“Helen,” I called to Mrs. Porter. “Can you remind me of the date?”
“It’s June twenty-ninth.”
“Right.” I smiled. I calculated the time and realized that I’d been with Sebastian for over a month and a half. A month and a half without my period. Panic started to set in. I couldn’t let Colton see me break down. Even though he was in his own world, so to speak, and also learning from Helen, I couldn’t let him see the worry on my face because even though children on the spectrum may seem as though they aren’t paying attention, they are.
I stood and walked into the open kitchen where Valentina was making dinner. In the time I’d been here, she’d become a friend, the only person I talked to. I didn’t think I could care about anyone associated with Sebastian, but I truly realized she worked for him because she thought he was a good man for rebuilding her town and getting her out of danger.
He’d never be a good man.
“Valentina,” I whispered as I stopped and stood next to her.
“Yes, Ms. Tessa?”
“Can you keep a secret?”
She stared at me for a beat. “If it’s about—”
“It’s not about Mr. Delarosa.”
Well, that wasn’t true because if I were pregnant, it would be his. Or was it? Vinny and I had had sex without a condom before Sebastian and me. But I’d never know. I wouldn’t give Sebastian any more reason to want to harm Vinny.
I thought about Vinny daily. Thought about his smile, his laugh, the way he was with Colton. I thought about how I might never see him again. I hoped he was happy. Maybe he went back to S&R and was living the life he’d had before he met me. While I hated to think of him still escorting, I had to realize it was for the best. There was no telling what Sebastian would do to him if he were still trying to get me back.
Every day while I thought of ways to get out, I thought about Melony and Sophia too. There was nothing Sophia could do, but had Melony talked to Sebastian? Asked where I was? Or was everyone really thinking I would want to be with this monster?
“Oh? Then yes. Yes, I can keep secret.” Valentina smiled.
“It’s a huge secret,” I told her.
“Okay. Tell me.” Her grin widened.
I lowered my voice. Sebastian wasn’t home, but he always had guards around. I figured they were here in case I tried to escape. Mateo was the one who went with him whenever Sebastian left the house, but I didn’t know the names of the ones who were paid to watch me. It was weird because I’d never seen Mateo at Red Diamond when I was there before, but when Sebastian left, so did Mateo.
“When you go to the store tomorrow can you get me something?”
“Si. Whatever you want. Mr. Delarosa has told me to make sure you have what you need.”
“Right, but this is something he can’t know about.”
“Oh?” she questioned, scrunching her brows.
“Not until I know for sure.”
“What do you need me to get you?”
I sighed and turned so that my back was to Helen, not wanting her to eavesdrop. She was showing Colton shapes, but I couldn’t take the chance that she was listening too. “A pregnancy test,” I whispered.
Valentina’s brown eyes widened, and she grinned as though I was her daughter telling her I was making her a grandmother. “You’re pregnant?”
“Shh,” I scolded. “Please don’t say anything. I want to make sure before I tell Sebastian.”
“Si, of course. I can go right now if you’d like. The meat is marinating.”
“Okay, yes. Please go now.”
Her smile hadn’t faded. “I go and be right back.”
When Valentina came back thirty minutes later, she motioned for me to follow her up the stairs. At the top, she handed me a brown paper bag.
“Thank you,” I said. “Can you keep an eye on Colt?”
“Si. Hurry because Mr. Delarosa will be home very soon and if I need to make him a cake for the good news—”
“It won’t be good news,” I told her.
“Si, it will, cariño. A baby will bring Mr. Delarosa so much joy.”
I didn’t respond as I took the bag into the bathroom. How could she think this was okay? She had to know I didn’t want a baby, especially with Sebastian. Especially with the man who wouldn’t let me go outside except to swim in his backyard.
After I nervously peed on the applicator, I waited and waited and waited. I couldn’t time the wait because I had no watch, no phone, nothing in the bathroom and I didn’t want to leave until I knew for sure. So, I waited some more, and it killed me. It was worse than the first time I took a pregnancy test after my night with Scott. Then, my only worry had been finding Scott to tell him I was pregnant. But now, how would I raise a child with a drug dealer? How would it turn out? How was Colton going to turn out if I didn’t find a way to escape? Would Sebastian force them into the drug business?
Finally, I thought enough time had passed. I picked the test up off the counter and took a deep breath before I focused on the two lines on the screen. In an instant, my world stood still, the silence of the small room echoing in my ears. This wasn’t happening. This wasn’t happening again. This wasn’t happening with a drug dealing murderer who took pleasure from unwilling participants.
But it was.
And since I chugged a bunch of water while I’d waited for Valentina to get back from the store, I was able to take all three tests that came in the three pack she’d bought. They were all positive. After I read the third one, I crumpled to the floor and cried and cried and cried until I couldn’t breathe. I cried until there was a knock on the door.
“Cariño, it’s me.”
I didn’t respond as more tears escaped my eyes.
“Ms. Tessa, are you okay?”
No, I wasn’t. I’d never be okay again. It was hard enough being a single parent, but I knew I was raising Colton right. I might not have had the normal job of most mothers, but we were good. Now we were mixed up in drugs, and if I didn’t find a way to escape, both of my children would grow up in this life. The only saving grace would be if they didn’t follow in Sebastian’s footsteps, but I knew that if we stayed, they would.
“Please, cariño. I help you.”
Even though Valentina spoke broken English, I could still hear the sincerity in her voice. I got up off the tiled floor and unlocked the door. I handed the last test to her. “I’m pregnant.”
Her face brightened. “This makes me so happy.”
“I’m not.” I sniffed.
“Cariño, the Lord works in mysterious ways. He puts children on this earth for a reason.”
“Don’t you see I’m hurting? That I don’t want this?”
“Si, but Mr. Delarosa will make sure you and your children never go without.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned against the doorframe. “Why?”
She blinked. “Because he takes care of what’s his.”
“And you’re okay with him owning us?” There was no other way to put it. I was no longer a person. I was a prisoner, a slave, a hostage. And while Sebastian hadn’t hit me or anything, the emotional pain I felt outweighed any bodily pain I’d ever felt in my life.
“Without him, I would be homeless.”
“I wouldn’t be.”
“Yes, you would. He gave you a job. You danced for him.”
I stared at her while her words sunk in. Yes, he was my boss. He allowed me to dance and make money, but did that mean that, in turn, I owed him because I’d been able to provide for my small family? In what world was that okay? “If I had known it would turn out like this, I would’ve danced somewhere else.”
“That may be true, cariño, but you didn’t.”
“So, are you saying that all the girls at the club owe him?”
“I’m saying that all the girls, including you, are lucky to have worked for a man who wants to do good in the world.”
“How is dealing drugs good for the world?”
Everything always came back to money. As I stared at her again, I finally understood …
Money held all the power.
After I washed my face, I went back downstairs and resumed my place in the lounge chair while Colton finished his schooling. As soon as Helen left for the day, Valentina came into the living room.
“Mr. Delarosa called. He wants me to take Colton to the park.”
I drew my head back. “What? Why?”
“He didn’t say, but he wants him out of the house.”
Panic instantly flooded my body. “Why?”
“I do not know, but I do as he says.”
“I’m not letting you take my son,” I argued. “He’s only been to the park once, and it didn’t go so well.”
“Please, cariño. He will be okay.”
“How do you know?”
“Mr. Delarosa said he is coming with business to take care of, and he wants me to get Colton out of the house for a while.”
“No, you’re not taking my son.”
“Please—” Valentina started to beg but stopped when Sebastian walked in through the door. He looked at me then Valentina. “I’m sorry, she will not let me take him.”
He turned back to me. “Tessa, I’m doing this for your own good.”
“How is taking my son for my own good?”
He cupped my cheek. In the last month and a half, I’d slowly begun to let him. Not because I wanted the affection from him, but because I wanted him to think he didn’t sicken me. I felt as though if I did what he asked, there would be some sort of gap—an escape—that I could take at my first opportunity to get out.
“I have a surprise for you.”
“I don’t like surprises,” I lied. Everyone liked surprises, but I wasn’t sure what Sebastian considered a surprise.
“You will like this one, Tessa Baby. I promise.”
“Why does Colt need to go away?”
“Because you won’t want him to see or hear what’s about to happen.”
“What’s about to happen?”
He grinned. “Payback.” Sebastian snapped his fingers and Valentina moved to Colton, picked him up and took him to the door. “Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.”
But would he come back?
“He likes the swing,” I called to Valentina as she and a guard walked out the door.
She turned and smiled. “Okay.”
I turned back toward Sebastian and hissed low, “If something happens to him, I will kill you.”
“If something happens to him, I will kill whoever harms him.”
Our gazes stayed locked, and before I realized it, I heard the clicking of the front door and Colton and Valentina were gone. Did I just let him take my son so he could kill me? Did I just let him take my son so he could kidnap him—again? Did I just let him take my son so he could kill him?
“Don’t hurt him,” I whispered.
“He’s going to the park, Tessa. He’ll have fun.”
I wasn’t sure if he would because while he loved to swing on the swing, I didn’t know if Valentina could get him to do it. He wouldn’t run off and do his own thing in the sandbox either, but maybe that was my saving grace? Maybe he’d have a meltdown, and she’d have to come right back?
A few seconds later, Mateo came in with another guy. A guy I knew. Brent came to the club most days. He was the same guy who police told me was the owner of the car that had followed me. I’d never told Sebastian I knew who it was, and I never got the chance to do anything about it because two days after I found out it was him, Sebastian took me hostage.
I eyed Brent as I watched him walk closer. He didn’t have a scratch on him and I wondered how Sebastian and Mateo were able to get him to come here. I assumed Mateo carried a gun and forced Brent into a car or something. Though as he stopped in front of me and his gaze met mine, I saw the fear in his eyes.
My gaze turned back to Sebastian. “Told you I brought you a present,” he stated.
“What are you going to do to him?” I asked. I didn’t know what I wanted Sebastian to do to Brent. Did someone need to die because they were stalking someone? Was that what Sebastian wanted to do to him?
“First, we’re going to talk in my office.”
“And then?”
“And then we’ll decide his fate.”
“We?”
“Yes, my love. We.”
I blinked, shaking my head at the new term of endearment. He’d never called me his love before. “Your love?” I questioned.
He grinned. “Don’t play coy. Brent needs to know who holds your heart.”
Sebastian didn’t hold my heart. He never would. I didn’t care if this was some grand gesture to win me over. I wasn’t okay with it. I wasn’t okay with anything Sebastian did. But then, this was a way to win Sebastian over. To make him think I was all in before I made my escape.
“Okay, lead the way.”
He stepped forward and whispered into my ear, “You go up first so I can watch your ass. I want to claim that ass tonight.”
I swallowed, not able to respond, and with one more glance at Brent, I turned and walked up the stairs. Once we were in Sebastian’s office, Mateo led Brent to a seat that Sebastian had turned around. The same seat I assumed was used when I’d witnessed him killing that guy before. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I waited for Sebastian to speak.
“Now, Brent. How long did you stalk my Scarlett?”
“I—” he started to respond, but I spoke first.
“Are you sure it’s him?” I questioned. I knew it was him, but there was no way I would be okay with him killing Brent. Call the cops? Yes. Beat him up? I could probably live with that. But never murder. Brent had never laid a hand on me, and while Vinny had told me not to take stalking lightly, I still didn’t think it warranted death.
“Yes,” Sebastian confirmed. “Mateo was able to find the car in the parking lot, and when he came back today, we had a little chat.”
“What did you talk about?”
“Seems Brent thinks he’s a good liar because he denies it was him, but as you know, Scar, I have cameras.”
“Okay, and you’re sure?”
“100% positive, baby. Now, what do you want to do?”
I wanted to let him go because I hoped that this situation would scare Brent and it would be the end of it. If he went to Metro, I hoped that he wouldn’t get a cop on Sebastian’s payroll and they’d show up so I could beg them to take Colton and me with them.
“How long were you following me?” I asked, not sure where else to start.
“I—I wasn’t.”
Without hesitation, Sebastian hit Brent with the butt of a gun I hadn’t seen him holding. “Don’t fucking lie to her.”
Brent’s green eyes pleaded with me to stop this, but I couldn’t because as I stared back, watching blood seep from his split cheek, I realized he was the reason I was mixed up with Sebastian in the first place. While he wasn’t the one who forced me up the stairs, he was the one who followed me home that night, which caused me to go to Sebastian’s office to view the video tapes. He was the one who made it possible for Sebastian to invite me to the fight that night. And because I went to the fight, Brent was the one who made it possible for Sebastian to invite me to the party.
“A few times,” Brent stated.
I balked. “A few times?” I thought it was only that one time.
“I’m sorry. You’re hot, and I wanted to see where you lived.”
“She doesn’t live there anymore,” Sebastian cut in.
“That’s fine. I get it, man. Just let me go.”
“Should we let him go?” Sebastian asked me.
I opened my mouth to respond, but nothing came out.
“Yeah, just let me go. We’re cool. I won’t do it again.”
“You see, Brent,” Sebastian said as he circled him like a shark. “You know where
I live, and we took you not of your own free will. Do you think I can let you go now?”
Oh God.
“Yeah, I won’t say anything. I won’t even go back to Red Diamond ever again. We’re cool.”
“You know,” Sebastian snapped his fingers, “I’ve almost heard those exact words before.” His gaze met mine, and I swallowed, unsure what he was going to do. “And the last person who said that to me didn’t get to go home because I don’t take chances.”
“I won’t say anything!” Brent pleaded.
“There’s only one way to make sure that doesn’t happen.” Sebastian aimed the gun at Brent.
“No!” I screamed.
Sebastian’s gaze moved back to me. “You think I can let him go? He needs to pay for what he did to you.”
“He only followed me a few times,” I replied as though that was okay. I couldn’t see another person get shot again, and Brent didn’t deserve to die because of it.
Sebastian turned to me, running the gun down my cheek. “You should know I can’t let him go.”
“There has to be another way,” I pleaded.
“What? You want him to live here? Fill your pussy at night too?”
“No.” I shook my head. “But I don’t want him to die.”
“He has to.” He turned again and aimed the gun at Brent.
“No!” I screamed again. Brent was shaking, I was shaking, and I just wanted Sebastian to stop. “Please don’t.”
“And why not?” Sebastian asked, still pointing the gun at Brent. “Why should I not shoot him in the head?”
I stared at Sebastian, trying to come up with what to say to him. Trying to think of how I could change his mind. “Because I don’t want the father of my unborn baby to have more blood on his hands.”
Sebastian lowered the gun and turned back to me. “You’re pregnant?”
I smiled, trying to make it as genuine as I could. “Yes. I took three tests before you got home.”
“Show me.”
“They’re in the bathroom on the second floor.”
Without looking at Brent again, Sebastian took my hand, laced our fingers and started for the stairs. “Mateo, make sure he disappears.”
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