"Huh?"
He follows my gaze to the scarecrows, and recognition takes only a second to kick in.
"The fuck?"
Will chooses that moment to descend on us, sweeping us each underneath an arm with a hearty smile on his face that's painfully forced.
"Running a little late, aren't you boys?"
"We had an accident." Jackson says, and I'm surprised he didn't try to beat around the bush.
"I don't care why you're late." Will smacks the back of his son's head, just hard enough to make Jackson's head jut forward. "Just fucking get up on the stage and let's get the vigil over with so everyone can enjoy their hollow night, hmm?"
I blink, turning my gaze to the stage where Coach is set up with a crowd of our teammates, all holding paper cups with a candle sticking out the top. The look he gives makes it clear he's going to have us running laps ‘til our feet fall off, so I grab Jackson's arm and urge him up the steps faster. I spot Sadie as she kisses Vick goodbye, as if they are parting for more than five minutes, before he and Arthur follow us.
"Nice of you to show, boys." Coach hisses. "If you'd been this late to the game, I'd have your fucking balls in my pocket by morning. Christ." He shakes his head, his hard jaw clenching in disapproval as he looks among us all. "Where's De La Cruz? And Rhodes?"
I hadn't even noticed Uriah wasn't here, but now I take a quick look around and realize they're not the only ones missing. Hector is gone, too, and Owen. All three of them, four if you count Rhodes, were with us last night. All of them participated in what we did.
Is it just a coincidence?
"Rhodes didn't make it." Vick says quietly. "He, uh, had an accident on the way here."
Coach stares at Vick, imploring him to say more to make that make sense. "Meaning what, exactly?"
I'm keenly aware of the audience. It's not a big town we live in, about six hundred people, and it seems as if every last one of them came out tonight. I spot my mom with Sophie, and Sadie at their side with her friend. I feel like I can't breathe. It's like there's an axe hanging over my head, waiting for the right moment to drop.
"He's fucking dead." Jackson says coldly. "I ran him over, so let's not wait on him okay? How about we get this shit over with, cause I need a fucking drink."
Coach grits his teeth and nods, looking up at the audience.
"Thank you all for coming out tonight. What was supposed to be a smackdown against our rivals has turned into a memorial for one of our own. Toby Connors was a brother to each one of these kids... and like a son to me."
If I wasn't so busy scanning the crowd, I'd probably choke on the bullshit Coach is trying to cram down everyone's throats. Toby was the most obnoxious little fucker on the team. He was a friend, sure, but not a fucking brother. And no one disliked him as much as Coach, who would have cut him from the team if it weren't for needing him to fill the position.
My eyes drift to the scarecrows set up behind us. Their faces are all obscured by burlap hoods, but something about them is eating at me. Maybe it's lingering uneasiness from finding Toby up there like that this morning. Maybe it's something more.
"Krowe." Jackson grips my arm, his nails digging into my flesh. I scowl down at the place where he's got a death grip on me and then turn my attention to his face. I've never seen him look so terrible. Ashen, gray, dark circles under his eyes. He's aged twenty years since he picked me up earlier today, and thirty since last night. We fucked up. Took things too far. Andnow we are all suffering the consequences in a rapidly-spiraling shitstorm.
"You trying to take my arm off?" I ask, ripping out from beneath his touch.
"Look."
A gust of wind makes me wrap my jacket tighter around myself, and I look up to see what's got him so rattled.
It’s her.
Gianna smirks at us from the back of the crowd, right there in between everyone who seems not to care about her presence... or else they don't see her.
"You see her?" I ask, making sure that it's not just me imagining things this time.
"Yeah. Why's she looking at us like that?"
"I don't know." I swallow, trying to provide some relief to my dry throat. "She's crazy. Just ignore her."
But there's no ignoring her, because she turns and walks away, and I'm too curious about where she's going to pretend I don't see her.
When she gets to the edge of the clearing, I see her join with someone else... a man.
