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“I’m serious.” His twin shoved him again, a little harder, a little rougher. “Or are you too stupid to realize that?”
Stupid.
Gabriel shoved him back, putting some real strength behind it. His brother half stumbled into the banister of the staircase.
But Nick hesitated before retaliating. Gabriel could feel it, that moment of indecision before a fight turned into a fight.
That moment when you could back down and lose nothing.
“You know,” said Gabriel, hearing his voice turn cruel, “you can tell me to leave her alone, but I don’t know what you’re going to do about the guys at school. It’s not like she was the type to say no before, if you catch my drift ”
Nick punched him in the face.
And then they were fighting for real.
This wasn’t like when he’d fought with Hunter. Nick wasn’t a fighter, not really. He got some solid hits in, but he wouldn’t fight dirty. Gabriel drove him back until he hit the wall, and he knew it wasn’t going to last long.
But then they were being dragged apart. Someone was yelling; someone else had him by the arms, pulling him back.
Nick had blood on his lip, and he jerked his arm free from Chris to wipe at his mouth. “Jesus, Gabriel, what? You can’t let someone else be happy for five minutes?”
Gabriel tried to pull free from whoever had him had to be Michael. “Sorry, Nicky. Guess everyone can’t be as perfect as you.”
The girls were in the dining room doorway. Becca had her hands up, her expression placating. “Look, guys, just chill out.”
“Don’t bother,” said Quinn. Her eyes weren’t red anymore, and she leveled an icy glare at Gabriel. “If he wants to act like an animal, just take him out back and shoot him.”
“The only animal I see,” said Gabriel, “is the dog in the front hall ”
“Cut it out!” said Michael from behind him.
But then Gabriel couldn’t breathe.
He didn’t quite get it at first. Was Michael holding him too tightly? Was he winded from the fight? His lungs were trying to inhale, but it was like there was nothing there.
He found Nick’s eyes across the foyer, grim and determined and just a bit satisfied.
Gabriel had a string of insults ready. He just couldn’t talk.
He couldn’t inhale. This wasn’t funny anymore.
This wasn’t f**king funny.
His lungs were burning. He fought the hands holding him.
Outside. He needed to get outside. He was going to drown in the middle of the hallway, without a drop of water around.
Fighting made it worse. His vision turned spotty. Nick’s power choked the air around him, flicking at his skin, mocking him.
His own power flared without direction, seeking fire, energy, anything it could find to draw strength and retaliate.
The lights in the foyer exploded.
Then the lights in the dining room.
The girls shrieked, clinging to each other, ducking into the hallway where there weren’t lights.
“Stop it,” yelled Michael. “Both of you. Stop!”
