something entirely new to them. They arenât used to being surprised.
I want them to know Luna doesnât do anything she doesnât want to do, and that it is she who actually chooses whom to guide, that Sirena get to pick those among the Alpha who have the most potential. I want them to understand that Lunaâs role is nuanced, but Iâm being naive. Jorge, Deshane, and Keith arenât into nuances.
âHow much?â Jorge shouts. A crumpled dollar flies over my head and lands at Lunaâs feet.
Frightened, Luna takes Ghostâs hand. I might be imagining it, but their gloves shimmer, a faint light weaves through the etchings, and then itâs gone.
âYouâre not doing Caspar the Ghost, are you?â Deshane shouts. Heâs an enormous kidâa hulk, loud, and lacking in all self-restraint. If our school had money for a football team, someone would have steered his aggression toward organized sports and away from the rest of us, but our school doesnât have money for a football team. âYou need a pimp, honey?â
âIgnorant filth,â Ghost rages. His fists are balled up so tight, the powdery white skin beneath his webbed fingers turns a hot crimson. âLuna holds an honored place amongst our people. Know your place, bottom feeder.â
Suddenly, Deshane is all out of laughter. âWhat did you call me, fish head?â
âI called you a bottom feeder. Thatâs a fish that eats feces off the ocean floor,â Ghost says as he stomps toward Deshane.
âOkay, thatâs enough.â Mr. Ervin crosses the room to get between them. âWe all need to remember that weâre from two very different cultures with completely different ways of living. What might sound strange to us is perfectly normal to someone else. Iâm sure there are things we do that the mermaidsââ
âMermaid?â Ghost snaps. âDo I look female to you? Do I look like something out of your brainless fairy tales? I am a Son of Nix! My name is . . .â
What comes out jars my bones. Itâs a vibrating wail and a bark and a roar all at once. It feels like it could pop my eardrums if I didnât clamp my hands over them.
Mr. Ervin stammers an apology, but Ghost wonât let him get started.
âYou clueless jellyfish. My people would have you thrown into the Great Abyss to prevent you from mating and creating more dull-witted minnows. No wonder these sea cucumbers are so simple.â
Deshane gets to his feet. âSay it to my face!â
Ghost looks at Deshane and laughs. âStep up if you didnât hear me, but know this: the moment youâre in my reach, I will gut you.â
Jorge stands up. âKick his ass, Deshane.â
The soldier takes a step toward us. Heâs got his rifle in his hands. âI want everyone in their seats now!â
But no one is paying attention to him. Every eye is on Deshane. Heâs a wrecking machine. He put a teacher in the hospital once back in elementary school, but if my motherâs stories are true, Ghost is the one to worry about. I always thought she had exaggerated what comes over them in a fight. It sounded like something from a horror film. But when Deshane charges up the aisle, I see it for myself. Ghostâs fingertips split open like overcooked sausages. Black talons creep out of the meat and gristle. What was once his mouth stretches impossibly wide, as if his jaw is not connected to his skull and can just grow and grow until it devours the entire room. Inside are rows and rows of teeth planted in milky-white gums. But what is far more frightening is the eager, murderous smile in his bulbous, bloodshot eyes. Ghost wants to hurt Deshane. He wants to show off.
I canât let him, even if my fatherâs voice is trumpeting in my head.
Donât get involved! Stay out of their business! Let the soldier handle it.
But my father is not here, and he doesnât
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