The Streets

14.Cronies

We should be going out celebrating that we had won the first competition of the year, but we weren't. I collapsed on the bottom bed of the bunk Dakota and I were sharing, going over what the hell just happened.

"We should of stayed and said something to the judges." Paul said breaking the silence.

"What would we have said? Sorry we got our asses completely kicked by a bunch of second years? How about we got a newbie he's still learning the strings." Thayer asked sarcastically.

"Blaming it on the new guy. That's second grade there Thayer." Cole said right back.

"Well how the hell did we lose? There's no way in hell they won because they're better than us." Theo pulled his hair in frustration as he spoke.

"The judges were bribed." We all looked at Cole with different facial expressions, confusion, shock, disbelief, anger and disappointment.

"That's a serious accusation to make Cole, especially since your new." Dakota scolded him lightly.

"Why didn't you say anything?" I asked speaking for the first time. His brown eyes flicked to mine before answering.

"I didn't say anything because if I did who would believe me? Like Dakota said I'm new. They'd blame my nerves or say I was to chicken to dance in front of everyone. So I didn't say anything when I saw what I saw." He rubbed his eyes and sat on the floor.

"Hold up. Saw what? You didn't say anything about seeing something. What did you see?" Jacob asked tensely.

Cole hiked up his knees and looked at all of us before speaking again.

"After looking around when we first got there I went to go get a drink. I was glancing around I accidentally bumped into someone. It was one of the judges and some guy. I apologized but not before I saw the guy slip the judge, what looked like some money. I didn't put two and two together until after the fact that their scores were revealed."

"They knew they couldn't beat us, so they bribed the judges." Theo summed up.

"It feels like we're missing something." I had this feeling in my gut that there was more to the story than them just wanting to beat us.

"Why?" I decided on saying.

"Why? What you mean why? Come on Taze, beating a bunch of fifth years in their second year? Who wouldn't want that?" Thayer eyed me.

I rolled my eyes."I meant why as in why bribe in the first competition? Why not wait till we're in the middle of the comp year?"

"First competition is equally as important as the last. You know that Trish." Dakota answered me.

"Jock Boy what he look like? I'll find him and beat his ass." Thayer gave a wicked grin and started pacing in anger.

"Blades that's not going to solve anything. What judges say is final, we can't change what happened." Theo tried to calm him down.

"What you mean it won't solve anything? It'll solve my anger and that's a good thing."

They went back and forth bickering, while I sat there in going over everything.

I didn't know their faces well, I didn't know their crew name, what  area of West-side their from or if they got any turf. It would be better to go after turf to screw with but I still felt like there was something missing.

"Cole what did the guy look like?" I asked. Everyone else was still going back and forth on whether to find them or not.

"White, scrawny looking. He looked tired as if he hadn't slept for a few nights."

Slowly a picture formed in my mind of the boy. Cole didn't have a good description but I knew the boy he was talking about only to well.

"Fucking hell!" I yelled.

"Who is it Taze?" Paul asked.

"Raider Cronies."

"We would've known if it was one of them, we've seen them for the past five years straight. Hard to forget some of those faces." Theo spoke with certainty.

"Don't you remember that one crony that Zeke always turned to?" I asked. "He seemed to always be glued to Zeke's side and out of all the cronies to turn to he always turned to him? He always looked tired but yet so eager to be with them." I trailed off.

I could see them going back in their mind to try and place the guy I was talking about. I could feel Cole's curious eyes on me but he didn't ask anything.

"Did he have some like messed up teeth to?" Dakota asked Cole.

"I think so."

The boys seemed to remember him, though it took them longer to put the pieces together.

"I still don't understand how we didn't notice him." Jacob sighed.

"I'm pretty sure Monique's Mom is a makeup artist, she could've taught her all she knows. They could've easily put makeup on him to make us not recognize him. It can only hide so much but not bad teeth or build." Dakota summed up, leaning against our bunk bed in tiredness.

"I'm still stuck over the whole why part." Cole spoke up. "Why tonight? Why go through so much trouble?"

"You don't know The Raiders like we do. They'll do anything they can to get what they want." Thayer responded as he started to get ready to sleep.

"They're just getting back at us for what Trish and Cole did Wednesday night." Jacob came up with.

"That makes sense. We steal their drugs and give it to our dealer and they bribe the judges for the first competition." I thought back to the years we had been fighting. Back and forth back and forth all year until one of us came out on top. Then it would start all over again the next year.

"What are we going to do to get back at them?" Cole asked a little excitedly.

"We'll think of something. But we're all exhausted." I said as I climbed into bed.

My dreams that night were full of plans and schemes to get back at The Raiders.