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“He was banned from racing ever again, but I still lost my brother that day. Somehow, it never really felt like justice was served,” Bodhi says.
He doesn’t like to talk about it much, but I know how hard it is for him to accept that this guy walked away with what appears to be a slap on the wrist, while he would never get to see his brother again.
“You can’t think like that,” Eli says, shocking the both of us. “Don’t get me wrong. I know the kind of hate you feel toward that guy. His choices cost you your brother. That’s an unforgivable act. But one he has to live with every day.”
Eli shakes his head, and I wonder what he’s thinking about.
“It’s not something easily done, but if you can, you have to make peace with this guy. Not for him, but for yourself.”
I glance at Bodhi out of the corner of my eye, and watch as he swallows the pain, pushing it down to be dealt with another day.
“You can’t carry that shit around with you for the rest of your life and expect to be happy.”
Bodhi nods, acknowledging that he hears Eli.
After a few seconds, Eli asks, “You love my sister?”
“Yes,” Bodhi answers without a second’s hesitation.
“Good. Then you resolve that shit for her. Otherwise, you drown in your own bullshit and take her down with you, and that I won’t stand for. I feel your pain, but pain, much like happiness, comes and goes. Let it in, feel it, and then release it.”
I sit there, soaking in the wise word of my older brother, not remembering a time he sounded so profound.
“Thanks… I needed to hear that,” Bodhi says, sniffling before he clears his throat to continue with the story.
Bodhi may have lost his brother, but watching them now and seeing how much that conversation meant to Bodhi… I wouldn’t mind sharing my brother with him.
I continue telling him about the racing, Mateo interfering everywhere, and the eviction warning.
“I planned to win some money at the race in Monterra to pay off some of the bills,” I tell him.
“Monterra?” He looks at me like I’m out of my mind.
“Yes, I know. The road is too dangerous. Bit late for that,” I say, rolling my eyes and waving my cast in front of me.
“We’ll get to that in a minute,” he says, pointing at my cast. “Where in Monterra were you?”
“Red Rock Heights,” I answer.
“The salt quarry,” Bodhi says at the same time.
“Jesus, Keaton,” Eli hisses, shaking his head and reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “That whole place is owned by the Castillo family.”
I sit forward, lowering my voice.
“Wait, you know about them?”
He just shakes his head. “Of course I do. Why do you think I’m in here?”
I honestly wasn’t sure. Other than the fact that Mateo framed him, I never really understood what his motivation for doing so may have been.
“That’s part of the reason we’re here,” Bodhi says.
He tells him about that night when Mateo and I raced, and I watch as my brother took it all in. The horror in his eyes, even if his face didn’t mirror it.
“I was pissed off that he thought he could get away with that shit, and even though Keaton didn’t want me to get involved, I figured I’d give him a taste of his own medicine.”
“How?” Eli asks.
