Chapter 135 That's My Brother

Chapter 135 That's My Brother
Penny POV

Lily dumps an entire jar of glitter across the kitchen table before I can stop her, and it scatters everywhere: the table, the floor, straight into my hair.
"Lily!"
"Sorry!" She doesn't sound very sorry, already reaching for the glue stick with total focus. "It needs to be extra sparkly. Jake's the best brother in the whole world. Regular glitter isn't enough."
I laugh despite the mess, because after everything our two families have survived these last few weeks, Karen's hospital scare finally calming down after that terrifying warning turned out to be more caution than immediate danger, the investigators confirming things were finally, actually settling into something manageable, this messy, glittery, completely ordinary Saturday afternoon feels like the biggest gift in the world.
Championship game is tonight. The scout will be there. Jake's been training himself half to exhaustion all week, and today, finally, it's Lily's turn to contribute in the one way a six-year-old knows how, with the biggest, sparkliest sign she can make.
"How do you spell brother again?" she asks, tongue poking out in concentration as she carefully cuts letters from the poster board.
"B-R-O-T-H-E-R," I spell out slowly, guiding her hand when she gets stuck on the trickier letters.
We work together for almost an hour, gluing giant cardboard letters across a poster board nearly as tall as she is, spelling out THAT'S MY BROTHER in bold, uneven capitals, each letter drenched in more glitter than the last. By the time we finish, both of us are absolutely covered head to toe in sparkles, and the poster itself looks like it might actually be visible from space.
"It's perfect," Lily declares, admiring her work with fierce pride. "Jake's gonna see it and know exactly where we're sitting."
"He definitely will," I agree, brushing glitter off my arms uselessly.
My mom arrives just as we're cleaning up the worst of the mess, letting herself in with the easy familiarity she's earned over these last few weeks, having grown so close to the Mercer family through everything we've all survived together that she practically has her own spot on the couch now.
"Oh, that is a masterpiece," she says, admiring the sign propped against the wall. "Lily, you've got a real artistic streak."
Lily beams, and my mom scoops her up for a hug before setting her back down, glitter transferring instantly onto her own sweater in the process.
"I was thinking," my mom says, turning to me and catching Maren's eye as she wanders in from helping Jake's dad in the kitchen. "Why don't I just drive everyone to the game together tonight? Saves gas, saves the hassle of figuring out parking separately, and honestly," she smiles, something warm and a little emotional crossing her face. "I like having everyone together. Feels right."
Something about her offer lands heavy and sweet in my chest. Two months ago, my mom and Jake's family were practically strangers, our two worlds only barely overlapping through my babysitting job and fifty dollars a week. Now here she is, offering to pack her whole car with people she's come to genuinely love, driving us all to cheer for a boy who isn't even technically her son but who she's clearly started thinking of as close to one anyway.
"That sounds perfect," I say, throat a little tight.
We spend the next hour getting everyone organized, Jake's dad finishing up in the kitchen, promising he's coming straight from work to meet us there since his new local job doesn't let him off quite early enough for the whole caravan, Maren helping Lily change into a shirt that isn't completely covered in glue, my mom double-checking she's got enough gas for the whole group.
By the time we actually pile into my mom's car- me, Lily, Maren, the giant glittery poster somehow wedged carefully across the back window- the whole thing feels almost absurdly joyful given everything we've all survived to get here. Lily sings along loudly and mostly off-key to whatever's playing on the radio. Maren keeps catching my eye in the rearview mirror, both of us smiling at the pure, uncomplicated chaos of it all. My mom hums along under her breath, glancing back occasionally to make sure the poster hasn't slipped.
This is what we fought for, I think, watching it all unfold. Not just surviving the investigation, not just clearing Jake's dad's name enough to avoid prison, not just winning at regionals or standing up to Brianna. This. A found family piling into one car, glitter still stuck in everyone's hair, driving together to cheer for someone we all love in our own different ways.
We're maybe ten minutes from the stadium when my phone buzzes in my lap, and I check it automatically, expecting Jake, expecting nerves before kickoff, expecting anything except what actually appears glowing on my screen.
It's from Detective Reyes, sent just moments ago, subject line short enough to make my stomach drop instantly.
Karen's asking for you again. Says it can't wait until after the game. Says whoever hurt her is going to be at the stadium tonight.
I stare at the message, my whole body going cold despite the warm, glitter-filled car around me, Lily still singing happily in the backseat, completely unaware, my mom's eyes flicking briefly to the rearview mirror, catching something in my expression that makes her frown with sudden concern.
"Penny? Baby, what is it?"
I don't answer right away, my thumb hovering over the message, rereading that last line over and over, my heart hammering harder with every second.
Whoever hurt her is going to be at the stadium tonight.
Which means somewhere in that crowd tonight, somewhere among the parents and students and scouts and everyone cheering for Jake, someone dangerous is already there, waiting.