1 Chapter 1
“Think you’re tough enough to take me on, you ugly bastard?”
Beau didn’t reply. He knew he had one chance to prove he could. His gaze went from the knife the muscle-bound thug was holding, then to his face, looking for tells that would let him know when the guy would lunge. He saw what he was looking for. As the knife came toward his gut, Beau made one swift move, grabbing the guy’s hand, and twisted his arm behind him as he snapped his wrist. The knife dropped to the ground and Beau kicked it away. The guy screamed in agony. That lasted all of two seconds, at which point Beau slammed his fist against the guy’s temple and felt the bone crunch. He released his hold on his arm, and when the thug hit the ground, Beau looked down at him, shaking his head. “Yeah, this ugly bastard is tough enough to take you on.”
“Shit!”
Beau spun around, searching for whoever had said that. He saw a kid, maybe eighteen he thought, huddled in a corner between a dumpster and the alley wall.
“Did you k-k-kill him?” the kid stuttered out.
“It was him or me,” Beau answered, taking a step forward.
“Don’t hurt me,” the kid begged, cowering back in fear.
Beau snorted. “Not planning on it. You haven’t done anything to me.”
“I won’t, either. I swear. If anyone asks, I didn’t see nothing.”
“Anything. You didn’t see anything.”
The kid gave him a puzzled, if still frightened look. “Yeah. Okay.”
Beau dropped to one knee, staring at him. “What’s your name?”
“Umm…Stony.”
“Your real name.”
“That is my real name,” the kid said defiantly.
“Uh-huh.” Beau frowned at him.
The kid sighed. “Roderick. But it’s so lame, even the nickname is. I mean Rod? Come on.”
“Only if you let it be.” Beau paused a beat. “Rick.”
“Yeah, I’ve been called that, too. But not so much. Usually it’s ‘Roderick, shut up and listen to me, or else.’ ‘Rod, get your ass in gear.’ “Aww, is Roddy feeling sorry for his little self.’”
“Your folks?”
Rick nodded. “Them, well…until I took off. Guys at school. I mean, look at me.”
“Hard to, when you’re all scrunched up in the corner.” Beau smiled when Rick got to his feet. “Okay, Mr. Universe you ain’t.”
“No shit.”
Rick, because that’s what Beau decided to call him, was all of five ten, he guessed, thin as a rail, with too-long brown hair and boyish good looks which would probably turn handsome when he matured.
“How long have you been on the streets?” Beau asked as he stood as well.
“Too long,” Rick muttered. He glanced at the body lying a few feet away. “You going to leave him there? What if he’s not really dead?”
“He is,” Beau replied succinctly.
“How come he was trying to knife you?”
“He had a beef with me.”
“Aww, gee, you think? I could have figured that out for myself, unless he thought he was going to mug you.”
“He wasn’t.”
“So why was he after you? And what’s your name?”
“I won’t tell you why, and the name’s Beau.”
“Uh-huh. Your real name,” Rick said, mimicking Beau’s words from a moment ago.
Beau laughed. “Honest, it is. Beauregard Calhoun by birth. Beau by choice.”
Rick grinned. “I took French, before I, umm, quit school. Beau means beautiful.”
“Which I’m not. Trust me, I know.” Beau ran a hand over his short, thinning hair.
Rick eyed him. “But you’re not ugly, either, like the guy said. Sure, you ain’t no movie star—”
“Aren’t amovie star.”
“What are you, the grammar police?”
Beau chuckled. “Not even close, but my mom, bless her sainted soul, was an English teacher. Some of it rubbed off on me.”
“Okay, okay, so I’ll try to do better.” Rick cast another look at the dead man. “Can we get the hell out of here?”
“Sure, though I do have a question, first. How come you haven’t run already, or called the cops.”
“Me and…don’t say it.” Rick’s lips quirked up. “The cops and Idon’t see eye to eye on things. Like they think I should be crashing at a shelter, and I think it’s none of their damned business where I sleep as long as I’m not hurting anyone.”
“And you’ve seen dead bodies before, so they don’t bother you.” Beau made it a statement, not a question, since he had the feeling he was right.
“A couple.” Rick’s mouth tightened. “Kids who OD-ed. And yeah, that bothered the hell out of me. But this guy had it coming. He tried to attack you and that knife wasn’t no…wasn’t a toy. So I figure maybe he got what he deserved. I’d rather not hang around here too much longer, though. Someone’s going to come by and, well, you know.”
“Call the cops. Yeah,” Beau replied as he started down the alley. “You hungry?”
Rick grabbed his backpack from behind the dumpster and hurried after him. “When aren’t I?”
“Figured you’d say something like that. It’s late, but I think there’s an all-night diner a couple of blocks from here, if I remember right.”
“They don’t let kids like me in.”
“You’re with me. They will,” Beau told him.
