Page 84 of The Complete Truth Duet
“Marcos found me that time,” I whispered when she settled again. It was like I’d opened the floodgates. The truth wouldn’t stop pouring out of me. “They hated me, but they couldn’t let me go because they needed to hate me. It was an enemy of Dante’s who killed Nic. He’d pissed some people off, so they came for his family. Dante blames himself and takes every bit of that self-loathing out on me. After she was born, I tried to leave, but he made sure I ended up in jail instead.
“After I got out of lockup, I was just so thankful to have my daughter back that it didn’t seem worth trying to escape again. I started running the building and settled in for what I hoped would be a decent life for the two of us. But Dante never let me breathe easy. It was way worse back then too. It was rare for a week to go by without him stopping in to take his anger out on me. I tried running two more times. The first landed me in the hospital for a week. The second in jail on another drug charge.” I twisted my lips and mumbled, “Strike two. But that wasn’t the worst of it. While I was there, Manuel used his good old son-in-law, Thomas Lyons, to have me labeled as an unfit parent in the eyes of the law. I lost custody of River to Manuel.”
Penn shot to his feet, his face contorted by a snarl. “How is that even possible?”
“Shhh. Keep it down,” I scolded, but River didn’t budge.
He lowered his voice, but not his anger. “You’re telling me a judge awarded a criminal custody of a child?”
I leaned forward and hissed, “I was the criminal, Penn. I was the one who tried to get away. I was the one who failed her.”
“That’s a load of shit. I didn’t even know she was yours and I still knew you were a good mom.”
“Not good enough, though. After that, I was literally stuck. I couldn’t turn to the cops. My only saving grace was that Manuel didn’t actually want River. He gave her back to me on the condition that I shut up and do my job. If I stepped out of line, he took her from me. Maybe for a day. Once, I didn’t see her for a month. During that time, I didn’t know what they were doing to her. I didn’t know if she was safe. I had no options, Penn. It was a cruel game that she and I both paid for until finally I stopped trying.” Straightening my back, I looked him right in the eye. “That doesn’t mean I gave up. That doesn’t mean I accepted this life for her or for me. I just needed some time to figure it out. And Catalina gave that to me.”
He gave my leg an urging squeeze. “What do you mean?”
“Thomas asked her to testify against her father. And she did. Manuel went to jail. Marcos took over. He has no interest in River whatsoever. So I managed to get custody back.”
He arched an eyebrow. “I thought Thomas and Manuel were partners.”
“They were. Back in the day, they were unstoppable. Manuel would feed Thomas intel on the drugs and prostitutes in the community. In turn, Thomas would take down the Guerreros’ competition while earning himself a solid conviction for his record.”
“So what changed that?”
I scoffed. “Power trip. Both of them were riding it high. Manuel thought he was running the show. Thomas disagreed. River told me that Thomas started catching some heat and Manuel didn’t feel like helping him out. They quit being partners and Thomas won.”
Penn suddenly shot to his feet like the bed had been electrified. “What did you say?” he gasped with wild eyes.
“Um…Thomas won.”
Intertwining his fingers, he locked them on the top of his head. “Because the Guerreros don’t take orders from anyone. But Isabel is a Lyons, not a Guerrero.”
I eyed him warily and drawled, “Riiight.”
He started to pace, his eyes flashing around the room without actually landing on anything. “When did this happen? When did Manuel and Thomas stop working together?”
“I don’t know. Why?”
He spun to face me. “Cora, think!”
My head snapped back at his rough tone, but his face was nothing but a plea.
“I…um… Cat’s been gone for three years now, and that was after the trial. So maybe four, five years ago. Why? What the hell is going on?”
His eyes fluttered shut, his head fell back between his shoulders, and his whole muscle-covered body sagged in a way I’d never seen before. It was like a weight had not only been lifted from his shoulders, but from every cell, right down to his DNA.
I gently guided River off my lap and made my way over to him. Resting my hands on his stomach, I asked, “What is going on? Talk to me.”
