The echo of footsteps coming up the stairs startles me. I rush into my room, careful not to make any noise.
And I wait.
Tonight I'm going to find out who my father really is and what information he's hiding. The more I know, the closer I'll be to finding Ryan.
Thirty-Nine
Ryan
Mateo and I leave Demi's house without any information. It's beyond frustrating.
The problem is that I have to look over my shoulder at every turn. Rico is after me. Paul is after me. Dalila's dad threatened my life if I ever saw her again. It's time to break all the rules, because being hunted doesn't work for me.
The hunted is about to become the hunter.
I leave Demi's house with a renewed sense of purpose. Mateo was right. To find out where Dalila went, I need to retrace her steps, which means there's only one place to start.
La Joya de Sandoval.
Mateo dropped me off behind the property before heading into the house to work as one of the Sandoval security guards. I plan to hide in the fields behind the compound until it's dark. Lurking in the shadows will be easy. Waiting is the frustrating part.
I find a place in the fields, surrounded by waving wheat five feet tall in some places. It's easy to maneuver, but I'm careful not to make my presence known. I'm more than aware that Dalila's father hired bodyguards to patrol the place. But after working there the night of Dalila's birthday, I also know there's a delay of about one to four minutes in between shifts.
I try to ignore the bees that attempt to sting me and the ants that start crawling up my leg. When a fly thinks I'm its perch, I swat it away, but two more join him. Look at me: the guy who vowed never to get involved with a girl is hiding out in the wheat field behind her house on the slim chance he can find a clue to where she's at.
Some things are worth fighting for, I guess. Or maybe I really am a fool who's been hit on the head so many times in the ring I can't think straight.
When darkness finally blankets the landscape, I take off into the thick undergrowth. It's hard to navigate the fields with the wheat scratching my arms like prickly knives, but nothing will keep me from my mission. I stay low and undetected until I see the guard near the flower garden disappear.
I jump over the wall and quickly open the side door that leads to the upstairs bedrooms.
"Everyone knows you've become the enemy by representing Santiago Vega!" I hear Rico's voice call out. I freeze and crane my neck trying to figure out what they're arguing about. "You have to choose a side or else deal with the consequences."
"You have no clue who you're dealing with," I hear Don Sandoval say in a loud, authoritative voice. "Get out of my house!"
Footsteps echo through the hall, reminding me of my mission. Looks like Rico and Don Sandoval are in a power struggle. The last thing I want to do is get caught in the middle of it. I round the hall and head to the stairs. Across the balcony, Mateo is patrolling the second floor. When our eyes meet, he gives me a short nod.
I slip into Dalila's room unnoticed, ready to gather evidence.
But my mission is cut short.
Dalila is standing by her dresser, her hair in wild waves falling down her shoulders. She whips around and gasps when I burst into her room, but I quickly motion for her to stay quiet.
I'm not prepared when she flings herself into my arms. The softness of her skin brushes up against mine. I feel her relief as she relaxes her body in my embrace and I hold her tight.
I didn't come here prepared with a speech. There's so much to say, but I know there's only a small window of time before someone sees us together.
"They're looking for you," Dalila whispers. "You shouldn't be here, Ryan. It's not safe."
I take her hands in mine, this Mexican princess who holds everything dear to me. "I came to find you. I heard you were missing."
"I couldn't stay here any longer and went to Juan Camacho's place last night. I just came back to confront Papa."
"Rico's downstairs. I know his dad was looking for you . . . it's because of me." If he's part of Las Calaveras, her father just invited the devil into his home.
"I think they're after me because of my father, Ryan. Not because of you." Tears well in her eyes. "Whatever he's involved in, it's dangerous. He sent my mom and sisters away. You're all I have left."
I'm about to tell her that I'll do whatever's in my power to protect her when a loud gunshot rings out. Pop! Then another. Pop!
Dalila sucks in a shocked breath and her eyes go wide with panic. "What's happening?" She grasps me tight. "Ryan . . ."
"We need to get out of here." I quickly take her hand and head for the stairs.
We're halfway down the staircase when we come upon a gruesome scene in the courtyard and Dalila screams in horror.
Forty
Dalila
My entire body goes numb as I see Papa holding a gun. He's standing over a body lying in a pool of blood.
Rico's body.
Papa, wearing a fierce, deadly look on his face, turns and points the gun in Ryan's direction.
"Papa, no!" I scream as loudly as I can. I run toward Ryan in an attempt to shield him.
"Get away from my daughter," Papa growls in a tight, commanding voice. He steps through the pool of blood and walks toward us. "Dalila, move away from him."
"No!"
Ryan pulls me behind a pillar. "Run away with me, Dalila."
I shouldn't.
But with everything that just happened, I know this isn't home anymore. This is my past.
Ryan is my future.
I grab Ryan's hand and nod.
We dodge one of the security guards by rushing up the stairs and running to the second-floor balcony. Mateo is here motioning for us to follow him.
"Go to the edge of the property," Mateo says, his dark eyes wild with adrenaline. "I'll meet you there."
Ryan jumps off the balcony. In a leap of faith, I jump into his waiting arms. Holding his hand with the tightest grip I can, I wind my way through the fields with him.
When we stop at the edge of our property and duck beneath the trees, Ryan holds me close. I don't even realize I've been crying this entire time.
"I'll get you through this," he tells me as I bury my head into his chest and sob.
"Papa killed Rico." The sobs just won't stop as I contemplate what would have happened if I hadn't shielded Ryan. "He was about to kill you, too."
"But he didn't. Look at me." I do. His chiseled face is somber and his eyes are full of determination. "We're going to get through this."
How is everything going to be okay, when my entire life just crashed before my eyes? It's like living inside of a nightmare where you can never wake up. The only bright spot is that Ryan is with me so I'm not alone anymore.
I tense when I hear the sound of tires on the gravel road.
"It's just Mateo," Ryan assures me.
Mateo pulls up to us in his uncle's red truck. We rush into the car and in a few seconds Mateo is driving on the side roads to avoid being followed.
"Mateo, you can't be seen with us," Ryan says. I need to feed on his strength because mine is waning fast. My entire existence is based on greed and death. A part of me knew it, but the truth was so easy to deny.
Mateo says in a panic, "I need to take you farther from the compound. They're going to have policia and bodyguards hunting you guys down."
"Drop us on the side of the road," Ryan says. "We'll figure it out."
"Dude, I can't just drop you on the side of the road. That's crazy!" Mateo is freaking out. His hands are shaking and he's breathing heavy. "You can hide at the boxing gym."
"They'll look for us there. We need another place."
Hide out? We didn't do anything wrong, yet we're being forced to act like fugitives. I hold my head in my hands in shame. "For so long I didn't want to admit it."
"Admit what?"
I look up at Ryan through blurry, teary eyes. "My father must be connected to Los Re
yes del Norte. He just killed Rico, Ryan. The Cruzes are connected to Las Calaveras. All this time they acted like friends when they were bitter enemies."
"What does Santiago Vega have to do with the rivalry?" he asks.
"I think I read somewhere that he was involved with Las Calaveras. Maybe he changed sides. I don't know."
"Everyone has a price," Mateo chimes in from the front seat.
I'm hyperventilating now and my mind is racing. Nothing could prepare me for seeing Papa standing over Rico's lifeless body on the floor of our courtyard.
This can't be happening. I squeeze my eyes shut trying to block out reality but it's no use.
The thought of Papa behind bars is making me physically ill, but that's where he should be. What he did to Rico . . . taking his life. I lean over and put my head between my knees while Ryan rubs my back. He says encouraging words that are meant to help, but nothing will help. This feeling of dread I have isn't going away. It's just getting worse.
My stomach starts lurching. "Stop the truck."
Mateo screeches to a halt and I stumble out. Within seconds I'm puking my guts out.
When I settle back in the truck, Mateo's cell rings. We all go silent. I hold my breath while he tells the person on the other line that he's out looking for us. He promises to let the person on the other end know if he finds us. As I set into panic mode again Ryan puts a comforting arm around me and kisses my forehead.
He's all I have right now. He's everything to me.
Mateo ends the call and swears loudly.
"What's wrong?" Ryan asks him.
Mateo turns to us with an apologetic look on his face. It's obvious he doesn't want to share the news. "Before I left, Don Sandoval was ranting to everyone that you killed Rico, Ryan. He just framed you, man. The policia and detectives have been called to La Joya de Sandoval and they're assembling a small army to hunt you down. They said if I find you, shoot to kill."
Shoot to kill?
I want to be the warrior woman I've always said I was, but my emotions are getting the best of me. Dalila, calm down. This isn't the end of the world, it's just the end of the world as I knew it. Things change, situations change, people change.
But I don't have to change. I refuse to let my emotions rule me. I'm going to fight for Ryan . . . for us. Even if I have to stand in front of a bullet to do it. Fighting for what's right is more important than standing idly by while injustice takes control.
"Ryan didn't do anything to Rico," I cry out. My mind is whirling with questions. Why would Papa want to frame Ryan? He's not a part of any cartel rivalry.
But his stepfather is.
"Paul is working with Las Calaveras," Ryan murmurs. The puzzle pieces are coming together.
"Listen," Mateo says. "I know of a safe house you two can go to. It's in Chihuahua, but I can hire guys to take you there. Or I can take you myself."
"No way. I don't want you gettin' more involved than you are," Ryan tells him. "If they find out you drove us away from La Joya de Sandoval they'll hunt you down as well. I can't do that to you, man. You need to get back to the house as soon as possible or they'll start to get suspicious."
"I'll be fine. It's a safe house, Ryan," Mateo says. "They call it safe for a reason."
Ryan puts his arm around me. "We can't risk it. Not now, when they could be combing the highways for us."
Why is my life spinning out of control? I'm so confused, like I'm caught in the middle of a tornado and can't escape.
There is no solution here. I can't go back home ever again. I can't see my family ever again. My father's men will be looking for Ryan. He'll be searching for me. They'll never stop.
Mateo drives off, twisting through old, dusty, unpaved roads hardly used by anyone.
"Let me out here," Ryan says before letting go of me. He takes my hands in his and his gaze locks on mine. "Listen to me and listen good, Dalila. I'm going to be a hunted man and I don't know if I can protect you. You don't deserve any of this, love. Have Mateo take you to your grandmother's. You'll be safe there for the time being. I promise to meet you there when this all blows over." He opens the door and steps out of the car, leaving me behind.
I quickly jump out of the car. "Have you gone completely loco? I'm not going anywhere without you, Ryan. Please don't leave me."
He looks pained as he runs his fingers through his hair. "You have to go somewhere you can be safe. I wasn't thinking when I told you to run away with me. Mateo will take you to Abuela Carmela's house. Stay there."
"No!" I rush up to him and cup his face in my hands, his stubble scratching my palms. "We need to be together, no matter what. We fight together, or we lose everything. I'm okay with whatever happens, as long as we're together. My entire life is crumbling beneath my feet." I can feel hot tears falling down my cheeks. "Stay with me."
Ryan holds my hand tight and for a moment I feel like I can get through this. But only if he's by my side.
"Dalila, don't you know how much I care about you? You deserve so much more than to be connected to a fugitive on the run." He looks down the gravel road and tenses. "A car could come by at any minute. Go with Mateo and be safe. Let him take you to your grandmother's."
"No. My safe place is with you." I start walking away from the truck, not caring that Ryan is watching me with a frustrated look on his face. "Are you coming, or are we going to stand around and argue something that's a done deal?"
Ryan shakes his head. "What can I do to change your mind?"
"Nada."
If I'm not strong, I'm going to lose him.
"Well, I guess that's a done deal," Mateo says, then holds a cell phone out the truck window. "Here, it's my uncle's cell phone. Keep it powered off until you find a place to hide out so you don't run out of battery."
Ryan reaches into the car and shakes Mateo's hand--the gesture of two boys who share loyalty and trust in each other. "Thanks. I don't know what I'd have done without you today," Ryan says. "Now go back, before they suspect you're up to somethin'."
Mateo winks at Ryan. "You might not realize it, but we're in this together. Turn on that phone and text me updates. I'll let you know when the heat is off." Mateo points at me. "Take care of him, Dalila."
"I will."
Ryan slips the phone into his pocket as Mateo turns his truck around and heads back to the compound. "Come on," he says. "We need to find shelter and figure out how the hell I'm going to get you to your grandmother's."
"You're going to drop me at Abuela Carmela's and leave? No way." He doesn't answer so I block his path. "I'll agree to lead you to my grandmother's only because I think she can help us figure all this out. She'll help us. That means you and me."
"Chances are we'll be dead long before we even get there," Ryan barks out as he grabs my hand again. "Until then, I'm not lettin' you out of my sight."
"Good. Wherever you go, I go." I point him in the direction of Tulanco. We walk along the deserted, grassy landscape until the sun starts setting. My feet hurt and my body is full of dust and dirt, but I keep going. I don't want Ryan to think I can't keep up with him.
It's dark and I hear coyotes in the distance. Papa always told me to stay clear of the mountains at night, because as darkness falls the land becomes alive with predators. We don't have a car this time as shelter.
After a while, Ryan must sense my nervousness because he points to something in the distance and says, "There's a rock formation over there. We can sleep on it tonight so we're not vulnerable to wildlife."
He looks sideways at me, probably expecting me to complain about the less-than-stellar accommodations. I don't want him thinking that I'm afraid or regret my decision to stay with him. I take his hand in mine and we walk together to the boulders.
Ryan clears the area and creates a barrier to make sure our shelter is shielded from any creatures that might want to creep up on us in the middle of the night.
He helps me onto the boulder and then spends time making sure we're well hidden from any
one who might drive by even though we're far from any road. After a while he rests his head in his hands and swears under his breath. I don't talk to him, but I know how he feels. Devastation, like a simmering fire inside me, settles in the middle of my chest.
As if on cue a pack of wolves howls in the distance and Ryan pulls me close. "Lay your head in my lap and go to sleep," he tells me. "We need to get up early and start movin'."
I do as he instructs, but start shaking as the horror of what I saw today comes back. "I can't believe what Papa did. I don't know if I'll ever be okay."
"It'll take time, baby." He puts his finger on my chin and guides it so I'm looking right at him. "You're the strongest girl I've ever met."
"I don't feel very strong right now. I just want to crawl into a hole and cry until I have no more tears left. Ugh, I hate feeling so defeated. What are we going to do, Ryan?"
He looks out at the darkened landscape in front of us. "I don't know, baby." He brushes the hair out of my face and rubs my back as I lay my head on his lap.
As the night wears on and my eyelids get heavy, I mumble, "Just so you know, I won't let anyone hurt you."
He chuckles, then kisses the top of my head. "Do you believe in miracles, my Mexican princess? Because I think we're going to need one pretty soon."
Forty-One
Ryan
I couldn't sleep, and now the bright Mexican sun is rising over the horizon like an obnoxious alarm clock. If it were a different time or place, I'd be mesmerized at the multicolored landscape. Each rock has its own color and the carpet of long green and yellow grass seems to be changing with each movement of the sun. It's so peaceful and quiet here you'd think we were on a boulder smack-dab in the middle of heaven.
I look down at Dalila finally sleeping peacefully on my lap. I heard her cry in the middle of the night and it tore me apart. I don't know how we got here and I sure as hell don't know where I'm going in this beautiful foreign land.
All night I've been going through scenarios of why her dad would want to set me up. It just doesn't make sense. He thinks I'm the enemy.
Unless her father is El Fuego like she said. But why kill Rico and blame me for it? He said he'd kill me if he found out I was working for Las Calaveras cartel. If he knew Rico was a member of Las Calaveras, obviously that was enough for him to kill the guy. If he saw me at the compound and thinks that somehow Rico and I were in on some kind of mission to hurt him or his family . . . that's the only reason he could have to justify framing me.
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