Page 25 of Bear

When you get home, I’d like to talk.

I stared at the screen for two full minutes until it said, READ.

No response.

I sighed and slid my phone in my pocket. Now it was time to find a tutor. I’d considered teaching Carlos myself but that probably wasn’t a good idea. We were both too hard-headed for that. And my education was pretty sparse. Carlos needed a better mentor than me.

Pedro had already packed his lunch, dressed and ready for school when I emerged from my bedroom. He held a piece of paper out to me.

“What’s this?” I asked.

“A list of tutors and their contact info.”

I raised my eyebrows.

“You didn’t sleep a wink last night, did you?”

Pedro met my gaze with tired eyes.

“Same as you.”

I sighed and placed a hand on Pedro’s shoulders.

“Thank you, Pedro. I appreciate your help.”

He stifled a yawn and rubbed his eyes. Then he hitched his backpack over his shoulder.

“Are you going to find him? Or wait until he comes home?”

I had a few places in mind where I knew Carlos liked to hang out. I should probably grant him space to cool off and think things through. But perhaps that was the problem. Maybe he needed to be held a little closer, a little tighter, to let him know he wasn’t alone.

“I’ll see what I can do,” I replied.

After I dropped off Pedro at school, I went in search of Carlos. I knew I was in for a fight. He would hate having at tutor, but I wasn’t going to let my brother drop out of school.

Instead of driving my Sedan, I’d chosen my motorcycle instead. It felt good to have the rumble of the engine beneath me, the hot wind tugging at my clothes. Mack and Rooster had returned my bike after the picnic while I was with Shelby.

At the thought of Shelby, a pang shot through my heart. I missed her. We’d only been apart for less than twenty-four hours and I ached to see her again, to taste her skin, to feel her shudder with pleasure. After I tracked down Carlos, I resolved to call Shelby and see how she was doing.

The first two places I looked - the junkyard and the corner bodega - turned up empty. I thought about checking Rooster’s Garage but that was Pedro’s haunt, not Carlos’.

The desert was probably the next best option. It was big, limitless. I knew a few of Carlos’ friends had dirt bikes and a beat-up old Mustang between them that they liked to take on joy rides. The desert would be the perfect place to blow off steam and mess around.

Just as I climbed onto my bike and headed for the highway, my phone rang. I killed the engine and scrambled to retrieve my phone, hoping it was Carlos. But when I answered, Brewer’s voice greeted me.

“Morning, Bear,” he said. “Got a minute?”

I leaned back on my bike, instantly wary, a thousand scenarios flying through my mind and none of them good.

“Yeah. What’s going on?”

“It’s Shelby.”

My breath caught in my throat.

“Is she…?”

“She’s fine,” Brewer said in a soothing tone. “She ran into some trouble this morning at the supermarket. With her ex. Thought you should know so you can have it on your radar.”

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