The One Without Words

❀ chapter twenty-one | the crash ❀

We sped. Sped and sped and spun and sped. Me in Penelope's white car, her beside me sticking her head out the window, no seatbelt. Was this what we would've done in juvie if we had the freedom? Road to ourselves, suffocating with the rush of wind.

Eli revved the engine, clearly comfortable with driving Seth's car, definitely not bad for a beginner. He'd left Seth behind like a lost puppy in the crowd.

I accelerated to catch up. Inhale, exhale. Way faster than Talia's minivan. The fact Penelope let me drive her car spoke more to her sociopathic tendencies than any generosity in her heart.

I glimpsed Jack in Eli's passenger seat. Did he feel the way I did? Did he feel the pure adrenaline, the enormity of it all?

Then Penelope gripped my wheel. She veered off the road, forcing the car to an abrupt halt as I slammed my foot on the brake.

Eli zoomed past us. He passed the makeshift finish line, where another small crowd stood cheering—only to go silent when they realized they did not recognize the two boys in the winning car.

"You sabotaged me," I snapped. "Penelope, what the—"

"I want you to race me," she said.

I ignored the urge to pull out my pepper spray and give her a nice spritz in the face. Way to put a stop to my adrenaline rush. I flung the car door open and stormed out.

Eli stood in front of Seth's car, arms crossed, carefully surveying the crowd but speaking to no one. Jack took a while to join him, and when he did, he looked the same as before. Absolutely frozen in place.

"Fine, fine," Penelope said as we approached. "You win. Five grand."

Eli peered at her. "You said ten."

"More like she said she'd pay for repairs for my shop," I added.

Eli shook his head. "I'm not letting you have that money. I won it. And you owe me for what you did with my parents' boat."

"Excuse me? You're the one who forced me and Jack over here onto that boat!"

"The coast guard found it three days later in the middle of the lake," Eli said.

"And where would you have liked for me to leave the boat instead, Eli?"

I couldn't believe now we were fighting. Great. One thing I knew for sure: whatever this "race" had been, Eli was using it as revenge. Against Seth. Against me. All while he usedJack as leverage.

"Now if you race me you'll get your ten," Penelope told me.

But then I noticed Jack walking away. Off the pavement, onto the grass field next to the road.

"Wait," I said. And then I went after him.

Tonight, I'd almost been expecting silly, reckless Jack. Similar energy to him swimming in the lake, mumbling nonsense, stripping down to his smiley face underwear.

But instead, he walked away. Even over the others' commotion I heard his loud, shaky breaths.

"Jack?" I called out. "Wait up. What's wrong?"

He ignored me. I jogged to catch up with him. Away from the street lights, darkness enveloped us, the field illuminated only by the moon.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

He stopped. Hesitated. Almost like he was about to communicate something, pull out his phone to text, but then he continued walking.

"Is this about Eli? About me?"