“Okay, I gotta go. I’ll see you all when you get to the field.”
“Drive safe.”
I go over to Giancarlo and pick him up.
“Listen to Abuela and Nonno. I’ll see you soon, okay?”
“Otay, Papà,” he says as he hugs me.
I kiss his face as he giggles. I love his little face.
Gabriela
Our family is in a war with the Koslov Bratva out of Russia. I don’t understand why they’re here trying to claim territory in Spain. Why can’t they just stay in Russia? We have our own problems here without them.
The longer I argue with my papá, the angrier I get. Just because I’m the youngest in the family, it doesn’t mean I can’tfight alongside everyone else. Especially my dumbass brothers. I have five older brothers and they all treat me like I’m still a baby. I know I’ll never be the head of our family, that’s going to be Álvaro’s position because he’s the oldest. In fact, because I’m the youngest, I’d never take over. Even if I was a boy.
“Why are you sending me away?” I frown at my papá.
“Because you’re my baby, my only daughter, and I can’t lose you.”
“You won’t lose me, Papá. I can fight just like all of my hermanos.”
“I know you can, mija. But I don’t want you to.”
I continue to grumble for as long as my papá will listen. Which isn’t very long. He’s finally walked away as I’m grumbling. Rude. Then he turns back around.
“You leave tonight, so if you want to take anything with you, you should pack now. Otherwise, you’ll have nothing.”
“Wait, you said I’d leave next week.”
“That was before we got another threat in. I need you safe, mija. Please.”
“But why only me? What about Mamá? Why does she get to stay?”
My papá sighs at me. “Because they’re threatening your life. No one else’s.”
“I don’t understand. Why me?”
“I don’t know, Gabriela. This is why I’m sending you to Lake Renegade. Rosaura Guerrero’s family is a close ally to ours. And I trust her and her husband’s family. They will keep you safe for us.”
“Please, Papá. Don’t send me away. I promise I’ll do anything you say, I’ll stay inside. You can homeschool me. Just don’t send me away.”
I’m so afraid that I’ll lose my family if they send me to Lake Renegade.
“What if one of you gets hurt and I’m not here?” I start sobbing.
My papá holds me tight.
“Mija, te amo. You won’t lose any of us. But you have to let me keep you safe. As soon as it’s over, you’ll come home. I promise.”
I want to keep fighting my papá, but I know it’s not going to do any good. I also know that he wouldn’t send me away if he wasn’t scared for my safety. But I don’t know what I’ll do if I lose any of them. I love my family so much. I go up to my room and start packing. My mamá comes in and hugs me.
“We love you so much. You need to be safe and smart while you’re in Lake Renegade.”
“What about you, Mamá? What if something happens to you? Or papá? Or any of you? I can’t live without all of you.”
“I know, mija. But you trust us to take care of everything here so that you can come home.”
