A Whole New Crowd

by Tijan

  Driving to school, I parked on the road by the football field. It was far enough away from the normal parking lots that no one would look at it suspiciously and, if need be, I could run through the football stadium and evade anyone in the trees that outlined the perimeter if I got caught.

  When I got to the school, I circled around to the janitor’s office and hooked a leg onto the fire escape. Darting up, I pulled myself onto the roof and crossed to one of the heating fans. Seeing it had been turned off, I unscrewed the shaft, lifting it clear off. Then I went to work on the fan—wedging a rock between the blades, just in case it turned on—I slipped my hands through the blades and found the bolts. After they had been unscrewed, I lifted the fan up and then slipped through. My feet touched the ceiling, and I ran my hands around the flooring until I found the hatch that led to the venting shafts. I lowered myself down and then began crawling, counting until I thought I was over the main office. My estimation had been correct—I was in the main office.

  The P.A. system was located in the principal’s office. I turned it off and changed the alarm settings. When I was done, school tomorrow wouldn’t be filled with their daily announcements or warning bells. Rap music would be playing instead, and when they tried to shut it off, a bunch of firewalls and requests for passwords would pop up. I wasn’t dumb. They’d get it shut off, but it would take most of the morning and by then, most people wouldn’t be paying attention to the love scandal of Devon and Jennica. Mandy would be free and clear to be miserable all alone amidst the chaos.

  As I climbed back up through the shafts and headed back to my car, I made a mental note to bring earplugs. My hair would have to be done to cover them, though. It wasn’t revenge against Devon, but it would happen. I would wait until an opportunity presented itself. Then Mandy would have her justice.

  *

  They canceled school. They couldn’t get around my passwords, which surprised me. Pedlam blasted through my walls within an hour. The house was empty when I got there, but that wasn’t surprising. Shelly and Kevin had left a message the night before to tell us they wouldn’t be home till the following week, but the neighbor would be checking in daily. When I played it for Austin the next morning, he let out a whoop of joy and said he was headed back to his friend’s house. Mandy burst back into tears.

  It was hours later when I heard people downstairs. As I left my bedroom, I heard Mandy giggling. “We can get so much done now that we have the whole day off. I heard it was Mark Jenkins and his gang.”

  “I heard it was Tyler Guerros.”

  I paused on the stairs.

  “Whatever. We all know who was behind it. He might not have done it, but I bet he knows who did. Tray Evans.”

  My frown grew. Another stranger.

  “Ooh, did you see him today? Tray Evans is seriously hot.”

  Then it clicked. The entire cheerleading squad was in our living room. That meant that I was out of there. I turned around, but Mandy spotted me. “Taryn!”

  I plastered a fake smile on my face, but it dropped as soon as I saw hers. There were no traces of the sobbing mess I had forced fed this morning. She looked ready to take the world by storm. “What’s going on?”

  “We’re going to have practice here since school and all,” she paused, “and I’m going to have our student council meeting this afternoon too.”

  Okay. Message received. I started back up the stairs.

  She stopped me. “Are you staying or...” She frowned. “What are you going to do today?”

  “I thought that was code for me to stay in my room?”

  “Oh.” Her eyes got big. “Um…well, Devon is coming because, you know, he’s on student council. So…”

  One of the girls snorted. “And because he’s your boyfriend.” She fixed me with a hard stare. “Or are you not allowed to have your boyfriend around with this…sister...in the house? Is there some weird rule about that or something?”

  Mandy hadn’t told them. Her head dropped down and I knew what she wanted now. “I’ll stick around.”

  Her petite shoulders moved in a relieved sigh and her head lifted back up. I saw the thanks from her, though she didn’t say it.

  “What time is your student council meeting?”

  “At 2:30.”

  Nodding, I murmured, “I’ll be back down later.” I wouldn’t go far.

  After doing homework, I put my earbuds in, laid in bed, and listened to music. I needed something to silence the shrieks, giggles, and ‘no ways’ from downstairs. It was much later when I sat back up and realized that I had fallen asleep. I sat up and listened. The annoying chatter was gone, but I still heard voices downstairs. When I got down there, Mandy was in the kitchen alone. She was pressed against the sink, her face glued to the window.

  “He’s here?”

  She jumped around. Blood drained from her face and her hand jumped to her chest. “You scared the crap out of me.”

  “Sorry.” I grinned.

  She shook her head, shooting me a rueful look. “You enjoy scaring people, don’t you?”

  “Kind of.” I laughed then grew serious. “Is he here?”

  She nodded. The slight humor fled from her, and she turned back to the window. “He’s out there with Tray and the guys.”

  “They aren’t saying anything?”

  “He hasn’t said anything. He’s acting like everything is fine.”

  “Is she here?”

  “No,” she hissed, turning back to me. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if she had showed up. I want to scratch her eyeballs out and pull her hair and then fling her body in front of a moving car.” She shuddered. “I’d like to do all of that without going to jail.”

  I grunted. Sometimes jail was worth it, but I kept quiet. That wasn’t good advice. My phone was buzzing in my pocket. Mandy started to say more, but I tuned her out. When I pulled it out, Grayley’s name was on the screen. I held a finger up to her and headed outside. After shutting the door, I said, “Gray?”

  “Brian’s on his way to your place.”

  “What?” My heart stopped.

  “He had a huge fight with Jace. The cops were called, but Brian split. He said something about sorting it out with you. He’s headed your way.” He paused. “Are you safe there?”

  I got over my fear and frowned, gripping the phone tighter. “Brian would never hurt me.”

  “He’s nuts, Taryn. Make sure you’re safe. If he won’t hurt you, I wouldn’t put it past him to hurt someone else.”

  The same heavy weight that I always felt with Brian settled back on my shoulders. Moving to the street, I turned as if expecting him to come around the corner already. I had no idea what to do. Brian was coming here. This was off-limits. When we broke up, when I explained my new adoption, he had agreed not to come to Rawley and now he was breaking that last truce. I nodded to myself, gripping the phone so damn tight. It was pressed against my ear, and I was surprised Grayley couldn’t hear my heart beat through the phone. It was pounding in my eardrums.

  “I’ll be fine,” I murmured, not believing myself.

  “Call Jace. I think he sent some of his guys after him to make sure, but call him anyways.”

  “Okay.” A different terror spread through me.

  I peeked through my window-blinds, but didn’t see his car. Great. Just great.

  “Okay.” I sighed. “Thanks for giving me the heads-up.”

  He hesitated on the other end, but said, “Good luck. Do you want me to come? I can hop in my car real quick.”

  “No.” I shook my head, even though he couldn’t see. “I’ll handle it. I’m not alone.” Glancing over my shoulder, I saw more than ten cars parked outside of the house. These weren’t the people I wanted Brian around. They wouldn’t understand he had a heart or how he wanted to be like his father so much, or how he was so envious of Jace who had known their father before he died. They wouldn’t see past his anger to the hurt that was the real fire sparking everything.

 
They would only judge him.

  A hollow ache formed in me as I dialed Jace’s number.

  “Hey, Terry.” He was somber.

  “I heard.” It’s all I had to say. We both knew this side of Brian. “He’s coming here?”

  “Yeah. He was getting fired up again and didn’t take it too well when I told him to stay away from you.”

  I closed my eyes. It had been what I wanted, but it had been the wrong person saying that to him. This was on me. “I thought you were the right person to talk to him about this. I didn’t think he would listen to anyone else.”

  “He wouldn’t, except our dad, but he’s gone so what do you do?” A static sound came over the phone and he said, “Look.” He had pulled away from the phone, but came back to it, speaking clearly again. “I couldn’t come after him or I would’ve. The cops are here. You know they’re looking for any excuse with me.”

  “I know. He’s coming to me. I’ll handle him.”

  “Terry,” I heard the same hesitation from him as well, “Brian’s never hurt you, but he’s not handling your break-up well. Are you with people?”

  “I am.” They would only see the angry and ugly Brian. “I might have to call the cops, Jace, or someone else will. Mandy has people here. You know these people; they don’t understand.”

  “I know. Listen, I sent a few men. Just stall Brian until they get there. They’ll handle him. Brian wants into my organization. Remind him of that. If he acts up, if he gets pinched, he can’t get in.”

  A different terror formed alongside that ache. Brian wanted in? That meant… I whispered, “Jace, no.”

  “No, I know. I’m not letting him. He’s a hothead, but he’s a good kid. Don’t worry, but if you have to use something to get him to calm down, use it. If he gets pinched, you don’t know what the cops will say to him. They’ll turn him against me and if that happens…”

  He didn’t finish the sentence and I didn’t want him to. I didn’t want to hear about that other world. I was trying to leave it. “I’ll take care of him. I gotta go.” Jace said something more, but I hung up and stuffed my phone into my pocket. Hurrying through the house, I went to my room and took out my locked box. I hadn’t unlocked it for months, but this was a moment I had to. Pulling a long-sleeve shirt on, I took out my Taser from the box and put the box back in its hidden spot. As I went back outside to wait, I slipped the Taser inside my sleeve. I used a strap to secure it, but it was within reach if I needed it.

  Then I sat on the curb and waited.

  My heart was pounding.

  I didn’t have to wait long. I heard Brian’s car screech around the corner and slam to a stop right in front of mine.

  Part of me wanted to hop in and tell him to go to a park. We could hash it out there, but Jace’s guys were coming to the house and wouldn’t know where we went. So I braced myself when Brian slammed his door shut and strode to me.

  Oh yeah. He was in a rage.

  “You bitch!” he snarled, crossing the street.

  I stood up, but held firm. I would stand my ground. “Brian.”

  “You told Jace to handle me? Jace!” His snarl deepened to a scowl, but I saw the hurt behind it. “Are you sleeping with him? First Evans and now him? My brother?” His top lip curved higher. He said, “You whor—”

  I kneed him in the balls. “No one talks to me like that.”

  He doubled over, but twisted so he could see me. “You’re a bitch.”

  My sympathy was gone. “And you’re crazy.”

  He flinched. The storm came back over his face and he tried to straighten. He had more to say, but then he groaned and bent back over.

  “We’re over, Brian.”

  His head twisted away.

  I moved closer and lowered my voice, “I loved you. I did. I probably always will, but you want to go in a different direction than me.” I gestured to Mandy’s—no—to my house. “I want this. I want college. I want a good job. I don’t want to have to work four jobs to make ends meet or worse, to end up in prison. This is my way out. Let me have it.”

  He shook his head. He still wouldn’t look at me.

  I waited. We were still alone, but it was only a matter of time before we were seen. “Brian, please.”

  He stood now, swallowing his pain down. “You love me, baby, you just want this future so desperately. I know you.”

  “And I know you.”

  “You do, but I know you better than you know yourself, and you won’t last. This life...” He looked past my shoulders and the sneer appeared again. “You won’t get the adrenalin fix you need. I gave you that. Your old life gave you that.”

  I started shaking my head. I already knew he was wrong.

  He kept going, “No one knows you. Not like me, baby.” He stiffened and an ugly laugh came from him. “Look at them.”

  A new horror filled me, but I knew who he meant. Turning, I saw them standing there. Mandy was on the lawn. A hand was pressed to her mouth and her eyes were wide with fear. Her friends spread out behind her and the guys. I flinched when I saw them. Tray was leading them down the driveway. They were heading towards us. I held a hand out, stopping them.

  He stopped, but he was waiting for my say-so. I shook my head. It wasn’t time.

  Brian laughed and raised his voice, “You guys think you know her? Huh? Evans? I’ve heard about you and your daddy. You’re all the same.”

  My heart was breaking. Brian moved as if going to them, but I lifted a hand to his chest. His heart was racing under my touch. He acted as if he didn’t know I was touching him. He lifted his arm and pointed over my shoulder. “You’re weak. You’re targets. That’s all the good you are. You have no idea who you’re messing with. No idea!”

  “Brian,” I whispered.

  “She’s mine. She’s one of us.” He spread his arms out wide and raised his voice even louder. “We persevere. We’re the strong. We take on any circumstances and we still thrive. We’re going to keep thriving. Hell, we’re going to conquer. She’s got that rush in her and she won’t be satisfied with you. None of you. You just wait and see.” He looked down at me, his eyebrows lifted, as if seeing me for the first time. He fell back a step. Sweat was running down his face. He whispered to me, “I’ll wait for you, Taryn. I love you. You’re mine. No one else can take your place.”

  Tears were rolling down my face. I ignored them.

  He pressed his forehead to mine. His hands came up and cupped the sides of my face. “I’ll always love you. I will. Don’t forget me. Don’t give up on me. Please, Taryn. Please.”

  I couldn’t do anything as waves of sadness crushed down on me. As he kept going, I felt an ache, big enough for an ocean to fill, opening inside of me. Then he pressed a kiss to my forehead. So had Jace. I had taken comfort from that one, but this one, I suppressed a shiver. Brian was my past. If I hadn’t been sure before, I knew now. I held my tongue and bit down on my lip. He wouldn’t accept it now.

  Then I heard car doors slam.

  I had stalled long enough.

  Brian glanced back and a strangled laugh ripped from him. His hands fell from me and he shook his head, backing away from me. “My big brother, Jace.” He faced Jace’s men, three large men that were coming our way, and lifted both his middle fingers in the air to them. “My fucking big brother, Jace. Mr. High And Mighty, so fucking powerful he’s got these monkeys to run around and chase down his little brother.” He stopped and then shouted at them, “We’re good. You don’t need to come and protect little Terry. You can report back to big brother that the cops don't need to be called.”

  “Go with them, Brian.”

  “No.” A growl came from him.

  “Go.” I didn’t look, but I lied, “They have their phones out. They’re calling the cops now, Brian. Jace said…” I hesitated.

  He turned around. “Jace said what?”

  I couldn’t. I shook my head and said instead, “The cops are already coming. Go, Brian. You’re not sober enough to drive.
Give your keys to one of those guys.”

  “Taryn?”

  My jaw hardened and I turned away. “Go, Brian. Get out of here. I mean it.”

  “Taryn, come on—”

  It was killing me. Seeing him like this, remembering when he would carry me and comfort me, and knowing what everyone thought of him now felt like a knife had been sliced through me. It had slowly been pushed in and the person took their time, pulling it up through my whole body, causing irreversible damage on the way.

  “GO!” I snapped and let loose the strap. The Taser dropped into my hand and I raised it. “I mean it, Brian. Get out of here.”

  He looked at the Taser, but he didn’t move. He didn’t react. He only stared at it and then me. A hurt little boy looked back at me,