Chapter 35 #2
“I’m glad you told him, mija. He needed to know.
” My dad looks to me. “Max, I’ve known Carlos for a very long time, so did your mother.
I didn’t know Carlos had been training you since you were sixteen.
Not until I saw you on TV, when they announced your fight during the interview, and they mentioned Carlos.
I had thought he adopted you. Of course, I was drunk and didn’t know what to do about it.
I thought he was okay, a blowhard but not a bad man, and I was happy you had someone to look out for you.
” He points to Sol. “She told me what he’s said to her. ”
It feels like the air has been knocked out of me. Carlos never mentioned knowing my dad. On the other hand, he acted as if he knew nothing about my past.
“Tell me everything.”
He starts by informing me who Luis Gonzalez and Oscar Cano are. “It’s on me, Max. You were too young to know any of this. And, well…” He sighs. “I let them take you from me. I didn’t care for you as a father should have, and I led you into the hands of a monster.”
Carlos was in love with my mom? What the fuck?
He continues.
“I stopped fighting because it was important to your mom. She grew up in the world of boxing.”
I frown. I didn’t know this. I was too young to understand and remember any of it when she passed.
“Your grandfather on your mother’s side, Luis, was a sought-after boxer, and your great-grandfather on my side as well.”
“I know who they are. I just…didn’t know I was related to them.”
“Of course you didn’t.”
My fingers press into my face, dragging my hands upward.
Blood pulses rushing to my ears, drowning everything but the need to connect my fist to Carlos’s face.
My respect went out the door when I watched those videos of him praising Annette for messing with my phone and meddling in my and Sol’s lives. But now…I’m out for blood.
“Carlos sees you as a money pit. It’s in your genes, Max. After all, you ended up at the boxing gym that belonged to him.”
“What I don’t understand is why in the hell he’s been pushing Sol away and threatening her?”
“Because after what happened to your grandfather, your mom was terrified of something happening to me. Boxing was a sport I loved, but not a career choice for me. Sure, if I wanted to pursue a career in it, your mom would have supported me. But I knew deep down she was terrified, and she meant more to me, so I stopped amateur fights. Carlos is afraid Sol would have you quit fighting, and he would lose you as his meal ticket. Now, the stuck-up brat of Annette would have been a perfect match in the eyes of Carlos and her dad, Rico. She’s a skilled fighter, and when they revealed your family history, the media and fans would go crazy.
” He pauses. “And you’re Marabel’s son. Maybe in his mind, he wanted something that belonged to her. You. To feel he had a son with her.”
Luis Gonzalez and Oscar Cano are boxers who made history, but honestly, I never researched them.
“Wait…so Carlos and Rico know each other?” Rico had asked me about Carlos years ago. He failed to mention that they had met years prior. No wonder he handed Annette over for Carlos to train.
“They were never friends that I know of, but they had met back in Tahoe,” my dad says, sitting on the sofa, ankles crossed. “When Annette moved to Vegas to train with Carlos, I knew it wasn’t a coincidence.”
He’s right.
A rumble of anger vibrates within me. I stand and peer out the window, running fingers through my hair. Today was a day to celebrate with my girl, finding out the gender of our kids, not one but two, and now I have to deal with this asshole. I can’t sit and ignore it.
“Anything else?” I look at my girl.
She shakes her head. “No, not that I can think of. Max, I hope you’re not mad… At the gym, I realized something was off with you, and I didn’t want Carlos to come after me and blame me.”
She didn’t want Carlos to hurt her. I would have never thought he would hurt anyone, but now? My dad warned me at the rehab center. Drake and Xander also hate him. I ignored it. I thought Carlos showed up for me. I was wrong.
“You did nothing wrong. Yes, I wish you had told me sooner, but I understand why. It all started with him taking advantage of your state of mind. You were going through a lot. Your memory had just awoken. He did it on purpose when you were at your weakest. Then you found out you were pregnant. You did what a mother would do. Protect their child.” I kneel beside her.
“I will not let anything happen to you and our babies. I promise.”
She clears her throat. “I know, Max.”
Our legs brush as I sit beside her. I take her trembling hand in mine. “I’ve had Carlos followed.”
They both look at me, eyes wide.
I drag my hands down my face, trying to contain my anger.
“When I found out someone had tampered with my phone, I immediately suspected who it might be. Since I always leave my belongings in Carlos’s office, and Annette frequently goes in there, I decided to check the security footage.
” I pause, my jaw tightening. “Sure enough, there she was—not once, but twice. What really disturbed me was seeing Carlos enter while she was showing him my phone. They both laughed. I knew they were plotting something together. I just couldn’t figure out what.
” I shake my head. “I’m still trying to figure it out.
Johnny came back with info. Now, this part is confusing me. ”
“What is it?” Sol asks with a slight tremble in her voice.
“He has photos of Carlos and Daniel having dinner at one of the casino restaurants and another with a woman on his lap at the strip club Daniel owns. Then at the fight the other night, I’m certain it was him I saw. Is he planning something with him?”
“Maybe he’s working with him like my dad was,” Sol suggests.
“Possible, but in what way?” I ask.
All three of us stay silent. I’m trying to soak it all up. Carlos’s betrayal is a hammer to the chest. Since the day I met Carlos, he has been someone I looked up to. I thought he was a good man. Turns out the puto was using me from the beginning.
“I feel for Nessa, but she also wanted me to leave you. The night of my win, she told me that. I’m not sure if she knows of the other women or if Carlos manipulated her.”
Just when I was about to say poor Nessa… Now I don’t know what to think of her.
“I’m sorry, I thought they were people I could trust. I was blinded… I latched onto whoever would show up.” I avert my gaze to my feet. “I hate to admit it, but I was desperate for a parental figure in my life at the time.”
Sol tightens her grip on mine. My father looks at the floor. It was the truth. I longed for the attention of parental love. I’m sure once Carlos figured out who I was, he took it as an advantage.
Sol laces her hands in mine. “You have nothing to be sorry for, Max.”
“I do. I should have paid more attention when he kept pushing me away from you with his shitty advice. And now I’ve put you and the babies in danger.”
“Babies?” My dad’s eyes widen with a glint in them.
Sol giggles. “Yes, Hector. We found out today we are having twins, a boy and a girl.”
“Congratulations. This news is the best yet.” His smile is pure joy, and it eases my heart for a split second.
“Thank you.” Sol’s soft voice seeps into my heart as I stand and send a quick text to Johnny and Gary. I need them to give me Carlos’s location and one to come to the house to watch over Sol and my dad.
Gary replies with the gym’s location, and Johnny sends me a quick text that he’ll be on his way when he drops his wife and kids off. I shove my wallet into my back pocket and grab my keys.
Sol’s pretty face goes frantic. “Max, where are you going…? No. No. Please, Max, don’t go.” She runs to me and wraps her soft hand around me, laying her head on my chest. If I can hear the thunder of anger beating in my chest, I know she can.
Lifting her face to meet mine, I run my knuckles on her face. “I need to do this. No one threatens you. No one threatens to hurt our kids and friends. Our family. Carlos betrayed, used, and lied to me. I’ll be back soon.”
She searches my face. “Come back to me.”
I brush my lips on hers. “I will… Always.”
“You stay here, and when I’m done with Carlos, I’ll pick up Leo. Stay put, Soledad. I. Fucking. Mean. It.”
“Ugh. Okay…be careful.”
Waving my dad to follow me, I open the door. “Do you want forgiveness and for us to repair our relationship?”
He frantically nods his head. “Of course, Max, I would want nothing more than to be accepted as part of your life and your family’s life. I understand it will take you some time to forgive me. I’ll do anything to earn a spot in your heart as your father.”
“Then do this for me.” I point to Sol. “Watch her. Make sure she’s safe. She means the world to me. Living a life without her isn’t possible. I understand now how you’ve always felt without Mom… You didn’t know how to function in a life without Mom, and you lost yourself.”
My dad looks at me. “I drowned in sorrow. It’s no excuse to lose you—”
I squeeze his shoulder. “It’s okay, Pops. Just keep her safe for me.”
“I will.” He looks over his shoulder at Sol, then whispers to me, “You shouldn’t go alone. Take one of the guys. I don’t trust Carlos,” he says in our native tongue.
“I can handle him.”
He nods. “Cuidado.”
The Nova rumbles in the quiet evening, its engine’s throaty growl vibrating through the floor and up my spine. My knuckles whiten as I grip the polished steering wheel. My blood pumps hot acid through my veins, each heartbeat a thunderclap of rage and fury behind my eyes.