Chapter 22
Catalina had spent all afternoon at her flat, first changing into clean clothes, then having a sandwich, before she tidied up. As so often, she leafed through the court documents, refreshing her memory of everything the Prestons had claimed in order to show Santiago in the worst possible light.
It was almost sunset when her cell phone rang. It was a number she didn’t recognize, but she answered it anyway, just in case it was important.
“Hello?”
“Catalina, it’s me.” It was her brother’s voice.
“Santiago? Where are you calling from?” This wasn’t the usual call from a prison phone.
He lowered his voice. “One of the other inmates gave me a cell phone to use.”
“Oh my God, that’s illegal. If you get caught—”
“I won’t,” he interrupted, whispering now. “Listen. One of the inmates told me I’m now under his protection. He’s huge, and everybody makes a wide berth around him. I don’t understand what’s happening. What if he wants something in return?”
“Oh my God,” Catalina said, worry rising inside her.
She knew exactly what Santiago was worried about. Everybody knew what happened to good-looking young guys in prison. Why could Santiago not catch a break? She had to help him somehow.
“I’ll talk to Benjamin. He knows people working for the police. Maybe they can talk to the guards.”
“I’m scared, Lina,” he whispered, using the nickname he’d given her when he was a little boy. “Every day, something awful happens in here.”
She could feel how close he was to tears, and she had to fight her own tears from overwhelming her. She had to be strong for both of them.
“I’ll take care of it, Santiago, I promise you. I’ll fix this.”
How, she didn’t know. But she had to do something. She hated the fact that she had to ask Benjamin for another favor when he was already doing so much. But she couldn’t let her brother get hurt even more.
“I love you, sis.”
“I love you too,” she murmured, before the call was disconnected.
What if Benjamin couldn’t help her with this? What if his friends at the police had no influence over what happened at the prison?
She dropped down on a chair and put her head into her hands. It was time to admit it to herself: she’d been in over her head from the start. It was a wonder nothing terrible had happened to her yet.
A loud knock at the door startled her, making her jump up from her chair.
She rushed to the door and looked through the peephole.
The man standing outside her door looked familiar, yet she knew he was a stranger.
His black hair reached his shoulders, and his blue eyes stared straight at her as if he knew she was looking at him through the peephole.
“I’m Benjamin’s father. I need to talk to you.”
His voice was booming, sending an odd shiver down her spine. Catalina hesitated. The man had to be lying. He couldn’t be Benjamin’s father. By her estimate, he couldn’t be older than forty, and she knew that Benjamin was thirty-seven.
“Open the door,” the man demanded.
There was something compelling in his command, almost beseeching, and against her better judgment, she unlocked the door and opened it. She stepped aside to let him enter, and he strode in. She watched as he cast a quick glance around the room before he faced her.
“So you’re Catalina Vargas,” he started, looking her up and down as if inspecting her, and she didn’t pass muster.
“Yes,” she managed to say. “Mr. LeSang?”
He raised an eyebrow. “That sounded like a question. Let me assure you I’m Benjamin’s father, and I’m older than I look. I believe you met my wife, Nina.”
She nodded. Nina had seemed a lot nicer than this man, but there was no denying that he and Benjamin had a very strong physical resemblance.
“Mr. LeSang, what’s the reason for your visit?” She felt her voice tremble.
“Coming straight to the point. Good.” He gave a nod before continuing, “What nefarious plans are you dragging my son into?”
She swallowed hard, her mouth dry all of a sudden.
“I’m not… he offered to help me—”
“By brushing under the rug that you broke into the Prestons’ bedroom to steal from them?”
How did he know about this? Had Benjamin told his father, if this was indeed his father?
“I didn’t steal anything—”
“Because he stopped you! And now he’s risking his and Scanguards’ reputation to hide what you’ve done.”
Tears welled up in her eyes. “I didn’t mean to.” She sniffled and lowered her gaze. “All I wanted was to prove that Santiago was framed by the Prestons. I never intended—”
“Santiago?”
He grabbed her forearm, forcing her to look straight at him. An expression of comprehension washed over his face.
“Santiago Vargas, who was convicted of burglarizing the Prestons’ home?” His eyes suddenly narrowed with suspicion. “Who is he to you?”
“My brother,” she choked out.
“And you’re using Benjamin to do what? Take revenge on the Prestons?”
“No!” She shook off his hand. “It’s not about revenge. It’s about justice.”
He scoffed. “Whatever you wanna call it, you’re using my son to do your dirty work.
Do you have any idea what he’s already risked for you?
And what for? Sex? And once it’s clear that he can’t do anything for your brother?
What then? You’ll turn your back on him and look for somebody else who tells you he can help your brother? Is that it?”
His accusations riled her up. Her chest was heaving, and she was trying to find the strength to push back on his cruel words.
“You probably even staged your chance meeting with Benjamin. You played the vulnerable pretty girl he wouldn’t be able to resist helping!”
“That’s not true,” she shot back, finally finding her voice again.
“I did nothing of the sort! I never expected to meet a man as good as Benjamin, somebody who had honor and compassion. Somebody with a big heart. And I certainly didn’t plan to fall in love with him.
But I did. And I wish I didn’t have to accept his help, so that I could just be a normal girlfriend.
But just because I accepted his help to clear my brother’s name doesn’t mean that my feelings for him aren’t real.
I love him, and there’s nothing you nor anybody else can do about it. ”
Benjamin’s father stared at her, and silence descended around them. A few seconds passed.
“I see,” he said with a nod, his expression unreadable. “I hope you know what you’re doing. Benjamin is no ordinary man. If you play with his feelings, he will lash out.”
She wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but it was definitely a warning. Did he think that she was lying to him? Was he just a father who wanted to protect his son, or was there more behind his words?
“What are you saying?”
He took a step closer, and again, she felt as if she were in his thrall. It was the oddest feeling she’d ever had. As if with his words alone he could compel her to do anything he wanted. His eyes pinned her, and she couldn’t look away.
“You hurt my son, and I’ll be back. Do you understand?”
She swallowed the lump in her throat, while a cold shiver ran down her spine. This was how mobsters talked.
All of a sudden, the sound of creaking hinges reached her ears, and she clung to it like to a life raft.