Page 186 of Keeping 13

“I show no mercy,” he snickered, slipping his head under the hem of my shirt and upping his efforts. “Your leg kicks out when I tickle you here,” he chuckled, tickling my ribs. “That’s so weird.”

“I’m going to get you back for this,” I warned him, hardly able to breathe from laughing so hard, as I wiggled and bucked beneath him. “You just wait and see—”

The sound of tires screeching on the gravel outside cut through the air, and Johnny’s head popped back out from under my T-shirt. “Jaysus,” he mused, hair sticking up in forty different directions. “That has to be some kind of record on delivering.”

“It can’t be the pizza.” I arched myself up to look out the window, but because it was dark outside, I could only make out a set of headlamps. “Oh my god, what if it’s your mam?” I spluttered and then proceeded to scramble off his lap at top speed. Knowing my luck, that’s exactly who it was. “I should go.” Grabbing my schoolbag, I started throwing all of my books back in, while I multitasked by toeing on my runners in the process. “You should take me home.”

“Shan, relax.” He chuckled, climbing to his feet. “It’s not my ma, and if it is, you don’t need to go.”

Bang, bang, bang…

“See?” Johnny coaxed, moving for the door. “My mother wouldn’t knock.” My shoulders sagged in relief and I loosened my grip on my schoolbag. “Just wait here,” he added before slipping out of the room.

A few seconds later, a familiar voice boomed through the house. “Where’s my sister?”

Darren?

“She’s here.”

“Tell her to come outside. She needs to come home with me now.”

Oh god…

“Come in.”

“What?”

“I’m not telling her what to do, so come in if you want to talk to her.”

Less than a minute later, Johnny strolled back into the sitting room with Darren trailing stiffly behind him. “Your brother’s here, Shan,” he said, keeping his eyes trained on mine as he walked over and stood beside me.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, instantly on edge. “Wh-why are you here?”

“I should ask you the same thing,” Darren replied, but he didn’t sound angry.Just tired.“You were supposed to come straight home after school.” His gaze drifted to the schoolbooks lying open on the coffee table and surprise flickered in his eyes before he shook his head, features somber once again. “It’s almost eight o’clock, Shannon.”

“I was coming home,” I told him. “We were just going to eat dinner first.”

“We need to talk,” he replied. “It’s important.”

Panic flared inside of me. “What’s wrong?” I asked, because something had to be wrong for him to obtain Johnny’s address and drive all the way out here. He wasn’t even fighting with me. This was bad. Something terrible was going to come out of his mouth. I couldfeelit. “Darren?” My voice was shaky, matching the rest of me. “What’s going on?”

My brother’s gaze flicked from me to Johnny and then back to me before he blew out a harsh breath. “It’s Dad.”

I stiffened, feeling every muscle in my body lock tight with tension, while I waited for Darren to confirm what I knew in my heart was coming.

“He was released from Brickley House today, Shannon,” Darren announced, voice thick with emotion. “He’s back in Ballylaggin.”

The air left my lungs in a strangled rush, and in its place came a flood of hurt, pain, fear, and paranoia. It would never end. This would never be over. Joey was right. He was always right. Dad would be back, and when he did, he was going to make me pay…

A large hand slipped into mine then: warm, strong, and short-wiring my panicked thoughts. Trembling, I glanced down at our joined hands and then up at Johnny. He was standing right beside me—big and strong, and so close that I could feel the heat radiating off his body. His presence in this moment was deeply comforting. “What does this mean?” He asked the question I couldn’t get out of my mouth. “For your family?” He roughly cleared his throat. “For Shannon?”

“No offense, Johnny, but it’s a private matter,” Darren replied, giving him a sharp look.

“No offense,Darren, but I don’t give a shite,” Johnny shot back, not missing a beat. “Whether you like it or not, I’m her fella, and if she’s in danger, then I want to know about it.” Bristling, he added, “I can help.”

“I don’t need your help,” Darren replied in a weary tone. “But I do need you to come home,” he added, turning his attention to me. “Mam’s a nervous wreck, and we all need to talk about where we go from here as a family.”

“Is Joey at home?” I asked, watching him carefully.

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