I hate myself for not knowing how to feel about Angela’s death. Any other situation, I’d be paralyzed with shock or grief, even if I didn’t know her much. No one deserves being murdered, but her death is tied to my brother’s freedom. Each time I grieve for her, I feel like I’m choosing sides.

I look back at Dean, bite my lip, as I prepare to confront Chris. I clear my throat. We meet eyes. He stands up, pulling on his maroon Texas A&M hat. I feel the color drain from my face when the vein in his neck pulses.

“What do you want?”

I take a step or two back. Then catch my breath.

Chris pulls his hat down to cover more of his face, but I can still see his eye has settled to splotches of pink and some green since the police station.

“Angela was on the paper with me. I care about what happened to her.”

“You don’t deserve to be here. Not after what your brother did.”

“My brother cared about Angela, too.”

I swallow hard. Attempt to keep my cool, but I’m uneasy. I look back at Dean, confirm his presence, and then speak: “I know my brother had nothing to do with her death. You tell me.” I take a chance and say it with confidence. Like I know exactly what happened.

“He murdered her. It was him.” He steps to me fast, and I fall back but stay on two feet.

My eyes go wide, voice stuck in my throat. I want to scream but can’t get it out. From the corner of my eye, I see Dean run toward us. Chris backs up.

“How dare you come here and…harass me while I’m grieving.” He spits his words at me, face flushed.

I study his reaction. He’s so jittery, it’s possible he killed Angela. I swipe the air toward Dean to show I’m okay, but he ignores me. He waits by the tree near us, arms crossed over his chest.

“You think you’re gonna scare me with Dean being here? You can get the whole track team out here, with Jamal. I’m not going to hide what I saw. You know who my father is, right? You don’t think I told him everything? If something happened to me, he’d be out here looking for who did it. Looking at your family.”

Inside the back of my neck is tingling; what’s he talking about?

“What happened to Angela?”

“What happened?” His voice rises, angry. “Your fucking brother couldn’t keep his hands to himself. Thought he could get everything he wanted, even if it meant her life.”

“You’re out of your mind.”