lights spill out of its windows. When she looked back at me, I saw the fear in her eyes, the unsureness towards herself, the discomfort that she was feeling on having to step out of her comfort zone, but more than anything, her determination shone brighter than all the other emotions that I just listed.
She seemed to have steeled herself.
She was going to do this.
No matter what anyone else says, she was going to prove those girls wrong.
"Okay," I finally said. She didn't have to say it out loud, I caught it loud and clear.
"I'll come and pick you up in a few hours. Stay safe." I squeezed her shoulder. "Call me if you need anything."
She nodded, "Thanks, big bro."
I nodded back and watched as she took her purse and step out of the car.
I waited until she got in through the front door before taking my eyes off her and opened the car's dashboard compartment to make sure that the files were there before I begin the trip to the other side of the town to see the General.
I knew I had placed it there while waiting for Casey to get ready but I had every right to be anxious; that was a year's worth of undercover work, of risking our lives.
I typed in the address the General gave me into my GPS and started driving. My estimated time of arrival was said to be an hour. I should be able to brief him on what's happening, ask for his help and hand everything to him within half an hour and drive back to the party to pick Casey up on time.
About halfway to the General's place, my phone started ringing. I picked up the call without seeing the caller ID and connected it to the car's speakers.
"Bryant?" A familiar voice asked into the phone.
"Uh, yea.." I trailed off, trying to put my finger on who was speaking. I took my eyes off the road for a quick second to check the caller ID and recognized Casey's number.
"It's Shay, Casey's friend." She said.
"Ah, right. Sorry, I didn't recognize your voice." I said, averting my eyes back onto the road. "Is Casey okay? Why is her phone with you? Did she lose it?"
"Um.." Shay hesitated. My senses started tingling and I turned on my left signal, looking for a U turn even before Shay could tell me what was going on.
"I think you need to pick her up." Shay finally said.
I was already turning the car around by then, "I'm 30 minutes away right now but I'll be there soon. Please take care of her for me until I get there."
Shay hung up the call after giving me an 'okay' and I dialed the General's number to tell him that I was going to be very late.
"Is everything alright?" He asked me.
"Yes, something came up with my little sister and I just need to pick her up and drop her home. I'm sorry for keeping you up so late." I apologized, genuinely feeling bad for taking up his time and making him wait.
"No, it's alright. Like I said, you're always welcome. Can't you take your sister with you and just bring her here instead of going back and forth? I don't mind hosting both of you, if that's what you're worried about. It will save you the time and fuel." The General suggested.
I shook my head even though he couldn't see me. "It's not something that I'd like to share with her."
"She doesn't know about this?" The General asked. When I didn't answer, he asked me another similar question, this time with a tinge of concern in his voice.
"Do your parents know?"
I bit my lip and breathed out through my nose. "No." I answered truthfully.
"Please don't tell them that I'm asking for your help. At lease not until I get there and show you what I need your help with." I requested.
The General was silent for a while before finally agreeing. "Okay, I'll wait for you. Take your time and drive safely."
I thanked him before hanging up, blowing out air through my mouth to expel all the tension in my body.
The thought of my family finding out before everything is solved puts me on edge. I want things to be sorted out before they discover any of the things I've been up to lately. I don't mind getting my ass beat as long as it happens after my plans are set into motion and the process of taking down the Mafia begins.
It's almost done, Bry. Just a few more steps. You're almost there.
First things first, get my little sister out of that shithole and bring her home.