Page 18 of Crew Princess
“Shit.” He drew a ragged breath. “You know their parents are divorcing.”
“Yes…” Where was he going with this?
He twisted around, as if looking for an escape route. “Taz told me her mom might be moving with her, wherever she goes for college next year.”
That topic again. The future. College and—screeching sounds. Halt. Back up.
I blinked a couple times. “What? Say again?”
“Taz heard her mom on the phone the other night. The divorce is going fast. Their prenup was pretty solid, and neither is really fighting it. I guess they’ve been struggling for a while. Anyway, their dad is officially moving to Fallen Crest—some girlfriend there or something—and their mom, well, she’s going with Taz wherever she goes.”
“Oh.”
Cross would be left in Roussou with no family. No sister. No mother. His dad was already gone.
Race was watching me now. “Does he see his dad at all?”
Here was the hypocritical line with me. I demanded Race tell me things he probably had no right to tell me, but now he was asking about Cross, and my loyalties always lay with him.
I gave him a look.
He nodded, accepting that.
“Well…” Race jerked his head toward the path. “Not to lay that on your shoulders, but I’m guessing you’ll tell Cross?”
He was going to be without his family.
Echoes resounded in my head. I felt them in my chest, my heart squeezing, bringing me back to when my dad was first arrested.
“Bren?”
“Huh?” I looked up.
Race had gone farther ahead. He stopped and saw I hadn’t moved. “You okay?”
No, but I didn’t matter.
There were fires to be put out. Literally.
When we got to the bottom of the hill, five cars were in flames. Zellman had goneall out. Most people had scattered. We were behind the rush, so I couldn’t imagine what it had looked like when everyone hit the lot. The cops were coming, I was sure—we were lucky they weren’t there already.
As soon as I got to the parking lot, Zellman pounded the top of Jordan’s truck. “Bren! Hurry up.”
Cross was in the back with Zellman in the front, waving through the window. Jordan was at the wheel. They couldn’t get to me. There were too many vehicles and people in the way, so I veered around, motioning to the north end of the lot. They met me, gunning the engine and jerking to a stop right in front. I grabbed hold of the bed and jumped. Cross reached for me and hoisted me up; I was over within a second. Then we were down, all the way against the bottom. Cross wrapped his arms around me, and we braced ourselves.
“Go!” he yelled, pounding on the side of the truck.
A second later, we were off. Sirens colored the sky behind us, the sounds getting closer and closer. We had to go the complete opposite way we needed to, but the drive wasn’t too bad once we got out of Fallen Crest. Jordan slowed down when we hit the back roads, and Cross settled into me, nuzzling my neck. His hand smoothed over my shirt. “What’d Race have to say?”
Shit. Should I do this now?
I eyed him. I’d want him to tell me.
“He told me your mom is going to move wherever Taz goes to college. And that things are serious with your dad and his girlfriend.” There was more. I couldn’t pull my punches. “And that the divorce is almost done.”
He was quiet for a moment and then rolled to his back. He kept one arm cradling me but stared up at the sky.
His hand rested on his chest, our bodies bouncing lightly from the gravel. “Fuck.”
