She followed him to the door. “Thank you for coming. It…it was good to see you.”
He turned slowly. She’d wiped away the tears, but her cheeks were still damp. Feeling compelled to comfort her, Renaldo kissed each side of her face. She was his mother, after all.
Before he could pull back, she captured his head between her hands. “I love you, son. I’m so sorry for what I did. Thank you for coming. Thank you.”
She kissed him before letting him go.
Renaldo felt a sense of relief on the ride home. The dark cloud that had been hanging over his head all these years had disappeared.
Next time he would not only bring his wife and sisters, he’d have Beatrisa bring her children, too. What grandmother didn’t love to spend time with her grandchildren? And those two, being as rambunctious as they were, would certainly bring a smile to her face.
The phone rang. It was Paulo.
“I have information about Mateo Sousa.”
“It’s about time.” Ever since he’d told Paulo to get the photos, he’d been demanding an update every day, but each day Paulo didn’t have any news for him. “Where did you finally catch up with him?”
“We didn’t, and I found out the reason we weren’t able to.”
Paulo’s enigmatic conversation was frustrating. He wanted this situation behind him once and for all. “Well, what is?”
“He’s dead. The police found his body in his apartment a couple of hours ago.”
The news shocked him, but Renaldo couldn’t summon a smidgen of sorrow. “And the pictures?”
“No sign of them yet. I have a source on the police force who said they haven’t found anything, not even a cell phone with a camera.”
“That doesn’t make sense. They have to be somewhere. Pay him. Do whatever you need to, but get those photographs before they fall into the wrong hands.”
“Renaldo, there’s more. He was friends with someone close to home.” In a grave voice, he told Renaldo the name of the person.
Renaldo swore. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
Renaldo swore again.
“I’m sorry,” Paulo said.
Renaldo couldn’t believe it. He wasn’t just disappointed, he was devastated.
Chapter Nineteen
Sabrina hugged Jewel when she stepped off the penthouse elevator. “You’re late, but I forgive you because I’m happy to see you. It’s been so long since we’ve spent time together.”
“You’ve been busy fixing your marriage,” Jewel said with a smile.
Sabrina stepped back and took a good look at her cousin. Her long straight hair hung past her shoulders, limp and unwashed. Her eyes were glassy and her skin didn’t have the same healthy glow from a few weeks ago. “What’s going on, Jewel?”
“Nothing. Why would you think there’s something going on?” Jewel breezed past her. “Mmm. What did Vera make for lunch? It smells delicious.”
“Moqueca.” Sabrina watched her cousin lift the pot lid and sniff. The steam from the fragrant fish stew disbursed the scent of garlic, onions, and cilantro in the air. “Have you been going to your meetings?”
“Don’t start.”
“I have to. You don’t look good, and you were doing so well.”
“I still am. Stop worrying.” Jewel covered the pot.
“Promise me you’re not using again.”
Jewel placed both hands on her hips and looked her in the eye. “I promise I’m not using again. Satisfied?”
Despite the unflinching response, Sabrina didn’t believe her. Like so many addicts, Jewel lied easily, and she was very convincing. “Jewel—”
“Brina, please don’t start. We haven’t seen each other in a while and I just want to hang out and eat some of Vera’s delicious food. Can we do that? Please?”
When she used that puppy-dog face, it was hard to deny her. “Okay.” This conversation wasn’t over, but she gave her a break for now. “Let’s get our food and go up to the terrace.”
They piled rice into wide bowls and spooned the golden broth filled with seafood over it. Once they reached the terrace, they settled into chairs and dug in.
Jewel smacked her lips and moaned. “One of these days I’m going to steal Vera away from you.”
Sabrina laughed. “No way, and it’s not me you have to worry about; it’s Renny. Vera’s been with him for a long time. He’s not about to train someone new, so you’ll have to look for a gourmet chef somewhere else.”
“I’ll think of something,” Jewel said past a mouthful of rice.
Sabrina watched her cousin with concern as she shoveled food into her mouth. “Slow down, it’s not going anywhere. You act like you haven’t eaten in days.” Had it been days since her cousin had eaten? If she was using drugs again, it was possible. She’d spend all her money on getting high.
Jewel’s cheeks colored a light shade of red. “It’s just so good,” she explained with a sheepish smile.
Sabrina sipped her lemonade, watching her closely.
“You know, Brina, I’m glad everything worked out for you. I was worried about you and Renaldo for a while. You two belong together.”
Yes, they did. “Thanks for being there when I needed you. Being able to stay with you and have you listen to me whine and cry—well, you have no idea how much it meant to me.”
“Hey, we’re family. What did you expect? How many times have you helped me over the years? Too many to count! Hell, you pay for the apartment I live in.”
“I’m glad that period of my life is over. Renny said he’d take care of the situation with Mateo and the pictures, but when I asked him about it the other day, he said he’s still working on it.” She pushed the food around in her bowl. “I hope this gets resolved soon. After their confrontation, I’m even more worried than I was before that he’ll use the photos against us somehow.”
“Don’t worry. Sometimes things have a way of working themselves out.”
“They do, but I would hate for anyone else to see those pictures. They made my skin crawl.”
“They were hard to look at, but at least you and Renaldo were able to work everything out. That’s what’s important.”
Sabrina nodded. “I guess you’re right. We’ll deal with Mateo if he causes any more problems.” She put the last bit of rice and moqueca in her mouth. “Make sure you save room for dessert. Vera made brigadeiros.”
Her cousin loved the sweet confection made from condensed milk and cocoa. She’d asked Vera to make up a separate batch just for Jewel, which was going home with her when she left.
When they finished, Sabrina left her cousin to take the dishes to the kitchen. As she placed four brigadeiros on a plate, she replayed the conversation with Jewel. Something her cousin said didn’t make sense.
Frowning, she went back upstairs and put the plate in the middle of the table.
Jewel rubbed her hands together like an excited child. “Ooh, I love these things.” She bit into one of the candies and moaned. After swallowing that piece, she looked up at Sabrina, who still stood beside the table. “Why are you frowning?”
“I was thinking about something you said about the pictures. You said they were hard to look at.”
“Well yeah, they were.” She finished off the candy by stuffing the rest of it in her mouth.
“That’s the thing,” Sabrina said. “How could they be hard for you to look at? I never showed them to you.”
Jewel finished chewing and swallowed before she responded. “Of course you did. Why else would I say that?”
A horrible suspicion sprouted in Sabrina’s mind, and pain swelled inside of her, spreading like ripples in a lake. “I never showed them to you.”
Jewel swallowed and looked away.
“Tell me you didn’t have anything to do with this.”
Jewel refused to look at her. “Brina, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Look at me.” Jewel continued to stare down at the table. “Look at
me!”
Jewel lifted her gaze, and Sabrina saw the guilt in her eyes. Sabrina shook her head. “Jewel, no. No.” Her heart was breaking. They were practically sisters.
Jewel’s lower lip trembled. “I’m sorry, Brina. It wasn’t supposed to go so far.”
Sabrina drew a shaky breath. “What wasn’t?” Then Jewel explained.
Through a prison outreach program, Mateo got a job as a dishwasher at the same restaurant where Jewel worked. They’d become friends when they found out they were both addicts in recovery. She’d bragged about her cousin Sabrina on numerous occasions, talking about how smart she was and how she was well off financially. When Mateo was fired from the restaurant, they remained friends. The friendship evolved into a sexual relationship and eventually they both started using drugs again.
He asked Jewel why she was working as a waitress at a restaurant when her cousin was living the good life, being chauffeured around town and living in a top floor penthouse apartment. Subsequently, they formulated a plan. Mateo knew where he could get his hands on chloral hydrate.
“You let him drug me?”
Jewel remained silent and tears filled her eyes. She shook her head.
Sabrina’s hand covered her mouth. Mateo had told the truth. “You drugged me. You encouraged me to have a drink, loosen up and stop moping because of the argument Renaldo and I had before he left. You put the drug in the drinks.”
Jewel nodded and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “I slipped the mickey in the second one. Then I went out on the dance floor and left you with Mateo. When the drug took effect, we took you out of there. I used your key card to get into the penthouse.”
Jewel had removed Sabrina’s clothes while Mateo waited outside the bedroom. He kept on his boxers and then slipped under the covers with her and took the photos on his camera phone. He took them instead of Jewel to give the impression no one else was in the room with him and Sabrina.
“We never had sex?”
“No. We wanted you to think you had, but I was there the whole time.”
She’d gone to Jewel’s apartment after Renaldo had thrown her out. Jewel had acted as if she didn’t remember who Mateo was, but not only did she know, she’d schemed with him to set up the entire plot. Even to the point of leaving messages on Sabrina’s phone and acting as if she had been worried and looking for her after they left the club.
Nausea churned in Sabrina’s guts. “I don’t feel good.” She rushed to the side of the terrace and emptied the contents of her stomach into a trashcan.
Jewel came to her side with a glass of water and rubbed her back. “Here.”
Sabrina shoved her hand away. “Get away from me.”
“Take it.” She pushed her hand back in Sabrina’s face.
Sabrina straightened and reluctantly took the glass. She rinsed her mouth and spit into the can. “You have to go. I can’t stand to look at you.”
“Brina, I’m sorry. I-I didn’t mean to hurt you. Everything got out of hand. It wasn’t supposed to get this far.”
She’d always forgiven Jewel for the wrongs she’d done to her in the past, but she couldn’t this time. All these years she’d been protecting her, and in return she’d almost destroyed her life. She almost lost her husband, tossed out like garbage because he thought she’d betrayed him, and the whole episode had been a set up.
“You know how much I suffered with guilt,” Sabrina said. “You knew how much you made my husband suffer because he thought I’d cheated on him. All along you could’ve told us the truth, but you didn’t.”
“If I said anything, you’d have known I was involved. Besides, Renaldo was never supposed to find out. We were only going to get money one time, but then…one time turned into a second time.”
“You ungrateful—”
Whack!
Sabrina slapped Jewel as hard as she could across her face, the blow landing so hard her palm stung. Jewel cried out and stumbled backward, pressing her hand to her cheek. Shock filled her eyes. Sabrina felt no remorse. It felt good. She wanted to beat her into the ground for what she’d done and the pain she’d caused. Instead, she restrained herself from the natural inclination and took her cousin by the shoulders and shook her until her head flopped back and forth on her neck.
“Haven’t I done enough for you? How could you?” They were both crying. “Why?”
Jewel caught her wrists and squeezed. “I’m sorry. When Renaldo found out, I wanted to die. He wasn’t supposed to ever see those photos. I told Mateo to stop, and he did for a while, but then—then he got desperate. He needed the money, and that’s why he called you the other day.” Her face crumbled. “I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t let you find out I had fallen back into my addiction. Brina, it’s really, really hard to-to stop. And I tried. I did. You’ve always been there, and I didn’t want you to be disappointed in me.”
“So you almost destroyed my life?” Sabrina wrenched her hands away from her cousin and stared in disbelief. But why was she so surprised? Hadn’t she seen worse growing up? Women offering to do anything for drugs—some even doing the unthinkable by offering their children in exchange for a hit. “I tried to help you, you bitch. I almost lost everything because of you. I doubted myself and my own morals.”
“I know. But the truth is, I’ve never had to be independent or face the consequences of my actions because you’ve always fixed everything. You’ve always taken care of me.”
“You’re blaming me?”
“No, I just…I’m not like you. I’m like them—everybody we left behind.”
“We were supposed to be different. We are different.”
“You’re different. You’re smart, and you never got caught up in that world. This is who I am, and you can’t save me. Just like you couldn’t save Momma or your mother.” Her voice broke.
Sabrina turned her back on her, and that’s when she saw Renaldo was home. He walked out onto the terrace with two police officers behind him.
“What are they doing here?” Sabrina looked from one to the other.
“The officers came to speak to us about Jewel.”
After that, everything moved fast. The police spoke in rapid Portuguese, using unfamiliar terms while they arrested Jewel. Sabrina barely caught what they were saying, but she did understand three words that needed no translation.
Mateo Sousa. Murder.
“What’s going on?” Sabrina asked.
“They’re arresting her for Mateo’s murder.”
“Murder? Is this some kind of mistake?” The policemen locked Jewel in handcuffs.
“There’s no mistake, Brina.” Jewel’s sad eyes met hers. “I told Mateo not to bother you anymore, but he wouldn’t listen. He became very upset because Renaldo hit him, and he threatened to hurt you guys. I couldn’t let him do it. You were finally happy again. He and I argued and struggled for the phone that had the pictures in it. He fell and hit his head. It was an accident.”
Surely this was a nightmare. Not only had her cousin conspired to extort money from her, she was now being arrested for the murder of her co-conspirator. This couldn’t really be happening. She’d run from this kind of drama, yet it had found her. No, it hadn’t found her. She’d brought it with her.
Sabrina reached for Renaldo, and when he put a supportive arm around her, she slumped against him.
Jewel didn’t fight when the officers led her to the door. “I’m sorry, Brina. I messed up big time, but it’s fixed now. No one will ever see those pictures again.”
They hauled Jewel out the door, and Sabrina stood frozen, numb.
“Are you okay, meu coração?”
She looked up at Renaldo, unsure if the last few minutes really happened. “She admitted everything. She was involved with Mateo, drugged me, and helped him set me up to blackmail me.”
Renaldo nodded, his expression grim. “I suspected as much after I spoke to Paulo about Jewel’s relationship with Mateo. Once the police found his body, she became the prime suspe
ct. I wish I’d had time to warn you, but the police arrived downstairs at the same time I did. Are you all right?” He looked into her eyes, his face etched with concern.
“I’m sorry I brought this kind of—”
“Shh. It’s not your fault. Your cousin made a lot of bad decisions, and you tried to help her. You did the best you could, but she is not your responsibility.”
“But she’s the only family I have.”
“No. You’re a Silva now. Whether you like it or not, you’re one of us.”
“I am, aren’t I? How could I forget?” Sabrina still felt stunned. “Could you just hold me?”
Renaldo pulled her into his arms.
She was angry and hurt by what Jewel had done, and she hated that by bringing her here she’d hurt her husband, too. But the ordeal was finally over, and now she knew the whole truth about that night.
Sabrina clung to Renaldo and closed her eyes. It seemed like her world was falling apart, but in his arms, nothing else mattered. She was so lucky to have him.
Renaldo brushed his hands soothingly up and down her back.
She felt safe and protected. She stayed in his warm embrace for a long, long time.
Epilogue
Sabrina had been attracted to Renaldo’s strength when they first met, and for a short period she’d learned to lean on him. But at some point, she’d gone back to her old ways. It was hard to reverse years of behavior, but that’s exactly what she planned to do. It was time to free herself from guilt.
So much had happened in the months since Jewel’s arrest. During this period, Sabrina had only visited her once while she was in prison. She couldn’t bring herself to see her any more than that. It was still too hard. She couldn’t believe all that her cousin had put them through, but she’d decided to extend one last kind gesture to her. At her request, Renaldo hired a team of lawyers to work on Jewel’s defense.
The attorneys explained that according to the law, if they could prove Mateo’s death was an accident, Jewel may only be in prison for a few years. No matter how long her sentence, once she was released, she’d have to leave the country. There was a time when being separated from Jewel would have broken Sabrina’s heart, but not anymore. Jewel was in capable hands, and whatever the outcome, she’d have to live with the consequences of her actions. She was no longer Sabrina’s responsibility.
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