“I saw the sick gleam in his eyes. Heard the icy cold note in his voice when he barked his orders.” She bats away at a tear, her eyes never leaving our joined hands. “He told his men to find you, no matter the cost. When one of them asked what he intended to do with you, he said you were useless until you turned twenty-three, but then you and your money would be his. What happened to you before then was not his concern, as long as you remained alive.”
And that right there is the order that sentenced me to years of heinous abuse.
“I snuck out and ran. I looked everywhere for you. It was dark and there were so many emergency workers all over the grounds. Our staff did what they were trained to do—they hid. It wasn't until well after three in the morning when I finally ran into Jonah. He told me where you were and I went straight to the hospital. I’d been out of my mind. Heartbroken over you, your parents, and Carmen.”
“Gage and Madd’s mom?”
She nods. “Carmen and I were close. She was such a sweetheart.” Madeline clicks her tongue and looks away. “I knew that sick man would be the end of her someday.”
“You know how she died?” My throat bobs. “How they all died?”
“There were cameras in the Chamber.” She flicks away more tears. “Once the survivors had reunited and recovered, we were able to pull the footage from the central hub it transmitted to. We saw the whole thing.”
Madeline smiles, but this time, there’s a dark note to it. A vicious one.
“Your parents may have been over the top but they were prepared for everything. She knew someone would come for her eventually. At first, she figured it would be one of your grandfather’s many enemies. Perhaps the people who took out her brothers. It’s why they kept you hidden at first. There were too many attempts on her life. With the kind of wealth your family line possesses, it’s only a matter of time before the greedy descend. She just had no idea the closest threat stood beside her.”
And they’ll descend on me too, eventually. If I decide to take my mother’s place,my place, people will come for me.
Augustus is only the beginning.
“And he was relentless. That night, his men caught me in the parking lot. I was blindfolded, beaten, and kidnapped. They took me to an abandoned warehouse down south.”
“Why there?” I rasp.
“Are you familiar with the Broadway Boys?”
I nod. “Gage and Maddox told me all about them. Their leader was Carmen’s brother.”
“Yes, and at the time, he was the only connection to any sort of power Augustus had beyond the Circle. It wasn’t until years later he created Los Diablos. But the Broadway Boys had a reputation. They were hateful, disgusting men. They trafficked women, sold drugs, and were just getting in deep with the Diaz Cartel. Gus likely saw this, which is why he married Carmen.”
I think back to what the guys told me all those months ago. Recalling how they’d said something similar. They may not have been given the correct story about what happened the night of the explosion—in fact, they refer to it as a massacre—but even they know that their mom wasn’t with Gus out of love. She stayed for her sons, but was married for her connections.
Point blank, there’s no other reason.
It’s heartbreaking.
“I don’t think he realized that by killing so many people, starting a fire, and burning down the home of the wealthiest families in San Francisco, that he’d incite so much attention. There were first responders, cops, and news crews everywhere.” She brushes invisible lint from her black spandex pants. “Le Milieu went underground, and so did Augustus Luna. He took his boys, and he ran like a scared little animal. He went to the only contacts he had left, and waited. I spent six months at the Broadway compound.”
Her hands shake, her voice trembles, and I do something I never thought I’d do. I pull Madeline in for a hug. She goes still, but quickly sinks into my embrace. We hug for a long moment,and she quietly cries into my shoulder. And try as I might, I’m unable to hold back my own tears.
When she pulls away, her face is red and splotchy. The put together, perfected woman from the meeting room is gone, and in its place is a shell of her demons, just like me.
“I was tortured,” she continues, her voice breaking.
I hold my hand up, swallowing hard. “Madeline, you don’t have to—”
“I do,” she says firmly. “You need to understand why I didn’t come for you, but more than that, you need to see how great the threat we're facing is. Why we were underground for so long. I genuinely thought I was saving you, giving you a chance at a real, normal life. At love. If I’d known you weren’t safe on the outside, I’d have come for you earlier. You need to understand.”
But I don’t understand.
As much as I want to, I don’t see how a person can sit safely underground, literally, and let their loved one walk the earth without a worry or care, while a sick man like Augustus Luna shares the same air. The same city. He knew who I was, knew where I was. He could have come for me at any point.
It doesn’t make any sense.
But I choke all that back, and nod, giving her a reassuring smile.
“Go on,” I murmur.
