Juan shakes his head and my muscles tense back up. I should have known better than to give hope any leverage. “So, how have you been helping her then, Juan? I heard they’re getting married...”
“That’s true, but I just found out about that, too.”
I sneer. “What help could you possibly provide Catalina if you don’t even know what Dante has in store for her?”
Juan hesitates for a second, before gently placing his hands back down to his side. “I think it’s best if she tells you that herself.”
My slow pulse quickens as my heart begins to race. I half-expect Catalina to walk out from behind one of these charred walls. “Where is she, Juan?” I ask, hardly able to contain the desperation in my voice. I need her to be safe. I need to make up for my failures.
“Not here,” he says sadly, as though upset by failures of his own. “But she will be on the move soon, and that will make her more vulnerable than ever before.”
“Do they move her around a lot?” So far, no one has been able to tell me anything about Catalina or her whereabouts, but now I’m face to face with the next best source of information next to Dante himself—I need to know how she is.
“Not usually,” Juan responds. “But there was an incident recently.”
My heart tightens. My fists clench. “What kind of incident?”
“I’m still not exactly sure,” my old advisor strokes his chin. “Something to do with a possible break in...”
A bomb goes off in my gut. “Someone else is trying to steal her away from Dante!?”
“Maybe... I haven’t had the chance to talk to her since that night. It could be that it was an attempted kidnapping, or it could have just been her trying to break back into her prison without being caught.”
My fists unlatch in the confusion. “She broke out? And then went back? Why!?”
Juan hesitates to answer. Something heavy sits just behind his dark eyes. “... I think it’s best if she tells you that herself, too.”
“When can I see her?” I immediately reply.
“Soon.”
“And you’re going to help me get to her?”
“Yes. I’m here to help you, too, Angel.” Juan clears his throat and seems to fight back another confession. “Two years ago... Dante didn’t give me a choice... I’m sorry. I had to disappear, but I tried to warn you...”
GET OUT OF THE COUNTRY. NOW!!!
Your buildings are burning, Angel. You’ll be next. Leave the country now. Please.
I still remember those messages, clear as day. “It was you who sent the texts?”
Juan nods. “I’ve been desperately trying to get a hold of you for the past two years, but it’s been impossible.”
“That was the point.” I growl. “It was the only way to keep Cat safe until I was ready to take her back.”
Suddenly, all the time that Catalina and I have wasted apart catches up to me in a tidal wave of oppressive fire. What have I really been doing over the past two years? It all seems so meaningless. What good is trying to take down Enzo Barella when my own empire has been suffering all this time, and my girl right along with it?
It’s time for a serious fucking change.
“And are you finally ready to save Catalina? Or did you only come back now because you heard Dante was going to marry her?”
I don’t answer, but my silence is clear enough. I’m back to take what’s mine, but I have no grand plan. Not yet.
Juan seems to read my mind. “We have some planning to do.” A smile crosses his weathered face. “Good thing I’ve been preparing for your return.”
7
Catalina