“You weren’t saying that when you came to join in the fun, Kitten,” Ren teased.
Oli groaned and shoved one of the detonators at Ren’s chest. “Here. Just blow shit up.” Then, he held another out to me. “Together?”
Either Ren wasn’t listening—or he was too impatient—because he’d already flipped the lid off the detonator and slammed down the button with his thumb. “Bombs away!”
A blast erupted under the Ford Festiva. Fireworks soared toward the clouds and exploded in golden sunbursts that shimmered in the sky as she went flying up into the air so high we needed to tilt our heads back to watch. The Festiva flipped in an explosion of blue sparks and came down on its roof on the Buick.
“Woo-ee!” Errol clapped and shouted like a madman, but that wasn’t anything new for him. If there was anything in this world Errol lovedalmostas much as Sophie, it was blowing shit up. The first time I’d come here with Pa and Barber, Errol had let me blow up a vehicle. Pa nearly had an aneurysm, but eventually he came around to realize how fun it was.
“Holy fuckballs.” Ren laughed, true joy flooding his face. “That was fucking amazing, dude.”
“That’s only the start. Hit it, boys.” Errol pointed at me and Oli like he was the coach of our team, and I quirked a grin at Oli.
“You heard the man.”
We flipped open the detonators.
“On the count of three,” Oli said, a tremble of excitement shaking his shoulders. He grinned, a wild expression of exhilaration taking hold. “One. Two.Three!”
We hit our buttons together.
Fireworks whistled and boomed overhead, the big boys. Where the fuck had Errol gotten them? The third car, an Acura,went flying up in the air the way the Ford did, glowing from the bright bursts of purple and white that sparkled overhead. The Buick had a harder time with the Ford on top of it, but the bomb still had enough power to flip both cars and all three crashed together, thumping and crumpling onto the ground as they landed. The sound echoed around us.
Sophie slammed her hands over her ears with a shake of her head. “Everything smells like gunpowder.”
“And thar she blows!” Errol jumped on the table and pointed into the air doing his best impersonation of a goddamned pirate. He did some kind of interpretive dance that was a whole lot of random footwork before he howled in laughter.
The rest of us joined in, but it was mostly chuckling at Errol and his eccentricity.
Ren leaned toward Barber. “Are we sure that’s Dad’s brother?”
“You can see why Dad disowned him, huh?” Barber cackled, slapping Ren on the shoulder. “He takes life by the balls and has fun. Dad just strangles the fuck out of the balls when he has them in his hand.”
The corners of Ren’s mouth flicked up, his gaze softening. “Yeah. I like Uncle Errol.”
Barber gave him a knowing look. “Me too, kid.”
9
REN
I eyed my phone, the text staring back at me.
Luke
Had fun tonight, bro. Let’s do it again.
We didn’t get the chance to have a conversation, but we’d connected, which was both irritatingly awesome and annoying. Despite promising KC and Oliver I’d give Luke a chance, I still wanted to hate him. My entire plan for revenge had stemmed from him and his disregard forourfriend.
Except, I’d started to wonder if it was more about him abandoning me. He was the only caring sibling I’d had and he’d left.
Shaking my head, I moved on to the message on my social media, the one I’d unlocked my screen for in the first place. My phone had buzzed as soon as KC, Oliver, and I had entered my apartment, and I’d told them to go get ready for bed while I sorted out a few things. Those “few things” had become me sitting on the couch staring at Luke’s text.
Sighing, I opened the message and paused when I saw it was from the hockey team I’d contacted. I’d given them my list of experience. The Homeward Bladezillas—named after the suburb they were founded in—used a rink about ten miles from my apartment, which meant I didn’t have to travel too far for practice. Games might be another story, but I could make it work if I was invited to play with them.
Homeward Bladezillas
Hey Ren! This is Harlo. I checked out your stats and man, you’re good. You have a stellar high school record. How did you not go for college or pro? Anyway, we’d love to have you on the Zillas. We have a tryout tomorrow. We’re still looking for some good forwards and defense even though the season started. If you’re still interested, come to the Homeward Union Ice Rink at 9am. Hope to see you then!