Chapter 45 Silas
Adrian: She’s still alive.
Silas: Keep her that way.
Adrian: You’re welcome.
Silas: Fuck you.
We’re no closer to finding Lucia than we were a day ago. Rosie and Maikel are staying in the penthouse with our mom and Olivia. They can’t remember much, just that it was a man on a motorcycle who came in the middle of the night and took Lucia. Lucia hadn’t even been with Claudia for a full day.
I walk into the suite and find Thalia lying on the bed, where Alma rubs her hair. My heart breaks at the sight of her. She’s curled up in a ball, Guapo tucked in next to her.
“Ariella and Genesis are missing,” Alma says in a whisper. I look down at the paper in Thalia’s hand. Her face is blank.
“They took her,” Thalia cries. “They took Ariella, too.”
“She’s gonna be alright,” Alma says, reassuring her, and I move to grab the note.
I look at Thalia. Her eyes are glossed over. She stares at me with a blank expression before anger replaces it. She pushes herself off the bed and stands up.
“Find my daughter!” she yells. She pushes me, and I let her.
“Find my fucking daughter, Silas! Find her, then leave us alone!”
She hits my chest, and her fists slam hard into me. I push myself forward and she goes to strike again, but I grab her hand and push her into the wall behind her.
“You want to hit me, hit me,” I say, staring into the volcanoes in her eyes. Thalia will crumble to her rage if it means she can mask her pain. Alma moves to the front of the room, her eyes wide as she stares between us. I stare down at Thalia, and she looks away.
“I’m on the verge of breaking, too, Thalia. I didn’t even know I had a daughter, and then the same day I get to meet her, she’s gone.” She softens in my grip, and her sad eyes stare into mine.
“I’m angry, and I’m sad. I’m worried that was the first time and last time I’ll see her,” I confess. I’m worried that the way my story played out with Thalia will be the way it will play out with Lucia. A mere day was my only chance to know her. I release Thalia’s arm, and she drops to the floor, letting out a sigh.
“They took my baby. They took Lucia, and now they have Ariella and Genesis,” she cries. I grab her and hold her tight. I comfort her there until I register the last thing she said.
“Genesis,” I murmur.
I never met the girl, but I know her name. I know her name very well. Genesis Fernandez. Cassiel’s hidden obsession. Not just his obsession, but also his one and only weakness. It wouldn’t be the first time Cassiel used someone else’s hardship to his benefit. That is his modus operandi, using others to get what he wants.
“They went missing this morning,” Alma says, moving back toward us. “Adan found footage of them leaving in the car, but it was found stranded on the side of the highway.” I pull out my phone and text Cassiel.
Silas: Your little friend is missing.
Cassiel: I have a lot of friends. You’ll have to be more specific.
Silas: Whatever you’re up to, Cassiel, if my daughter is involved with any of your sick plans, I will kill you.
Cassiel: Lucia is fine.
This motherfucker. I pace the room and grit my teeth. Thalia pulls herself from the ground and looks up at me.
“What is it?” she asks. I don’t have the heart to tell her my suspicions. I don’t get the chance to even mention it before Osiel rushes through the door.
“What?” Thalia rushes toward him. I hate how much she trusts the goofy fuck.
“We found them,” Osiel says.
“What? Where is she? Is she okay?” Thalia says.
“Thalia. It’s—it’s something else.” Osiel scratches the back of his neck, and Thalia’s face pales at the worry in his voice. I pull her back to me.
“What happened?” I ask.
“That’s the fucking crazy part. There’s not a hair out of place. Not a bruise. Nothing. Mireya’s going to do a thorough examination. But—” He shakes his head. “Lucia is convinced this was the best weekend of her life.” What the fuck .
“What? What do you mean?” Thalia’s voice is shaky, and I feel sick to my stomach.
“I’m not sure what to believe, but she is saying some crazy shit. You might want to call your therapist.” Osiel blinks a few times and shakes his head.
Thalia and I stand frozen in place. What the hell would convince a six-year-old that a kidnapping was the best weekend of her life? Osiel leads us to room 376, where we find Olivia waiting outside. She runs to comfort Thalia.
“She’s okay. Ariella found her,” she says as Thalia crashes into her. I rush into the hotel room to find Lucia is sitting on the couch watching TV and hugging a stuffed dog.
“Lucia.” My voice cracks, and I rush toward her.
I keep Lucia in my embrace. She is unaware of the situation. If Osiel is right, then she is delusional about even being kidnapped. I hug her tight before pulling her away to scan her. Not a single bruise. Not a single scratch.
“Are you okay?” I ask. She nods, and her little brows bunch together.
“Why is everyone crying?” Her brows bunch together.
“We didn’t know where you were. What happened?” Thalia asks. Her voice is calm, but the same puzzled look is plastered to her face. Lucia pauses her YouTube show and lets out a dramatic sigh.
“I was with Ariella at the park and a lady came up and asked me to help her find her dog. I got in a big car with her, and she made me put a sack over my head. Then I met Rosie and Maikel, and they said the lady was really bad. I was crying, and Rosie gave me a hug. I fell asleep, and when I woke up, Tio Cass was there to rescue me.” Thalia’s eyes widen at the name and anger boils in me. I will kill that motherfucker with my bare hands for this.
Thalia
The more Lucia tells us about her weekend getaway, the more I want to scream. Stranger Danger is obviously out the window at this point. Maybe she needs to watch more horror movies with me. She should be more concerned about her own safety than this.
“He said I could have ice cream for dinner, and we watched Encanto six times!” She doesn’t stop talking about her tio Cass. On and on she goes about every little detail. His jokes, his cool motorcycle, and all the shit he bought her. She had been here, hiding in plain sight. Toys are scattered across the hotel room.
Ariella shifts uncomfortably in the kitchen. I let Lucia continue her story to Silas and make my way to Ariella.
“What happened?” I whisper, and she stares out into the blank space.
“I had a hood over my head. I-I didn’t know where they were taking me, then I came in, and she was just sitting there,” Ariella says, staring at Lucia.
“She was just here. Like this. Like nothing happened.” She sighs, and I nod. The more we listen to Lucia’s encounter, the more we realize that Cassiel really didn’t hurt her. He didn’t scare her or even tell her anything about Claudia’s motives.
As far as Lucia was concerned, he was family, and she was safe. The whole situation makes me uneasy and yet, in a strange way, I am grateful that he found her and grateful that Claudia didn’t hurt her.
“He took Gen,” Ariella says, her voice shaking. Lucia looks up at us at Gen’s name.
“Oh, yeah. I forgot. Tio Cass told me he was going to find Gen. He was going to rescue her like you did my mom,” she says, turning to Silas.
The gravity of the situation becomes clear. He had used this situation to benefit his own motives, but what could he possibly want with Gen? Wait. Did Lucia just call me Mom? I’m overcome with emotions. I move toward Lucia and bring her into my arms. I squeeze her tightly.
I had been there when she said her first words: Go, no, Luca. I listened when she started to form sentences and name the people around her. When she said Mom for the first time, it wasn’t for me. It was for Olivia. Every time she said it after that, I answered her requests as if she were talking to me. Olivia caught on to it, but she never said anything. I can’t help but smile. A short-lived smile that fades when I look at Ariella’s face.
“Hey. Come here. Don’t cry.” I reach out and pull her into a hug with us. The three of us on the floor hugging.
“We’ll find Gen. I promise,” I say to Ariella.
“Tio Cass will be nice to her,” Lucia says.
We release our embrace and let Lucia drag on with her stories before I walk with Ariella back to her house. I help her take a shower and tuck her in with Guapo. I rub her head until she falls asleep, then shut off the lights. When I go to leave, I run into Nero outside her room.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I ask.
“I was told to make sure she’s okay,” he says.
He doesn’t look at me. He just stands there in his suit with his hands crossed in front of him. When I get back to the penthouse, everyone is sound asleep. Rosalinda, Maikel, and Josefina all lay together in the back room. Tomorrow, they would take off to Arizona and start their own journey to healing.
Silas lays stretched out on my bed next to Lucia. They are both fast asleep, looking identical with their jet-black hair, long lashes, and mouths hanging open. I let out a small laugh when I see all the butterfly clips in Silas’s hair. I pull out my phone and snap a picture. He groans at the flash, then looks up with drowsy eyes.
“Diablita. What are you doing?” He pulls me on top of him and closes his eyes again.
“Silas,” I protest and push off him. I take them in. Mi familia. My family. Silas sits up and slowly removes each of the colorful clips. He leaves his hair loose, and I desperately want to run my fingers through the strands.
“What’s wrong?” he asks.
“Nothing. I’m just… I’m just glad Cassiel didn’t hurt her,” I confess.
“Cass is a lot of things, but I couldn’t see him hurting a child,” he says.
“Cass?!” My eyes narrow on him, and he lets out a sigh.
“You know him,” he says.
“Yes. I know of him. Psycho half-brother who killed Mireya’s mom. How do you know him?” I push up off of Silas and cross my arms.
“No. You know him,” Silas says. I watch as he drags his hand over his face.
“I don’t know who he is personally. Not enough to call him ‘Cass’ or make the assumption that he would never hurt a child,” I say, making sure to emphasize the nickname Silas had used. It was the same thing Lucia had called him. Tio Cass. A name I assumed only those close to him used.
“Leather Face,” Silas says, holding up a hand. Leather Face? My jaw drops at Silas’s confession.
“That scary fucker? With the scar? That’s Cassiel? That is our daughter’s hero?” I whisper yell, trying not to wake her.
“Like I said, he’s fucking crazy, but he’d never hurt a child,” Silas says.
“What did he want with Genesis?” I ask.
Conejo called Aurelio and let him know that Genesis had been dropped off at Conejo’s ranch a few hours ago. She hadn’t said a word to anyone about what happened. Mireya was going over there and would check in on her.
“I don’t know what exactly he wants from her, but I do know it’s not something you want to get in the way of,” he warns.
I don’t try to argue with him. I’m too exhausted to fight, and I’m learning to pick my battles. These two people right here are all I need to concern myself with. I can’t take on the weight of the world.
Silas’s scoots Lucia and the twenty Squishmallows Cassiel had bought her to the center of the bed. I move to the empty space beside her and lie down next to them. Silas and I stare at each other from opposite sides of her. I smile at him. For the first time ever, I feel completely whole. I don’t want to be anywhere but with the two of them.
“How are we going to make this work, Silas?” I whisper into the silence.
“Stop.” His jaw clenches. “Don’t start the same shit of convincing yourself that you deserve less. We deserve to be happy, Thalia. We deserve to have our family together.”
I hate the way I need him to reassure me. It all feels like a dream, something I prayed for and never expected to come true.
“How will we make this work? I can’t just leave my family. Luca can’t be without her. Where will we live?” I vomit out all the questions keeping me from sleep. Silas reaches over Lucia to find my hand.
“We can go wherever you want. I don’t care as long as I’m with you. You and Lucia are my family,” he says.
My heart catches in my throat. I know where I want to be. I know more than anything that I want that damn black picket fence dream. I don’t care where—Houston, Arizona, Tamaulipas, anywhere in the world with him. He had been the past I was running from, and now he is the only future I can see myself running toward.