Abuelo had tried to tell her when he’d given her the reata for her birthday. He wished to remind her to be humble. She didn’t want to hear it then. But Lalo had stumbled into her life and showed her what true goodness was, what true selflessness was. Since the very first day they met, he’d been trying to reversethe curse so his sister wouldn’t live in fear from that wretch of a woman Maricela. Now Carolina knew he was doing it for her and her family, too.
And she loved him for it.
The horse followed her lead up a craggy path. From the map she’d stolen from her papá’s office, this was the way to the tip of Devil’s Spine.
A strange, sizzling sound came from ahead. She narrowed her eyes and peered into the darkness. Their horse whinnied and suddenly reared back.
“Hold on!” Carolina yelled. But Lalo’s arms didn’t squeeze around her tight enough and he tumbled off the back of the gelding. Carolina struggled to regain control but caught a glimpse at what had startled her horse. The dirt trail they were on was moving just a few steps ahead. Undulating and lapping like a small lake. Something fizzled to the top and a bubble burst with a hiss.
“What in the saints?” Lalo asked while dusting off his bottom.
“Lago del fuego,” she said. “Boiling-hot quicksand.”
“Of course it is!” His voice had raised in pitch. “What else shall we come across? Evil mushrooms? Snakes with three heads?!”
“Lalo, lower your voice,” she warned.
“Or what?” He raised his hands. “What else can possibly go wrong? If we move in the wrong direction this way, we will be drowned in burning sand. But we cannot go back because wolves the size of wagons wish to devour me. Oh, and then there’s Maricela too. And Vidal. And…” He stopped short as his voice broke.
“What? And what, Lalo?”
His chin wobbled. “I’ve been fighting for air since the moment my parents were murdered. And every time I get close to the surface, every time I think I might finally break through,something even more terrible comes. I have been turned into the very thing I hate most. I was hunted and stabbed and shot. I killed! Day and night, I dream of the lives I took. I have nightmares about leaving my baby sister to fend for herself. And now there’s you, too.” He shook his head. “I can’t do it. I can’t take another step. It’s too much. I can’t lose you, Carolina. Not when we’ve only just found each other.”
Carolina inhaled deeply. “We won’t lose each other, Lalo. We will make it through this.”
“You don’t understand. I won’t be going back with you.”
“What?” The horse shifted under her as she tensed. “What are you talking about?”
His face twisted with anguish. “When we sever the ties between Vidal and Tecuani, it won’t only kill Vidal and undo the curse. Any sediento born of his blood will fall, too. Without him, there will be nothing to bind us to this realm anymore.”
Dear Gods, she had asked him about this when he first told her his plan, but he seemed so unconcerned, she just assumed it was because he wasn’t worried about anything happening tohim.
“How long have you known?” she asked.
“I’ve always hoped it wouldn’t be so, but every journal or book I’ve read about those given new life because of Tecuani leads to the same conclusion. Kill the original sediento, and the rest will fall.”
“And yet you still fought so hard to find Vidal and the daggers that would kill him? Why? Why come all this way just todie?”
“Because I want Fernanda to be safe. I killed Maricela’s children. Journeying here was the only way I could ensure Fernanda would never have to look over her shoulder again.”
“Then continue for her. And for me. But do not give up, Lalo. Do not forfeit your life. Because I…” She palmed her chest as the scope of his heartbreak befell her. He had endured endless tortures for his sister’s sake. But he wouldn’t anymore. At least, not alone. “I love you, Lalo. And I need you here. Your sister and I need you here. Do you understand? There must be a way for you to survive this. I will find a way, and you will not give up because I cannot face this world without you.”
“Lina,” he whispered.
A sob escaped her. Abuelo had been the only other one to call her that, but it sounded so effortless from Lalo’s lips.
“Maybe it is selfish of me to beg for you to not give up when you’ve been through so much,” she said. “But life isn’t something one just eases through. Life is a constant battle. Every moment of peace, every smile, every kiss that is worth a damn must be earned. So fight with me, Lalo. And if you are too weary from everything you’ve already been through, then I’ll raise my fists and fight for us both.”
Lalo held her gaze as black tears slid down his cheeks. He quickly wiped them away. “I pity anyone who stands against you.”
Carolina laughed through her sorrows. “Me too.”
“And I pity myself for having to spend the last five minutes listening to you two,” a sultry voice taunted.
Lalo’s eyes widened before his body jerked back and disappeared into the shadows. Shock filled every morsel of Carolina’s flesh. She dug her heels into the horse and pounded after her love.
“Lalo!” she screamed.
