Page 27 of Savage Devil
I shove to my feet and lean over the crib railing, giving Luis one last look. “I’ll be back later, little man.” I tell him, tracing a finger along his cheek. He’s so small. Fragile. Looking at him brings home the fact that my entire world is about to flip upside down right now.
I head for the door, leaving Bibiana undisturbed on her bed. She said I could see him tomorrow. Well, technically today. But I need a few hours of sleep and a shower before I’ll be in any sort of shape to meet my little boy.
I jog down the stairs, grabbing Dominique’s keys along the way and head straight for my place. My mind is roiling and my stomach is twisted into knots. I want to call Roman, but I know he’s got his hands full with Allie’s shit right now, and she needs him more than I do. And isn’t that a fucking plot twist. Bibiana’s what? Stepdad, or whatever he is to her, is one of the sons of bitches who raped Allie.
My blood boils as an entirely different sort of anger thrums through my veins. I need to do something. Hit something or someone. I slam my palm against the steering wheel and scream out my frustrations. What the hell am I going to do?
Bibiana seems onboard with me being in his life, but that could be the adrenaline of the night’s events talking. A lot has happened. What if she wakes up in the morning and changes her mind? What if she decides I’m not good enough? Or fuck, worse, what if she takes off again? She might. She’s done it before and with her mom taking that asshole’s side. What if—
Shit. I still don’t have the girl’s fucking number.
I’m about to turn around and go back when my phone pings with the sound of an incoming text message.
Allie: Are you okay?
I pull over to the side of the road and stare down at the illuminated screen.
Me: I should be asking you that. You good, vanilla?
I take a deep breath through my nose and exhale loudly through my mouth as I wait for her response. I can’t even imagine what she’s going through right now, and the fact that she’s still worried about me… I hang my head. She’s too much. Too good. This is why we all liked her when she transferred in. She’s not like other women. She isn’t selfish. She’s there when you need her. The girl is the strongest person I know.
Allie: I’m ok. Dom told me what happened. I didn’t know.
Even if she did, I could never be mad at her. Allie is…I don’t know. She’s my friend. But she’s more. Like a sister but not. I don’t know how to describe it. What I do know is that she never gives up. She puts everyone else’s needs before her own. But this time, she needs to put herself first. She doesn’t need my shit. I love her for it. But I’m gonna figure this out. I don’t want her worrying about me when she has her own mess to handle.
Me: Not your fault. Get some sleep. We can talk about it later. You have enough on your plate.
Allie: It’s going to be okay. Love you, E.
Me: You too, vanilla.
I pull back on the road and go straight home, pausing in the driveway at the sight of Raul’s beat up Civic. Shit. I do not have time for this right now. I climb out of the car and head for the door, only then spotting that it’s standing slightly ajar. Fuck me.
I take a deep breath and push it open. A broken bottle sits discarded in the entryway. I listen, but don’t hear anything. No voices. No footsteps. I creep through the house, careful to keep my steps quiet. Where the hell is my Antonio? Where’s Sofia?
One of my questions is answered when I find my brother passed out on the living room floor, dried blood beneath his nose and mouth. Fuck. I drop down to my knees and check for a pulse. It’s steady. He’s just knocked out. I shake his shoulders and he stirs with a start.
“What the—”
“Where’s Sofia?” My heart races as I scan the room for our little sister.
He groans and I know his head has got to be killing him. I help him into a sitting position. “The bastard took me by surprise.”
I clench my jaw because that’s what he always does. You never know when or if he’s going to swing. There’s no way to read Raul. One second, he’s fine and the next he’s in a manic rage trying to kill his own fucking children.
“Sofia,” I prompt when my brother doesn’t say anything else.
“Shit.” He pushes to his feet. “What time is it?”
“Maybe twelve-thirty. Where is she, Antonio?”
His shoulders relax and he heads for the hallway that leads to our rooms. There’s more broken glass here and a few drops of blood splattered across the floor. I’m assuming those belong to Raul because they all lead toward his room at the very end of the hallway.
Antonio raises his finger to his lips in the universal sign to be quiet as he slowly opens the door that leads to my bedroom. We step inside and he goes straight for my closet. Sofia is asleep inside, her tiny body curled into the fetal position. We both stare down at her, relief sweeping through me once I can see for myself that she’s okay.
I lean down to lift her out, careful not to wake her as I lay her on my bed and tuck the blankets around her. When she’s settled, I follow Antonio back into the hall, locking the door behind me. It only locks from the inside, so she can let herself out when she wakes up. I won’t be able to get back in until then, at least not without waking her. But it’s better this way. I need to talk to my brother and find out what the hell happened, and I can’t do that and worry about the bastard down the hall getting to my baby sister.
“What the hell happened?” I asked, my voice pitched low as soon as we’re a safe distance away.
