Chapter 18
18
After heading back in and popping on jeans and my Docs again, I ride behind Luis, Enzo, and Rio and chat with Santi. He tells me about the history of putting this place together, how they transformed old scrubland into pastures by having sheep for a while, and he regaled me with the story of the Derby winner he bred that led to people flocking to pay for a pop with his stallions. Rome certainly wasn’t built in a day.
He tells me about how it was really just stallions for a while and he offered pre-training for racehorses. When GhostEye got a big investor about a year ago, he was able to branch out and bought an existing sixty- acre training facility in a town next door. He’s very ambitious and glows when he speaks on the subject.
I guess Santi got his conversational skills from his dad, because Luis hasn’t stopped talking the whole time while Rio and Enzo listen, or don’t, for all I know. I tune out myself once in a while, taking in the sight of Enzo on a horse. His broad back is strong and tall, his neck is tanned, thick and sturdy. And who knew he had a cowboy hat? Rio wears one similar to Enzo’s, something quite fancy-looking, but Luis seems to be hanging on to a hat that’s from the same era as his rusty truck.
Enzo’s hips sway under the rolling movement of his horse. He’s so in command, so relaxed. As if feeling my gaze on his neck, he turns to glance at me. He’s not wearing his glasses right now, and God, is he one smoldering, sexy cowboy. A cowboy I’ll never have because I am absolutely not going to keep letting myself think of him this way, because whenever I do, a small part of me starts to chicken out of telling him about Father.
To top off putting this wonderful man and his family in danger, I like the way he looked at me last night. Him hearing my story might change that.
He nods as if to ask if I’m all right. I give a thumbs-up, and unfortunately that’s his cue to turn back to Luis’ animated symphony of everyday conversation.
The sun beams down on the pastures filled with horses with shiny coats and big appetites. Only one looks up from the morning grass I imagine is still dewy in the patches of shade where they munch. I smile to myself thinking how lucky I am to have landed in all of this. I never expected this much when I first plotted my escape in the library. That seems like years ago now, but it really wasn’t.
I thought falling in love takes a long time, but it took a mere moment for me to feel at home here. For Echo Valley to burrow into my heart. I can’t lose this. I really can’t. I glance at Enzo’s back again. Maybe I should tell him about the hacks when we get there? I don’t want him to be mad at me for keeping it longer than necessary.
Or is that just me being selfish? I could ruin Luis’ club just because my guts are starting to twist again. Patience, Ava, patience, I tell myself. In a few hours, Enzo and I will be one step closer to making progress on the hacks, and I’ll be one step closer to making sure Father can never find me again.
I need to start working on that goddamn birth certificate soon, because somehow, swooning over Enzo and worrying about getting caught are an ugly, inbred thought that likes to visit these days.
A guard lets us through a back gate that exits out onto trails through the foothills, but instead of heading deeper into the mountains, we ride through the bottom Valley. Santi tells me it’s the one the town is named for, Echo Valley.
It’s a magical place made of silence despite its name. Maybe that’s just it. Echoes don’t actually make a sound without another source. Until now, I’ve only ever been an echo. I’ve never had a voice. Finally, here, I’m finding mine.
We come to a fork in the trail and hitch a left toward town, eventually riding down a quiet street to Julia’s small pastures where we leave the horses to graze in one of her fields. I cannot believe this is their life. Horse rides into town. Pool parties. Spicy book clubs. This life is something else. I’m desperate for it to be mine, too.
We wander up the Main Street to the bookstore. Pages and Perks is at the end of a wide alley coming off the Main Street and is the epitome of a perfect California bookstore. There are shelves outside, which would never have worked in Oregon where it rains too much. The owner, James, put out one of those free-standing, hanging egg chair things and even a wooden-framed hammock.
An hour later we’re all inside. We’re all sitting in a circle of chairs where Luis is at the head next to Penelope and Callum. Plenty of people, all women apart from Callum, Arthur from Town Hall, and the Mendez boys, came to see what this new excitement was all about in the foothills of the Diablo Range. At first, Luis was visibly nervous moderating, and now I see just how special his sons are to come and support.
It’s clear Luis’ sons all came prepared to say something and read the book to inject the conversation in case other people didn’t. Of course, they possibly didn’t know there would be so many people show up from both Echo Valley and that Penelope is quite the smut enthusiast. There’s plenty of girlie chatter, and Luis, having attended a club in Starlight Canyon before, soon comes into his element.
We’re nearing the end of an hour full of serious topics as much as laughter, and Luis reaches into the fishbowl he put out at the start where everyone wrote down a question they wanted asked. He digs around as if there isn’t only one left, mixing up the one white piece of paper comically, while readers giggle until he finally snatches out the last question.
He opens the piece of paper and drops his head with a silent laugh, and his body quivers with amusement. When he comes up, his eyes are full of tears and he pinches the bridge of his nose.
He shakes his head and waves his hand like he just can’t bring himself to say the words. Luis coughs a couple of times, and somehow it slows his laughter. “I’ve been very brave today with my sons here.” He lifts the paper toward them. “You guys can’t come next time.”
Penelope takes the paper from his hands with a huge grin on her face. “Spit or swallow?”
The room laughs it off like a throwaway question.
My mind races to having Enzo’s dick in my mouth again.
Penelope darts her eyes to Callum and crumples the paper. “We’ll save that for next time when the Mendez boys fuck off, eh? Refreshments, anyone?”
The room is youthful and energized with drinks in hands and name tags on, and I figure now I won’t ruin Luis’ moment, so I glance around for Enzo.
The cowboy leans against a small slice of wall at the end of a bookshelf, drinking from a red plastic cup. Damn, I hate to destroy the relaxed country boy thing he has going on. I like this side of him. Equally as much as the other. But I think he’d want me to tell him. Maybe he’ll even be mad I didn’t tell him earlier.
“Hey…” I suddenly wonder what he thought of the spit-or-swallow question. I really need to get that out of my head.
“Hey.” He tips his cup toward the crowd. “Did you enjoy that?”
“Oh yeah… I mean…” I glance behind at the room full of people, all smiles, nibbling grapes. “How can you not? Think you’ll come again?”
He lets out a puff something like a laugh. “No.” He drinks. “But I might read the next in series.”
“Seriously?” I can’t tell if he’s joking. Enzo has never joked, that I know of. But I don’t wait for his answer, both because he won’t give me one and because even though I’ve already read book two and I’d love to tell him about it, there are bigger fish to fry.
“I need to talk to you about something. I tried to text and call you before we came.” I drop in the comment for context in case he’s likely to be annoyed with the delay. Maybe I misjudged that. Maybe he would have chosen this information over his dad’s book club.
A serious gaze lands on me. “My phone died, and we already had the horses tacked up.”
“It’s about work,” I keep my voice low. “I found more suspicious activity.”
He puts his cup down on a nearby shelf.
“It’s tracing to Mexico.”
“Near Ensenada again?”
There’s something strange about the lack of surprise, even for Enzo, and the way he says again .
“Yes.”
“Where exactly?” His energy is more urgent, but still not what I would have expected.
“Near San Carlos to the south, I think,” I say, squinting one eye. “I don’t remember the name of the town but obviously I have all the details at my house.”
He combs his fingers through his hair. “We need to get out of here.”
Why hasn’t he asked more first? “Wait… why did you assume it was in Ensenada?”
“Educated guess.”
Enzo’s jaw tics.
He’s lying to me.
Heat creeps up my neck. He’s keeping something from me. I try to mask my annoyance but I can’t believe he’d lie to me at this stage. I thought we were past that. I lean in closer to him. “Educated based on what?”
“The last hack was from near there…”
“So?” My words spit out through gritted teeth. “You didn’t ask me when the hack took place. You didn’t ask me if they wanted anything… you didn’t ask me about anything before assuming it was near Ensenada… what aren’t you telling me?”
He leans back to examine my expression. Judging from his, I’m not doing a good job masking my emotion or the fact that I think he’s lying.
And then, he pulls the mother of all triggers. He gives me a verbal pat on the head.
“You did a good job finding it.”
I cross my arms. “You’re going to patronize me as a deflection?”
I’m met with that classic Enzo silence, but this time it isn’t mysterious, it annoys the hell out of me.
My chest rumbles with thunder. “You really have to have all the control, don’t you?”
At that, I get a twitch of an eyebrow.
A deep breath nearly calms me down. Though we’re in a quiet corner, we’re also in public. But I’m not waiting until we ride back to the ranch to get to the bottom of this. I’m convinced now he already knew about the hack I found.
I ask, point blank. “Did you already know about the third hack?”
His mouth opens, but the no I’m looking for doesn’t manage its way off his tongue.
A humorless laugh escapes me. “Did you think I needed training wheels, Enzo? Is that it? Do you think I’m too young to make my way around your infrastructure without hand-holding? So you gave me a mock test since you already know the answer?”
That finally earns a response. “I know how competent you are.”
“Then why have me find out things you already know?”
My cheeks are burning. He has no idea what wasting days means to me right now. If Father is after me, he’s just gotten three steps closer while I went on a wild goose chase finding absolutely nothing of importance to this organization.
I know it’s my fault, Enzo would have understood the urgency in me proving my worth if I’d told him why I’m hiding out here. I never told him what I need, how desperately I want to be free, but I…
My heart crawls up my throat, and my neck gets tight. It’s not just worry over Father finding me. Maybe a part of me has been subconsciously avoiding telling Enzo who I am. Maybe I never realized how scared I am of how differently Enzo might think at me once he knows. I won’t be the mysterious, talented contest winner anymore. I won’t be the girl who still looks cute with hives on her back or the one who he wanted to save from the bottom of the pool. When he knows, I’ll be instantly more needy, broken, a trauma-ridden red flag not to be touched until after years of therapy.
Maybe a part of me trusted him days ago. Maybe I wanted a little power first. For once in my life, I wanted to call the shots, and giving first means I make the play. I control the game. But now, with nearly three more wasted days behind me, I’m angry with myself.
My throat strains to breathe through feelings of both anger and disappointment.
It’s too late to turn back and change things. I’ll deal with being accountable to myself later. Right now? I’m not leaving this conversation until Enzo confesses because he lied to me. I feel it in my bones.
I deserve the truth. I need to know if he thinks I deserve it, too.
“Well?” The word comes out sharp as a dagger. I don’t bother hiding the accusation in my tone .
“It’s complicated, Scottie…”
“Oh, now you think you can soften me up with that cute nickname? Who are you? Santi?”
Just then, Penelope puts her hand on my arm. “You two, okay?”
She darts her gaze to Enzo whose jaw is clenched.
She squeezes my tensed muscles. “Clearly not.”
Next thing I know, she’s ushering me and Enzo out of the room. “You two need to solve this somewhere else…” She opens a door, flicks on a light, and shoves us inside. “Have some privacy.”