Chapter 14
Fourteen
Shiloh
There was something nostalgic about warm tortillas with butter and sugar. Just the smell brought back memories of spending time with Javi and Seb growing up. Like sitting on the front porch watching Javi and Seb toss a ball or wrestle.
It was ironic that such a sweet treat was the only food we had left in the house.
Two weeks with no income from Javier meant that my dad had to work more.
He’d picked up random jobs, like working at the corner store to cover a friend’s shift or washing dishes at Bunk House, a little western-style diner downtown.
Which only meant he spent more money on drugs and alcohol than he did on keeping the fridge stocked.
I was surviving mostly on the free lunch at school.
I shuddered at the state of the house before turning to head back to my room.
My room still didn’t have a door, but I couldn’t handle sleeping in the tub anymore, so I had dragged my dresser to block the entrance while I was sleeping.
It would at least give me a warning before someone tried to enter.
There was a knock at the front door, and I rushed to my room, sliding the dresser over with a silent groan at the pain it caused my ribs. I waited for a sign as to who was there. My stomach dropped at the sound of an unfamiliar deep male voice. Fuck. Fucking shit. Shit!
“Where is she?”
“In her room,” my dad answered, footsteps heading in my direction.
I quickly ran to my mattress and grabbed the knife I slept with from under my pillow. Too quickly, a large male body filled the door frame. Dressed professionally, just like my brother did, in slacks and a dress shirt. A Ghost.
I tried to keep the tremble out of my hands as I held up the knife in his direction.
“What do you want?”
The man chuckled, motioning to someone else in the hallway.
Another man, taller and with a tidy beard, that I’d never seen before peered around the corner, cocking his head to the side as he eyed me from head to toe.
“This little thing? Christ, she looks like I could snap her in half with one hand.”
“Well…go on then. Watch out for the knife,” he warned his friend with a chuckle.
The bearded man rolled his shoulders before effortlessly moving my dresser aside.
Fuck.
“What. Do. You. Want?” I repeated.
He smirked, licking his lips. “Wrong question, honey. I don’t think you want to know what I want.”
My heart pounded against my chest as I stared the bearded stranger down, the hilt of the knife digging into my palm almost painfully.
He suddenly rushed me straight into the wall, his shoulder knocking the wind out of me.
The knife clattered to the floor. I gasped, choking for air, scratching and clawing at the man’s back.
He let out a grunt as I banged my fists against him but didn’t budge, only crushed my body further into the wall with his shoulder.
When the air rushed back into my lungs at last, I screamed at the top of my lungs. “Let me fucking go!”
My vocal cords felt like they were bleeding as I continued to scream and fight against his hold. My eyes unwillingly sought out my bedroom door, as if my dad might appear and rescue me.
“Goddamn, she’s a screamer ain’t she?” the first man chuckled, pulling a syringe from his pocket as he stopped in front of me.
I screamed again and again and again. As if it could save me. As if someone who cared could actually hear me. A calloused hand pinned my arm to the wall.
No. No. No. God, no. Please.
He managed to get the syringe into my shoulder. I fought as long as I could, screaming until I was breathless. My vision became cloudy, my eyelids suddenly too heavy to keep open.
???
It was too fucking hot. My body felt slicked with sweat and my throat was dry. We don’t have the cash to be running the goddamn heater.
I groaned, opening my eyes, blinking several times as an unfamiliar carpet came into view.
What the fuck?
I sat up, flinching backwards when I realized Carlos was sitting on a coffee table directly in front of me.
He leaned back, away from my personal space, tilting his head to the side as he studied me.
I glanced around the room, my heart pounding faster as I realized we weren’t alone.
I only recognized Adrian. The other five men were strangers to me.
I realized we were in some sort of lounge. There was a large sectional, a bar with a flat screen TV, a pool table, a fireplace and leather armchairs, one of which I was sitting on.
I flicked my gaze back to Carlos, watching as he rolled up the sleeves to his black button down with precision.
“That’s Tony, Rafael and Diego,” he said calmly, gesturing to the three men on the couch to the right.
“They are three of my inner circle, mis carnales.” Carlos turned his head to look over his shoulder.
“Julian,” he said with a head nod pointing to the man standing near the bar pouring himself a drink, “is one of the siete jefes. He controls North Texas. He was the first jefe to vote for you to be the first female sworn into the family. And that’s José,” Carlos motioned to the man standing by the fireplace.
“He took your brother’s place as my arreglador for the Austin metro area.
Of course, you already know Adrian. He’ll be tested soon to take your brother’s place as mi sucesor. ”
“I don’t know how much of our history you are aware of, but I’ll give you a quick summary.”
I blinked, sitting up further in my chair as I focused on Carlos.
“Los Siete began as a humble band of seven brothers. All like-minded and seeking a way out of their impoverished and crime-ridden neighborhood. They were tired of being the modern slaves to this country. Taking the jobs no one wanted, only to be slandered, abused and disrespected by the rest of the public. They decided enough was enough. They started out with petty crimes, ‘steal from the rich, give to the poor’ type of crime. But over time, once they’d got enough of a reputation, they realized if they only had the right occupations, they could truly make a name for themselves.
With hard work, they were able to obtain respectable jobs in positions of power.
They became Los Siete as a means of continuing their legacy, of buying back the power they rightfully deserved after generations of servitude to this great country.
“They recruited members to join their family, members who needed a way up in society after being dealt the worst hand life could offer. The beauty of Los Siete is that we are all trained to hide in plain sight, acting as unsuspecting citizens, contributing to society and without any trace of illegal dealings tied to our names. Hence, the nickname that stuck, Ghosts. The price for power and safety was unwavering loyalty and obedience. Traitors were never tolerated.”
He paused to give me a grave expression, and I realized he must be referencing my brother and his murder.
“You have been chosen to join this family. To pledge your life, your loyalty and your obedience in exchange for never wanting for or needing anything again. You will always be taken care of in this family. Do you understand?”
My tongue felt stuck to the roof of my mouth, so I simply nodded.
“Good girl. We baptize you into this family like all others before you. Much like communion you’ll sacrifice flesh, followed by blood.”
A heavy silence thickened the air while I noticed several of the men smirking. I looked back at Carlos, and he continued.
“You’ve got a fire, Shiloh. One that I don’t wish to extinguish, only rekindle in my favor. When you’ve been baptized through flesh and blood, you will be a member of this family, your trust and respect built from this day forward.”
My stomach clenched. They’re going to beat me like they did to Javier when he joined.
Carlos pulled a gun from his waistband, resting it against his knee.
“If you choose, I can end this for you now. Take someone else to fill your life debt. Just say the word and I’ll give you an honorable goodbye.”
The sickening part was he seemed genuine, like he would actually kill me with mercy if I asked him to. He waited patiently, watching me as I scrambled for an answer.
Do I really want to die? Do I have a reason not to?
My eyes focused on the gun, and I remembered Javier’s dying words for me to fight. I didn’t know if I had much fight left in me, but I knew if I was going to die, I didn’t want it to be at the hands of my brother’s murderer.
I cleared my throat.
“My-my loyalty means I’ll get paid for the work you want me to do, right?”
I watched Carlos’s expression, but it was politician perfect. He gave nothing away.
“You will be compensated for your role. Being the first female to be sworn means that you’ll be treated as an equal to all of your brothers in the family.”
The fuck is he planning for me?
“So, I’ll be protected, including from other Ghosts?”
Carlos chuckled, nodding his head. “I promise that you will be taken care of. That means you won’t be hurt unless you’re needing discipline.
Once you’re sworn into this family, if another member hurts or disrespects you, you will have the same right as any other Ghost to dole at justice.
Though you must come to me first for permission. ”
Trusting his word was like trusting a cardboard box to protect me from a tornado, but the alternative meant death.
I licked my dry lips, focusing on taking even breaths.
This was fucking insane, but I didn’t really want to die yet.
Not when he was threatening to take another child in my place.
If he wasn’t making me use my body, and he wasn’t making me into a murderer like my brother, then maybe I could stomach whatever it was he had in store for me.
“Okay.”
A slow smile stretched across Carlos’s face, and he leaned forward until his nose was almost touching mine.