Blast to the Past (Book Four of the Chosen Universe)

Chapter Six

KAYLEN

It wasn't easy waking up and knowing her mother was locked away in some psych ward. Kaylen would never admit it, but she missed her. Besides, when their mother wasn't around, it was Kaylen who had to step up and play mother to Claire. She was no role model. She was a decent student, but she got into fights way too often and if the principal wasn't also her uncle, she'd have probably been expelled by now. On top of that, when Claire broke down in tears because of one thing or another, Kaylen had to be the strong one, calming her down. Sometimes, maybe just once in a while, it might be nice to be able to break, too.

That morning, shortly after they arrived at the school, Kaylen found Claire surrounded by older boys. "You know, you'd be cute if you took off those glasses," one said. He grabbed them off of her face.

"Hey! Give those back!" Claire protested.

"Yeah, and that sweater! Why are you hiding that body, baby? You've got some nice curves," another said. He ripped her sweater away from her.

Claire was visibly trembling. Kaylen had her bat in the air before she even registered it. She swung it at the guy who had taken Claire's sweater. He doubled over in pain. Then, Kaylen put the bat down to go get her little sister's glasses. She twisted the wrist of the one holding them and put just enough pressure to let him know she could easily break it. He released the glasses. Kaylen handed them to Claire before punching the guy.

Pretty quickly, a full fight broke out. Kaylen found herself in a battle against four boys. She was holding her own quite well when a voice said, "Four against one? Don't you think that's kind of unfair?" It was Lee. She heard him even over the crowd of students chanting, fight, fight, fight!

"I know, right?" Kaylen replied. "I should have let the boys bring in some backup." She kicked one in the chest.

"Fight me now, Psycho!" One of the boys shouted. He had grabbed Claire violently and was holding her in front of him like a shield.

Suddenly, Kaylen saw Austin grab the boy from behind, pulling him into a hold that forced him to release Claire. She ran out of the asshole's reach. Lee pulled her closer to him protectively. "What the heck kind of a man puts his hands on a lady?" Austin demanded. "How dare you touch either of them?!" He spun the boy around and punched him in the face, clearly breaking his nose.

Kaylen was so stunned to see Austin genuinely angry, she forgot she was still in a fight. The boy closest to her took a cheap shot, kicking her in her side so hard it knocked the wind out of her. Kaylen fell onto her knees, genuinely in pain.

"Kay!" Claire screamed in horror. Kaylen could hear her crying. She couldn't see straight as one of the boys kicked her in the head. It continued from there, with each boy taking turns kicking her.

Someone savagely ripped the three boys who were still standing away from her. One by one, they fell onto the floor. Her vision was still blurry, but she looked up to see who had helped her. She expected to see Lee, but it was Austin standing beside her, breathing heavily and looking like he was trying to calm himself back down.

"Are y'alright, Darlin'?" He asked after a minute as he crouched down beside her.

Kaylen nodded, but instantly regretted it because her head hurt. "Maybe not," she admitted.

"What on Earth is going on here?" Her uncle demanded, causing Kaylen to groan.

"I may have attacked them," she admitted weakly. Austin helped her slowly sit up.

"Get the nurse," her uncle said to someone. He was beside her then. "Kaylen, what happened?" He asked softly. He rarely used her first name in the school.