now. How do things get so complicated this fast?
"Cory's got his own clock," I tell Des. "You never know when or where he'll show up. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Dude," Des says and he hangs up.
I stash the phone in my pocket and stand up. I'm thinking of taking a walk around Ampora's house just to get the lay of the land. But then I see headlights turn onto the street, moving slowly in my direction.
Marina
So I wake to a text from Theo, but no matter how I look at it, it's all business. He thanks me for talking to Auntie Min, wonders if I can get in touch with Cory to see what we can get from him. Do I know how to contact Cory? Can I talk to him?
I try to read between the lines, but there's nothing there. It's like we never kissed. Like it didn't mean anything. I end up feeling stupid, like one of the women in Mamá's telanovelas who are always mooning over some guy or another.
Then my morning gets more complicated when I read the email from Des.
Ampora ? Josh is guarding my father's house to protect them all from the Kings?
What's wrong with this picture? Just everything.
And then I realize that Josh getting Des to keep me in the loop is his way of letting me know that it's okay between us. That he trusts me and wants to keep me involved and in his life, even if that means he has to let me know he's with Ampora because he knows exactly how I feel about my sister from hell.
Except, if I'm reading Des's email right, Suelo and Ria are also in danger. As are Papá and Elena.
What the hell has Ampora done now ?
And of course, while Josh is being so open with me again, I'm sitting here holding another big fat secret from him. I have to tell him. Except what if Theo's right and it just sets Josh off?
I'm feeling so miserable that I almost snap at Mamá when she pops her head into my bedroom to see if I'm awake. But I stop myself in time.
"Is everything all right, mija ?" she asks.
I nod and pretend to rub sleep from my eyes.
"I'm just trying to wake up."
She studies me for a moment, then decides to take me at my word. As soon as she leaves, I return Theo's text. I tell him I'll try to track down Cory. I press Send before I write something stupid like that I miss him or something. I don't even know if I do. I don't know what I'm feeling right now.
I rush through a shower and breakfast, grab my stuff for school, then I'm out the door. On the way to Des's place I check for a text from Theo, but he hasn't responded yet. By the time Des steps out of his house, I'm waiting for him on the street out front.
"Dude!" he says when he sees me. "Did you check your messages?"
"That's why I'm here. What happened with Ampora?"
He tells me the story as we walk to school, and I can't stop interrupting with questions. It all seems so ridiculous. What were they even thinking to go off and stalk Erik like that? And why's Agent Solana tracking Josh's phone? Then there's this whole business with Cory.
"You should have seen it," Des says. "He went right through that garage door like some kind of ninja ghost."
"What did he do once he got in?"
Des shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe he ate him. Big bad wolf steps up and Little Red Riding Erik is no more."
"Cory's a coyote, not a wolf, and can I just say ew ?"
"Really, dude? After what he did to Josh? After what he called you?"
"You don't kill somebody for that."
He gives another shrug. "Well, I wouldn't miss him."
"Where do the Kings come into all of this?"
"That happened when we were walking home from Erik's."
I nod when he starts to talk about hearing Trucho Salazar's pimped-out Hudson. Everybody knows the sound of that stupid car.
"You should have seen Josh," Des says. "I figure we're dead, but he's ready to take them all on by himself. He tells me to run—like I'm going to leave him—but then Agent Solana shows up and we find out that your sister's in the car."
" Hanging with them?"
It seems hard to believe, considering how Ampora's so down on the gangs. Sure, she dresses
"Cory's got his own clock," I tell Des. "You never know when or where he'll show up. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Dude," Des says and he hangs up.
I stash the phone in my pocket and stand up. I'm thinking of taking a walk around Ampora's house just to get the lay of the land. But then I see headlights turn onto the street, moving slowly in my direction.
Marina
So I wake to a text from Theo, but no matter how I look at it, it's all business. He thanks me for talking to Auntie Min, wonders if I can get in touch with Cory to see what we can get from him. Do I know how to contact Cory? Can I talk to him?
I try to read between the lines, but there's nothing there. It's like we never kissed. Like it didn't mean anything. I end up feeling stupid, like one of the women in Mamá's telanovelas who are always mooning over some guy or another.
Then my morning gets more complicated when I read the email from Des.
Ampora ? Josh is guarding my father's house to protect them all from the Kings?
What's wrong with this picture? Just everything.
And then I realize that Josh getting Des to keep me in the loop is his way of letting me know that it's okay between us. That he trusts me and wants to keep me involved and in his life, even if that means he has to let me know he's with Ampora because he knows exactly how I feel about my sister from hell.
Except, if I'm reading Des's email right, Suelo and Ria are also in danger. As are Papá and Elena.
What the hell has Ampora done now ?
And of course, while Josh is being so open with me again, I'm sitting here holding another big fat secret from him. I have to tell him. Except what if Theo's right and it just sets Josh off?
I'm feeling so miserable that I almost snap at Mamá when she pops her head into my bedroom to see if I'm awake. But I stop myself in time.
"Is everything all right, mija ?" she asks.
I nod and pretend to rub sleep from my eyes.
"I'm just trying to wake up."
She studies me for a moment, then decides to take me at my word. As soon as she leaves, I return Theo's text. I tell him I'll try to track down Cory. I press Send before I write something stupid like that I miss him or something. I don't even know if I do. I don't know what I'm feeling right now.
I rush through a shower and breakfast, grab my stuff for school, then I'm out the door. On the way to Des's place I check for a text from Theo, but he hasn't responded yet. By the time Des steps out of his house, I'm waiting for him on the street out front.
"Dude!" he says when he sees me. "Did you check your messages?"
"That's why I'm here. What happened with Ampora?"
He tells me the story as we walk to school, and I can't stop interrupting with questions. It all seems so ridiculous. What were they even thinking to go off and stalk Erik like that? And why's Agent Solana tracking Josh's phone? Then there's this whole business with Cory.
"You should have seen it," Des says. "He went right through that garage door like some kind of ninja ghost."
"What did he do once he got in?"
Des shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe he ate him. Big bad wolf steps up and Little Red Riding Erik is no more."
"Cory's a coyote, not a wolf, and can I just say ew ?"
"Really, dude? After what he did to Josh? After what he called you?"
"You don't kill somebody for that."
He gives another shrug. "Well, I wouldn't miss him."
"Where do the Kings come into all of this?"
"That happened when we were walking home from Erik's."
I nod when he starts to talk about hearing Trucho Salazar's pimped-out Hudson. Everybody knows the sound of that stupid car.
"You should have seen Josh," Des says. "I figure we're dead, but he's ready to take them all on by himself. He tells me to run—like I'm going to leave him—but then Agent Solana shows up and we find out that your sister's in the car."
" Hanging with them?"
It seems hard to believe, considering how Ampora's so down on the gangs. Sure, she dresses
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