I swallowed hard, partially opening my mouth to speak after not speaking a word for days…
Months…
Years?
All the rehomes. All the fosters.
All, all, all…
One big jumbled mess of silence.
I didn’t give him an answer. Instead, I watched as he threw his violin in his case before he gripped my hand, and we started running.
Another first—the concept of trust.
Is that what I’m doing? Trusting him?
I was tired, dizzy, and unwell.
Spots danced around my eyes. One second, I was running, and the next, I vaguely heard Julius whisper into my ear, “I got you.”
Am I straddling his lap?
The question barely formed, and it was my last thought as I took comfort in not only Julius’s scent but Kraven’s as well.
Both addicting.
Both familiar.
And then everything went black.
Although this time…
I didn’t feel so alone.
CHAPTER
FOUR
JULIUS
This wasn’tsomething I’d ever done.
I couldn’t just leave her there. She was badly hurt, and I could see it in her eyes. She’d gone through some shit that night.
Most likely, some really bad, dark shit. The kind of trauma that stays with you forever, no matter how hard you try to escape it. You could never outrun it. It was easy to recognize her flight response. She was definitely running from someone, and given that she was covered in what appeared to be her own blood, she fought to get away.
I’d never be able to stop my guilt if I didn’t help her. Kraven was usually the one who picked up strays, letting them crash on the couch until they found whatever footing they needed. This was the least he could do. He owed me for all the times he got in trouble, too. It was a never-ending, uphill battle in the house where we were basically abandoned.
I took on the responsibility of big brother when I was only twelve years old, and Kraven was eleven. He decided on a different path… surviving by any means necessary was his way of life. Which meant we had more run-ins with the law because of him. Not to mention, his principal, teachers, and anyone who tried to give him any authority.
Myself included.
As our mother used to say, Kraven was her lone wolf, and I was her golden boy. She’d remind us often that we were what got her through the day, and even then, we were never enough.
Between trying to keep Kraven out of trouble, ensuring he attended school, and providing food and shelter, I didn’t have time for much else. When I could, I picked up any side gigs as a violinist, and since those weren’t often available, we had to play in subways and on side streets. It was a win-win. I could keep an eye on him, and if there was good foot traffic, it made for a good payday.
At least enough to keep a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs. Thankfully, I received my GED over a year ago when I turned sixteen, so I was able to focus on finding work instead of worrying about the school district being on my ass.
