Me & Mine

6. A Series of Unfortunate Events

The chants get louder and I can hear the muffled sound of fists hitting flesh. It sounds nothing like in the movies, I should know. The punch itself is silent. A numb "thud," but it's the grunting, the stumbling, the screaming, the breaking... That makes the heart raise and the blood move faster. I look at Ann, demanding an answer from the shaken girl. She shrugs her shoulders and I get to my feet immediately. I should've never let him out of my sight. Not here. Not when he's been drinking. I curse myself for my stupid obsession with taking Cammie down while I shove people out of my way.

The hall is packed with people, all circled around two tall, muscular boys, pounding away at each other. I take one look at my brother's face and my mind goes blank. There's blood on his face. Amory never bleeds. He knows better than to let someone hit him on the face. I push some more people out of my way and watch how Amory's fists keep pounding at the other guy's upper body. Thumb, thumb, thumb. It doesn't stop. The guy tries to block his body from the punches, but whatever he does, Amory keeps finding a new opening, a lowering of defenses, an opportunity. I take a deep breath and rush in between the boys, diving under Amory's swinging fist and catching it in midair. Using the strength of the punch I quickly twist his wrist further, forcing Amory to turn around and drop to his knees. I lay my forehead against his shoulder and notice the beating of his heart and the shallow exhales. "Amory," I whisper and Amory relaxes his shoulders, "breathe." I let go of his wrist and his arm falls slowly to his side. I turn around to see the guy he's been fighting gasping for air and reaching for his ribs. My eyes widen as I recognize the face underneath a small cover of blood. "You," I state as I stare in Kane's eyes. With Amory still kneeling behind me I scan the crowd, seeing Max and Travis smiling, leaning against the door to the kitchen. Great friends they are.

"Max!" I spit and his face turns blank. He steps forward and places a hand on Kane's shoulder. Kane. Fucking Kane. Why the hell would he and my brother be fighting? "Take your poodle out of here," I hiss, nodding at Kane. He straightens his shoulder and follows Max and Travis up the stairs without saying a word to me or Amory. The crowd is silent and some start to get back to their drinks and friends already. I pull Amory up and take his face in my hands. His nose is bleeding and his lip is torn. "Fuck Amory," I whisper, "what have you done?" He inhales deeply and cracks his neck. "Kitchen," I say to him, pushing him along the hallway, "now."

People stare at us and I notice Harley and Ann standing among them. I walk ahead and slam the kitchen door closed behind me and Amory. The girls will have to wait. Amory sits down on a chair over by the kitchen table and I rush through the cupboards, searching for a clean towel. I find one and dampen it. "Am," I start, but he doesn't let me finish. "I know, I know," he says, leaning his head against his hands. "I'm sorry," he says, and I smile lightly. I clean the blood off the corner of his mouth. "Kane got two good punches in," I smirk, "that's something."

"I was drunk," Amory says and I take a step back. I sigh. "Am," but again he shushes me.

"He called you a slut, Fay. To my face. He was looking for a fight."

"And you gave him one? You know better than that!"

"Nobody puts my baby sister in a corner," he smiles, but I shake my head. "You could have killed him. We need to be more careful if we want to stay here." Amory looks down and takes the towel from my hands.

"Hey," Harley's soft voice sounds from the doorway. I turn around and smile lightly. "He's fine," I say, nodding at Amory. Richie and Ann rush over to Amory. Ann takes the towel from his hands and wipes his face softly. I sigh. Well, my buzz is gone now. "Can you guys stay with him till I come back?" I ask Harley. She nods and cocks her head to the side. "Where are you going?"

"Into the belly of the beast," I smile, quickly closing the door behind me and making my way upstairs. This floor has two bedrooms, a study, and a bathroom, where I find the Unholy Trinity. Max smirks as I enter the bathroom and lean against the doorpost. Travis is holding Kane's shoulders, whispering to him in a low voice. I clear my throat and the other two boys notice me too. "What are you doing here?" Kane hisses, but Travis doesn't let him move one step. "Believe it or not, but I'm actually here to check up on you."