blocks them from being seen from inside the cave. “It was before your time, man,” Low Voice says clearly. “That kid in there? His daddy apparently found out about this whole operation. Didn’t know about the boss, but apparently knew about Griggs and Walken. She overheard him on the phone one day, talking with the FBI.”
“Oh, shit,” High Pitch breathes. “That guy… that Traynor…?”
“Man, fuck Traynor,” Low Voice says. “The guy was a psychopath. But yeah. Apparently it was the same FBI guy. The kid called him in this time. His daddy did it before. Traynor wasn’t around then, so she got Griggs to do it.”
A chill runs down my spine.
“Do what?”
“Ran the guy off the road when he was going to meet up with the agent. Griggs ran the guy off the road, and he drowned in the river like a mile from here. Fuckedup thing was that it was her brother-in-law.”
The red sheen falls over my eyes. I can’t stop it. I curl my hands into fists at my side.
“Jesus Christ,” High Pitch says. “This is some fucked-up shit, man. Why’re we doing this again?”
“Money,” Low Voice says. “It’s all about the fucking money. But I’m not touching that kid, man. I’m telling you. I don’t even want to be here when it happens. The little shit can die, I just don’t want to see it.”
“What if she tells us we have to go in there when we’re done loading up?”
“We go. We close our eyes. But I’m not pulling the trigger. I can’t do shit like that. But better him than us. Who the fuck is gonna miss him?”
“But… won’t that make us, like, accomplices? Or whatever?”
“I dunno, man. I didn’t go to law school. What the fuck you think I look like?”
“Fuck you. It’s not like….” High Pitch trails off.
“What?” Low Voice asks.
“What’s that on the door handle?”
The pair of feet nearest me turns to face the truck. “What the hell? It looks like blood. Are you bleeding or something?”
“I think I’d know if I was bleeding.”
I close my eyes, feeling the tacky blood on my hands. I hadn’t even thought of it. The rain hasn’t washed it completely away. I wait for High Pitch and Low Voice to drop to their knees to look under the truck. They are quiet as if contemplating what they are looking at, and I slowly pull the small knife from my pocket. If they find me, I’ll take someone’s eye with me, that’s for damn sure.
And just when I think I can’t take it anymore, there’s another voice.
“What are you two doing?” Griggs snarls from the mouth of the cave. “Get the fuck back to work!”
They hurry off back toward Griggs, and I lift my head, watching their feet. All three pairs turn back into the cave, Griggs snapping at both of them, though I can’t hear what they’re saying. I have to stop myself from getting up right now and running after Griggs, burying the knife in his neck over and over again until all of his blood is on the cave floor and I know he’s dead. He killed my father on Christie’s orders. I will see them both dead by my hands.
Wake up, my father says. Wake up.
I almost don’t want to. I want to stay in this black-and-red haze and follow them into the cave and kill them before they kill me. I want to cause as much damage as possible before someone pulls a gun and shoots me through the head. They must suffer for what they’ve done.
It’s a test, Cal whispers, that familiar rumble causing my heart to ache. It’s a test, Benji. You must not fall into the black. You can’t go there.
“Cal,” I moan, closing my eyes. My hands start to shake. “Please, Cal. Come back. Don’t be gone. Please come back.”
I don’t hear anything other than the rain.
Without thinking, I roll out from underneath the truck and stand. I pull on the handle, and the door opens. The inside of the cab is warm. The keys aren’t in the ignition, nor on the seat. I flip down the sun visor. Nothing. They keys aren’t here. Low Voice or High Pitch has them. This was a mistake. I can’t use the truck. I’ve got to get the fuck out of here. Now. Now.
I close the door behind me as quietly as possible. I use my sleeve to wipe away the blood and grime my fingers left on the handle. I move