Page 33 of Unlocked Dive

We stand in silence for a while, listening to the creak and rustle of the forest. A night owl calls, and something answers with a shriek. A bobcat, I think.

“You could have told me, you know. Whatever Lara wanted. I still would have kicked your ass at Elder Scrolls on Sundays.”

“You know Lara,” I say, mourning the missed opportunity to be truly myself with my last real male friend. “It wasn’t what you’d think ofmethat scared her, but what you’d think ofherfor being with me.”Maybe it’s not too late. “Anyway, now you know.”

“Now I know.”

“If you think you can keep from hulking out again, you can come back inside for ice cream. I was going to make a pie, but…” Echo kept feeding me blueberries until we both needed a shower and a change of clothes. By the time we got back to the kitchen, no pies were being made. “We ran out of time.”

“I think I’ll pass tonight, Byrd. I still need to check into the Airbnb and wash off the drive.”

“Thanks for playing chauffeur.” I chuckle. “Four hours in the car with Elke is its own adventure.”

“That sister of yours never shuts up, does she?”

“Not so much, no.”

“Well, I’ll have the radio to myself the whole way home tomorrow, and I’ll be able to listen to my podcasts in peace.”

“You still hooked onHigherside Chats?”

“Best shit out there.” He punches my shoulder, a slightly awkward bro move, but I take it for the peace offering it is. “Still on for brunch in Mendo tomorrow?”

“You could come out here instead, if you want. The PlayStation was the first thing I set up when I got here. I have all of our games. Let Elke make us brunch.”

“What about the kid?”

“Echo,” I say, a little sharply, “is not to be trusted in the kitchen without expert guidance. But he could run the juicer for mimosas without getting into too much trouble.”

Way to convince James to drop the “kid” comments.

Still, scrambled eggs do not count as brunch.

“Maybe check in with your houseguests before we make any plans,” he says, “I’m a little scared of those two.”

“You and me both, brother.” And we’re laughing as he hugs me goodbye and heads down the long steps to the driveway.

Elke is alone on the couch in the lower living room, flipping through one of her photography magazines, when I come in from the top porch. She looks up and gives me a wry smile as I start down the stairs to join her.

“Guess I still know how to clear a room.”

“Did he come back?”

Echo chose not to hide out in his-now-temporarily-Elke’s room when he stalked out of the kitchen earlier, instead disappearing through the sliding glass doors and over the edge of the lower deck. I didn’t hear either of the cars start up, thank god, since he’d definitely be over the line after keeping up with Elke all night.

“Echo? No.”

I start for the doors myself, hoping he stayed on the property and I won’t have to wander the neighborhood in the dark.

“Hold on a second,” she says, patting the couch next to her. “I need to talk to you.”

“I need to find him.” I do. It’s a physical pull, tugging at someplace below my solar plexus, sending me out before Echo evaporates into the night like an angry wraith.

“And this is exactly why you need to stay and listen to me, Coen.” It’s the concern beneath the exasperation that catches my attention. “Echo’s a big boy. He’ll survive an hour of disappointment on his own, without you chasing after him like a lovesick puppy.”

“That’s not what I’m doing. He’s my responsibility, and I need to make sure he’s safe.” And not trying to do something monumentally stupid like walk all the way to Mendo or start climbing the rig after three-plus glasses of wine.

“Was it also your responsibility to start fucking him? Part of Reggie’s assignment?”