I ran my fingers over the soft ledge of the table. "You can call me anytime day or not really I mean it."

"I know it was just different after your big game. You had to be tired too," Annie smiled.

"I wonder if these nightmares are normal."

"Darry, he's thirteen, his parents died then he was ripped away from his brother, and put into a place that locked him in a shed, and did lord knows what to him."

I rolled my thumbs around. "So, you don't think he's psycho?"

Annie shook her head. "Believe me I've seen psycho, Pony isn't it."

"These are drawings he did." She handed me a stack of papers. I shuffled through them.

"What's the deal with this one?" It was a kid with no face he was in the shadows on very large people or something. It wasn't in detail of anything just shading.

"The boy in the picture is him, the people are probably his foster parents, the little detail and no face shows he's hiding something."

"I want to know what he did to him, why he locked him in that shed, I want to know how long it has been since my brother stopped talking!" I pounded my fist hard on the table.

"Oh dear lord!" Annie jumped up from the table. "Ponyboy!" She stood on the deck with her hands on her hips. The gang was over they were playing a game of football outside until they decided to have a smoke break. Although I think Dally had played half the game with one in his mouth. "Put that out right now!"

Pony stomped the cigarette out and then made the b line toward me. She went on to lecture everyone on how smoking was horrible for you. I guess she didn't realize that they were all smoking before they were even a double digit in age.

Pony swung himself around me. He held on to me tightly. "No smoking," I grinned at him.

"Darry!" Two-Bit perched his foot at the end of deck. "Come on play! We are loosing so badly."

"That's because Soda and Steve cheat by making the game unfair," I said shooting the two in question looks."

"So help us here."

"Nope," I dug Pony's head out of my back and picked him up so he was upside down. "I told you no teams until he says my name."

Dallas rolled his eyes at me. I brought Pony up so he could look me in my face. "Darry, one word that's all I'm asking." I dropped him to his feet. He jumped off the deck flipping in the air. I smiled at the memory of me spending an entire summer teaching them those tricks.

I went back inside and joined Annie who was still shaking her head. "They are a crazy bunch."

"Yup."

"What's the deal with Johnny?" She asked.

"You mean the black eye?" I questioned.

"The black eye, the fact that he can't make contact with adults, he's overly quite."

"He's shy; he gets picked on at school a lot," I said. It wasn't a complete lie.

"I see." Annie knew I was lying.

"Home ain't so good either, not as bad as Pony's but its still hell."

"One call is all it takes Darry."

"I know but it's different with him."

"I've heard that before."

"I better go I have practice." I got up out of my seat.

"Guys, I'm leaving. Steve have Soda home on time, or I'll bust your head in."

"Alright superman."

I walked around the yard only to find weight on my belt loops. "What?" I turned around to face my baby brother.

He threw his arms around my neck. "I'll see you a little later I just have to get stuff done." I pulled him real tight for a while but he still didn't loosen his grip. Annie and Soda had wondered their way over.

"Come on Pony. Let's get back to the game." Soda put his hand on Pony's shoulder but Pony shrugged it off.

"Honey, Darry has to go, he's going to be back," Annie said.

I broke Pony's grip and stood up. He immediately grabbed my hand. I hurt it in last week's game. "Ponyboy let go!" I shouted.

He did and almost immediately started to cry. I hated this. "Hey, kiddo, I didn't mean to shout like that."

"Just walk Darry," Annie said. "He'll be fine."

I turned my back once more. He attached himself onto my belt loops and started pulling and sobbing. I hadn't seen him this bad in a long while. Not since he found out he had to go with his second foster parents. He refused to contact us through speech so it was normal for temper tantrums like this. I just didn't expect one today especially with the gang here.

"Darry just fucking stay, make the kid happy!" Dally screamed at me.

I dropped myself down a little. "Ponyboy, what's wrong?"

He lunged himself at me burying his face in my neck.

"Pony, I'm here," Soda said. "Darry needs to go." That didn't help any.

"Alright, Pony. It's alright I'm staying. I'm not leaving." I stood up bringing him with me.

He ended up crying his eyes out and tiring himself out. I was never more thankful for when he finally fell asleep.

"Darry," Soda slipped inside the bedroom. "I'm going to stay the night. You can go to practice now."

I had no need to look at the clock it was already dark outside. I at least owed the coach a personal explanation. "Yeah okay."

"Why'd he do that?" Soda asked.

I shook my head. "I have no clue little buddy."

I didn't end up at practice. Instead I went down to the county jail.

"Past visiting hours." The officer said or at least I think he was an officer.

"Please." I bagged.

He looked at me funny. Then suddenly his face lost its sternness. "You're that kid's brother, the one Kane Able fostered."

I nodded. "Yes, and I just want to ask a couple of questions that's all."

The officer nodded. "I ain't going to give you long. How is your brother?"

"I wouldn't be here if he was okay," I said.

"I know you want to kill this man but you can't lay a finger on him.Y ou hear me? We'll both be in trouble if you do."

"I won't sir."

He led me to some weird room. I sat down in chair and they brought him in. He looked more rugged; I never knew came anyone that came out of jail looking nice they always looked rugged. "Hello Darry," he said in a friendly manner.

I shifted and sat on my hands. The last thing I wanted to do was hit this guy and believe me. I wanted to do it. "Kane."

"What brings you to this place? I'm not supposed to talk to people with out a lawyer present."

What the hell do you think brings me? "Ponyboy, what did you do him? He wakes up screaming from nightmares."

"Still? He's done that ever since we brought him home." He gave a laugh. "Screams to wake the dead."

"What the hell did you do to him? How many times was he locked in a shed, how long was he in that shed?"

"Wait just a minute there! Little boys get in a world of trouble. I warned Ponyboy about those shed doors. They'll lock you right in."

"How long was he in that shed for?" I growled.

"I don't really know."

"I never had a good feeling about you. He was always grounded; every time I saw him he had a bruise. I just want to know how to help him. He won't talk. Why won't he talk?"

Kane shrugged. "I like that little boy, he was good use."

"Good use?"

Kane nodded and grinned.

"Good use for what? For a punching bag? For drug testing?"

"Those are a lot of accusations."

"What do you expect? He goes to you a normal kid and comes out like a scared puppy. You beat the hell out of him this I know."

"Only when he was bad. A few swats to the bottom straightened him out."

He was smirking. I glared at him. "Are you kidding? He has belt marks! When we first found he was covered head to toe."

"Boys fall," he answered.

"You make me sick you…"

"Times up!" The officer screamed.

It was a good thing too because I was no longer sitting on my hands. The next week we learned he was scheduled for a court date and his wife for drug charges.

I pulled up in the car with Charlotte and Soda. "We're like superstars." Soda grinned. Every news station had to be there. Social services were there.

I stepped out of the car. "I guess there's Pony."

He was in a swarm with his foster parents and social services that were bagging for no pictures and to please be let through.

"Enough!" I shouted taking off my jacket. I picked Pony up and covered him with my jacket. "Sodapop stay close."

That court room seemed to be about two degrees. Kane pleaded guilty to his drug charges. He was going to walk after serving ten years with a chance of parole however his case for child abuse was being held off. Pony would have to testify and well that was a problem. His wife for some reason didn't want to plead guilty. She was found guilty no chance of parole. The only problem was the Kane's had a right to a quick trial. Their lawyers were starting to push for it.

There was too many things going on Ben moved out he needed quite to study. I lost his rent and with Matt getting married soon I'd loose his too. I was sitting at Chris and Annie's we were watching the evening news.

"With the chance of thirteen year old Ponyboy Curtis still not talking. The case will still go on; only the Ables will have a better chance of being let off easy."

Chris turned the TV off. "Those people won't walk. Not over my dead body."

"Chris please," Annie held her hand up to stop him. "Come on sweet heart, you and Darry both have school tomorrow time for bed."

I might as well make this easy for them. "Yeah, I better get going." I was tired as is. "Good night kiddo," I said. I was expecting the fight. He didn't want Soda to go away that was a big indicator.

"I'm going to pick you up from school tomorrow," I said as he clung on to me.

"Ponyboy don't do this," Chris said. "I won't let you go with Darry this weekend if you don't let him go."

I pulled Pony's hands away from me. It tore me up to do this but as much as I wanted to I couldn't be with him every second the last time I gave in, he wouldn't let me leave that morning. and wouldn't go to school. He still had these weird eating habits that none of us could figure out. He hadn't gained that much weight since the beginning and it made it really easy to pick him up and handle him that way.

"Enough" Chris grabbed him like a loaf of bread.

I walked out the door. He wasn't crying like the first time at least. I could hear Chris and Annie repeatedly telling him to calm down and to breathe. It was the first time I didn't want to kill the Ables. I wanted to make them suffer. I wanted to have to go through my pain and my brothers. It was the first time that I wished this pain on anyone.

I was close to getting inside the truck. I heard the only thing I've wanted to hear in what seemed like forever. Pony screamed my name. I took off running inside.