JUSTIN STOOD IN FRONT OF THE MIRROR AND RAN HIS fingers through his hair. Again. He looked down at his T-shirt and decided that it wasn’t the right one to wear. Again. He pulled it over his head and was just about to change into a new one—Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon—when he heard Max barking ferociously outside.
Justin stepped to his bedroom window and looked out, only to discover that Carmen and Chuy were standing right below his room. They looked up to see Justin framed in his window, shirtless. Justin wanted to hide—or maybe completely disappear—but it was too late. Chuy let out a wolf whistle, and Carmen just grinned.
Justin grimaced in embarrassment. He ducked down below the window frame and slipped on his shirt. Max was barking like mad in the yard. Justin hurried downstairs, crossed through the house and slid open the back door. Carmen and Chuy had stayed a few feet away from Max—just beyond the reach of his chain.
Carmen cast a sideways glance at Justin’s T-shirt as he crossed the yard.
“Pink Floyd?” she teased. “You’re one of those deep ones, huh?”
“What? They’re the original emo.” He couldn’t stop himself from grinning. He ran a nervous hand through his hair, pushing his spikey bangs away from his eyes. Then he turned back to the barking monster that was tied up in his yard.
“It’s okay, Max,” Justin said as gently as he could. He took a few steps toward the dog. “It’s okay, buddy. These are my friends.” He held out the Kong, but Max just kept snarling and snapping. “Take it easy, buddy.” What he really wanted to say was “Please don’t eat my friends. Especially not the pretty one,” but he managed to keep that to himself.
“Dude, that dog reminds me of your dad,” Chuy said with an exaggerated shudder. He obviously wanted nothing to do with Max.
“Maybe this was a bad idea,” Justin said. He backed away from the dog and stood close to Carmen and Chuy. He knew that Kyle had loved Max, and that they had watched each other’s backs. He got that there could be a strong bond between a guy and his dog—he just didn’t see how that was going to happen between him and Max. Justin wasn’t Kyle, and that had always been the problem.
“Nah,” Carmen said, her eyes focused on Max. She shook the paper sack in her hand and got down on one knee. The bag looked heavy and smelled delicious—Justin got a whiff of whatever Carmen had made. Max must have smelled it, too, because his barking slowed and he raised his nose to sniff at the air.
“Hey, Max,” Carmen said in a super-friendly voice. “I made you some carnitas.” She reached into the bag and pulled out a chunk of cooked pork. “You like home cooking?” Max responded by twitching his nose and barking again. But Justin thought that this bark sounded more curious and less rabid. Carmen waved the meat in front of Max, but kept her distance. “Smells good, right?”
Max snapped his mouth shut and whimpered a little.
Carmen took a step toward the dog.
“I wouldn’t get any closer,” Justin said. He moved forward so he could get between Carmen and Max if he needed to.
But Carmen didn’t seem worried about what the dog might do. She was totally relaxed as she kept her eyes firmly on Max.
“This is close enough,” she said in a soothing voice. “Let’s let him think about it for a minute.”
Justin couldn’t believe his eyes: It really did look like Max was debating whether to keep barking or try for some food. His lips curled up in a gesture that meant he was ready to bite into something, but whether he wanted people or food was still unclear.
“Yo, guys, I’m out of here,” Chuy said, throwing his hands in the air and taking a giant step backward. “That dog scares me. Carmen, I hope he doesn’t bite you, but if he does, it’s not my fault, right?”
“You don’t have to leave, Chuy,” Justin said, suddenly alarmed at the idea of being alone with Carmen. “Hang out. He won’t hurt you.”
“Nah, thanks, man. Between that dog and your mean old man, I don’t want to be here anyway. Nothing personal.” Chuy cast a nervous look toward the house.
“My dad’s at work,” Justin said.
Carmen shot Chuy a sideways glance, then turned to Justin. “Why are you letting Chuy hate on your dad like that?”
Justin shrugged.
“I can say whatever I want about my dad,” Carmen said, her eyebrows shooting up and her expression serious, “but if someone else disrespects him, that’s not cool. That’s called loyalty.”
“That’s called crazy,” Justin said. “You and Max should get along just great.”
Carmen shook her head at the boys. “I’m not the one he has to get along with.” She handed Justin the carnita and nodded in Max’s direction. “He’s waited long enough.”
Justin took the cooked meat and studied it. “How’d you get to be such an expert anyway?” he asked, worried that this might not be the best way to train Max. “I mean, do you have credentials or something—”
Carmen cut him off. “You going to eat that, or are you going to give it to your dog?” she asked. “’Cause he’s waiting for you.”
Max was definitely waiting—and it didn’t look like his patience was going to last much longer. His eyes were locked on the food, and his whole head moved to follow it every time Justin’s hand shifted even an inch.
Justin swallowed hard. He faced Max head-on and made the sit gesture with his free hand. “Sit.”
Max sat.
At least that’s one thing he can do, Justin thought. Max looked at Justin expectantly and licked his chops. Justin could see pools of drool in the corners of Max’s mouth.
Nervously, Justin stretched out his hand in front of him and held the meat in front of Max’s nose. Max snatched it from his hand—not aggressively, just excitedly. He chomped it down in a few firm chews.
“Look at that,” Carmen said softly. “First time you had Mexican cooking, boy?” She took another piece of food from the bag and knelt down in front of Max. Justin and Chuy watched her carefully, unsure of what the dog would do. Was Carmen about to end up as a dog chew toy?
But Max reached out his snout and gently took the meat from her hand. He dropped it onto the ground in front of him and proceeded to lick it clean, then gulp down what was left. Carmen handed Justin another piece. “Now don’t give it to him until he lets you touch him, okay?”
Justin nodded. “Okay.”
He steeled himself and raised the meat toward Max’s twitching nose. Max didn’t take his eyes off the food. While Max waited for his treat, Justin reached his other hand up and out toward Max’s head. Justin’s heart pounded in his chest. In Justin’s limited experience, Max had a way of being great for a few minutes, then losing his mind for no obvious reason. There was a fair chance he’d decide in a heartbeat that the carnitas weren’t good enough and he wanted to snack on human flesh instead.
Justin’s hand inched closer to Max’s furry head, the meat almost at his mouth. It was like playing the hardest level on a video game, where you had to complete a dangerous task, fight off three enemies, keep an eye on your energy level, and not die, all at the same time.
“Don’t do it, man!” Chuy cried out abruptly. Max, Justin, and Carmen all jumped at once. Justin pulled back his hand and Max growled a little.
“Ugh, Chuy!” Carmen exclaimed. She scrunched up her face and made a throat-slitting gesture at him.
“Are you trying to get my friend killed, Carmen?” Chuy complained.
“Just the opposite. I’m trying to keep him alive.”
Justin had lost his nerve—he didn’t want to pet Max anymore. “Maybe I should just give him the food first,” he said to Carmen.
“No.” Carmen shook her head firmly. “It’s a reward. You don’t get a reward if you haven’t done anything to deserve it.”
Justin’s stomach churned. He didn’t want to do this anymore, but deep down he knew Carmen was right. If Max was going to stick around, then Justin needed to be able to train him. Because if he couldn’t, if Max remained too dangerous to be around other people, then Justin’s parents would be forced to take him back to the kennel, where he would definitely be put down. Justin felt as if Max’s very life depended on him, and he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if anything happened to the dog that Kyle had loved. No. Justin couldn’t give up on Max, even if he was afraid of him.
For the first time, Justin found himself wondering—if he was this nervous, then what was Max feeling? Maybe there really was a reason for Max’s outbursts—Justin just hadn’t been paying attention to them.
Justin turned back to the dog and focused again. He held the carnita out in one hand and reached out with the other. Keeping his eyes on the food, Max let Justin’s fingers brush against the soft fur on the top of his head, then ducked away.
Just a touch, but it was something.
“Good job. Good boy, Max.” Justin held the carnita out in front of him, and Max took it from him carefully, devouring it in two delicate bites. His tail rose up behind him. It wasn’t quite a wag, but close. Justin exhaled and shook out his arms. He heard Chuy let out a big sigh, as though he’d been holding his breath.
“It’s a start,” Carmen said. They stood and watched Max nose at the ground, as if he hoped he might find a stray chunk of meat that he’d missed. “Do you have a leash?”
Justin nodded.
JUSTIN COULDN’T BELIEVE WHAT HE WAS SEEING. IF someone had tried to tell him earlier that Max would be on a leash by dinnertime, he would have laughed. But there was Max, clipped onto a leather strap, being led around the yard in a circle by Carmen.
She left very little slack on the line. Max walked close to her side, and whenever he tried to pull ahead, Carmen jerked it back and commanded “Heel!” Sure enough, Max dropped back and returned to a slower pace.
“Wow,” Chuy said.
“You can say that again,” Justin replied.
“Wow.” Chuy stuck out his tongue and put his hands up under his chin, as if he was a dog waiting for a treat.
“Ha, good boy, Chuy,” Justin joked.
“You don’t let your dog walk you,” Carmen said to Justin as she turned back toward the boys. “You walk your dog.” Carmen stopped, and Max stopped with her. “Stay,” she ordered him. Max stayed. Carmen held out her end of the leash to Justin. “Your turn.”
Justin forced himself not to hesitate. He took the leash and pulled Max in close to his side.
“Remember—dogs run in packs,” Carmen said as Justin and Max began making a slow circle around the yard. “So if he leads you, he’s leading the pack. He’ll never listen to you if he thinks he’s the leader.”
Justin nodded, but he didn’t want to speak. He could feel Max near his leg, walking in step with him. He didn’t want to break their concentration. When Max started to move a little faster and get ahead of him, Justin jerked on the leash and Max fell back into rhythm with him. Was this how Kyle felt when he and Max went out on patrol—like he and the dog were totally in sync, practically a single unit?
A weird thought suddenly bubbled up in Justin’s mind—a question so obvious, he was surprised it hadn’t occurred to him before: If Max had always been by Kyle’s side, no matter what, then how had Kyle gotten killed—and how had Max survived?
“He’s picking this up really fast,” Carmen said proudly, bringing Justin back from his thoughts.
Justin spoke without taking his eyes off Max. “My brother told us Max is a Specialized Search Dog. He could go out three hundred yards in front of his handler to search for explosives and weapons.”
“You mean to tell me,” Chuy cut in, “that we’ve got the Michael Jordan of dogs right here, and you’ve got him doing layups in your backyard?”
Justin paused, and Max stayed by his side. Justin held out the leash to Chuy. “You want to give it a go?”
Chuy shook his head. “Heck no. Are you crazy?”
“Didn’t think so,” Justin said with a smile.
Justin and Max continued their circle. Justin was so focused on the dog that he didn’t notice when his mom came home and stood watching them from the kitchen window.
“All right, Max. You’re such a superstar, huh?” Carmen said. “Let’s see you work off the leash.” She bent down and reached for the clasp on Max’s collar.
“Whoa—I don’t know,” Justin said. “If anything happens, my dad will kill me.”
“No pain, no gain,” Carmen said. She looked up at Justin’s worried face. “Nothing’s going to happen. It’s okay.” Justin admired her confidence, even if he didn’t entirely share it.
Carmen unhooked Max from the leash with a metallic snap. As if he’d received some kind of silent message, Max’s whole demeanor changed. He suddenly crouched down, his whole body coiled tight like a spring—as if he were about to go searching for hidden weapons.
“See,” Carmen said softly. “He knows what to do. Now walk with him, just like you did before.”
“Heel.” Justin took a few purposeful steps. Max stuck close to his side, just slightly behind him. Max’s head was up, his ears pricked forward, and his eyes gleamed with focus. He seemed to be sniffing the ground and air with extra intensity. A squirrel skittered through the trees at the edge of the backyard, and Max’s head snapped around so fast it was unbelievable. But he didn’t run off after the animal—he stayed close to Justin’s side and waited for his next command.
It was pretty cool to see Max in the search mode he’d been trained for. Kyle had always gone on and on about how Max could find anything, and Justin had usually rolled his eyes a little. Max can do this, Max can do that. It had always bugged Justin how his parents hung on to every word Kyle uttered about some dog they’d never even met. But now Justin was starting to understand why Kyle was so proud of Max—and why he and his unit had trusted Max with their lives.
Justin looked down at the dog, and Max looked back up at him. Justin smiled at Max, who panted in return.
Justin’s mom stepped out into the backyard. “I don’t believe what I’m seeing,” she said. Justin froze. Max stood perfectly still at Justin’s side. “How’d you get him to do that?”
“He already knew, ma’am,” Carmen said politely. “We’re just refreshing his memory.”
“Mom, this is Carmen,” Justin said, hoping that Max and his mom would stay on their best behavior. “Chuy’s cousin. She’s really good with dogs.”
“I can see that.”
“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” Carmen said.
“Hi, Mrs. Wincott,” Chuy mumbled, jamming his hands in his pockets.
“Hi, Chuy. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Carmen.”
“I was thinking we could give Max to her, Mom,” Justin joked.
“No such luck, smart mouth.” His mom turned to Chuy and Carmen with a smile. “You guys must have worked up quite an appetite out here. I’m about to make dinner if you’d like to join us.”
Justin suddenly wanted to curl up in a little ball and hide—so much for good behavior. He couldn’t believe his mom had just invited them to stay without clearing it with him first. He was afraid to look at Carmen. There was an awkward silence, then thankfully Chuy answered first.
“Thanks, but I need to go home,” Chuy said, reading Justin’s vibe. “You all have fun.”
Justin held his breath, waiting to hear Carmen’s reply. He didn’t know if he wanted her to say yes or no.
“Thanks, Mrs. Wincott,” Carmen said sweetly. “I’d be glad to.”