I suck in a deep breath. The scope of this app is terrifying. I’m not even sure how it’s legal.
“Doing this to you?” Justin parrots back. “I’m not doing anything to you, Mia. I’m parenting you.”
“My name is Dakota,” I snap back, and he cocks a perfectly manicured eyebrow.
“You want to be called by the name of your kidnapper’s dead baby?” I cringe at that, but it’s the truth, whether I like it or not. “Okay. I’ll play along, Dakota.” He continues to smile at me. “I’m not doing this to hurt you; I’m teaching you. The world is sick and sad and cruel. You need to learn to master it, or it will master you.”
Oh my god. Oh my god. He really is freaking insane.
“You see, I’ve ascended to a higher level of being. All these years of being alone, of missing you, of missing your mother, of living in exile, I’ve learned so much. All of these hard-won truths, I’m passing onto you in a much simpler, much easier to digest way. You should be grateful you have such an adoring father.” He gives me a faux little frown. “You’re not upset with me, are you?”
Wow. Um. Wow.
“Take me,” I blurt out, setting the bottle aside and not caring if it spills on the expensive leather seat. Justin grabs it right away and places it back into the bucket of ice. “Just take me right now and let Parrish go. I’ll do whatever you want, participate in any lesson. I’ll crash cars and throw things and insult whoever you need me to insult.”
Justin stares at me for a moment, and then he starts to laugh again, this deeply mirthful, rolling sound that echoes around the back of the limo.
“Oh, Dakota, princess, you’re adorable.” He reaches out and cups the side of my face in gentle fingers, stroking my hair back. I don’t dare push his hand away. What was it he said to me on the note that came with the heart pin? I’m not sure either of us would survive that. Yep. That’s the vibe I’m getting. “Oh no, you’ll still have to find him. I appreciate your enthusiasm, but these lessons cannot be rushed. There are hard consequences for everything we do in life; this is yours. You want Parrish back? Find him. He belongs to you. You can do whatever you want with him; I won’t interfere.”
I’m shaking now, and I feel like I might very well puke, same way I did in Tess’ limo way back when. Um. I mean, three and a half months ago. Sure feels like a century has passed.
“What if … what if when I find him, I come to you and give myself up then? Will you leave everyone I love alone? Could we work that out?”
Justin appears to consider this for a minute and then shrugs, a casual, easy roll of his shoulders.
“Mm, not likely, but I’ll give it some consideration. Some.” He points at me. “But don’t count on it.”
I’m just staring at him now, wondering how the fuck this will ever end. Where does he stop? When does he let me go? Never?
I’m going to have to kill him.
That thought hits me like a ton of bricks, and my head spins. I feel dizzy.
I don’t want to do that, kill my own biological father. But what if it’s the only way out of this?
The only way out is … to give up a vital part of myself? To commit murder?
I’m stricken. I’m devastated. I can barely breathe.
“Oh, look, we’re here!” Justin cheers, grinning at me as the limo rolls to a stop and Raúl opens the door for us. “Go on now, I think you’ll like the place I picked.”
Even though I want nothing more than to drop to the ground in despair, I make myself climb out of the limo only to find myself outside of a tiny little hole-in-the-wall restaurant. It’s barely big enough for three adults to stand with their arms outstretched from one wall to the other. The building itself is crammed in between two others, the exterior brick painted a dingy yellow.
Uh. This looks nothing like the country club where Tess took me to lunch.
This is … “A Mexican restaurant?” I guess as I read the name. Un Padre, Dos Hijas. I don’t really speak Spanish, but I think it means … one father, two daughters? I’m assuming that means the place is owned by a guy and his daughters. How poignant. As far as I know, I’m this idiot’s only kid.
Lucky me.
“Try the fajitas. You’ll be blown away. If you’re like me—a vegetarian,” Justin says this with all due seriousness as I gape up at him. He’s about as tall as Maxx. Like … six foot something? I’m not good with heights. “They have a veggie option for the fajitas. Delightful.”
