I tap her name then begin to chew on my thumb nervously.
“Digame,” she says into the receiver when she answers.
“I think this is a set up,” I blurt out.
I didn’t mean to start our conversation like this, but Ana Sofia really is the only person I know I can trust.
“So get the fuck out of there, Tati,” she replies evenly.
I lean my head against the back of the seat and blow out a breath. She may be the more physically brutal of the two of us, the hot-headed one who’s always willing to run into danger instead of from it, but she doesn’t like when anyone else does it.
It makes me wonder how much of her died on the streets in Culiacán when her parents did.
“That’s the thing,” I begin thoughtfully, “I think theywantedme to leave before this fucker got here.”
“Where are you?” she asks immediately.There’s La Carnicera,I think as a small smile begins to form on my lips.
“Altata.”
“Go somewhere safe and call me back with an address. I mean it, Tati,” she says in a softer tone. I agree and disconnect the call.
I can’t think of anywhere that I can go where I won’t be recognized as a Cancio, but I would like to think that our father’s name will keep the wolves in their cages.
Especially since this is supposed to be neutral ground.
Blowing out a breath, I turn on the navigation system on my phone then settle on Cancha de Besibol in Bachimeto. It’s about twenty minutes away from where I currently am and should put enough distance between me and whatever the fuck is going on in there now until Ana Sofia arrives.
I find a safe place to park off the grounds, then text Ana Sofia the information before I wait for her reply. She tells me she’ll arrive as quickly as she can and for me to stay out of trouble.
The last line makes me smile because it’s what I usually say to her when Papa lets her go out for the day.
We’re not prisoners in our home by any means, but he knows that if we’re caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, it could mean our lives. Which is why he sends his Sicarios to follow us when we’re out and about alone. He thinks we don’t know, but both my sister and I have caught them from time to time.
We’ve never turned them in, though.
They’re only doing as their boss commands, and any negative report to him could cost them their standing, their jobs, income, or worse.
I begin to tap the steering wheel impatiently. Even though I know how long itshouldtake her to get here, I don’t feel like baking in the goddamn car. Shutting the engine off, I remove the keys from the ignition and push the car door open.
I remind myself that she’ll be here faster than it took me to arrive because she assumes that I’m in danger, which I possibly am, and she’d sooner lose her life than let me lose mine.
I tuck the keys into the waistband of my skirt and begin to walk toward the park. There are some cars driving up and down on the street, but not enough or too few to cause me any concern.
I smile at a family exiting as I enter. The young man who I assume is the head of this little rabble nods at me as he and his woman walk by. I chuckle when I catch the nervous gleam in his eye. It’s clear to me that he knows who I am and is more than likely getting the fuck out of town just in case.
“Que tengas un buen día!” I call out to them over my shoulder, then grin when he damn near shoves his woman and their small children up the path.
I shake my head good-naturedly as I head toward a wooden bench erected underneath a small tree.
It won’t be enough to keep the damn sun away, but it will help me not roast to death while I wait under the shade.
I know I should remain aware of my surroundings, though I can’t imagine anyone here would give me an issue. After giving one more glance around, I lift my legs onto the bench, lie on my side and push my hair behind my ears.
A little nap before La Carnicera arrives isn’t out of order. I didn’t sleep much last night since the weight of this responsibility has been heavy on me since Papa told me he needed to me to do this for him.
I stifle a yawn with my fist before I rest the side of my face comfortably against my hands and close my eyes.
Chapter Five