My body tensed and I pulled my knees into my chest, leaning against the cool wall behind me.
“Cinco.”
Fucking shut up!
“Yeah, since I was born.”
“Listen,” he paused, running his hand over the fabric of my quilt hanging off onto the floor beside him. “I know this has been a lot. How are you holding up?”
I almost choked on my own saliva and spent several seconds coughing my lungs clear.
“Are seriously asking me that right now?” I finally gritted out with aggravation.
He stood up and joined me on my mattress.
“The fuck are you doing dickweasel?”
The overwhelming scent of his cologne was making me dizzy and sick.
“I’m being nice,” he shrugged, leaning back against the wall to mirror my position. “So, how are you?”
“Fuck you,” I spat, scooting away from him so I didn’t throw up. “You don’t have the right to beniceto me. Not after what you did.”
I watched his brows furrow for a moment before he pursed his lips and sighed.
“I didn’twantto fuck you. You were right, I couldn’t even get hard. I just made it look like I did, I swear. I told you—I’m just doing what I need to do to keep my brother safe.”
“Stop trying to relate to me, just because we both have fucked-up parents who got involved with Los Siete. If you gave adamn about your brother, you’d be anywhere but here, making sure Lonnie was safe and getting a good future set up.”
Adrian’s hand clenched into a fist and for a moment I wondered if he would hit me.
“Don’t fucking project your sob story onto me. Just because your brother didn’t get you out doesn’t mean I won’t get Lonnie out.”
“So, what’s your fucking plan?” I asked with a scoff. My sense of self-preservation was nonexistent. “Go on, if you’ve got everything so well thought out. How are you going to get out alivewithyour brother?” I jutted my chin out for him to answer.
He sighed with frustration and stood from my bed.
“I’m just trying to help you, Shiloh. You’re in over your head here and I don’t want to be the one having to scrub your death clean for the authorities one day.”
“No,” I spat, getting right up in his face. “You’re trying to help yourself. If you thought for a second that I would trust your bitch ass, thenyou’rethe fucking brainless scum. Unlike you, I am doing this alone. I don’t need your fucking help.”
He opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off.
“Go crawl back to Carlos, you cocksucking bitch.”
He sucked his teeth giving me a look of disappointment that made my hands itch to punch him in the dick.
“Fine. But a message from Carlos—if he finds out that you’re doing any drugs or having unprotected sex, you’ll be moving in with him.”
“Cinco.”
“And here,” he said, pulling a cable from his pocket and tossing it onto Javier’s mattress. “Keep the fucking phone charged. The last thing you want is to leave Carlos on read if he tries to reach you.”
I didn’t get a chance to ask why the fuck Carlos cared if I got high or had sex. Everything was spinning. The room, my pulse, my thoughts.
“Cuatro.”
“Remember what I taught you. Fight like hell.”
