The whine in the older boy’s voice told Ryder he had the upper hand. “You think something’s funny?” Ryder snarled. These boys were older and bigger than Ryder, but he wasn’t thinking. He was on fire. “Just shut your face!” The second boy stepped back, slipping into the crowd of people like a mouse desperate for its hole. The taller boy’s red face turned purple. “You’re a loon, you and Frankenstein. I’ll call the cops!” “Good. Call them.” Ryder took another step and shook a fist, still burning and really wanting a fight. The older boy jumped and squirmed back into the crowd like his friend, running and shouting about calling the cops as he made his way to the other end of the car. Ryder looked around. Everyone stared. His brain cooled. He let his fists drop and returned to the back of the chair where no one would look. The subway stopped and Ryder’s heart galloped at the sight of the two boys in blazers rushing off toward a transit cop and pointing back his way.
