Chapter 31
THIRTY-ONE
The next day, I stand in front of my apartment door, taking deep breaths. Getting inside the building and walking up these stairs was so fucking hard.
My whole body is shaking. Xander’s truck is still in the shop, so he went to work early today on the subway since he needed to do some work before his first client arrived.
He was in such a hurry, and his head was filled with so much he needed to do.
It seems he just forgot about getting the money to Roberto.
And that’s fine. It is my job anyway. It was nice to rely on him for a while and not to have to come here again so soon after what Roberto did.
But now, it’s time for me to look after myself again and get my shit together.
I can’t just let them swoop in and take care of everything forever. I won’t be a burden they’ve picked up.
I take another deep breath and unlock the door, pushing it open just a bit and peeking in. The apartment is quiet, and the door to Roberto’s room is closed, so it seems like he is sleeping.
It is still early since I am here before my college classes start, and I make my way into the kitchen to place the twenty dollars I got in tips yesterday on the counter.
I’m already heading back to the door to get out of there as fast as possible when I hear Roberto’s voice coming from the hallway. I turn and nearly run into my room, hoping he won’t notice that the apartment door isn’t locked.
“Cretino! Come puoi essere così stupido? I told you to make it look like an accident, not to make an accident. Of course, that did not get rid of the problem!” he yells, entering the apartment and walking over to his room.
My heart sinks. What the fuck is he talking about?
“He won’t be pleased, and neither am I. Do you think this will get you any points?” he huffs out, sounding muffled, before he closes the door to his room, effectively making it so I can’t hear him anymore.
Unwilling to take any chances, I make it out of there so fast the dust in the apartment stirs into flurries behind me. When I close the door, I make sure I leave it unlocked since he did too.
When I am outside of the apartment building, I call Xander.
“What’s wrong?” he asks without a hello after the first ring.
“It was Roberto,” I whisper-shout into the phone.
“Fuck, I forgot about that asshole. I’m sorry, I’m going to bring the money on my lunch break—”
“No! I just brought it here, and I heard—”
“You did what? You went there alone? Carolina, I—”
“Can we stop interrupting each other? I need to fucking tell you something!” I hiss. He stays silent, so I start again. “I heard him talking on the phone. He said something about the other person messed up, and it should have looked like an accident and that someone wasn’t going to like that.”
“You lost me,” Xander states, sounding puzzled.
“He wanted to have me dead, Xander,” I admit, my voice trembling slightly.
“Did he say that in those words?” he asks, his concern evident.
“No, but I just know this was about us,” I tell him, rushing down the street, panting slightly.
“So, not the Del Moros anymore?”
“Maybe. I don’t know. I need to find out,” I ponder, uncertainty creeping into my voice.
“What would Roberto get from having you dead? You are his source of income.”
His point makes sense, logically, but I know what I heard.
“I don’t know,” I admit, frustrated.
“Don’t do shit alone, Carolina, or I will spank your ass until you can’t sit anymore,” he grunts out.
“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” I tease and hang up the phone when I hear him take a deep breath to seemingly berate me some more.
Classes went by quickly because of the test we had to do, but it was pretty easy since I studied all afternoon yesterday on Xander’s bed.
Now, I’m in the lab with Sophia, surrounded by the sterile smell of chemicals I love and the hum of machines. Sophia is sitting at her desk while I stand behind her, looking over her shoulder.
We’re staring at the notes she made with all the details we know and what she remembered from the file on my parents. Or at least everything that’s officially known.
“I still can’t believe Roberto wants me dead,” I mutter, shaking my head in disbelief. “I mean, I get that he hates me, but I am still the one who pays for his rent, food, and most importantly, his vodka.”
Sophia nods, her expression serious. “It’s definitely concerning. But we don’t know that for sure yet. We don’t know if he was really talking about you. Don’t dismiss the Del Moros just yet. I think ruling them out would be a mistake. They are acting way too suspicious.”
I feel a surge of anger. My parents deserve better than this—better than me struggling to find out what happened. “We need to gather more information. There has to be something we’re missing.”
Sophia taps her finger on the table, thinking. “We could try to track down the first responders. See if they remember anything unusual about the scene.”
I nod, considering the suggestion. “That’s a good idea. And we should also try to find out more about the car. If the witness thought the brakes failed, then maybe there’s something there.”
Sophia’s eyes light up. “Yes, exactly. We need to get the records for the car or speak to someone who checked the car after the accident. It’s obvious that it had been tampered with.”
I feel a flicker of hope. “Okay, let’s do it. Let’s find out everything we can about that car. But how do we even get that information? It’s been five years. Do you think the records still exist?”
Sophia leans back in her chair, crossing her arms. “They should. Car records are usually kept for a long time, especially for legal and warranty stuff. We can start by contacting the insurance company and the repair shop that dealt with the car after the accident. They might have records from when they disposed of the car.”
I take a deep breath, steeling myself. “All right. Let’s get started.”
Sophia smiles. “We’re going to figure this out, Carolina. One step at a time.”
We spent the next few hours making a list of people to contact and questions to ask. I feel like we’re finally getting somewhere. And I won’t stop until I have the truth.
The door opens, and Clay and Joshua come in, laughing at each other. But when both their gazes turn to me, my heart double flips, and I take in a sharp breath of air.
Sophia giggles beside me.
“Hey,” Joshua greets, standing next to my desk, grabbing my hand, and pulling me to my feet before he leans in to kiss me.
His lips are so soft, and he presses them slightly to mine, then leans back, grinning at me. Apparently unsatisfied, Joshua grabs the back of my head, pulling me to him again and kissing me deeply, unhurried, and slow.
He tastes like sweets, and I have to smile into the kiss. “Hey, Mr. Candyman,” I whisper when he breaks it.
“I like that.” He grins, pecking my nose.
“My turn,” Clay declares, pulling on my wrist to release me from Joshua’s arms and pull me into his. He takes my head in both hands and strokes my cheeks. “Fuck, I missed you.” His right hand wanders to the side of my neck, and he pushes my chin up with his thumb to lean in and kiss me too.
His kiss is much rougher, but I love it.
My head spins when he lets go of me, and I have to press my thighs together. Kissing them like this has made me way too wet for the place and company.
Clay sees the movement and grins at me before he looks over at Joshua, who smirks back at him. “You just filled my head with ideas, kitten.”
“Can you discuss your three or foursomes at home, please? I’m hungry,” Sophia chimes in, pulling on her cardigan before she walks over to the door.
“Someone is jealous.” Clay snickers. I push my elbow into his ribs, and he lets out an “Oomph,” shooting me a glare.
“Who has time for jealousy when there’s so much pizza to be eaten?” Sophia replies over her shoulder.
We’re walking down the hallway to the cafeteria, and I’m flanked by Joshua on one side and Clay on the other, with Sophia leading the way.
They’re talking about what they want to eat while I am all deep in thought, still mulling over the information we’ve gathered so far and planning our next moves.
As we round a corner, Taylor and Del Moro walk past us in the opposite direction. I can’t help but stiffen at the sight of them, my heart rate picking up.
Del Moro smirks slyly as he passes me, a malicious glint in his eye. “Surprised to see you still alive, Costa.”
Before I can react, Joshua sees red. He pins Del Moro to the wall behind him. “What did you just say, you piece of shit?” He snarls.
Del Moro struggles to get Joshua off him, and as he does so, the sleeve of his cop uniform slides up his arm a bit. My eyes widen as I catch a glimpse of a cross tattooed on his skin, identical to the one on the back of Roberto’s hand.
Clay steps in, pulling Joshua back with a firm grip. “Easy, man. It’s not worth it.”
Taylor guides Del Moro away, the second man shooting us a warning glance as they disappear down the hallway. Joshua is still seething, his chest heaving.
I reach out and touch his arm, trying to calm him down. “It’s okay. I’m fine.”
He shakes his head, his jaw clenched. “It’s not okay, Carolina. Didn’t you hear him? He knows about the accident.”
I nod, my mind racing.
The tattoo on Del Moro’s wrist is a connection to my uncle that I can’t ignore. I need to find out what it means and how deep this rabbit hole goes.