Total pages in book: 177
Estimated words: 163209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 816(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 163209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 816(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
“He’s lucky,” Jeremy said, turning an unseeing gaze toward the court. “It looked like Williams was aiming for his head.”
“He was,” Jean said without hesitation. “Ravens understand that missteps and mistakes must be punished. Andrew broke Riko’s arm at finals, setting in motion the events that led to his death. Brayden and Cameron wanted to even the scales.” He tipped his hand this way and that before leveling it out. “A life for a life.”
“Cam’s an asshole,” Cody said, moving up on Jean’s other side.
“Yes,” Jean agreed.
“Say the word and I’ll fight him over Christmas break,” Cody said. “I wasn’t going to go home for it, but I’ll make an exception.”
Jean waved that off. “I hate him more than he hates me.” At the look Cody sent him, Jean shrugged and said, “He was irrationally rude to Thea at every opportunity.”
“What’d he have against Muldani?” Jeremy asked.
“She’s black,” Cody said. When Jean muttered a correction, they gestured and said, “Yeah, but you can’t see any of her father in her.” Cody counted years on their fingers and said, “Oh, I guess you would’ve overlapped with her for a year. Have we finally discovered a Raven you got along with?”
“Kevin,” Jean said.
“I’m hoping there were more than two,” Jeremy admitted.
“Finn,” Jean said, as the buzzer sounded on a Trojan goal. Jeremy thumped on the wall in approval and encouragement, but his focus was on Jean as he added, “Sergio, most of the time. Brayden. Colleen. Zane.”
The last was so quiet Jeremy almost missed it. At the sharp look Jeremy sent him, Jean dug his hand into his own chest. For a moment the grief on his face was endless, but Jean schooled it a heartbeat later. That Jean could scrounge up so much emotion for a man who’d practically left fingerprints on his throat was unbearable. How Jean’s kind heart had survived a place like Evermore, Jeremy wasn’t sure. It was bruised and bleeding, but it wasn’t broken. Jeremy wasn’t sure if that ache in his chest was pride or grief. Whatever it was, it was hard to breathe around.
Perhaps Cody felt the same, because they seemed content to let the conversation die there. The three turned their attention back to the match at last, though only Cody and Jeremy reacted to the Trojans’ solid plays and scoring attempts.
The relief Jeremy felt at the final bell was intense enough to be shameful; he’d followed the game on a surface level when his team deserved his undivided attention. He’d have to rewatch this match over the weekend so he could give proper feedback next week. For now it was enough that they’d won seven to six, and he let himself be buoyed by his teammates’ excitement as they washed up and changed out for the ride home.
As soon as he was on the bus, he fired off a string of text messages to Kevin. At his side Jean messaged Renee again, but they put Provo behind them without an update. A few miles later Laila’s phone started ringing. She rummaged through every pocket on her backpack twice before Cat pushed her headphones up and said, “Back pocket, babe.” By then Laila had missed the call, but as she leaned into Cat to dig her phone free, it started up again.
“I’m here,” she said in greeting. “No, we’re on our way back from Salt Lake City. I’m not sure, we just left campus maybe an hour ago. What’s all that noise?” She briefly tipped her phone away from her ear with a wince and asked, “Can’t you move somewhere quieter? It’s so loud. Yes, yes, I’m looking,” she said, leaning past Cat to stare out the window. “Give me a moment, I don’t see any signs.”
Jeremy reached across the aisle to nudge her and said, “Just south of Provo.”
“Jeremy says we’ve passed Provo,” Laila said, with a quick nod to him. “I didn’t look at the route, but yes, I assume we’re on I-15. Wait, I can barely hear you,” she said, pressing one hand flat over her ear. At her side Cat peeled her headphones off entirely to stare at her, worried. Laila hunched forward in her seat like that could somehow help her hear better. “Tell me what’s going on. Why does it matter where I am?”
She was quiet for about thirty seconds, and then she silenced the entire bus with a shrill, “What do you mean, it’s on fire? No! What do you mean? But—” She went quiet and still to listen. With the rest of the Trojans deadly silent, Jeremy finally heard the tinny and distant sound of sirens. Jeremy glanced up as Rhemann appeared in the aisle just in front of their seats, expression grave, but he was quick to return his full attention to Laila. “How bad is it? No, tell me now. I want—” She cut herself off again to listen.