Prologue
Thirteen Years Ago
Chase was supposed to be hunting. Right now, his blade should’ve been dripping with blood. From which animal? It didn’t matter. It could’ve been from the wild boar he’d been intent on finding, or better yet, the fat niglet who’d ran from him, causing both of them to land right on their asses in a sinkhole that had loosened near the thick roots of a tree.
Instead of heading home to show off his kill, he was forced to breathe the same air and share the same space as that creature sitting inches away from him.
Larke. That was her name. And of all the stupid names he’d ever heard, hers had to be the worst. Chase wasn’t sure how long they’d been inside the muddy sinkhole, just that it was way too long,since she was no longer cringing away from him even though he still had his knife.
Curling his lips, he canted his head and scowled at the girl, trying to figure out why she thought telling him her name would make a difference.
As if he cared! In fact, he didn’t know why she’d even started talking to him. Larke was ugly with boring dark eyes and tight curly hair that was held in what he guessed was supposed to be pigtails, although they didn’t hang. Worse, around her neck, she had on a fake pearl necklace. He knew it was fake because the beads were much shinier and plastic-like than the ones he’d seen on those rich ladies him and Gramps had eaten dinner with in Alabama last winter.
Chase shook his head with disgust. Dark as she was, he hoped she’d soon begin to blend in with the dirt that matched her nasty skin color. Then he’d be able to concentrate in peace and try to find a way out of this situation.
He scratched his head while eyeing the approaching night’s sky. Fuck. There were too many clouds in the sky for his liking. Big fat puffy clouds, that looked as if they were waiting for the right opportunity to burst open and drench the ground with weeks of pent up rainwater. If that happened… Chase squeezed his eyes shut. It wouldn’t rain. Wouldn’t, he reassured himself. And if it did someone would find him before it began to pour.
He glanced at the girl again. Someone would findthem,he thought angrily. When everyone found out he’d been so close to a stinkin’ nigger he’d definitely be in for a beating.
“Do you think it’ll rain before anyone finds us?”
“Don’t talk to me,” Chase snapped. Moron couldn’t even tell when someone was ignoring her. She rolled her eyes then glanced at the book bag beside her foot. He ground his teeth and went back to ignoring her.
Should’ve killed her before we fell in.
He’d tried, though, hadn’t he? And that was what led to all of this—the two of them trapped here; about to spend the night in the cold with the possibility of storm showers beating down on them and worse.
After Chase spied her standing near the woods, on property she’d had no business being on, he’d reached for his knife and took off after her. Despite looking like she’d eaten too much candy and ice cream when her parents weren’t watching, she was a fast runner. She’d screamed for him to leave her alone while pounding the moss-covered ground.
He hadn’t. How could he, when she was intruding on their land? Just like that chink reporter who’d come sneaking around his grandfather’s office last month. Chase had been determined to mete out his own justice to the little intruder. But once he’d caught a hold of her shirttail, everything else happened within a blur. One moment he was running on solid ground, the next his feet were sliding from beneath him in mud with the girl’s screams echoing in the woods as they landed inside the sinkhole.
Tired of standing now, Chase sank to the cold damp ground as far away from Larke as humanly possible—which meant there was a tiny space between his shoulder and hers. He groaned inside his eleven-year-old head while sneaking a peek at her reaching down into her bag. She pulled out a candy bar and then another. Hunger and jealousy gnawed at his empty stomach. She had something to eat and he didn’t.
He turned his head, hating her even more. Probably thought she was better than him. She wasn’t, he reminded himself. As everyone in Lee’s Fortress would say:If the color ain’t right...Well her color wasn’t right. That alone made him superior. Among other things.Lotsof other things that she was probably too dumb to understand.
Reminded of his pride, Chase puffed out his chest, determined to ignore the faint scent of chocolate and peanut wafting in the air. He was doing good, until out of nowhere, something hit him on the leg. Jaws clenched, he jerked his head, teeth bared, intent on reminding her that he was one step away from finishing what he’d started earlier. And he wasn’t the least bit afraid of getting into trouble because she was black and absolutely no one would care what happened to her.
He said nothing, however. There was no need. Chase felt the anger drain right out of him as he spied the candy bar beside his foot. The one Larke had tossed his way. The urge to reach for it, tear the wrapper open and stuff it inside his mouth ate at him. His stomach growled, a not so subtle reminder that he’d left home all day, after eating only a bowl of cereal sometime near midday and it was now nearing night.
Leaving the candy in the spot it landed, Chase stared back up at what was definitely storm clouds rolling in. He had no doubt the girl’s family was searching for her. As for his family... He wasn’t sure. Maybe they hadn’t noticed he was missing. When he’d left the house earlier, his mother and stepfather Trevor had been arguing. She’d grumbled again about being tired of housework and too many other things for Chase to remember. His grandfather was somewhere in Louisiana meeting with important people, who were afraid to be seen with him in public but were glad he’d founded Antebellum Resistance. AR, as they called it, was a group that wanted to help make life better for white people since the government was favoring everyone else. Gramps said things would be a whole lot better if America went back to more traditional ways and that included the coloreds being put in their place once and for all.
Everyone needed a place, Chase supposed. Last month his place had been to follow orders and clean up blood, without backtalk or questions. He curled his fingers into a fist and fought the wave of nausea inside his stomach that made him want to throw up. It happened every time he recalled the sound of the bullet cracking the reporter’s skull.
The blood splattering on the wall and the scent ofbleach they’d used afterward. He’d been forced to watch his grandfather shoot the man after they’d caught him lurking around, peering through a window of AR’s main office. His grandfather and Trevor had then convinced the reporter to come inside. There’d been promises of an interview in the privacy of the basement. They had told him he’d learn all about white supremacy and the ins and outs of their neo-Confederate movement that was headquartered in the small town of Lee’s Fortress, North Carolina.
“Aren’t you going to eat the candy?” The girl’s annoying voice cut into his thoughts. She was staring at him, frowning. “Maybe the sugar will put you in a better mood.”
Chase turned his head ever so slowly, glaring at her. She shrugged and reached for the candy, pushing it out to him. “Here take it.”
Simply because he was so damn hungry and irritated that he was still thinking about what happened last month like a wimp or fairy, Chase snatched the wrapper, making sure not to touch her hand. He bit into the Snickers candy, unsure at first what it would taste like, but uncaring because it meant his stomach would no longer be empty.
After taking the first bite and liking it, he turned to Larke and asked, “Are you fat because you eat this type of stuff all the time?”
“That’s not a nice thing to say.” She gazed at the ground then lifted her head. “I don’t eat candy all day long. I um... Sometimes I eat pizza and bacon too.” She snapped her chin up and tossed her head to the side. Nowshewas ignoring him. Whatever. He was happy she finally got a clue... Until he saw her dip her hand in the bag again. This time she had pulled out evenmorecandy than before. How was that possible?
His stomach rumbled at the sight of all the sugary treats he was never allowed and had never tasted. Why did she have so many and did her parents actually allow her to eat all of it?
She moved to face him, her eyes narrowed. “I really should let you sit there and starve for everything you did to me today, including calling me a monkey baby before you went insane and came after me with a knife you probably stole from your daddy.” She stuck out her chin again. “But you’re lucky I’m not as mean as you are.” She dropped a handful onto his lap.
