Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2013 16:06:55 -0500
From: Andrew Todd <atodd867@gmail.com>
Subject: Riding Lessons-Lessons Learned Chapter 10

This is a continuation of my first story, `Riding Lessons'. As always, if
you have any issues with romantic relationships between young men, please
do not proceed. I appreciate any and all feedback and constructive
criticism.

Riding Lessons II: Lessons Learned

By

Andrew Todd

Chapter 10

Dylan was laughing so hard his sides were starting to ache. He shakily
wiped the tears that were coming from his eyes.

Zak and Danny had been arguing for ten minutes over which of them would be
riding the gray Arabian mare, Shimmer. Zak was arguing that since the mare
`loved' him he should get to ride her and Danny was pointing out that since
Zak had already ridden her the mare deserved to be ridden by a more
experienced rider.

Dylan knew that the brothers were acting like fools for his benefit. He
appreciated the effort, but if he didn't stop them he was going to
hyperventilate from laughing so hard.

"ALRIGHT!!" Dylan shouted, trying to keep a straight face. "I have a
solution," he said, walking over to Shimmer's stall. "Since I was supposed
to ride her this morning and I am supposed to be the one who's horse
shopping, I'll ride her."

Both Danny and Zak gave Dylan exaggerated pouts as they went to find two
other horses to ride.

Danny took Baron, the Warmblood that Zak and Dylan were going to try
earlier and Zak went to get Gaston, a Halflinger gelding that was on Nick's
shortlist of options for Dylan.

The three chattered as they groomed and tacked the horses.

When they were ready, the three mounted up and headed out onto the trail.

The boys rode three astride though the woods. Dylan and Shimmer were
sandwiched between Danny and Baron and Zak and Gaston. They plodded along
at a walk, none of them in a hurry to get anywhere in particular. They were
quiet for a while, each wondering how to begin the conversation they all
knew was coming.

Dylan knew he wanted to tell Zak everything. Of all the boys, he felt the
closest to Zak and he thought that he owed Zak an explanation after what
happened this morning. He wasn't sure why Danny was with them. He liked
Danny, but he hadn't spent much time with him. Maybe Zak wanted the moral
support.

Danny was trying to figure out how to broach the subject without scaring
Dylan off. He didn't know Dylan well at all, but he felt for the boy since
they shared a common malady. He knew that many people didn't like to talk
about their problems, especially something like depression which for many
people still carried a bit of a stigma.

Zak was holding his breath. He was stuck between the rock and the hard
place. He was the only one there who knew about Danny and Dylan, but he
couldn't say anything, because he didn't want to speak out of turn. He was
just riding along trying to will both of the others to say something.

Finally, after several minutes of intolerable silence, Danny spoke up.

"Dylan, I need to tell you something," Danny started. "First off, you need
to know, Zak hasn't told me anything other than what happened this
morning. But, the first thing I asked him when I got back to the ranch was
whether or not you had mentioned having depression or a history of panic
attacks."

Dylan looked from Zak to Danny. To Danny he looked like Bambi caught in the
headlights.

Danny pointed up ahead. "Look guys, why don't we head over to that clearing
and have a seat and talk," he said.

The two younger boys nodded and they rode together to the clearing and
dismounted. Each of the boys took a seat in a grassy area. The boys all
kept hold of their horses' reins so the horses could graze but not wander
off.

Danny looked at Dylan. The younger boy was looking at the ground.

"Dylan, look at me," Danny said quietly.

Dylan looked up, his eyes watering. Danny's heart was breaking for the boy.

"Dylan, the reason I asked Zak about you having depression is because I
recognized the reaction you had this morning. I have depression, too."

Dylan looked up in surprise. "Really?" he whispered.

Danny nodded. "Really. I wasn't diagnosed until earlier this
year. Unfortunately most of us don't find out we have it until we are too
far gone." Danny went on to tell Dylan about his mother's death and her
revelation about his father and how he had left CJ and his life in Florida
when everything became too much. "Everything is better and brighter for me
now; I've got CJ back, I have my baby brother, here." He grinned at Zak who
smiled back. "Zak's mom has opened her home to me and CJ and now I have
friends in you guys. But, I know that even though things are better and I
am on medication it's still a constant struggle for me."

Dylan just sat and listened as Danny relayed his story. He knew people in
the hospital that had suffered from the same problem as he did, but it was
not the same as having someone who was a friend.

"It started last year," Dylan started quietly. Zak scooted closer to Dylan
and took his friend's hand in his. Dylan smiled shyly at Zak. "I know now
that I had some small bouts with it before then. As I talked to the doctors
they helped me see some points in my childhood where it had affected me,
but I was a generally happy person, so I was able to overcome it."

Danny nodded. "That's not uncommon. I was the same way. I've always had
this, but until things went bad for me, I was always able to deal with it."

"Well, spring of last year, I was riding at a farm that I had been riding
at since I was a little kid. I always rode with my best friend, Tanner. We
had actually just become boyfriends. We weren't actually in love, like you
guys all are. We just both realized we were gay and that we were crushing
on each other and we hooked up because we knew each other so well. All we
ever did was kiss and hug, never went any further. We tried to keep it
secret. We were always at each other's houses so there was never any
suspicion about us. A couple times we weren't careful and we'd sneak into
an empty stall or tack room at the farm and fool around. We never thought
anyone saw us, but we were wrong."

Dylan took a deep breath and continued. "There was an older boy who rode
there named Cody. He was so awesome. He was tall and blond, he was
handsome, he was the best rider there. I had a huge crush on him and I was
pretty sure Tanner did too. Cody would talk to us every once in a while and
give us tips, but this day he offered to coach us for a big competition
that was about two weeks away. He told us that he would coach us and the
day before the comp he would set up a course and Tanner and I would have a
jump-off. The winner would get a ride home."

Danny shook his head and looked confused.

Dylan grinned shyly. "He rode a Kawasaki Ninja."

Danny grinned, but Zak had a blank look on his face.

Dylan shook his head. "Zak, you need to get out more."

Zak shrugged his shoulders.

"Zak, it's a motorcycle," Danny explained. "A really cool motorcycle."

Dylan nodded and then continued. "Right, so Tanner and I would have each
sold the other to get a ride on that bike. For the next two weeks, we
trained harder than ever. Cody helped us so much. We were both really good
riders, but we had a few problems that always seemed to creep up and Cody
knew just what to do to help us overcome them. At the end of the two weeks
we had our jump-off and I won--barely, but I won." Dylan stared off
silently for a second.

"Dyl, are you ok?" Zak asked as he rubbed Dylan's arm.

Dylan looked up; his eyes were starting to water. "Yeah, I'm ok."

"Dylan, we don't have to do all this now, if it's too much for you," Danny
offered.

Dylan shook his head. "No. I need to do this. I've wanted to tell someone
other than my shrink and my parents, but I haven't been able to get it
out. You guys have been so great to me. Especially you, Zak. But, Danny,
knowing you understand all this makes it easier for me to talk about it."

Danny slid over so he was on the other side of Dylan and took Dylan's other
hand in his.

Dylan looked from Danny to Zak and then closed his eyes. He took a deep
breath and then slowly exhaled.

"So, I won the jump-off," he continued. "And then the next day I won the
competition. Tanner came in a close second and we were so excited. Monday
we went to the farm to ride, like we did every day after school. Cody was
waiting for us with our horses all tacked up. He said as a reward for how
well we did he was taking us on a trail ride. We both loved to trail ride,
but since we practiced so much we rarely got to do it. After the trail
ride, Tanner went home and I got my `prize'. Cody took me to a neighborhood
diner that was popular with the high school kids. He bought me dinner and
we had a really good time. Then he said he wanted to take me to his house
to show me his ribbons and trophies."

Dylan paused and took another deep breath. His grip on Zak's and Danny's
hands tightened.

"We went to his house and he showed me his awards. Then he wanted me to sit
on his bed with him. When I did he started to tell me how much he liked me
and was glad I had won the jump-off with Tanner. He told me I was `cute'
and that threw me off, cuz I never even thought of Cody as gay. I was
starting to get uncomfortable. He put his hands on my shoulders and started
to massage me."

Danny was starting to realize where this was heading. He knew that it was
important for Dylan to get this out. He reached over and wrapped his free
arm around Dylan's shoulder. Dylan leaned into Danny seeking the older
boy's comfort.

Dylan continued, "After he massaged me for a few minutes I felt him kiss my
neck. I asked him what he was doing and he told me he had seen me and
Tanner and wanted to show me what a `real man' could do. He turned me
around and grabbed my face and kissed me hard. He shoved his tongue in my
mouth and I couldn't breathe so I bit his tongue."

Zak let out a reflexive giggle. Dylan looked at him with a small smile.

"When I bit him, he stopped kissing me. Then he hit me right across the
face, hard. I was really out of it--not knocked out, but I couldn't
focus. I felt him undo my belt and pull down my pants and underwear. He got
off the bed to take his clothes off and I tried to run for it, but I
tripped on my pants and fell over. He laughed at me and lifted me up and
sat me on the bed. He made me suck his..." Tears were falling from Dylan's
eyes as he tried to continue.

Danny was starting to feel the emotion; he looked over at Zak who was
crying as well.

"I thought I was going to puke. He must have realized this cuz he pulled it
out of my mouth and picked me up and threw me on the bed so I was lying on
my stomach. I felt his hands on my butt and then he stuck his tongue in
there. I was trying to get away. I was so out of it, cuz he had hit me
second time, I can't remember when. Then he laid on my back and started
whispering in my ear about how much I was going to love what was next. Then
I felt the worst pain I had ever felt in my life. It was like my butt was
on f-f-fire. I-I-I s-s-screamed, but he w-w-wouldn't s-s-stop. He-he-he..."

Danny grabbed Dylan and held the boy as he sobbed. Zak moved over closer
and rubbed Dylan's back. All three boys were crying hard at this point.

"Dylan, it's ok," Danny whispered. "You're safe. No one is ever going to
hurt you like that again."

Danny rocked Dylan in his arms for a few minutes until he started to calm
some.

"I guess I passed out," Dylan said. "I think he made me take a shower and
then he took me home. He told me if I said anything I'd be sorry. When I
got home I just sat in the shower and cried and then went to bed. The next
day I played sick and didn't go back to school for three days. When I
finally had to go back, I pushed everyone away, even Tanner. I stopped
going to the farm, cuz I didn't want to see Cody, but more than anything I
just wanted to crawl away and hide. School let out and my dad said if I was
giving up riding then we had to sell Dodger. Now look what's happened to
him!"

Dylan started to cry again.

"Dylan, CJ found the papers on Dodger," Zak said to him. "The farm that
sold him for you sold him to a good home, but they had some financial
problems about six months after they bought him and they're the ones who
sold him to the ranch that was raided. I know it doesn't change what
happened to him, but at least you know that the farm wasn't at fault. And
neither were you."

Dylan reached over and hugged Zak. It didn't make the pain any less, but he
was grateful to Zak for trying.

Dylan took yet another deep breath. He started to continue.

"Are you sure you're ok to do this?" Danny asked.

Dylan nodded. "Yes, I'm almost done," he said. "School got out about six
weeks after it happened. I spent the summer holed up in my room. I rarely
went out, just slept. I guess my parents thought I was finally becoming a
`typical' teenager. When it was close to school starting, she took a day
off and we went to the mall. She wanted me to get new clothes for school. I
was just going through the motions. I didn't care about clothes or school
or anything. We had lunch at the food court and I went to the
bathroom. When I came out of the stall Tanner was standing there. He looked
terrible. He pushed me against the wall and started screaming at me. He was
pissed that I hadn't said anything about Cody--Cody had done it to him
too. He kept saying it was all my fault. He punched me in the stomach and
stormed off.

"There was about a week till school and I was panicked about going back. I
couldn't face Tanner knowing that I was the reason that Cody had attacked
him too. The Saturday before school was supposed to start, I was home
alone. I was desperate and I got an idea. I went to my parents' liquor
cabinet and pulled out the fullest bottle I could find and then went and
got a bottle of sleeping pills my mom had. For about the next hour or so I
just drank and swallowed pills. I think I puked once or twice, can't really
remember. Next thing I knew I was in the hospital and then they put me in
the mental ward. I was there for about three months. At first, I didn't
want to get better, I just wanted to die. The medication they put me on
made me feel a little better some days, but I think I was fighting it. Then
Tanner came to see me; he was upset thinking that it was his fault I had
tried to kill myself. We talked and we cried. We forgave each other. I was
glad we were friends again, but I knew we would never be boyfriends again.

"A few days later, I was feeling pretty good and was in therapy. I was
talking a lot about Tanner, when Elaine, my therapist, asked me who Cody
was. I guess I had mentioned his name without thinking about it. I started
to talk about him and then everything came out. It was the first time I
actually said what he did to me...that he raped me...

"I guess that was my breakthrough, finally saying that word...finally
admitting what he had done to me and that it wasn't my fault. Eventually, I
told my parents. They've been very accepting of my being gay, but with the
depression and the suicide attempt, my mom watches me like a hawk. I guess
that's why she likes all you guys--I'm getting out of the house and she
knows I'm safe. At first I think she was apprehensive, but Denise told her
that you guys were the best." He looked over at Zak. "And she was right."

"What happened with Cody?" asked Danny. "Doesn't the therapist have to
report him?"

Dylan nodded. "She did. The detectives came to the hospital; they met with
me and my parents and Elaine. I had to tell them everything. I left Tanner
out of it. He has to make his own decision about telling what
happened. I've talked to him about it but he's not ready. Cody ran away the
beginning of the summer after all this happened, no one has seen him. But
there is an outstanding warrant for his arrest. Since I waited so long to
report him and there was no physical evidence, it will be difficult to
prosecute, but hopefully when they bust him others will come forward."

"It really sucks that he's still out there." Zak said.

"I know. I keep hoping that he tried this on the wrong person and that
person hurt him back." Dylan smiled. "I think that's the fantasy that keeps
me going some days."

"So, Dylan, how are you now? How do you feel?" asked Danny, who was still
holding Dylan.

Dylan straightened up and sat between the two brothers. "I feel
better. It's a struggle. You know that. Some days are better than
others. This week, until today, has been the best. I know I fell apart with
that panic attack, but I'll make sure to keep those meds on me from now
on. And on the positive side, I get Dodger back. I wish he wasn't suffering
like he is, but I'm going to spend as much time as it takes to get him
healthy and happy again."

"We all will," Zak said.

"You know, it might not be a bad idea for us to keep a stash of your pills
at the ranch. We could keep them in the office in the barn or in the ranch
house," offered Danny. "That way if something happened and you had
forgotten them, we'd have them. The problem with the panic attacks is that
you never know when they are going to strike. At least with the depression,
you start to feel things coming on; with the panic attacks it just hits
you."

Dylan nodded. He smiled at Danny and leaned over and hugged him. "Thank
you, Danny. It's so great to have someone who understands. My parents and
Denise try, but they don't always get it, you know?"

"Yes, I know," Danny agreed. "CJ and I are still feeling our way around the
subject. I know he's forgiven me, but I also know I have a lot to make up
for. I'm just happy we're getting a second chance at it."

The three boys sat for a while longer. They were pretty quiet, just
absorbing everything that had happened today.

Finally, Danny stood up and said they needed to head back.

The three mounted up and headed down the trails. Zak led them to the open
hills that surrounded the ranch and after giving a mischievous look to
Danny and Dylan he had Gaston take off running over the hills. Never ones
to shrink from a challenge, Danny and Dylan kicked their mounts into gear
and took off after him.

The three spent the afternoon racing around the hills and trails. Dylan was
finally starting to relax and feel better after the events of the
morning. Zak was noticing a closeness between Danny and Dylan. Another
person might have been jealous over the obvious connection between his new
friend and his newfound brother, but Zak was just happy that two people who
he cared about had each other to get them through some hard times. He knew
that as much as he wanted to, he would not be able to ever completely
understand what either of them had gone through.

Zak couldn't imagine ever being so low that he would walk away from Dusty,
never mind actually try to take his own life.  Zak promised himself that he
would always look out for Danny and Dylan and make sure they never again
found themselves so desperate that they could find no other escape but to
run or hurt themselves.

After they had returned to the barn and put the horses up, Danny went to
look for CJ or Dusty to check on Dodger's status while Zak and Dylan waited
in the barn.

Dylan walked over to Zak and grabbed the smaller boy in a huge bear
hug. Zak thought he was going to pass out from lack of oxygen. Dylan
stepped back and grinned at Zak with a tear in his eye.

"What was that for?" Zak asked.

"To thank you," Dylan answered. "You knew that Danny could help me, but you
didn't tell him about me. You found a way for him to help me without
betraying me. Both of those things mean a lot to me. I needed someone I
could trust and now I have both you and Danny."

Zak smiled at Dylan. "You have all of us, you know. Me and Danny as well as
Dusty, CJ, Mattie and even Spin." He rolled his eyes when he said Spin's
name.

Dylan laughed, "I know, but I'm not ready to tell everyone what happened to
me. I'm kinda ok with people knowing about my depression, but the other
stuff is hard. I mean, Cody took so much from me. Because of him I stopped
riding, and look what happened to Dodger. I lost time with Tanner and
almost lost him completely. He took my virginity."

"Wait a second," Zak said sternly. "I don't think he did that."

"Sure he did. He had sex with me."

"No, he didn't. He raped you; that's not sex, that's violence." Zak was
shaking with anger. "Some people, ignorant people, may say that you aren't
a virgin, but that's bullshit. Giving your virginity is not about the
physical act, it's about everything that's involved. I don't think of
myself as a virgin even though Dusty and I have never done anything more
than oral sex. I gave myself to him...my heart, my emotions and my body...I
willingly gave myself to him. You weren't given that option. To me you are
still a virgin. You are still innocent. Someday you are going to find a
great guy and you are going to give yourself to him body and soul and the
way you feel when that happens will show you that what Cody did to you was
not love, was not sex."

Dylan looked at his shoes. "No one's gonna want me now. I'm damaged goods."

Zak turned bright red as his rage grew. He was trying his best to maintain
his composure. He wanted nothing more than track down this Cody guy and
kick his ass--well, he'd probably have to have Dusty hold him down, but
that guy needed a butt whooping.

Zak put his hand on Dylan's shoulder. "Dylan, listen to me and listen
good. You are not now nor have you ever been `damaged goods'. First of all,
no one ever has to know what happened to you. But, if you fall in love and
you want to tell that person everything and they can't accept it then that
is their problem not yours. You wouldn't want to be with that person
anyways. You want someone sweet, loving, accepting and cute." He wiggled
his eyebrows at Dylan, making Dylan laugh.

"Damn, I'm jealous of Dusty," Dylan sighed.

"No you're not," Zak said. "You'll find someone. We'll all be there helping
you to do it."

Danny walked back into the barn. "Hey, guys. I just talked to CJ; the vet
finished his examination of Dodger. He thinks considering what he's been
through he's in relatively good shape--no permanent damage to his bones or
muscles, most of the cuts and bruises are already starting to heal. He gave
Dusty some stuff to put on them to help that. His main problem is
malnourishment. He's instructed us to put him on a special diet. Jeff had
most of the feeds we need here, so he can start on them right away. When we
get home tomorrow, we'll run to the feed store and get the stuff he
needs. Once we get him fattened up he should make a complete
recovery...physically."

"But..." Dylan asked.

"He's been through a lot, Dylan. He's very apprehensive about people. They
had to sedate him to get him loaded on the trailer and again when the vet
came. We'll probably have to do it tomorrow as well to get him back to the
Triple J."

"Can I see him?" Dylan asked expectantly.

Danny nodded. "Yes, I'm going to take you over to where they have him. I
just want you to be prepared. He's very skittish and angry. You won't be
able to get too close to him, and he looks a lot worse than the vet says he
is."

Danny led Zak and Dylan to a smaller barn that the Murphys used to settle
the newer horses in before moving them to `general population'. Zak smiled
to himself when he thought of how Nick explained everything to him in
`prison' terms.

Zak held back as Danny took Dylan's hand to steady him as they approached
Dodger's stall.

Dodger was very agitated, He was wild-eyed and throwing his head back and
forth.

Dylan had tears in his eyes as he looked at his old friend. Dylan
remembered how Dodger had carried him through competition after competition
never letting him down; he thought of the times that he had confided in his
four-legged friend and how Dodger had always made him feel better when
things were not going right. He suddenly understood the huge mistake he had
made by walking away from Dodger and riding. He realized that Dodger had
been a huge reason that he had not had a breakdown sooner.

There were times he would feel stressed or depressed and he would turn to
the beautiful Arabian and just spend time stroking him and talking to him;
it always calmed him and made him feel more centered. Why hadn't he thought
of that after Cody? He knew that at that point he had been too far gone,
but this damn illness and damned Cody had cost him too much already--it
wasn't going to cost him Dodger, too.

Dylan began walking towards the horse. Zak stepped forward to stop him, but
Danny held his hand up to stop Zak. Danny's eyes met Zak's. Zak looked at
him questioningly, but Danny just nodded towards Dylan and nodded.

"Hey, buddy," Dylan whispered. "Hey, Dodge. It's me. Don't you remember
me?"

Dylan stepped closer and closer to the stall. He moved quietly and slowly
so as not to spook the gelding.

Upon hearing Dylan's voice, Dodger stopped pacing in his stall and walked
to the stall door and craned his head.

Dylan reached out and gently touched Dodger's cheek. Dodger inhaled and
took in the scent of this boy. He recognized the scent and tried to further
stretch his neck to reach him.

Dylan stepped closer and began to stroke and pet Dodger's cheek and
neck. Dodger visibly relaxed as he recognized Dylan. Dylan opened the stall
door and stepped inside. He reached up and wrapped his arms around Dodger's
neck and hugged him. The horse pulled his chin against Dylan's back,
pulling the boy closer.

Danny stepped back to where Zak was standing. The two brothers took in the
happy sight of their teary-eyed friend being reunited with his horse.

"You knew this would happen?" Zak whispered to Danny.

"I hoped." Danny smiled, a few tears leaking out of his eyes. "Dodger was
abused by strangers, by people who never cared for him or loved him, people
he didn't know. I thought if anyone could get through to him it would be
the boy who loved him. Horses aren't stupid; they know who the good guys
are and who loves them."

Zak reached over and hugged his brother. "I'm so glad you're here," he
whispered.

Danny hugged his little brother back. "Me, too."

Later that night as they were all about to turn in there was a bit of an
argument in the common room. Not wanting Dylan to sleep alone on the couch
both Danny and Zak had each insisted that he join them and their
significant other in their bedrooms.

Dylan tried to convince them that he was fine alone, but no one was going
to let him be alone after the day he had had. Mattie and Spin offered as
well, but Zak and Danny argued the strongest and the loudest.

"Look, Dylan," argued Zak. "Either way, you're spending the night in one of
the bedrooms. Dusty and I are fine sharing with you."

"Zak, I appreciate the offer, but you and Dusty don't get to spend that
much time together as it is," Dylan replied. "How often do you get the
chance to spend the night together with no parents around?"

"Dylan, it's ok, we'll be fine; it's not like we're the human horndog over
there," Zak answered gesturing to Spin.

"Hey!!" interjected Mattie. "I love my horndog." He grabbed hold of Spin
and sweetly kissed his cheek while Spin blushed uncontrollably.

"Zak, Dylan," CJ stepped in. "Look, it makes more sense for Dylan to come
in with us." He nodded to Dusty and Zak. "That way you two can have some
time together and," he nodded to Dylan, "you won't be alone."

Zak and Dylan both started to object. CJ just raised his hands. "No, it's
decided. Now everyone needs to hit the hay, cuz we need to get out of here
early tomorrow."

With some minor grumbling from his boyfriend, Dusty dragged Zak off to
bed. The others followed.

The groups left early the next morning.

Danny drove the Super Cab with Zak, Dusty and Dylan towing the trailer
containing Dodger. Deciding it would be better to take the horses
separately, CJ drove his Jeep with Mattie and Spin; they borrowed a trailer
from the Murphys to carry Scout to the Triple J.

CJ drove straight through to the Triple J. Once he arrived he had Mattie
and Spin unload Scout and they unhooked the trailer. CJ left the two
younger boys to get Scout settled while he ran to the feed store to get the
feed and other supplies they would need for Dodger.

CJ instructed Mattie and Spin to get a stall ready for Dodger once they had
Scout taken care of. He suggested they find a spot for Dodger that was
somewhat isolated, at least until he was used to his surroundings. Right
now the only human he would have anything to do with was Dylan.

Danny made several stops on the way back. They knew that Dodger was still
pretty weak, so they made stops about every 20-30 minutes to check on
him. Several times they had to talk Dylan out of riding in the trailer with
Dodger. Danny finally put his foot down; it was too dangerous and if Dodger
was to collapse or lose his balance or just spook it would be very
dangerous for Dylan.

It took the boys with Dodger about two extra hours to get to the Triple J.

By the time they got there, Spin and Mattie were gone. Spin's dad had
picked them up and was dropping Mattie at home so he could go to mass.

CJ showed Dylan where they had set up a stall for Dodger. Dylan ran back to
the trailer and slowly backed his friend out and led him into his new home.