by Meagan Fink
He was going to help her; he only wanted Blackson to suffer because he was the one that killed his father, not Tita or Dyton. He didn’t want them to get hurt in all of this but they already were. He questions if he should tell her. Tell her that he had lied, that he was still working with his family, and that he was only doing this so his brother would forgive him.
He didn’t mean for Dyton to get taken, and, from what that man back in the alley had said, apparently neither did Isaac. But Luca knew it didn’t matter what his own intentions were, but it was what he had already done. Tita would never forgive him for that.
Tita leans away from him, wiping her eyes and nods. “Call him,” she says. He nods, and looks around for a telephone booth. Guess they’re going to miss their train again.
They walk for ten minutes looking for a telephone; the whole time Tita stays silent, every now and then wiping the tears from her face. They finally find a phone and Luca calls up Isaac. They had stayed in touch the whole way, with Luca calling him when something new came up but mainly confirming that Tita and Dyton wouldn’t be hurt. Isaac had broken his promise.
“I was wondering when I would hear from you again,” says Isaac. His voice is cold and calculating as usual, but something sounds wrong, he seems nervous, uncertain.
“I’m calling for one reason only and that’s to negotiate the release of Dyton,” he says. Tita stands right next to him, her eyes burning into his waiting for him to fix everything.
“I figured our conversation would be about that. First of all Dyton is all right, a little shaken up but in one piece. Say ‘yes’ if you are alone.”
“Just tell me what you want,” says Luca.
“Oh good, then Tita is there. Listen Luca, we both know that I’m your boss, but what you might not know is that even I receive orders. I had it planned that we would meet up wherever Blackson was located, but the big boss had other ideas. We need Blackson, as you know; and the other plan had too many variables to consider, so we’ve made a new one with a few changes. Say ‘yes’ if you understand so far.”
“Yeah,” says Luca, starting to get irritated; he just wants this over and to be done with it all.
“Good, so here’s the new plan, you tell the girl that she gets her brother back when she leads us to Blackson. You then tell her that when we get Blackson she gets the kid...”
“No, Isaac what do you mean, I thought---”
“Listen little Brother, some things have changed. So tell the girl that you two will go to Tallahassee. Then you contact us and tell us where he lives and then we’ll come take care of things, simple. OK? Now tell her, I want to hear you,” says Isaac.
Luca knows that if he argues he risks Isaac killing Dyton right then and there, and he couldn’t say too much in front of Tita. He needed more time, more time to think of a plan and to figure out what he’d be willing to do to get back into his family’s good graces.
And what did he mean by another boss, there’s someone higher up than Isaac? That’s not possible. He glances at Tita who’s looking around nervously; she glances back at him and raises her eyebrows, well? He takes a deep breath trying to figure out what he should do. Tell Tita the truth? Or risk her and Dyton dying? He rubs his forehead as a headache comes on.
“Isaac you’re putting me in a difficult position here,” he bites his lip, he can’t decide. If he agrees, this whole thing will end, but he doesn’t know for sure how it will end for Tita and Dyton.
“Luca, remember why you volunteered to do this? It’s because it’s your fault our father was killed. You messed up on that raid, you got him killed, and I’m the only one who is keeping the rest of Blackheart from pouncing on you and tearing you apart. Now I can only do this as long as you are faithful to this organization. If I start to feel that your loyalty is wavering, then you’re forcing my hand and I can’t help you anymore; so what’s your decision? Are you going to help a girl you just met and whose family betrayed and destroyed ours or avenge our father’s death and come back home? It’s your choice Luca, you have ten minutes to make your decision and talk to the girl, choose wisely,” says Isaac and he hangs up.
Luca puts the phone back on its stand. Ten minutes to choose? He looks over at Tita.
“Well, what did he say? Is Dyton all right; where is he?” she asks.
“My brother is saying that the only way to get Dyton back is to do an exchange,” he says. He closes his eyes and rubs his temples, how is he supposed to do this? He needs to tell her, tell her that he’s still working with his family, he has to.
“An exchange? Of what?” she asks.
He shakes his head, he can’t lie to her anymore; he wouldn’t be able to even look at her without guilt racking his conscience. “Tita I need to tell you something. I haven’t been completely honest with you about some things,” he says.
She frowns and narrows her eyes at him but then shakes her head. “Luca what are you talking about? It doesn’t matter, I know that you haven’t told me everything about you, I understand that, we only just met; but what does matter is what your brother wants with Dyton,” she says.
She isn’t making this any easier, he thinks, but she does have a point. It doesn’t matter. If he were to tell her now, would it really help anyone? Tita would just hate him and wouldn’t want him to help her; and, if that were the case, there wasn’t even a possibility of getting Dyton back. He starts to pace, this was the decision that he couldn’t make, it wasn’t trading Blackson for Dyton but if he should tell Tita.
“Luca, what did your brother mean by an exchange?” she asks again. He lets out a sigh, and looks at her for a second, once again getting lost in those blue eyes.
“Isaac will let Dyton go if we exchange him for your grandfather,” he says.
What are you thinking!? You’re only going to hurt her more if you tell her later! A voice screams in his head. He shakes it away. He’ll tell her, just not right now; she has enough to deal with without him adding to her problems.
“My grandfather? What does Isaac want with him?” she asks.
“Blackson, he, he killed our father. Isaac has been searching for him since he’s been in charge, and he’d do anything to find him,” says Luca, for once telling her the truth. Tita’s gaze becomes distant as she thinks about this.
“I thought Isaac was after you because he thought you killed him?” she asks, her eyebrows knitted.
He thinks on this, trying to form his lie to everything else he’s already said. “Isaac thinks I only helped kill him; but he knows Blackson is the one that actually pulled the trigger, it’s all very complicated. He wants me to call him back in five minutes with your choice, Tita, so you need to decide what you want to do,” he says, his voice urgent.
He glances nervously at the phone as if his brother could hear their conversation. Her face becomes panicky; her fingers flip her locket and rub the side with the pattern.
“Well of course I’ll do it, but I first want to hear from Dyton before I promise him anything,” she says, her eyes burning with a renewed anger. He couldn’t say he blamed her. His brother was making her choose between which family members she would let die. But it’s not all Isaac’s fault, he thinks. He nods and calls up Isaac; Tita stands next to him and puts her ear next to the phone.
“That was quick, what’s the verdict?” asks Isaac.
“She’ll do it but only if you put Dyton on the phone,” says Luca, as he glances at Tita; she’s holding her breath.
“I’m sorry little Brother but I can’t do that. Dyton isn’t here at the moment, but tell the girl that once you’re in Tallahassee, then she’ll get to hear from the kid,” he says; his voice sounds triumphant.
Luca glances at Tita to see what she decides. She frowns thinking it over, then she grabs the phone out of his hand. He tries to stop her but he’s not fast enough.
“Hello Isaac, this is Tatiana Lasko
and here’s the deal. Luca and I will head to Tallahassee; once we’re there we’ll call you, and you better put Dyton on the phone. If I talk to him, then the deal will go as planned; and I will tell you where my grandfather is. But, if you hurt him, if I don’t hear from him when you get our call, the deal is off. And I promise that I will find you, I will destroy you and everything you care about once and for all, and you can rest assured that I keep my promises. Do I make myself clear?”
Luca’s surprised at how steady her voice is, she doesn’t seem scared or worried anymore, just mad. He stares at her, his eyes wide. He wished he could stand up to his brother like that and sound so confident, but he can still see the worry in her eyes.
There’s silence on the other end; and, Tita glances at Luca, he shrugs.
“Understood Tatiana, once you are in Tallahassee feel free to give me a call. Dyton will be here, and I assure you he will be treated as a guest. You will then have 24 hours to locate Blackson and tell us where he is. We’ll make the exchange at the location you give us. I look forward to meeting you, Tatiana,” and he hangs up.
Tita puts the phone down and looks at Luca, “You get all that?” she asks. He nods still a little shocked at her outburst.
“What?” she asks.
“Nothing, just didn’t know you had that in you.”
“Neither did I,” she mutters. He grins and looks around them; they missed their train, and there wouldn’t be any others until tomorrow.
“Alright, we’ll need to find a place to stay the night; I have cash, so it shouldn’t be a problem to find a room,” he says, as he looks around. He finds a small inn a little ways ahead of them and points at it.
She only nods and starts walking toward it in silence.
14
“Dyton!” I scream.
I run down the stairs looking for him. I clutch my jewelry box in my hands and look around for him. I look down at the two broken pieces, the lid is completely torn off and three long scratches are clawed into the wood. I run into the kitchen and look around, he’s not in there. I growl as I scan the wall for any open cabinets. I get down on my hands and knees and look under the dining room table. Nothing. I told him not to touch anything! But he had to look, he had to look at my special box.
“Dyton, come out here!” I scream!I stomp my way over to the living room and look around. There! By the linen closet the carpet is folded over by someone who ran in. I turn around and stomp my feet as if I’m walking away. I then tiptoe my way over to the closet and listen. I can hear heavy breathing and a little hiccup from him crying. Oh you are so dead, I think. I swing open the door and he screams.
He throws a bunch of towels and sheets at my face and kicks me in the stomach; the kid can kick, I’ll give him that. I fall on my butt and hit my head on the floor.
He runs away screaming. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
“Come here!” I scream and run after him. He pounds his way up the stairs still screaming and I run up after him.
I grab him by his ankle just as he reaches the top, where he more than likely was going to lock himself in his room.
He falls to the floor as I tackle him. I grab him by the shoulders and pin him down; and he kicks and fights, throwing punches that don’t land.
“Mama! H-help me, she’s g-going to kill m-me!” Dyton screams. I take off my sock and roll it up into a ball. His eyes widen and he squirms even more.
“No, n-no, no!” he screams. I grin as I stuff it in his mouth. He tries to scream but it just comes out muffled.
“I told you not to touch anything! Look at what you did!” I scream. I hold up the two broken pieces and he starts to cry. I know he didn’t do it on purpose, but the boy needs to learn; now he just needs one more lesson. I stick my finger in my mouth and make a big show of making sure it’s nice and wet with spit and then stick it in his ear.
“Tatiana!” yells Mama, as my grin fades, Oops. Number one lesson Daddy taught me, make sure Mama isn’t around to see. I get up and off of him; and he stumbles to his feet and runs over behind Mama, spitting out the sock. She’s glaring at me, but I can see the laughter in her eyes. She’s the one who taught me the ear trick.
“What is going on this time?” she asks, as she looks between me and Dyton; and we both start yelling at the same time. She holds up her hands and points at me, I go first.
“OK, I told him to go up to my room and get Candy Land, and he knows not to touch anything! I heard a crash so I ran upstairs and I see this!” I hold out the evidence for her to see. She frowns; she knows Daddy gave me this before he left.
“Dyton, did you break Tatiana’s box?” she asks, as she turns to look at him. He looks down and whimpers.
“Of course, he---” I start but she holds up a hand, Dyton’s turn.
Mama gets down on her knees and raises his chin so he’s looking at her; she then asks again, in a softer voice.
He slowly nods.
“See!?” I say accusingly.
“I-it was a-an accident!” he yells at me.
“No it wasn’t! You’re just jealous that Daddy gave me something better than a stupid army doll!” I yell back; it was a little harsher than I intended.
He charges at me and Mama has to grab him by the shoulders to keep him from tackling me. “It’s an army ranger! Not a doll!” he screams. I stick my tongue out at him and put my hands on my head and wiggle my fingers, and he just tries that much harder to get at me.
There’s a loud knock on the door, and Mama points to our rooms and tells us to stay in there for time-out. I stomp into my room and slam the door shut.
“Army ranger!” he yells one last time and slams his door too.
“He’s such a baby,” I mutter to Mr. Snuggles. I glance back down at my box, it’s not that bad actually. I can glue the lid back on and just paint over the scratches with brown paint, but it was just too much fun to argue.
I hear voices downstairs, and it sounds like two men. I glance at the door wondering if I should see who it is. It’s probably just the mailman or our neighbor. But there are two voices, I think. Then I hear a sob, it’s Mama. I get up off my bed still holding the box; Mama’s not a crier, what could be wrong? I start to go down the stairs and I get my answer.
Two men in military uniforms are holding a folded-up flag. One of them glances at me and gives me a sad look. I look between the two of them, and then at Mama, and she looks up at me.
“Tatiana go back to your room,” she says, her voice trembling. Tears streak her face, and she covers her mouth with a hand trying to hold back the sobs. I hear a door open and Dyton runs out. He looks between the two men, then at Mama, and then at me.
He doesn’t know what’s going on.
“No,” I say, slowly shaking my head. “No,” he said everything would be okay; he promised. My eyes start to water and my vision goes blurry.
“No!” I scream. I throw the box that’s still in my hands and it crashes to the floor. I run back up the stairs and past Dyton, who still has a blank look on his face, and into my room; I land on my bed and sob into my pillow. There’s a pounding on my door, as Dyton yells at me to open it and to tell him what’s going on. I can’t. I can’t tell him Daddy’s gone; I can’t do anything to help him. He would look at me, waiting for me to fix everything. He needs to learn that there are some things I just can’t fix.
Tita sits up in bed and looks around at her room. Luca sleeps in silence across the room on the floor, he has his hat rolled up for a pillow. She had gotten so used to hearing Dyton snore that the silence is unsettling. Her face is wet from crying in her sleep. You need to pull yourself together, you need to be strong for Dyton. She gets up out of bed quietly and looks out her window; there’s a lovely view of a brick wall.
She sighs, Dyton’s gone, he’s actually gone; it still didn’t seem real to her. It’s all my fault. If I had ju
st insisted that he come with me to get the tickets, I could have told him to stay put while I went and helped Luca.
But even more, she should have just said no to come to D.C. in the first place. She had known that it was a huge risk yet she did it anyway. Too many ifs and should haves.
She walks over to the edge of her room next to Luca and silently grabs her bolt bag. She lifts it up onto the bed and starts to dig through it; she doesn’t know what she’s looking for until she finds it: Dyton’s newsboy cap. She rubs the material between her fingers, as the memory of when she’d first stolen the stupid thing comes flashing back to her mind.
It had been her first steal; she was 13 and had felt so guilty at the time that she had cried over it. But, when she saw how happy Dyton was about it, the guilt started to vanish. He absolutely loved that hat; she remembered when she asked why he was so attached to it.
“When we first started living on the streets, I had been so scared even though you said to trust you; I still wondered how we were going to make it. When I saw you steal that hat off the bench, I thought, if you could do that, then who knew what else you could do,” he had said with a wry grin.
“You don’t trust me?!” she had yelled at him jokingly.
“I did, I do, but at that moment I realized we were going to be OK.” And the hope on his face had kept her going for so long. We were going to be OK; oh, how much I wish I could believe that now, she thought. She sat back down on the bed and for once not thinking really about anything, because she already knew what she was going to do.
She was going to do what she had told Isaac, tell him where her grandfather is and get Dyton back; but, first she was going to learn more about her parents’ past.
Nine hours later they were pulling into Tallahassee, Florida. Tita glanced over at Luca who was biting his lower lip. He does that a lot, she thinks. He catches her gaze and gives a reassuring smile, but it looks strained; he’s nervous.