‘What? Why?’
Reyes swallows. ‘Her being the mayor’s stepdaughter and all.’
‘Shit,’ I say, and look toward the door. ‘Where is she now?’
He shrugs. ‘Headed back into the city, I guess.’
I run my fingers through my hair. ‘I’ve had a few beers. Have you?’
‘Naw, man, I’m good.’
‘Can I hitch a ride?’
He looks surprised. ‘You wanna try and catch her?’
‘There’s only one road outta this place. She can’t have gotten far.’
On the back of Reyes’ motorcycle, on the road out of Rapture, my mind is running in circles. I have one full brother, Logan. He left this hole, soon as he was able, so I’m guessing the brother Jenny English was referring to is not him. I have two half-brothers, Noah and Mason, then three more half-siblings under five years old. Mason is only ten, so that would only leave Noah in this equation.
I love that kid, but he’s a no-good delinquent.
So, my question is, firstly, what the hell does Noah have to do with Hollie Palmer, the shy-as-hell British girl from my high school class? And second of all, what is Hollie Palmer doing back in Canyon? Because last time I checked, she’d gone back to England.
I look over Reyes’ left shoulder. When I see her taillights, I raise the visor on my helmet and point up ahead.
‘Get past her,’ I holler at him.
Reyes rolls the throttle. The engine underneath us rumbles and we lurch forward, the back wheel kicking up dust and loose shingle. We’re gaining on her as Reyes shifts to the left and we fly past her driver’s side window. Through my visor, I can see her knuckles gripping the wheel.
I give Reyes a double tap at the waist. He knows it’s the signal to speed up. I glance back at her vehicle trundling over the splintered concrete surface of the road. When her headlights become two small dots in the ocean of black, I give Reyes a single tap. He downshifts and hits the brake lever.
I raise my visor again. ‘Bring her round.’
‘Are you crazy?’ Reyes hollers back, because he knows I want him to stop, side-on, in the middle of the only road that connects Rapture to the city.
‘You saw how fast she was going… she’ll see us.’
‘How do you even know that?’
‘Trust me, man. Keep the engine running. She’ll jam on the brakes.’
Reyes does as I ask. I swing my leg over the back of the bike and watch her lights approach. And just when I think she mightnothit the brakes, her vehicle screeches to a halt and she skids into an uneven ridge, where the concrete has split and never got repaired.
I squint into her headlights. Seconds later, her door creaks open.
Then I hear it. That voice that sounds like she’s some kind of prissy princess living in a high tower, cutting over the sound of the cicadas. And weirdly, I find myself smirking.
‘What are youdoing?’ she blurts out into the night, flustered. ‘You can’t just stop in the middle of the road!’
I’ll be honest. I never thought I’d see the day when Hollie Palmer would be back in my orbit. A couple people said Hollie was the girl I kissed blindfolded in the closet five or so years ago during that dumbass game after graduation, and not Amber Bradshaw. But I never got explicit confirmation, and now she’s standing opposite me, her face partially in darkness, long hair tied back in two neat braids, which appear to be a shade of baby pink, looking kinda mad. I remember her reacting the same way when we’d stir shit up with her on purpose in high school, just to see her get all salty, like she is now.
‘Think we just did, Jenny English,’ is my response.
She puts two hands on her hips. ‘That isnotmy name. My name is—’
‘Hollie,’ I interrupt her, because for some reason that I can’t fathom, I don’t want her to think I forgot who she really is. ‘Hollie Palmer.’
‘Yes,’ she murmurs.