Chapter Twenty Rinse And Repeat
Julianna
Valencia sat on the floor as she lamented, “O was no saint, Della. Believe me. I loved her, I admired her. But today…” Her voice cracked. “I found out the truth about her. When these people tell you about her, you’ll understand.” She peered up at Della. “I put you in that crypt so they would find you. I knew they were going to break into it. Deacon and I were going to leave the country and the Russians have already left. So, I did feel like the Descalias would take you in and you could have a better life.”
“That’s insane, V!” Della argued. “You put me in a crypt, so I could be saved?”
Romeo nodded at Valencia as he extended his hand out to help her up. “She has a point.”
“I was all out of ideas and Della refused to leave.” Valencia grabbed his hand and stood, but she wobbled on her feet.
He reached out to steady her.
“Can we untie her?” I asked as I looked over at Talon then at Stephano.
They didn’t immediately reply.
I know what they were thinking, but I just felt like it wasn’t right to keep her tied up.
“As much as I would like to,” Stephano spoke up. “I don’t think we can do that just yet.”
“I agree,” Talon said. “Up until we found out that she is your twin, this woman was doing a lot of damage. Her loyalty has to be to Deacon and O. At least until we know otherwise.”
“I hate him!” Valencia exclaimed.
“Maybe so, but we need to be sure about this,” Redemption finally spoke up. “O herself was very clever at playing games. Deacon learned that from her. Who’s to say that V isn’t a game player with lives as well?”
Valencia gasped. “This is not a game! I was lied to for my whole life. The only family I had…” She paused to shake her head. “...Fooled me. And they gave me a hate for people that didn’t deserve it.”
“Yes, but you also knew about some of her cruelty, didn’t you?” Glory accused. “You had to have seen some of it.”
“I did know that she was tough and she ruled her organization with a harshness. But really…” Valencia looked over at Stephano. “You can understand why she did that?” Referring to the fact that he ran a mafia.
He slowly nodded his head. “I can. However, this O, she went beyond organized crime, mia cara. She participated in borderline serial killings to be honest. Yes, there is a price for crossing the Familia, but to skin people alive? Have women tortured? Sell children as sex slaves? These are sins that I do not partake in. The Descalia Corporation does business, not mayhem and misery, perpetuated on innocents. At the end of the day? I must face my own family and God. I couldn’t have done what Ophelia did. It was pure madness and for all intents and purposes, she is in hell at this very moment, paying for those horrendous sins.”
Valencia gaped at him as she looked even paler than before. “S-skin people? T-that…” She looked a bit green now. Slowly shaking her head, she said, “I know that no one will probably believe me, but I never saw anyone tortured or killed. Deacon ruled tough as well. I did see that when one of our Russian captains allowed that Jewel woman to be hurt, Deacon had him beaten then sent him away. I wanted Deacon to return Jewel, he had no right to take her like he did. I didn’t understand why he did it. He said Mother instructed…” She shook her head. “I mean O told him to choose her as a wife?”
“See there, my dear?” Stephano urged. “You still feel like she was your parent and Deacon is your brother.”
“He killed that Russian, Valencia,” Talon stated with a growl. “Had him beaten to death, according to Jewel.”
“Also, were you aware that he had a man named Zed in his custody?” Glory asked as she broke her silence.
Valencia slowly shook her head. “No, I never knew….”
“Ms. Regatta, I think—”
“What did you call me?” Valencia asked with confusion in her eyes.
We all paused to stare at her.
This never occurred to me. Of course O never told her. “Your full name is Valencia Celene Regatta,” I informed her.
“T-that’s my name?” she stammered as she looked lost.
“What did you think it was?” I asked.
“Valencia Claire Walker.”
“Oh, wow,” I said as I shook my head.
“I didn’t even know my real name?” Valencia exclaimed.
“O couldn’t tell you your real name, I suppose?” Romeo suggested. “You were a stolen child. So she couldn’t have your last name known.”
“As I was saying,” Stephano continued. “Let’s take this a day at a time. Please cut her ties?”
A minute went by, then Glory stepped up and flipped a jackknife open.
Valencia gasped as she stared at the shimmering blade. After all, Glory had slapped her about a half hour ago.
Glory rolled her eyes at her terror and slipped the knife between her wrists to swiftly cut the ties. Then did the same at her ankles. Finally, she stepped back, still looking troubled as she flipped the knife closed and shoved it into her back pocket. “I hope you all aren't making a dangerous mistake here,” she spoke to the room in general.
With a groan, Valencia stretched her legs out and turned her ankles in a circle. Looking relieved to be free of the plastic ties.
“So we need to tread carefully until some time has gone by,” Stephano went back to what he’d been saying. “After all, you did have this man kidnapped and beaten.” He motioned to Jarret. “Then you laid bombs out to harm anyone who dared to rescue him.”
“Of course I did,” she replied. “Those men came there with weapons, right? They came to kill me perhaps. Kill my men and they did kill them. I lost…” Valencia paused and looked around at everyone in the room.
“You lost?” Talon asked her. “Or did Deacon and O’s crime syndicate lose?”
Valencia folded her hands in her lap and looked down at them. “I suppose I don’t care if I’m locked up.”
“Why would you say that?” I asked.
Looking up at me, she replied, “I-I think it’s going to take some time for me to get right?” She sighed. “Maybe Mr. Descalia and…” She looked up at Talon. “What is your name?”
Talon cocked his head at her and snapped, “You don’t know a Walker when you see one?”
She shook her head. “Why would I?”
“Deacon would,” Liv answered this. “He knew our faces, our pasts, our locations. Hell, he knew all about each of us.”
Shrugging, Valencia replied, “I suppose I never paid attention? He was always planning something. And until O was—” she halted then went on, “Until she died, I was at school in England. Then after she died, I came back to America and I was busy.”
“With what?” Redemption asked. “Or do we want to know?”
“Returning children and women to their homes that O had in custody,” Della spoke up.
We all looked over at her.
Nodding, Della admitted, “That was what I helped V with in the last couple of months since O died. There ended up being more than three hundred of them in two different locations. So it took us a while to get them all back to where they belonged. And do it so the families never knew who we were.”
Now we all looked over at my twin.
She still stared down at her lap.
I stepped over and placed my hand on her shoulder.
Looking up at me, tears filled her eyes as she admitted, “Ok, so I accidentally found out about them. Maddox came to me and asked about moving some people.”
“Maddox?” I asked her.
“Yes, he ran things for O, I guess? Two months ago, Deacon was gone for a week and so Maddox came to me. I was like… Move people? I didn’t get it. So, he and I drove to this huge warehouse…” Her voice fell away as her hands trembled. “Kids and women…They were in cages,” she whispered. “I just stood there and stared for a while. Then Maddox came over and asked me what I wanted done. He had some buyers, but he needed approval. I turned around and threw up. I just couldn’t believe…” She again started to sob.
I rubbed her shoulder and looked up at Talon, then at Stephano. “I don’t think she’s a criminal. I think she was taken from my family, just like those people in cages were taken from theirs. It was just lucky for her that she was chosen to be Deacon’s sister.”
“Mi dispiace mia cara, but you cannot be unbiased about this,” Stephano gently reminded me. “She is your sister after all.”
“Allora cosa farai con lei?” I asked in Italian so Valencia wouldn’t hear this question. Then what will you do with her?
“La terremo in una bella stanza. Magari chiedi a un terapista di vederla per un po',” We will keep her in a nice room. Perhaps have a therapist in to see her for a bit?
“L'italiano è una delle cinque lingue che conosco,” Valencia interjected. Italian is one of five languages I know.
Stephano stared at her for a few seconds then tilted his head back and laughed.
I stared at Valencia.
She gazed back at me and explained this surprise, “O sent me to college for years. I was away and only got to see her on holidays. So, I took language courses.”
I felt a deep curiosity about my long lost sister, so of course, I asked her, “And what else did you study?”
“I have a Master’s in Justice, a Bachelor’s in Science and a law degree.”
I blinked at her and said, “So do I.”
“What?” she asked, while looking confused.
“I have those same degrees,” I explained.
“Fascinating,” Stephano commented as he looked over at me. “I know all of Ms. Regatta’s accomplishments as I hired her to be my attorney. So, I know she speaks Italian, French—”
“German and Spanish,” Valencia cut in as she nodded.
“How can that be?” I asked in amazement. We knew the same languages?
“Twins?” Romeo suggested.
“Yeah,” Dante spoke up. “Twins can be connected in many ways.”
Romeo looked over at him to ask, “And how do you know about it?”
He shrugged. “There’s this thing called the internet, brother. You’ve heard of it, right?”
Romeo scoffed.
“So, I will be staying here?” Valencia asked.
“Si, my dear,” Stephano replied.
“But we also need a few things from you,” Talon spoke up.
Looking over at him, I asked, “Like what?”
“All of O’s hideouts,” Liv replied for him.
Talon nodded. “The number of men she and Deacon have left.”
“And their locations,” Jarret put his two cents in.
“And any prisoners he might be holding,” Redemption added.
“In other words, the whole shebang,” Glory said. “So if you aren’t a real player and know nothing about the evils of O or Deacon…”
“...You will prove it by handing over all the information we need,” Logan broke his silence.
I looked around at them all and asked, “So if she does all of that and goes through therapy, can she be freed?”
Stephano chuckled and said, “Ever the counselor. Making deals.”
“You don’t need her for that,” Della announced.
We all looked up to stare at her.
“I’ve been to at least a dozen hidden places with O and Deacon,” Della explained. “V…Valencia has only been to three, I think?”
Valencia nodded in agreement. “Like I said before, I was never here much before O died. Della has worked for her for a long time I think?”
Everyone now stared at Della.
She stared back then blinked as she started to look a bit nervous. “What?”
“So you know more than Valencia does about O and Deacon,” I stated the obvious.
“I suppose?” Della shrugged. “O took me in when I was sixteen. She also sent me to college for two years. I got a degree in business and accounting. So after I graduated, I did a lot of transactional tasks for her company, Periwinkle Incorporated. Like paying utilities, securing storage places. Managing bank transactions. Booking any reservations O needed. Looking for available property. You know, office duties.”
“And did you know about her nefarious activities?” Liv asked her.
“A little?”
“Like how much is a little?” Glory prodded.
Della looked uncomfortable. “I did see some things that scared me. Maddox told me to keep my mouth shut and never ask about her dealings unless it involved my duties. He said that would be better for my…um, health.”
“And yet you stayed?” Romeo asked her.
Shrugging, she said, “I was grateful to O for taking me in. I had no other family when my parents were killed. No one in her organization ever treated me badly. Until V had me put in that crypt.”
“And where would you be now if I hadn’t?” Valencia asked her.
Della shook her head.
“Alone, that’s where,” Valencia reiterated.
“Talon,” Logan called to him.
Talon stood from his chair and walked over to the table.
Logan pointed at his laptop screen.
Leaning in, Talon looked closer.
We all waited.
Raising his head, Talon turned to stare at Della.
She stared back at him.
Looking over at Valencia, Talon asked, “Did you know that Della is a Walker?”
I paused. In fact, everyone in the room halted at this shocking claim.
“What?” V asked as she looked surprised.
Glory hurried over to the table with the laptop.
Liv and Redemption did the same. They all looked at the screen now.
“What are you talking about?” Jarret asked Talon.
“According to what Ace found, Della’s grandmother is our Aunt Gracie,” Talon replied.
“Wait, wait,” Jarret cut in. “Gracie? Well, fuck. She left Louisiana when I was a kid.”
We all stared at Della again.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Della replied. “My name is Della Granger.”
“So you never knew about your grandmother?”
She shook her head. “My parents never spoke about any family. When I asked, my mom had said that there was some falling out and she told me to just leave it alone. I never met any family. So when my parents died, I had no one.”
Glory looked over at Jarret and asked, “Do you know anything about this fallout?”
He shook his head. “No one ever talked about it.”
“So, O killed them because they were Walkers,” I reasoned. “But she spared Della.”
Della looked stricken. “You are all saying that O killed them then lied to me? All while I was always so grateful to her for taking me in?” Her voice rose.
“Apparently that was her pattern,” Valencia growled. “Kill, lie, cheat and scheme.”
“Then rinse and repeat,” Glory added as she nodded.