“What the fuck is wrong with you?” he howled, putting his hands to his face.
“Don’t talk about my brothers again,” I told him. “If you do, I won’t hold back next time.”
He was crying, his nose bloodied and broken.
He stumbled backward.
The girls weren’t laughing anymore.
I left them behind.
“Joe!” I called as I headed back toward Caswell. “Hey, Joe! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to leave you. Come on out. You want to play? We can do whatever you want, I promise.”
He didn’t answer.
I told myself it was okay. It was fine. Nothing was wrong. He was probably snitching back at the house. I was going to get in trouble.
I walked through Caswell, looking for him. People waved. Witches. Wolves. Humans. They said, hey, Carter, hey, what’s up? Good to see you, Carter. Yo, Carter!
I said, “Joe. Joe!”
I went to the house. It was a big house. It was a nice house. I hated it. It wasn’t home. And even though I’d been here longer than I ever was in Green Creek, I knew it wasn’t where we were supposed to be. It didn’t feel right.
Kelly sat on the porch, an open book in his lap. He looked up at me as I approached. “What are you doing?” His voice was high-pitched and wobbly. I loved him more than I could ever say.
“Did Joe come back?”
He shook his head. “I’ve been here for almost an hour. He hasn’t gone inside.”
“Shit.” I whirled around, scanning the compound, listening as best I could for that birdlike heart that beat in my little brother’s chest.
“You cussed,” Kelly said, sounding awed.
> “We need to find Joe.”
I heard Kelly stand behind me. “You were supposed to be watching him.” It wasn’t an accusation. Not from him. It was merely statement of fact. But it still burned.
“Help me.”
He did. We ran through the compound, looking everywhere we could think of. In the school. On the docks. In the garden that belonged to a kindly old witch who was blind but could see the future, or so it was said.
He wasn’t there.
He wasn’t anywhere.
Panic clawed at my chest.
“Joe!” I shouted.
“What’s wrong?” a deep voice said, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
Kelly and I turned around.
There, standing with a strange smile on his face, was my father’s second.
I said, “Have you seen Joe?”
Richard Collins shook his head slowly. “Have you lost him?”