Free Genius Squad by Catherine Jinks

and might have escaped if he had judged his route more expertly. As it was, he almost ran up against the hot-water system when he rounded a corner on his way to the back door. And that split-second delay was all Mace needed. Closing the gap between them, he grabbed Cadel’s t-shirt and jerked him backwards.
    Suddenly Cadel was on the ground, crushed beneath a heavy weight. He could hardly breathe.
    ‘ You better admit it ,’ Mace growled, shoving his contorted face into Cadel’s, ‘ or you’re gunna die .’
    ‘Can’t . . .’ Cadel wheezed. One big, beefy forearm lay across his throat, pressing down hard. Leaning on it. Mace was choking him.
    ‘Get off!’ Cadel gasped. ‘Yeowch!’
    ‘I told my brother about you,’ Mace went on. ‘He said I should teach you a lesson, and that’s exactly what I’m gunna do now, you little dickhead !’
    Cadel was growing dizzy. He couldn’t expand his lungs. His vision was darkening at the edges.
    And then, all at once, the pressure was gone. He could breathe again. Move again.
    He rolled over, coughing. It was a moment before he could look up. When he did, he saw that Mace was being held in a professional-looking armlock by none other than Saul Greeniaus.
    Cadel gaped in astonishment.
    ‘All right,’ said Saul, calmly addressing Mace. ‘Are you listening to me?’
    The reply that Saul received was just a torrent of profanity. So he waited, keeping a firm grip on Mace as he nodded at Cadel.
    ‘Okay. You finished now?’ the detective said at last, when Mace had run out of insults. ‘Because I want you to listen. What I saw then was a clear case of assault. You can end up in juvenile court for something like that. And you will if it happens again.’ Saul applied a slight pressure to his armlock, causing Mace to wince. ‘Okay – I’m gonna set you free,’ the detective promised. ‘And you’re not gonna do anything stupid, like attack a police officer. Because you’re not stupid. Are you?’
    Mace shook his head, whereupon Saul released him. The two of them stood for a moment, surveying each other: Saul with his hands on his hips, Mace rubbing his elbow.
    ‘Now, I want you guys to get along,’ the detective commanded. ‘No fighting. No sabotage. No pissing on beds.’
    ‘He ruined my magazines!’ Mace squawked. But Saul held up one hand.
    ‘I don’t want to hear it,’ he replied flatly. ‘I’m not interested. From now on, you guys are gonna be polite to each other. And if I find out that you’ve laid a hand on this kid again,’ he concluded, fixing Mace with his dark and sombre stare, ‘you’ll be in a lot of trouble. Is that clear?’
    Mace grimaced. His eyes were wet and his face was red. He looked as if he could hardly contain his protests.
    But he managed a nod.
    ‘Good,’ said Saul. ‘I knew you were a smart kid. Now off you go; I don’t want you late for school.’
    ‘You hurt my arm.’ Mace narrowed his eyes. ‘How can I do any work if my arm hurts?’
    ‘It won’t last.’
    ‘It might.’
    The detective regarded Mace thoughtfully, as the boy raised his chin. They were almost the same height.
    But while Mace was heavier, Saul seemed more formidable.
    ‘Well, sure,’ the detective eventually remarked. ‘You can lay a complaint if you want. With your record, though, there are bound to be questions.’ He shrugged. ‘It’s up to you,’ he said. ‘Personally, I wouldn’t want to be drawing attention to myself.’
    Mace seemed to concur. As Cadel scrambled to his feet, his foster-brother slouched away, disappearing around the side of the house. Only when Mace was out of sight did Saul turn his attention to Cadel.
    ‘Are you all right?’ the detective asked.
    ‘Uh – yeah.’ Cadel cleared his throat experimentally.
    ‘Has he done this before?’
    ‘Done what?’
    ‘Tried to strangle you.’
    ‘Oh.’ For some reason, Cadel felt slightly sheepish. ‘Well, not exactly.’
    ‘He’s had a hard life,’ Saul acknowledged,