Page 158 of Crew
I turned to my brother. "Yes."
He nodded once. He didn't say anything, but I caught a darkness in my brother, one that I saw in the mirror, one that scared me to my core at times.
It was the firefly, but there was a different glint to it in him. A murderous glint.
He reached out to touch my arm, but turned to his crew members. "We need to talk to the rest of the active crews, get them filled in on what's happening at the school."
My head reared back. "I thought you weren't going to get involved?"
He gave me a long look. "I changed my mind. We're stopping the whole goddamn fucking thing."
I didn't know what to say. "That's it? I tell you all that and now suddenly you're going to do something about the program?" Didn't he have anything else to say? About Dad? About that night?
Channing's eyes fell to my knife, which I tossed in the air and flicked my wrist around to catch.
"You have your knife out, Bren."
I flushed.
His hand gentled on my arm until he dropped it. A look so stark, so pained, so anguished looked at me that I froze. I found myself blinking back tears at the suddenness of it.
He stepped close, his hands coming to touch my shoulders, so delicately, so gently, as if I were a broken egg held together by one piece of tape. He dropped his voice, whispering, "We'll talk later. Trust me." He pulled me in, moving my knife out of the way, and then folded his arms around me. "God, Bren." He was shuddering.
I was--I was still frozen.
He pressed a kiss to my head. "I'm so fucking sorry."
He hugged me one more second before stepping away. As he did, he wiped his thumb under his eye, catching a wetness I'd only seen there twice before.
"You're going to stop the school thing?" Jordan straightened from where he'd been resting against Manny's back wall. Zellman and Cross came to my side.
My crew watched my brother like somehow he had the answers.
"We'll get it fixed," Channing said. "But you have to give us time. Okay?"
It was like the four adults were leaving to do adult things, and us children had been told to stay.
Channing and his guys disappeared around the building. My crew waited for my decision. If I wanted to talk, they knew I'd say something. If I wanted to fight, I'd say that too.
Cross stood right next to me, heat radiating off of him.
"We're with you," Jordan offered. "Whatever you want, B."
I wanted to forget.
"Anything but remembering," I told them.
Jordan snapped his fingers. "How about a good old-fashioned egging? I know a principal and superintendent who deserve some new decoration on their houses."
It was childish. It was something a sixth grader would do, but it wouldn't land us in jail. It was perfect.
"I'm in." I was so in.
We were heading to our vehicles when the side door burst open.
"Cross!" Taz ran down toward us, out of breath and red in the face. Her eyes were wide, almost frenzied. Tabatha and Sunday came right behind her, looking less panicked, but still concerned.
We all paused, waiting.
