Read Online The Warriors by Sol Yurick - Free Book Online Page A

could make it back alone. Hinton understood that the discussion was over.
    They took out the pins and gave them to Hector. They kneeled in front of Hector and he pinned the signs on their hats. Lunkface was furious because he had lost his hat and he wouldn’t ruin his jacket with pin marks, but Dewey said that Lunkface could wear a handkerchief around his head and they would pin to that. Hector wore his sign in front of his hat; the others wore the pins on the sides of their hats.
    Hector told them that if the Youth Board joker didn’t make it, they might go as a war party, because it would mean that
all
truces were off, the shit was on, but good, and the police would be all over, coming down on them, and you wouldn’t be able to trust your own mother and father. They all laughed; it was an old Family joke.
    Hector told Hinton to leave their mark. Hinton took out the Magic Marker and put the family sign on the tomb, Dominators, LAMF, DTK and told The Junior, “I leave this for them ghosts.”
    The cloud bank had moved a little nearer. Hector tapped Hinton on the shoulder. Hinton, knowing that Dewey was watching the area ahead for enemies, came out of the comforting shadow, bending low. He sped down the hill in short rushes till he disappeared in a shadow. Then Lunkface was tapped and moved out.

July 4th–July 5th, 11:40 P.M.–12:45 A.M.
    At the bottom of the hill, near the fence, the gravestones were set close together. Dewey said, “Man, they got them shoulder to shoulder here.”
    Hector made The Junior rear guard to bug him: he crowded close and said, “Don’t talk like that, man.” They moved on down. The Junior gave a little gasp when he had to step on a grave to keep from falling; his foot sank a little into the fresh soil. Crouching, they could move without having to rush from shadow to shadow, screened now by the tombstones.
    Bimbo said, “Look at that.” In the faint light from the moon, they could see someone had spelled out
Spahis
across a long line of headstones, right above the R.I.P.’s.
    The cemetery ended above a street. There was a drop ofabout twelve feet. Hector sent Hinton along the fence line to see if there was a place where the Family could squeeze through without having to climb over. Hinton was being tested because he hadn’t wanted to wear the insignia. Didn’t they see how wrong it was, Hinton thought? He moved along the last line of gravestones, looking over them at the fence and the street below. The moonlight shone on railroad lines, a narrow river, and on the parkway and the long stretch of green lawn sloping up to the apartment houses. The elevated tracks were just beyond. Hinton had once lived around here; his family was always moving around, never staying in one place more than two years. Off to the left, about a half mile away, there was a bridge over the river.
    Hinton couldn’t find an opening in the fence; they would have to climb it. No one was walking along the street; only a few cars went by. If they jumped from higher up, people in the cars wouldn’t notice them poised on the rampart. He found a likely place to climb over the fence. The drop here was about three times the height of a man, but seemed higher. He went back and reported to Hector.
    Hinton led Hector and the men to the place.
    â€œWhy so high, man? We’ll get hurt jumping.”
    â€œIf we jump from any lower, they could see us, Hector.”
    â€œBut we might get hurt. We can’t carry any busted ankle home. Find the lowest place. Lower, man.”
    â€œThe way this son sees it . . .”
    â€œ. . . is not the way we’ll do it,” Hector said.
    â€œAll right, Papa,” Hinton said, angry.
    â€œFather knows best,” Hector intoned. “Am I right?” Hinton didn’t answer. “Am I right?”
    Hinton nodded and smiled.
    â€œLook at me when I’m talking to you.”
    Hinton looked at