欧宝娱乐

“You鈥檙e supposed to be the big boss.鈥�
Sam said nothing. The crowd hushed, ready to watch this one-on-one confrontation.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e the big boss of the freaks,鈥� Zil yelled. 鈥淏ut you can鈥檛 do anything. You can shoot laser beams out of your hands, but you can鈥檛 get enough food, and you can鈥檛 keep the power on, and you won鈥檛 do anything about that murderer Hunter, who killed my best friend.鈥� He paused to fill his lungs for a final, furious cry. 鈥淵ou shouldn鈥檛 be in charge.鈥�
鈥淵ou want to be in charge, Zil? Last night you were running around trying to get a lynch mob together. And let鈥檚 not even pretend that wasn鈥檛 you responsible for graffiti I saw driving into town just now.鈥�
鈥淪o what?鈥� Zil demanded. 鈥淪o what? So I said what everyone who isn鈥檛 a freak is thinking.鈥�
He spit the word 鈥渇reak,鈥� making it an insult, making it an accusation.
鈥淵ou really think what we need right now is to divide up between freaks and normals?鈥� Sam asked. 鈥淵ou figure that will get the lights turned back on? That will put food on people鈥檚 tables?”
― Michael Grant, Hunger

“The intruders spoke no words as they rushed in. Five boys carrying baseball bats and tire irons. They wore an assortment of Halloween masks and stocking masks.
But Derek knew who they were.
鈥淣o! No!鈥� he cried.
All five boys wore bulky shooter鈥檚 earmuffs. They couldn鈥檛 hear him. But more importantly, they couldn鈥檛 hear Jill.
One of the boys stayed in the doorway. He was in charge. A runty kid named Hank. The stocking pulled down over his face smashed his features into Play-Doh, but it could only be Hank.
One of the boys, fat but fast-moving and wearing an Easter Bunny mask, stepped to Derek and hit him in the stomach with his aluminum baseball bat.
Derek dropped to his knees.
Another boy grabbed Jill. He put his hand over her mouth. Someone produced a roll of duct tape.
Jill screamed. Derek tried to stand, but the blow to his stomach had winded him. He tried to stand up, but the fat boy pushed him back down.
鈥淒on鈥檛 be stupid, Derek. We鈥檙e not after you.鈥�
The duct tape went around and around Jill鈥檚 mouth. They worked by flashlight. Derek could see Jill鈥檚 eyes, wild with terror. Pleading silently with her big brother to save her.
When her mouth was sealed, the thugs pulled off their shooter鈥檚 earmuffs.
Hank stepped forward. 鈥淒erek, Derek, Derek,鈥� Hank said, shaking his head slowly, regretfully. 鈥淵ou know better than this.鈥�
鈥淟eave her alone,鈥� Derek managed to gasp, clutching his stomach, fighting the urge to vomit.
鈥淪he鈥檚 a freak,鈥� Hank said.
鈥淪he鈥檚 my little sister. This is our home.鈥�
鈥淪he鈥檚 a freak,鈥� Hank said. 鈥淎nd this house is east of First Avenue. This is a no-freak zone.鈥�
鈥淢an, come on,鈥� Derek pleaded. 鈥淪he鈥檚 not hurting anyone.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 not about that,鈥� a boy named Turk said. He had a weak leg, a limp that made it impossible not to recognize him. 鈥淔reaks with freaks, normals with normals. That鈥檚 the way it has to be.鈥�
鈥淎ll she does is鈥斺€�
Hank鈥檚 slap stung. 鈥淪hut up. Traitor. A normal who stands up for a freak gets treated like a freak. Is that what you want?鈥�
鈥淏esides,鈥� the fat boy said with a giggle, 鈥渨e鈥檙e taking it easy on her. We were going to fix her so she could never sing again. Or talk. If you know what I mean.鈥�
He pulled a knife from a sheath in the small of his back. 鈥淒o you, Derek? Do you understand?鈥�
Derek鈥檚 resistance died.
鈥淭he Leader showed mercy,鈥� Turk said. 鈥淏ut the Leader isn鈥檛 weak. So this freak either goes west, over the border right now. Or鈥︹€� He let the threat hang there.
Jill鈥檚 tears flowed freely. She could barely breathe because her nose was running. Derek could see that by the way she sucked tape into her mouth, trying for air. She would suffocate if they didn鈥檛 let her go soon.
鈥淟et me at least get her doll.”
― Michael Grant, Lies

“Human Crew had been a group formed to defend the rights of normals against freaks. At least that was the Human Crew line. Most people now saw Human Crew as a straight-up hate group.
Lance grabbed Turk鈥檚 shoulder and practically yanked him up off the stinking couch where he lay. 鈥淭urk, listen, man, listen to me: don鈥檛 you see what this means?鈥�
Turk did not see what it meant, or at least not whatever Lance thought he should see. Turk mostly disliked Lance. They were friends, kind of, but only because they鈥檇 both been with Zil and riding high. And now they were reduced to doing the worst work Albert could find for them: digging slit trenches for kids to go in, and then covering them up when they were full.
Cesspool diggers. The Crap Crew, kids called them.
And they had to kiss Albert鈥檚 butt because otherwise they didn鈥檛 eat. They鈥檇 been lucky they weren鈥檛 exiled. Turk had talked the council out of sending them off to live in the wild. He鈥檇 begged, that was the truth of it. He鈥檇 convinced them that it was better to find a place for him and the others from Human Crew.
He鈥檇 put all the blame for the fire on anyone but themselves. Kept saying, 鈥淚t鈥檚 not our fault, guys, not me and Lance and all, we were forced by Zil and Hank. Hank was scary, man, you know that. You know he was a creep and he would have shot us or messed us up.鈥�
Turk had whined like a baby. And wept. And in the end convinced that smug wetback Edilio, and especially Albert, that they wouldn鈥檛 make trouble anymore, ever again, lessons learned, their lives all turned around now.
The Human Crew became the Crap Crew. And harsher names as well. A laughingstock.”
― Michael Grant, Plague