The Savage Blue by Zoraida Cordova

Author:Zoraida Cordova [Cordova, Zoraida]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Action & Adventure, Juvenile Fiction, Fantasy & Magic, Legends; Myths; Fables, Love & Romance, Survival Stories, Other
ISBN: 9781402282065
Google: Hi1vMAEACAAJ
Amazon: 1402282060
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Published: 2013-04-18T14:00:00+00:00

Even before we climb the steep steps leading to the gothic building that is Thorne Hill High School, I can smell it.

Dirt, covering my body like I’m digging into wet earth with bare hands.

At the school entrance, beneath the archway statues of two clashing angels, is a massive flower wreath with Ryan’s graduation photo at the center. Thick white candles drip on the floor like waxy tears.

I realize that the dirty smell of guilt is coming from me. If I’d told him my secret, maybe he’d still be alive. He would’ve known to run, to hide. I pull out an action figure I’ve had since fifth grade—Captain America with his tiny toy shield. The year he transferred from Nowhere, North Carolina, with his side-swept blond hair and big gray eyes and honest face—well, it was pretty annoying. So we called him that until it stopped being a joke and just became part of his shtick. Ryan was better than the rest of us. Better than me.

All around and along the wreath are tiny things left by the rest of the school. Amid all the roses and daisies are a cluster of forget-me-nots from Mrs. Santos’ garden and an Italian horn Angelo had always promised to give him but just couldn’t part with.

Kurt shifts uncomfortably. “I didn’t know to bring something.”

“It’s okay,” I say.

He shakes his head, frustrated. “It isn’t.”

I thought I’d feel weird coming back, but despite the silence in the halls, I think I still fit right in. The tension is familiar, clinging with loss, excitement, hormones, and anxiety. Yep, still the average high school.

Ryan didn’t have a funeral in Brooklyn. As soon as his parents got his body back from the morgue, they moved back to North Carolina, convinced of the dangers of the big city.

Flanked by Layla and Kurt, we file into the auditorium, which is full to the brim with kids.

“Are you okay?” Layla asks, crossing her fingers with mine.

“No.” I hate the way the swim team is looking at me. The day I left for the Vanishing Cove, we had our final meet. We wouldn’t have swum, not without Ryan, but I’m their captain. Was their captain. “I shouldn’t be here.”

“Yes, you should.”

For a second, Angelo stares at me with that way he has, like he can’t decide if he’s going to deck you in the face or shake your hand. Then again, Angelo doesn’t shake hands. Everything about him— his messy button-down, the gelled hair that feels like a helmet to the touch—is comforting. No matter what, he’ll never change who he is to the core. Then he grins and pulls me into a man-hug.

“Can you believe Principal Quinn asked me to give a speech?” Angelo holds out his fist and I bump it.

Principal Quinn finishes setting up the microphone. Angelo puts on his game face. The real concentrated kind he reserves for meets or when he’s on lifeguard duty. People can say a lot about Angelo: he’s a player; he probably stole your

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