Lucia
Hypocrite.
Liar.
Betrayer.
Judas.
Bitch.
Those words all describe me. They soared through my mind all night, working their way through every fiber of my mind like poison. Each word infiltrated my mind and forced its way through the walls of my heart to turn me into something I’m not.
I’m not this woman.
I’m not, and the worry over everything has fractured my mind.
I watch Mia putting her toys back in the box and wonder how I’m supposed to get through this day, let alone the next few days.
It’s note even as if I have a plan on what to do.
The loose plan I had worked like a charm.
I allowed things to naturally take course, and I got so close to Alejandro that he trusted me enough to ask me to protect his daughter in case anything happens to him.
He told me the biggest secret, and as he spoke, I knew in my heart El Diablo wanted to hurt Mia, too.
El Diablo—his father.
Jesus Christ. The plot couldn’t thicken any more than it has.
First Thiago, then his father.
The latter is so much worse, though. So much worse, and I know both truths. Obviously, Alejandro must know El Diablo in name only.
I shake my head free of my thoughts as a text comes through on my phone.
With trembling hands, I reach for my phone, and the air dispels from my body when I see it’s Thiago.
Call me. We need to check in.
That’s the message. Short, simple, and chilling. Bone-chilling.
So bone-chilling I don’t call.
I pick Mia up and walk out to the lake, where we watch the ducks.
When my phone rings, I don’t answer. I ignore the call, and the next one, and the next.
There’s a break for an hour before he calls again, but I do the same thing and busy myself with reading a story to Mia.
I’m sure by now he knows I’m avoiding his call, and when I do gather the guts to answer, it’s not going to bode well for me.
I get a break while we eat lunch. Even though we’re outside, I’m sure Alejandro is home. I haven’t seen him, but I know Marcello was supposed to be working with him today, and I saw Marcello just before lunch.
It’s odd he wouldn’t come out and see us, but with the mood I’m in, it’s probably for the best.
Before another thought can take residence in my mind, the phone rings again. This time, though, it doesn’t ring out. It rings three times and stops.