Who I'm Not Read Free Page A

“There were more kids?”
    â€œYeah.”
    â€œHow many?”
    I hugged myself harder and rocked back and forth. “I don’t know. They changed.”
    He gave a low half whistle–half whisper. Then he said, “I know it’s hard to trust anyone, but the main thing you have to remember is that you’re safe here.”
    I’d kept my head down. I heard him swing his chair to his darkened computer monitor. “I understand how tough this is for you. Let me do some checking.”
    Bingo.
    I’d figured it would take Josh a couple of days to check things out. That would have given me time to figure out how to steal some coin and duck out of there before it all came apart. It didn’t happen that way. About three hours later, I was staring at a piece of pizza while the suppertime news blared on a TV outside Josh’s office. I was listening for something about Harley when Josh came in and said, “We’ve reached your family, Danny. They’re on the phone. You think you can talk to them?”
    I’d freaked, but I couldn’t show it. Part of me knew I should say no and stall for time, but part of me said I had to go for it, that this was a test, almost. Maybe it was the way Josh was so fake relaxed about it. His voice and his slouch said it’s cool , but his eyes were locked on mine again, and they seemed extra dark. I nodded. He picked up a cordless phone from its cradle on the desk and punched a button on it. “Yes, ma’am,” he said into it. “I have him here with me now, and he’s willing to speak with you. Hold on, please.”
    He’d held the phone out to me, then raised his eyebrows and mouthed, Your sister, okay? I nodded again and lifted the phone to my ear, making sure to wrap my hand around the mouthpiece to muffle my voice, the way I’d seen Harley do it a million times. “Hello?”
    A woman’s voice quavered, “Danny?”
    At least they spoke English in Canada. What else could I do? I mumbled, “Yeah. Is that Shan—” Right there, I’d lost it. It was too crazy. My mouth had gone dry and the rest of her name disappeared. I felt Josh’s eyes boring into me. I figured I’d blown it.
    There was a gasp on the other end of the line. Then the voice said, “It’s Shan, Danny, it’s Shan.” Then I heard muffled voices, urgent-sounding, almost like an argument.
    Another voice had come on then, this one razorsharp. “Who is this?”
    I’d wrapped my hand tighter around the receiver and turned away from Josh. I went with it; I had no choice. “It’s Danny. I—I want to come home.” Why not? In a way it was even true.
    Silence. Could I hear her breathing? Then there was the crumply sound of a hand over the phone and more voices, almost yelling. What were they saying? I was sweating again. Then the Shannon voice was back, shaking. “You just stay safe where you are. I’m coming to get you.”
    And less than a day later, she was here. Or almost here. I hadn’t even had a chance to run, let alone score some cash. For all that I’m here to help crap, old Josh had made sure to stick me in a “secure residential facility” overnight, where I’d “lost” my five dollars with a little help from a kid with a gang tat. It was the Bad Time all over again. It had been all I could do to keep my head together enough to come up with a new twist on my plan.
    I looked in the mirror. After three years, Danny might look something like me. I tried the smirky little grin again, curling the right corner of my mouth and just lifting the upper lip on my left. That helped, especially with the shades and toque I’d asked Josh to get for me.
    I didn’t have to fool anyone for long. I didn’t think I would fool anyone for long. I wasn’t even sure if Josh believed me now. I’d said I didn’t want them to meet at the