Chapter 9

"Where the fuck is he? He can't be that far from the city."

Gio, Max, and I have been looking for Josiah since the day he left the hospital, leaving Shorty behind.

Tracking him has become more difficult since he turned his cell phone off. We searched the areas he used to frequent but still waiting for someone to see or hear from him. The hope of finding the son of a bitch is heading to a dead end.

We've been at Josiah's for the last hour, ransacking his place to find clues—anything to know where he disappeared to. The more he stays away, the more Shorty is hurting, and I am getting tired of seeing her cry every fucking day. The girl needs a break from all the bullshit.

Suddenly, the door flies open, smacking against the wall and knocking off the clock beside the door.

"What the fuck?" Gio and Max both pull out their guns, pointing toward the intruder.

"What the fuck is right! What the hell are you doing up here?" Hector stands in the doorway with a gun pointing in our direction.

Gio and Max's shoulders relax, and they withdraw their weapons.

"You can put that away now," I say in amusement.

Hector straightens, lowering the gun to his side. He wipes his face with his tattooed hand, letting out an exaggerated sigh.

"You all right, bro?" Gio directs his question to Max, leaning over and trying to catch his breath.

"Am I all right? Fuck, no, man! He almost made me shit my pants."

"Answer the damn question. What the hell are you doing in here?" Hector's nostrils flared ignoring Gio's dramatics, slamming the door behind him with his foot.

"Relax." I held my hands up.

"Relax? You break into my home knowing the neighborhood we're in. I could've blown your head off without a second thought," he seethes.

"You're right. I'm sorry."

Hector looks around, noticing the mess we made.

"You find what you're looking for?" he asks, dark brown eyes roaming the room.

"No," I say with frustration. "We haven't found a goddamn thing. We don't know where the hell he's been."

I walk past him towards the picture frame on the end table. It's a picture of Shorty and Josiah when she was still in high school. I know how much he loves his sister, and that he would do anything for her, making this more challenging to grasp.

"We have another problem," Gio says.

I look over my shoulder at him. "What is it?"

Gio tosses five pill bottles on the couch.

I look at him, confused about how this could be a problem, and then it dawns on me.

"Shit," I whisper.

"Yeah, shit," Gio murmurs.

Hector walks closer, and the color from his face draining when he sees what we're seeing.

"What's going on?" That was Max.

I rub my hands up and down my face. "These are Josiah's meds."

Max gives me his "yeah, so" look.

I sigh.

"It's his meds for bipolar. He needs them, and if he's out there without them…." I can't finish the sentence.

We're completely fucked now that we know Josiah is alone and God knows where without his meds to keep him "stable," as Shorty would say.

"Fuck!" Hector roars, punching his fist through the wall. He braces against the hole he just made, lowering his head.

"If anything happens to him, do you know what it will do to Shorty?" He turns to me, desperation and regrets written all over his face.

"Then let's find him so that doesn't happen."