Chapter 52

Tiny little wooden spoonful after spoonful, they stood almost close enough for us to sense the cold from the ice cream and feel the brush of their huge hands as they went to their mouths and back down. If they were trying to intimidate us, it worked, but not enough to change a damned thing. Patrick stared back. With Jefferson’s touch to bolster me, so did I. Benji, though skinny as a witch’s broomstick, stood his ground—our ground—his arms crossed in front of his narrow chest, like a shield, daring them to take one more step.

They didn’t. It was over in a matter of minutes. With just one word, the one Phil had used on us the night before, they walked away, once their ice cream was gone.

“I wish I could arrest them for that,” Andre said. “They’re not the majority,” he told us. “Phil’s working alone today. Not one of his employees showed up.”