The Least Favorite Cameron

Chapter 24

"I have to go home. Something is wrong," I say to others but mostly John B. My brother had become so unhinged in the past two days that I was scared of what was going to happen. The pit that had formed in my stomach made me nauseous.

"Gracie, I don't know if going to Rafe, who almost killed you twice now, is the answer," John B. says as he tries to place his hand on my arm comfortingly but I shake it off.

"John B. I need to go home and see what's going on! Now!" I shouted and at that we all piled into the Twinkie and headed towards Tannyhill. As we got closer we heard sirens and then several police cars drove past us on the road.

"Go faster! I think they're going to arrest Rafe and my dad," I said as I see the cars heading in the same direction ahead of us.

"If they're getting arrested, do you think I would want to miss that?" John B. says back to me and his words throw me. He has every right to want my father and brother to pay for the pain they have caused him. I want them to pay as well but the hatred with which John B. said those words, it felt like part of the anger was thrown at me.

As we pull up to my house I see Wheezie and Sarah on the front steps. I jump out of the van before John B. even parks it and I envelop both my sisters in a hug. There are police officers everywhere running around and flashing red and blue lights that reflect off of our faces.

"It's bad, Gracie. They're going to arrest Rafe and Dad but Rafe escaped earlier today and now he's barricaded himself on the boat. Shoupe brought dad over to the dock to try and reason with him but its bad. I'm scared he's gonna do something," Sarah says to me with tears in her eyes as Wheezie clings to her. Rafe's phone call, it wasn't an apology, it was a goodbye. As this realization settles over me, I sprint towards the dock, leaving Sarah and Wheezie and the pogues behind me. They call my name but I ignore it as I see my brother standing on the top deck of The Druthers and dozens of officers on the dock. As I try to get closer one of the officers stops me but I push past her, shoving her to the side and hurling myself towards the closest point to the boat from the dock.

"Rafe!" I shout at him and I see the look of shock on his face as he was not expecting to see me.

"Gracie, get out of here!" He shouts at me and when he does Shoupe and my father look over with similar expressions.

"Rafe just come on down, we can figure this all out okay?" Shoupe yells at him.

"Nah, there's nothing to work out Shoupe, I killed the Sheriff, she was going to arrest my dad. I couldn't let her take you, okay? She was going to arrest you for something I did. Yeah, yeah I-I saw you and that pogue fighting and I thought he was gonna kill you so I killed him!"

No, he couldn't possibly be trying to save our dad. Not after everything.

"Rafe! No! Please! You didn't do that!" I beg him but I've never felt so powerless. He was only a couple yards away on the boat but it felt like a world away.

"I'm sorry" Rafe says quietly and then I watch him as he goes inside the boat and slams the door shut.

"Rafe!" My dad shouts in an agonizing tone. Then I watch as the boat goes up in flames as the explosion spreads throughout every hinge and every bolt of it, the force throwing me backwards slightly. It's as if I'm watching in slow motion as the pieces of the boat flutter into the water with a puff of smoke as the fire is extinguished. He was gone. My brother blew himself up in front of me, to once and for all save our father. My legs grow weak as I collapse onto the dock.

"No," I begin to say quietly as a river of tears begins cascading down my cheeks.

"No!" I cry out again louder as I slam my fists against the smooth wood of the dock. I do that repeatedly until I feel someone's arms grab me and force me to stop. When I look up I see him. The man I was once called dad, the man that ruined our lives. The man I used to think could do no harm, now has destroyed so many people's lives. He was holding my arms so tight with tears in his eyes and I could see his mouth moving but I didn't hear the words that followed. All I could hear was a sheer ringing sound as I pulled my arm from his grasp and brought it down hard onto his face.

"You did this! This is your fault! He didn't kill Big John! You did! You pushed him to do this!" I shouted at him as two officers pulled me away from him to stop me from hitting him. I hadn't even realized that the pogues had followed me onto the dock. They stood there staring at the remains of the Druthers and Kiara looked at me with tears in her eyes as the officers released me. Shoupe forced Ward off the dock and I watched as Sarah, Wheezie, and Rose cried out on the patio. Kiara looked back out at the destruction and I searched for the face of the only person who could provide me with a small bit of comfort but I didn't find it. John B. wasn't looking at me but at the scene in front of him. His gaze, with an emotionless if not almost satisfied look on his face, looked over the debris and the chaos my brother had left behind. If there was any part of my heart that remained unbroken, it would have shattered as John B. made no motion to even look at me. I was frozen in my place, from where the officers had seated me, I couldn't move, I didn't want to move. I'd never felt more alone in my life. Then I feel someone put their arms under mine and lift me up. I quickly turned to see the blonde boy who seemed to be on a roll for saving the day.

"Come one, we gotta get you out of here," JJ says to me as the other Pogues follow us down the dock. John B. stays a few steps behind me as JJ ushers me toward the Twinkie but I stop and turn towards Sarah and Wheezie. Kiara, Pope, and JJ give me a nod of understanding and head towards the Twinkie. John B hesitates and looks into my eyes for a few moments, both of us trying to read the other, and then he kisses me on the forehead.

"I love you," He says before he follows the others lead and gets into the van leaving me behind at Tanneyhill as Sarah and Wheezie and I collapse into a pool of tears and sorrow on the ground.