I caught his look and, even shadowed, it made me shiver.
“Quiet,” Crowe told Shard but Shard kept staring at me like he was memorizing me. I knew this wasn’t good and that shiver turned into a quiver.
“Eyes to the ground,” Crowe ordered Shard and when Shard hesitated, Crowe’s hand snaked out, shoving the back of Shard’s head so he faced down.
I felt the disquiet of fear crawling along my skin but I pushed it away and turned back to Roam.
“We’re not done. Go find my stun gun, I dropped it. I’m taking you back to the Shelter tonight, tomorrow, we’ll talk.”
“Seriously, Law, I was only tryin’ –” Roam started but I interrupted him.
“Stun gun. Now. Talk. Tomorrow. Go,” I snapped.
He grumbled something about “fuckin’ bossy white bitches” and stomped away.
I stared daggers at his back.
“What’d I say about calling me a bitch?” I yelled at his back.
“Law,” Crowe cut in.
My head rounded to him and, I’m afraid to say, I’d had about all I could take.
“Not now. I’ve had a bad day. I have to get these kids to bed and then I’m gonna go home and have a bubble bath. Then I’m gonna sleep like the dead. I have to be ready for tomorrow because tomorrow, I’m going to kick some black-teenage-kid ass.”
Crowe didn’t say anything. Then again, what could you say?
I looked down at Shard then back at Crowe.
“You have this covered?” I asked, like I’d been helpful in some way taking down Shard.
“I’m thinkin’, yeah,” Crowe told me.
“Good. Great. Marvelous. Have a fabulous evening.”
Then I stormed up to the bike path where Roam was waiting for me. He held out my stun gun and I snatched it out of his hand.
“Let’s get to Hazel. Move. Sniff is probably scared shitless. I don’t even know what to say. You get out your phone and call your friend. Tell him you’re okay…”
And the whole way down the bike path, even while Roam was on the phone with Sniff, I reamed him.
And most of the way, even though I didn’t know it, Vance heard me.
Chapter Three
The Interrogation
I took the boys to King’s and got them to their beds.
King’s had six bedrooms, each with three sets of bunk beds, three rooms for boys, three rooms for girls. Not many of the kids spent the night there, usually they came during the day to hang, play pool, eat, and, if we were lucky, talk to the social workers or work with the tutors.
I talked Park, Roam and Sniff into staying most nights there. They’d had permanent beds for months. Roam on the top of the last bunk by the window, Sniff in the bunk under him.
Park had slept on the top bunk in the bed next to Roam. Even though it’d been months, no kid had slept there since Park mainly because Roam frowned on this.
As they settled, I stood beside their beds and looked at Roam. He was on his back, hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling and ignoring me.
I knew he was angry. Not only had Sniff ratted him out and I cut into his action but I’d embarrassed him in front of macho man Vance Crowe.