Red Moon, White Moon

Chapter 5: Complications

The next twenty-eight days were absolutely miserable. All of the events from my first weekend with the gang caught up with me. I was full of every type of emotion that could be mustered. It felt like I was trapped in the grasp of a boa constrictor that was squeezing the life force from my body. The mayhem surrounding my life had me depressed and full of rage at the same time. There were no safe havens anymore; even the Chief's Head had become a center of interrogation by my fellow misfits on the whereabouts of Kevin. His loss was the toughest thing for me to absorb out of everything that had transpired. Seeing Mrs. McCool so distraught—and not telling her about that night—weighed heavily on my mind. She had faith that he would turn up just fine, and it was destroying me to know that he had been slaughtered because I couldn't hold on.

Jack and his mob didn't make it any easier. I knew they had the information I wanted about Kevin—what had happened to him and where his remains were located—but there was no way they would tell me. Even if they did, what good would it do? Besides, they were already keeping me busy by stepping up their attacks every chance they got. They were constantly reminding me that every day brought them closer to revenge. They promised me my death would be slow and painful, but they could have no idea that the process was well under way. If they were to kill me, it would save me from the anguish that surrounded me.

Mr. Farley was another source of discomfort for me. He never got over how I beat him that first day of school and had made me pay for it ever since. I had to admit that he was the least of my problems, but his gift of hurling insults was improving with each class period. In fact, he called me things I had to look up to fully grasp their meanings. Ignoring him had become my best course of action. While he screamed, turned red, and bulged his eyes at me, I just looked past him and tried to think about the only thing that had been a positive in my life lately: the guys at the shop.

The biggest shocker of them all was how crazy Mrs. Perry was acting after she accused me of lying to her. I constantly found her following me around school, pulling me aside to bombard me with questions about Bear, since he never showed up – where I knew him from and who else I was hanging around with. The more I played dumb, the more annoyed she got. It was so bad she actually called my grandmother, who had no idea what was going on at the school for much of the time. She was so sick. The stress was coming at me from all directions, and I felt like I was about to go insane.

When the bell rang to end the school day, my feet couldn't move fast enough. I just wanted to get away from it all. Jack and his abuse, Mr. Farley's insults, and the grilling's from the outcasts and Mrs. Perry had me at my breaking point. Bear and Lilly had met me out front every day since I returned to school for safety. They must have been able to tell that with each day that passed, I was becoming more miserable and annoyed at the entire situation. Today, I didn't say a word all the way to the shop, and, once we arrived, I just threw my books and took a seat in the corner chair. I didn't want to speak to anyone, and I didn't want to be bothered, either.

It was over an hour before anyone spoke to me. They were all in the back room talking about our next move, I was sure. I could hear Andie Rae arguing with Hayden about something, and, knowing what a lunatic he was, I knew it had to be an assignment she didn't think was a good idea. After a few rounds of going back and forth, they went silent. I could hear footsteps heading my way, so I now knew his plan included me.

"Hey, pansy ... get up," Hayden said.

I rolled my eyes. "What do you want, Hayden?"

"Looks like you have a lot on your mind. I'm sending you to Bear's place up in Land O'Lakes for some rest and relaxation with Andie Rae. You need to spend tomorrow getting your head back in the game."

"Why do you care where my head is?"

Hayden rubbed his head in frustration and let out a big sigh. "The only thing I care about is the full moon, and we have one coming in two days. If you can't get your act together, you'll be no use to us."