“Please don’t fall. Please don’t fall,” I repeat like a mantra.
Blue has one arm wrapped tight around the young boy as he works his way carefully to the swinging chair. The crowd is silent, waiting and watching as Blue puts the child back in the seat, then climbs in with him. When they’re both safe, a roaring cheer goes up from the crowd.
There’s a commotion near the carny worker, and I see another has joined him. I spot Blue’s club brothers gathered nearby, staring toward the top, then their president shoves one of them toward the carny workers, and they go to help.
Finally, the Ferris wheel starts moving again, and the workers unload the ride one car at a time.
When Blue and the young boy get to the bottom, the crowd cheers, and the child and another boy who looks like his brother are gathered up in a crying woman’s arms.
“That must be their mother,” Carmen whispers in my ear.
Blue’s club brothers surround him, patting him on the shoulder, but Carmen and I stay back, melting into the crowd.
It’s torment because everything in me wants to run to him and hold him tight in my arms and thank God he’s safe, but I know I can’t do that.
Carmen grabs my arm and squeezes, and I follow her eyes to see my father standing on the other side of the crowd near where Blue’s president stands. I can tell from the look on his face and the way he approaches his good friend that my father saw the entire thing.
My father pats their president’s shoulder, then extends his hand to Blue.
From this angle, I can’t see Blue’s expression, but he shakes my father’s hand.
“Maybe that’s a good thing.” Carmen leans close to whisper. “It was brave what Blue did. Your father has to respect that.”
“It won’t change anything. Blue will never be suitable for me. Not in my father’s eyes. Blue will never be good enough for Eduardo Sanchez’s daughter.”
“Stranger things have happened.”
“Not in our family. Not anything like this.”
“Then you better remember that and be very careful. If he ever finds out about the two of you, your relationship with your father will never be the same.”
“I know that.”
“And you’re willing to risk it?”
“I don’t want to hurt my father. I just want my own piece of happiness. Is that so awful?”
“Of course not. But I’m afraid that happiness is going to be short-lived, and I hate to see you get your heart broken. When that happens, I’m not so sure you’ll still think this was all worth it.”
“It doesn’t matter now. It’s already too late to save my heart.”
“Aw, honey,” Carmen whispers and puts her arm around me.
I bury my face in her shoulder, all the joy of seeing Blue today gone.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Blue—
It’s fifty-five miles and takes almost an hour to ride from Las Cruces to the drop site in El Paso.
Bandit and I take I10 East. Sometimes, like today, to change it up, we get off on Highway 404 and run it further east and pick up Highway 213 heading south.
There are mountains in the distance on our right and nothing but the baking desert on our left.
When we hit civilization again, its newly built subdivisions until we come to a grocery store. A little further down the road there’s a chicken place, a coffee shop and a Mexican diner.
We follow Highway 54 south through El Paso, past an RV park and a high school, and eventually cross I10 then pick up 375 at the Rio Grande and the border.
