Falls Boys

“That’s…unfortunate,” he says in a low voice, eerily calm.

Goddammit. Is she actually trying to help me? I’m not in danger from him. All of my friends know I’m here. I’ll be missed if I disappear into an unmarked grave, and my uncle is the best attorney in the state. I’m not in any real trouble.

What will he do to her?

“Hawke, you can go,” he says again.

No.

He calls her over. “Come here, girl.”

I hear her breath shake, but slowly, she passes me, lifting her chin.

My mind races. Something’s not right. He’s not taking her in, and even if he does, he’ll have time to do anything he wants to her first. No one believes kids like her.

Like my dad when he was her age.

I walk past him, away from the pond, leaving her behind, and knowing there’s nothing I can do. I can call more police. Make sure she’s not alone with him.

But then he has her in jail. With full access.

And if she’s released, she’s a target.

It happens. Shit happens every day, all over the planet, and you know there will be more. More people like her who make all the wrong decisions and get used. It’s just life.

It’s her fault anyway. She robbed us and stole her boss’s car. She got herself here. She’s a mess.

And she took the blame for me. Stupid girl.

I walk past his car, and I’m moving before I think too hard. I yank open his car door and climb in, pushing away all the panic of what I’m about to do. I shift into gear, look ahead, and see them, his hand caressing her face just before it slips up her ski cap and fists her hair.

She winces, and I flip on the headlights.

Reeves twists his head, seeing me in his car, and I hit the gas. I’m not letting some rat punk from Weston take the fall for me, even if everything else tonight is her fault. But even more, I’m not letting him use kids to make money.

“Hawke!” he shouts.

I ram the Mercedes, hitting the gas until it tilts, falls, and rolls down the incline to the pond. It crashes below, all of his fucking money in the trunk, and he releases her, ru

I stop, push open the door, and step out. “Run!” I tell her over the hood.

Her dark eyes stare at me as she breathes hard.

“And that’s the last time I help you,” I growl at her. “Get out of here!”

I’ll get out of this, but she won’t.

She sidesteps like she hasn’t found her legs yet, but then she runs, her hair flying against her back as she disappears into the night.

You’re welcome! But I don’t say it out loud. No idea if she has a chance, but at least she has tonight.

Reeves starts to go after her, but I swing around the back of his car and shove him to the ground.

“You little shit!” he spits out.

I put my hands up, surrendering, but he climbs to his feet and grabs my head, pulling me to the ground.

We tumble, rolling over the side of the incline, falling over the rocks, and I separate myself, scrambling backward to get away from him.

“Just like your fucking father,” he says, advancing on me. “Always in the way.”

I flex my jaw as he comes at me with his hands, but then his foot shoots out, taking me off guard. He kicks me, and I plummet into the pond. I gasp, going under, but it’s only a few feet deep. I find my footing and rise back up.

I just open my eyes, but he’s there, his hand fisting my hair and pushing me back down. What the fuck?

I open my mouth, bubbles rising in front of me, but all I hear is my own muffled yell under the water. I grapple at his hand, trying to free myself, but just as I’m about to pull him in with me, he’s gone. My head is free, and I pop up, drawing in a deep breath, sputtering.

What the hell?

Wiping my eyes, I look up and see the Rebel standing over me. To her side, Reeves is on the ground, holding his bleeding ear and shuffling away from her.

She holds a rock in her fist, and for a second, I’m frozen. She didn’t run.

Stupid girl.

“You’re dead,” he tells her, almost a whisper.

I climb out of the pond, she looks up at me, and I look at her.

And we move. Slowly away from each other. She drops the rock, ru

“Stop!” he bellows after us.

But we’re gone, each going our own way, and I know we’re both in a shitload of trouble right now, but I just need a second to figure out what to do.

I leap down some more rocks, racing through the park and out the front entrance, going the only place I know I’m safe right now. I just need to catch my breath. I need to think.

Fuck! What the hell happened? What did I do? It went so fast.

I hit a cop. I destroyed his property, and even if my family can protect me from him, they can’t protect me from Green Street.

And she’ll be dead no matter what.

I whip off my wet T-shirt, slipping it into my back pocket, and keep my eyes peeled as I cross High Street.

Reaching up, I pull the ladder down and climb up the fire escape, hopping up onto the roof. I go to the door in the ceiling that sits between Qui

I take a moment, trying to calm down. I’m safe up here. The entire roof of this strip of businesses is shielded by the trees on High Street, and I breathe in and out, thoughts racing through my head.

It’s okay. I had to do it.

Or maybe I didn’t. Maybe there was another way.

Either way, I’ll be fine. I can handle this. I’ll get out of it. I’ll figure it out. When I tell them about Reeves, he’ll roll over on his lackeys. They’ll get arrested and Green Street will be gone. I won’t need to watch my back.

I can buy myself time and get this handled.

Blue and red lights flash in the night, and I head over to the edge of the roof, looking down. Cop cars race down High Street, Reeves probably realizing he had no choice but to report this. He’ll need to control the narrative now.

And then, I see her. Ru

She stumbles into the alley, and I follow her around the roof, looking down as she struggles. I hear her breaths from here.

I raise my eyes, seeing the patrol cars close in, slowing as they approach the side street she disappeared onto.

They saw her.

She’s about to give out. She can’t run anymore.

They’ll have her soon.