Shay tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Nothing. Why?”
“I thought he was going to start growling at me, like a dog guarding a bone.”
“He’s a little stiff,” she acknowledged.
“A little?”
“He’s from Vegas,” she said, as if that explained his unfriendly personality. “And speaking of guard dogs, why were you being so protective? I didn’t need a ride.”
“I don’t trust him,” Clay said, looking in the rearview mirror. “I thought maybe he tried to put the moves on you in the fertility cave.”
Shay stared out the window, feeling her cheeks get hot.
“Is that why you asked me to come along tonight? Because if that guy’s been acting like a creep, just say the word, and I’ll-”
“You’ll what? Trip and fall all over him?”
Clay smiled, amused by the joke at his expense. He wasn’t the most coordinated fellow. “I throw a mean elbow,” he boasted.
Shay smiled back at him. “He’s not a creep.”
“So he didn’t try anything?”
She nibbled at her lower lip, trying to think of a plausible lie.
“He did,” Clay surmised, “but you didn’t mind.” He turned his attention back to the road. “Jesse’s going to flip out,” he said, sounding pleased.
Shay realized she hadn’t thought about her ex in what seemed like ages. It was funny how upset she’d been yesterday when Jesse saw her and Luke at the cafe. Now his opinion mattered about as much to her as a puff of smoke.
Speaking of smoke… “Jesse already saw us together at the Bighorn,” she said. “You don’t think…?”
They exchanged a worried glance. For the first time since she’d entered the cab of the pickup, the mood between them was strained.
“No,” Clay said. “He’s still hung up on you, but he’s not homicidal. And unless he was following you, how would he have known where you guys were going?”
Shay relaxed a little, resting her spine against the back of the seat. Then it dawned on her that there was one other person who knew where she and Luke had been headed. Someone with a dysfunctional family background, a history of rebelling against authority, and a penchant for playing with fire. Her little brother, Dylan.
Shay didn’t think she needed to see a doctor, so she had Clay drop her off at home. Although she’d been working all weekend, she had duties at Dark Canyon that couldn’t be put off another day. Her plan was to take a quick shower, grab some breakfast, and head out to the preserve.
As soon as she walked through the front door, she was confronted by another set of arduous responsibilities: Dylan was home.
He was sitting on the couch in the dim morning light. The TV wasn’t on and there was no punk rock music blaring. The surface of the coffee table was clear.
“Why aren’t you at school?” she asked, dreading his answer. Please God, not another suspension.
Dylan scowled, drumming his fingertips against his jean-clad thighs.
She put her hands on her hips. “Well?”
“I didn’t go to school,” he said with a glare, his voice gaining volume, “because I’ve been up all night worrying about you!”
“Oh.” She sank into the armchair beside the couch, feeling the wind go out of her sails. “Sorry. My cell phone went out.”
“I thought you burned to death.”
Her stomach dropped. Had Dylan really been concerned, or had guilt kept him awake? “How did you hear about the fire?”
“It was on the news,” he said, giving her a disgusted look, as if he knew what she was thinking. “And there was smoke all over the place.”
Shay closed her eyes, her heart twisting in her chest. Last night, she hadn’t thought of Dylan. She hadn’t considered his feelings. Not once. “I’m sorry,” she repeated, hating the inadequacy of those words.
“Never mind,” he muttered, wiping his palms on his baggy jeans. “Just write me a note for school. I’m late enough as it is.”
“I’ll drop you off on my way to work,” she said. So much for a meal and a shower. “But first we need to talk.”
“Let’s talk in the car. I can’t miss calculus. In that class, I have to actually show up and pay attention to get an A.”
Shay smiled ruefully. She hadn’t been able to help Dylan with his math homework since the fifth grade. She was a mediocre sister, a bad role model, and a terrible guardian. “Fine,” she said, getting up with a groan.
“What happened to you?”
“I hurt my knee.”
“How bad?”
“Not that bad.”
He grabbed the keys off the counter. “I’ll drive.”
She sighed, too weary to argue. The inside of her car wasn’t an ideal setting for the discussion she had planned, but at least she’d have a captive audience. “So let’s talk about Angel,” she said, settling into the passenger seat.
“Let’s not,” he replied.
“Dylan-”
“Look, I know what you’re going to say. I should be thinking about college, not girls. You don’t want me to screw up my future. I’m not supposed to be drinking, or having sex, or hanging out at the Graveyard-”
“The Graveyard?”
“Yeah. And don’t worry, Angel isn’t my girlfriend, and I’ll probably never come close to getting laid ever again. So thanks for interrupting.”
Shay’s head was spinning. “Back up a minute. When were you at the Graveyard?”
He sighed. “Friday night.”
“Pull over,” she said, bracing her hand on the dash. “Pull over!”
Slamming on the brakes, he jerked to a stop at the side of the road, sending a cloud of dust floating around them. “What’s wrong?”
“The victim of the lion attack was at the Graveyard, Dylan. It was Yesenia Montes.”
“Whoa,” he said, raising his brows.
She grabbed his T-shirt. “You know her?”
He shook her off. “Not like that. Jeez.”
“Tell me everything about the night at the Graveyard,” she ordered. “Who you were with. What you were doing.”
He wrapped his hands around the steering wheel, deliberating.
“Please. It’s important.”
“You promise you won’t put me on restriction?”
“Yes,” she said easily. She’d never been much of a disciplinarian.
“I was with Chad and Travis.”
The wonder twins, Shay thought. They shared the same pea-sized brain.
“Chad filched a twelve-pack from the Qwik Mart and we took it to the Graveyard. Angel was there with another girl and some guy. I don’t remember their names.”
“What happened?”
“Angel’s friend took off in her car with the guy. Angel thought she was coming right back for her, but it got late…”
“Then what?”
“Chad told her he would give her a ride home if she would, ah, do him a favor.”
Shay didn’t have to ask what Dylan meant. She knew the way Chad’s disgusting little mind worked. “She
