It turned the corner slow and disappeared, taking what little peace we had left right along with it.
And just like that . . . she was gone.
She was gone with her silence. Gone with the hole her brother left behind. Gone with every piece of our childhood we were still clinging to.
Jacory didn’t move for a second, then suddenly, bam!
He turned and punched the streetlight pole so hard it echoed. The metal rattled, as his skin split, and blood smeared across his knuckles almost instantly, but he didn’t flinch.
“Damn!” His voice cracked.
That was the first time I ever heard Jacory James sound broken. Not mad. Not frustrated. Just . . . broken. And that shit made my stomach twist.
I let out a breath, low and shaky. “Man . . .”
I didn’t know what else to say.
Because what the hell do you say to somebody who just lost the one person they would have given everything for?
What do you say when you carry the same guilt he does . . . but you were the oneright therewhen it happened and didn’t do a damn thing to stop it?
My mind kept goin’ back to that night. All I could see was Silas bleeding out in the street. The vision of Shaniya, covered in his blood, screaming without sound. Me, stuck. Frozen. It replayed over and over in my mind like Groundhog’s Day.
I saw the car roll up. I saw the window come down. I saw the glint of the muzzle flash before I even processed what was happening.
And I didn’t do shit.
I didn’t jump in front of him.
Didn’t pull him back.
Didn’t block the shots.
I just stood there.
I fucking froze when it mattered.
It happened so fast.
I regret missing his phone call.
I didn’t have his back.
So now I carry that. Every. Single. Day.
Jacory turned to me suddenly, eyes red, but sharp like broken glass.
“I shoulda went after her,” he muttered, voice low and tight.
I ran a hand down my face, feelin’ the sweat and regret coat my skin. “Man, what the hell you was gon’ do? Snatch her out ofthe car? You know damn well Shari and Sam wasn’t gon’ let you do that.”
He didn’t respond. He just stared down at the sidewalk like he was tryna erase it with his eyes.
“You know she needs this, bruh,” I said softly. “She ain’t been the same.”
Silence.
I hesitated, then added, “Since Silas.”
