They stopped at school first; every teacher except Miss Vernon had loaded them down with spring break homework, and Melanie wanted to plead her case to Mr. Hansen. It was past 4:30 and the halls were nearly empty. Just as she was ready to knock on the dean’s door, someone inside smashed their fist against it, hard enough to rattle the handle. Melanie flinched and stepped back, staying away from the windows.
“Fuckin’ hell, Gary, what’s gonna change your mind, huh?” It was Travis. Goddammit. “Dead body? Is that what’ll sway ya? ‘Cause it’s comin’, believe me.”
“Mm…nah.” That was Mr. Hansen, who sounded utterly unworried. “Sure, I had my doubts at first. But he’s been a perfect student, and practically gone native already.” They were talking about Lynd. “All he needs is to make a few friends outside the LKPC. I gave Nate Goldman a nudge; said he should teach Lynd some ball. We do need an infielder.”
“Friends? He’s a Markstepper, Gary, a born and bred killer. They don’t have ‘friends’. And he’s the second one to turn up here this year, in the heart of Warden territory, and rumors are flyin’ about Equinox too. The Marksteppers are plottin’ something, and that boy’s a part of it, and y’all are buyin’ his ‘Oh, I just want a hooome’ bullshit like he’s your long-lost son. Just gimme a chance to prove it—”
“I said no.” Mr. Hansen’s voice had changed, now simmering with contempt. “You’ve always been an asshole, Travis. When you were fifteen, I thought hey, he’ll grow out of it. But now you’re twenty-four and even worse, ‘cause the old man spoiled you rotten all those years. Now you’re on his bad side for once, after that stunt you pulled with the mirror, and you can’t handle it.”
“So in you crawl, trying to get me to go behind Mr. C’s back with you, and you think the best way to do that is threatening one of my students?” He chuckled. “Tell you what, if I hear you went through with it anyway, I will personally flash-fry all the fat out of your vicious little brain, and you know that’s not a metaphor, pal. Now get lost.”
Melanie didn’t have time to react before Travis slammed the door open. He did a double-take upon seeing her, and for a second Melanie flinched, worried that she’d be the literal punching bag for Travis’ frustration, but instead he simply snapped “What the fuck are you doing here?”
“I j-just had a question for Mr. Hansen…”
“You didn’t hear a fuckin’ thing, got it? Not a fuckin’ thing."
Melanie eagerly nodded. She just wanted him to go away. And he did, his stomps echoing down the stairwell.
Mr. Hansen approached her, shaking his head. “I’m sorry you had to hear that, Melanie,” he said.
“What’s he want with Lynd?”
“Oh…” Mr. Hansen shook his head. “Just the usual Warden chest-thumping. Can’t handle being shown up by a Markstepper. But I promise you, he won’t hurt anyone. I’ll see to that.”
“Why do you guys keep that psycho around?” She said bitterly. “How can you trust him?”
Mr. Hansen leaned in. “If it was up to me, he’d be out on his ass, for exactly that reason. But it’s not up to me, and I think you know who’s calling the shots here. Travis and the old man, they have a history. I’m sorry, but that’s all I can say. Now, what did you need?”
“I’ll ask later,” Melanie said. She just wanted to get out. When she was in fifth grade, and her dad was neck-deep in chasing down mobsters, she’d learned about made men. Mafiosos who had the blessing of the boss to do whatever they pleased, who answered only to him. That was Travis. He could do anything, hurt anyone, and Florentino would cover for him. He was in Florentino’s doghouse now, apparently, but who knew how long that would last?
No, there was no justice in Warden-land. There was only power. Mr. Hansen could lie to her—and himself—but he knew it too. He knew Travis wouldn’t respond to reason, only violence, and he knew he could deliver that violence, in the form of some horrific literal-brain-melting magic, if he had to. She didn’t trust him either. She didn’t trust any of them deep down. Not even her parents.
Of course, in her dad’s mafia tales, there was one level between the boss and his made men: his actual family. Like her. She wondered what Travis would have done otherwise.
