I craned my head up at the unfamiliar man. He was large, middle-aged, bearded. He had a jacket on like those bikers around town. The very ones that were shot up that day I was hiding under the booth. A sick feeling washed over me. I suddenly worried he was searching for Hunter because he had done something wrong.
The man glanced at me, reading me like a book. “He’s not in trouble.”
I still felt stiff. “They took him and his mom away.”
“Who did?”
“Ambulance.”
He nodded slowly, peering now at the wreckage. “You know what happened?”
“No. Cops have been asking around.”
“No one knows?”
“Not that I know.”
“Huh.” He ran a hand through his beard, thoughtful.
I swallowed, my voice small. “You think someone did it?”
He looked at me, and he wasn’t totally beastly looking. I supposed he was actually attractive. “They have any enemies around here?”
I frowned, unsure how to answer that. “Hunter’s not very popular here...”
He nodded slowly, unsurprised. “Justly or unjustly?”
“Unjustly,” I said, fiercely.
“I see.” He made a humming sound in the back of his throat before saying, “I guess I’ll go to the hospital then. See if I can get a dialogue out of him or Kayla.”
Kayla.Hunter’s mother.
This man said her name like it was familiar, like he knew her well.
Was he the voice I heard from her bedroom sometimes?
He twisted around and began walking away. I turned my body to him, a strange sort of panic coming over me now. These were the Warlords, I told myself.Dangerousmen. Whether he was familiar with Hunter’s mom or not, it didn’t put me at ease. Feeling protective, I quickly said, “Leave him alone. He’s done nothing wrong. He’s a good guy.”
The man stopped and stood still for a few moments. Without looking back at me, he said, “You his safe place?”
I didn’t know what he meant by that. My brows came together. “What do you mean?”
“I mean,” he spoke slower, “does he turn to you when he’s hurting?”
I took a moment to answer. It was a strange question, but I knew what he was asking. My voice was quiet. “Yes.”
He nodded. “Good.”
When he carried on walking, I had no idea that Kurt was hanging around nearby until I turned my body further around to watch the man go. Then I caught Kurt’s figure standing there, smoking a cigarette by the sidewalk as the stranger passed him. Kurt appeared cautious, stepping away from him like he didn’t want to draw his attention.
When the stranger left, Kurt was by my side a heartbeat later, demanding, “What did he say to you?”
I looked back at the wreckage, tired. “Just wanted to know where Hunter and his mom went.”
“I don’t like that, Skye.” He dropped down next to me, rubbing at his face, looking equally tired as me. Poor guy hadn’t slept, either, and he’d worked a night shift last night, too. “Those guys are trouble.”
“Hunter’s not in trouble,” I assured him.