Winter Hawk Star Read Online Free Page A

the—”
    I snapped my mouth shut. The sliding door on the van was opening, and the kidnappers were getting out of the van. Two of them, not wearing ski masks now. The taller one had a walrus mustache. The shorter one had blond hair that reached his shoulders.
    The one with the walrus mustache reached back with his free hand and dragged Ben from the van.
    Without taking my eyes off them, I reached into the backseat. I knew exactly what I was going to grab. One of my hockey sticks on top of my gym bag.
    I closed my hand on the shaft of wood and pulled the stick with me as I stepped out of the Jeep.
    â€œLeave the kid,” I said.
    â€œDrop dead,” the short, blond-haired guy said.
    â€œLeave him.” I wasn’t going to let them take the kid.
    â€œDrop dead,” he repeated. “We’ll give you the help you need to do it.”
    His partner pulled out a switchblade knife. He clicked it open.
    Again, I felt a strange calmness. I gripped the stick like a baseball bat. I measured the distance between us. Instead of backing up, I took a step closer.
    â€œCome on, boys,” I said. “Try me out.”
    The second guy pulled out a switch-blade.
    I grinned. A part of me wondered where my fearlessness was coming from. Another part of me got ready to swing hard and swing smart.
    They split up. One moved to my left. One moved to my right. I couldn’t defend myself against them both.
    But the boy was free.
    â€œRun hard, kid!” I shouted. “Now.”
    The boy sprinted toward me. Then past me.
    â€œYou’re dead meat,” the guy with themustache snarled, waving his knife. “Sliced, bloody meat.”
    â€œAnd you’re a home run,” I said, gripping my stick harder. Like a baseball bat.
    The sound of sirens reached us.
    The men looked at each other and hesitated.
    In that moment, I stepped forward and swung hard at the one on the right. He managed to get his arm up. I broke my stick across his forearm.
    He shrieked.
    Sirens rose louder.
    The other one moved in close, stabbing at air.
    I was left with half a hockey stick in my hands. I swung it at him, and he danced away.
    His partner kept shrieking in agony.
    I heard the Jeep’s door slam shut.
    â€œI’m with you!” Sam shouted.
    â€œAnd me,” a strange voice said. It belonged to the driver of the delivery truck, rounding the back of his vehicle. He carried a tire iron in his hand.
    Both kidnappers reacted instantly. They ran across the street and into the alley.
    I stared after them, suddenly aware that I was breathing hard and fast.
    Time returned to normal speed. I began to realize what I had just done—I’d held my own against two men armed with switchblades.
    â€œLeave them be,” Sam said. “We got my brother back. We don’t need to chase them.”
    I managed to nod. Like I was stupid enough to run after them.
    â€œSorry, kid,” the truck driver growled. “It took me awhile to get out the passenger side of my truck. I had some boxes in the front seat.”
    He was a big man. Dirty blue jeans. Dirty black shirt. Big beer belly. I was glad he’d been on my side.
    I managed to nod to him too. Had all of this really happened?
    Sam’s brother joined us. A kid with brown hair, his head hardly reached as high as her shoulders. He stood beside his sister, his arms wrapped around her waist.
    â€œYou don’t speak much, do you?” Sam said to me.
    â€œUm,” I said. Something about her grin and the way her hair blew across her face tangled my heart and my tongue.
    â€œWhat’s your name anyway?” she asked.
    â€œUm,” I said again.
    Where was my sense of calm when I really needed it?

chapter five
    â€œHey, hero,” Riley Judd told me, “prepare to look stupid.”
    We stood almost visor-to-visor at the centerline during practice.
    â€œHero?” I asked. He stood on one side of the centerline. I stood on the