“Your old man.” Samuel replied. “Got her pregnant then made off with a good chuck of Valentina’s product. I’m talking millions of dollars worth of the good stuff.”
“The hell does that have to do with me?” Ellie stepped forward.
“You’re his kid.” Samuel spat. “Valentina believes you know where the stash is. Even if you don’t, they’re hoping if they can get their hands on you, they’ll be able to squeeze your old man till he talks.”
“This is dumb.” Ellie eyed him. “I’m not apart of any of this.”
“Man, does she have to be your stereotypical blond?” Samuel sighed. “It doesn’t matter. Your father soiled his sister, which in his head meant he had to kill her—Otis, I mean. In his head, your entire family is at fault.”
“Is this guy for real?” Ellie asked.
“Unfortunately, that’s how the Araña Tóxica thinks.” I confirmed.
I watched Ellie carefully as she moved even closer, her eyes burning a hole through Samuel. “Where’s the kid now?” She asked.
But Sam only laughed with insanity bright in his eyes. “You actually think you can stop what’s coming?” He actually had the nerve to sound incredulous. “This entire situation has been years in the making. It’s a fucking runaway train—you can’t stop it.”
I shoved Samuel away from us and he tumbled to the ground. Instead of scampering away, he merely rolled from side to side laughing harder.
“Get in the car.” I told Ellie.
“What…”
“Get in the car!” I barked.
“You can’t stop it!” Samuel hollered. “As for the kid, hopefully he was merciful and bashed his head in with a rock!”
“Let me bash his head in with a rock!” Ellie growled while trying to get out of the vehicle.
I locked the door and turned on the engine. “It doesn’t matter. Even if he leaves here alive, he’s a dead man.”
Ellie
The Protectorsand Tarek had a meeting to discuss what was happening and what we found out. Though I was there, it was as if I was millions of miles away. I couldn’t seem to focus on anything they said because I was still back with Samuel, hearing that I had a possible brother or sister that could be dead.
Did my mother know? Did she know that he refused to have another child with her but had gone out and had a kid with someone else who led to her death? How could I reconcile my father with that information—with those actions?
How could he?
…And Tarek had kissed me.
I covered my face with my hands.
“Okay.” Tarek was saying. “We’ll head back tomorrow. But for tonight, we should stop and just breathe.”
It didn’t take long for the house to clear out and I exhaled long and hard. Tarek’s presence filled the room and my body trembled. The thought of his mouth on mine returned to me and every bit of me wanted—needed—to happen again.
I didn’t dare look up. The last thing I needed was another reason for him to see just how weak I was. As I tried walking by him, he caught my arm and pulled me into his chest. No, this wasn’t how it was supposed to be. Not after what I’d done.
I tried fighting him—to get out of his embrace but he held on tighter. Tarek pressed a large palm to the back of my head as the tears finally fell.
“You can’t.” I sobbed. “You shouldn’t be comforting me like this.”
“Shh.” Tarek hushed me. “You’ve been through a lot. Most people would be down by now. You’re still standing.”
“This is my punishment.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s not how it works.” His voice was soft.
