Page 18 of The Burning
“Let’s talk.” Kael’s voice sent a shock through me, but before I could react, I realized he was talking to my brother, not me. The two of them walked a few feet away from us and leaned against the white plaster wall. Ugh. I turned my attention back to Mendoza.
I swallowed, trying to wet my mouth. “Um, good, Mendoza. Just working. You? I mean, outside of your whole hand-massacre thing.”
He let out a laugh that made my heart feel less heavy. Mendoza had that kind of energy that just made you feel warm, even in a place like the hospital.
“Hand massacre aside, I’m great. And who knows, maybe they’ll give me a day or two off now since I’m hurt,” Mendoza said, darkly laughing.
“What happened, anyway?” I asked him.
“I forgot my door was made of glass and felt like fighting it. I should have gone for the drywall, but I’m a dumbass.”
The lightness of his voice and the way he seemed . . . happy . . . was equal parts off-putting and comforting. I felt an attachment to this man who was clearly running from some dark shit and battling demons that I would never fully understand, but I wanted him to be happy. I wasn’t even sure why I cared, but I really, really wanted him to find peace.
“Hey, you’re coming camping with us, right?” he asked after a few calm moments of silenced passed.
Camping?
“Um, I don’t think I was invited?” I dug my fingernails deeper into my palms. One of the worst feelings was not knowing, but then discovering that you’ve been left out of something with people whom you thought were friends. I probably wasn’t even supposed to know about the trip.
Mendoza’s face was full of surprise. “Yeah, you were. It’s for your birthday. Well, it’s for your bro’s birthday, but he said you were in. Gloria was looking forward to you coming so there would be more women for her to chill with instead of just a bunch of loudmouth soldiers.”
I was so confused, but not entirely against it. I surprised myself.
“When is it?” I asked, sure the hesitation was clear in my voice.
“This weekend. You have to come. Plus, it’s our send-off to Fischer before he’s shipped off.”
The words stung me but in a twisted way; I was relieved that no one had seemed to share my personal feelings about my brother and Kael’s betrayal with Mendoza and he seemed blissfully unaware of the pain it caused me. I didn’t want anyone walking on eggshells around me or feeling sorry for me.
“I think I have to work,” I told him so he would stop looking at me like he was expecting an immediate yes. “But I’ll try for sure.”
“It’s gonna be chill, don’t worry. And don’t worry about Martin either, he’s a fucking idiot and will probably come up with an excuse not to come, anyway.”
I wasn’t sure if I should laugh or cry and the door seemed so far away, so I forced a smile.
“Tell Gloria I said hi, will you?” I didn’t know her well, but had a feeling that if I had the chance to get to know her, I would really like her. A quick daydream of double dates with them and Kael caught me off guard, but I managed to push it away.
“She’ll love that. She was looking forward to hanging with you before Martin . . .” as Mendoza opened his mouth to finish whatever he was going to continue with, Kael put his hand on his shoulder.
“Let’s go,” he said in a cold voice.
Mendoza didn’t seem surprised or annoyed that Kael was bossing him around even though Mendoza was older than all of us and had way more responsibility. Honestly Kael did feel like the responsible one, but it was obvious that he didn’t want Mendoza to talk about personal stuff with me. I had been cut out of their inner circle before I even had the chance to join.
“I think they just called for you,” Kael said, nodding toward the main desk of the waiting room.
Austin promised to text Kael later and Kael mumbled something about Austin not losing the house key again. I waited like the pathetic lost puppy I was for the smallest smile or glance, or even acknowledgment from Kael, but it never came. He didn’t even so much as look back as he walked away. Fuck him.
Chapter Ten
“How well do you know Mendoza and what’s this about a camping trip that I’m allegedly going on?” I asked Austin as we crossed the parking lot.
The rain had stopped falling, but I was sure it would be back. The concrete was black with messy puddles scattered around the uneven pavement. The sky was the color of a river rock. Staring at it soothed me as the roller coaster of seeing Kael was wearing off and now brewing into anger. I opened the driver’s-side door and sank into the seat. Holding on to the cold metal keys in my hand, I wasn’t ready to leave just yet. I needed a second to breathe. As much as I usually preferred to avoid things and pretend they didn’t exist, this time I wanted some answers from my brother. He huffed but didn’t say a word and I wasn’t having it. He had lived his whole life getting away with too much.
“Austin.” I sighed. I wasn’t leaving this parking lot until he told me. “How well do you know Mendoza?”
“Pretty well, I guess.” He shrugged. “I don’t know him as well as Martin does, but we’re pretty tight. I met him before Dad shipped me off to our uncles.” Austin rolled his window down a little bit to let in the cool air. Even with the humidity, the post-rain air felt good as it seeped into the car.
“What happened to him?” I paused. “To Mendoza?”
