Dead Girl Walking ― Aaron Minyard

26. the waves

oh, what would your mother say
if she could see what we're doing now?
oh, what would your mother say
if she could hear what we talk about?
― bastille

♦

A LOTTERY IN JULY CHOSE BLACKWELL UNIVERSITY as host for the fall banquet. It was a relatively lucky draw for the Foxes, since they were only a few hours away, but none of them were feeling particularly thrilled as they boarded the bus—least of all Mara. 

The banquet was supposed to be a two-day event to justify the costs and travel time for further teams, but the Foxes took a unanimous vote to leave that night. Six hours spent socializing with teams who'd repeatedly and loudly mocked them in the news and to their faces was more than enough. 

This time, Mara sat with Kevin, the both of them sharing what little strength they had.  

Riko was waiting for them, but it wasn't just him—all of the Ravens would be there. The master would be there. 

It was going to be a long, long night. 

Blackwell was slow to appear in the distance, but it didn't take long to spot the two stadiums. The football and Exy stadium were on opposite sides of the campus like massive bookends. 

"Hey, hey," Andrew called from behind Mara and Kevin, leaning over the back of their seat. "You'll tear something if you keep breathing like that, Kevin."

Kevin didn't answer, his face buried in the crook of his elbow. 

"Look at me," Andrew said. "It'll be fine. You believe me, yes?"

"I believe you," Kevin said, voice muffled but noticeably strained. 

"Liar." Andrew laughed and leaned forward a little to peer out of Kevin's window. 

They weren't the first team to arrive, but they weren't the last, either. Mara looked up, easily finding the three black buses that had brought her nightmare. The only hint of color on any of them was a splash of dark red around the silhouette of a raven.

Wymack parked as far away from Edgar Allan's buses as possible.

Wymack took the key from the ignition, grabbed Abby's travel bag, and started down the aisle toward the back of the bus. "Off the bus," he said, and the rest of the team obediently filed off as he passed.

Wymack pulled a bottle of vodka out of the bag and held it out to Kevin. "You have ten seconds to inhale as much of this as you can. I'm timing you. Go."

It was alarming how much a man could drink when he needed an emotional crutch. When Wymack took it back, Kevin smeared a hand across his mouth and looked out the window. He couldn't see the Ravens' buses from this angle, but the sick look on his face said he didn't need to.

When Neil got off the bus, Wymack looked at Kevin and Mara. "Are you going to be okay?"

"They'll be fine, Coach," Andrew said. "Have a little faith."

Wymack ignored him, not taking his eyes off the broken-winged former Ravens on his team.

Mara swallowed, resisting the urge to vomit. "We'll be fine." Her voice sounded as raw as she felt.

Wymack sighed. "I'll pretend I believe you."

Andrew led them off the bus. Wymack gave Abby her bag back, waited for Mara, Kevin, and Andrew to get their clothes, and locked all of the bus's doors. Security guards at the gate watched their approach with interest and checked them off on a list. One stayed behind at the gate while the other escorted them to the locker room. Madison was using the home locker room to change right now, so the Foxes had to go all the way around to the away side.