“I’ve tried over the years to conduct my own research, piecing together the way I was raised with what I’ve encountered as an adult and nothing makes sense. Nothing I’ve learned has shed light on my past. The three women who could’ve given me those answers are gone. Was my mother a hero or a villain? Was I raised by devils or saints? Was I a protective-custody case gone wrong? I honestly don’t know who I am, but I’m almost certain this tattoo has something to do with why my father killed my mother before he turned the gun on me. Of all the things they could have been arguing about that night, they were fighting over a chess piece. But, there was not enough context to figure out any more than they were fighting because of me.”
We sat staring at each other, me attempting to make sense of her story and the intricacies of her mysterious past. She took in our connected hands, and I ran my thumb lightly across the back of hers.
“Over the years, I’ve run into good and bad syndicate members, so when I found out Mecca and Desiree were marrying into the organization, I didn’t overreact, but I knew I’d have to proceed with caution and continue to do what I do best: hide in plain sight.”
It took a lot to knock down the mental walls I’d built, but Patrena was doing a good job of it. She could have been my mortal enemy, but it didn’t stop me from caring about her. Who the hell was she? Who the hell had her parents been? Why had they placed her in the hands of women who sounded like rouge vigilantes or even federal agents who had probably been killed by members of our syndicate?
“The warning wasn’t the only hit your tattoo prompted,” I blurted out, adding to her mix of indistinguishable details.
She squeezed her forehead and rubbed at her temples, eyeing me under her hand. She was stressed, but I was impressed at the level of control she exuded over her emotions.
“Rhi informed me about an hour ago that he dug deep enough into the dark web and found that your tattoo had a reward out on it, years before you were born. Identifying a person with that specific tattoo would have earned you a one-hundred-thousand-dollar reward. The reward is updated every few years and is currently up to one million. Rhi probably got shut down during the first search because he was searching in the place that bad people don’t go to for information.”
She swallowed and the vibrant color of her creamy tone began to dull. I understood better why it had been drilled into her head to never let anyone see her tattoo. The knowledge that it had been a hot topic before she was even born meant that the other person or people who bore that symbol were people of great power and influence and if they were in the underworld, they were criminal royalty. Her eyes shot up and she stared straight ahead, unblinking. I could almost see her thinking, running through hundreds of possibilities.
“In light of what we’ve encountered with the search plus what you’ve shared with me, you’re not safe. It can get really ugly if anyone finds out what you have on your back and what it’s worth. You’re a target, Patrena, and I believe you always have been.”
The knowing glint in her gaze said she had long ago reached the same conclusion.
Were Patrena and I mortal enemies? Had we been born into organizations destined to wipe each other from existence?