Twisted Tides (Forged Hearts #2)

Chapter Fifteen

EVIE

“Written in Blood” by She Wants Revenge

I swear all the air is sucked out of my lungs. I gasp, and I must look like a flopping fish out of the water, an angler who holds me bound by an invisible line suspended mid-air as he stares at me with an unadulterated hunger.

He steps closer, and I instinctively take a step back, self-preservation mode kicking in. He smirks, clearly enjoying the recoil his mere presence brings, much like his sons’.

This must be what it feels like when a predator holds his prey, and you are locked in their sights with nowhere to flee.

Mateo grabs my arm and stops my retreat. He raises his chin to the man with similar eyes. I never knew it before, but that is what I always found familiar when I’d stare at my brother. The sudden realization makes me want to vomit.

I see the evil glint in his eye, almost giddy at seeing my brother. He knows this is something big, and I wish we never found out this way, but there is no denying it. If I didn’t know him better, I’d assume he was almost… proud.

“Mateo,” he drawls, and I hate how he says it.

Mattie squares his shoulders, attempting a stand-off with this man, and I visibly stiffen.

“Yes, and who are you?” my brother asks.

But I don’t want him to know the truth. I already know it, and I don’t like it. Does Mateo not see it? I want to say to him that we should run. We should run far away from here, take my sister, and move back to Mexico, but then this would all be for nothing.

The man smiles sinisterly at him and puffs his chest out. “Well, that really is the question, but you should always be weary of the questions you ask, Mateo.”

Mateo snorts, his arms crossed over his chest in a defensive stance. “Oh, really? And why is that?”

I grab his arm, pulling it down, and that makes the man’s face light up with amusement. He spares me a glance before returning his focus to who he is really interested in now.

“You might not like the answer,” he states with a touch of humor that seems to annoy Mateo.

“Oh, is that right?” my brother growls.

I watch this volleying of responses. A long moment lingers between us, and when I don’t think he will answer, I contemplate walking away and leaving, but I can’t. I find myself stuck in this spot, unable to move. I wonder if I will have to be physically dragged from here. I always considered myself to be strong, but his revelation has ungrounded me. It has made me question everything that my family ever told me. It has made me aware of the fact that maybe I didn’t really know my parents at all, especially my mom. She has a story that I will never get to hear from her. So many twisted lies and secrets that just keep coming to light, and it’s blinding.

Finally, after the tense moment, he speaks, confirming all my thoughts that Mateo is now going to be living a nightmare. “Let me introduce myself. My name is Mr. Martinez, Julian’s father.”

I see Mateo clench his fists and unclench them. His jaw is set so hard that I think I can hear his teeth grinding. But what he says next is the most unsettling.

“ Your father.”

I gasp, and Mr. Martinez looks at me quickly before his gaze returns back to Mateo. “I’m glad to meet you finally, son.”

I see the shock register on Mateo’s face, and then disgust oozes from every pore. He stands back, full of contempt. “I’ll never be your son.”

He grabs my hand, but we hear a commotion from outside before Mr. Martinez can make a rebuttal. I see Eduardo running out of the door, Eli and Dax crouched down, and Liv slumped to the floor, crying hysterically. Dax picks her up bridal style and carries her out. Her head is pulled into his chest, and Eli has his arm around Emma. As they walk out the side, I see Eduardo pulling up with the SUV, and they all climb into it and take off.

Mateo and I are close-behind as we get into our cars and pull away from the venue.

We pull into the emergency department entrance to see everyone in the SUV running in through their front door. The words ‘trauma bay’ are illuminated above that entrance where there are several ambulances parked outside. I don’t know what caused everyone to come here so quickly, but I can guess it has something to do with Liv’s friends, since she was the one crouched down, sobbing inconsolably against the wall.

We sit there after they enter the emergency department and wait to see what happens next. The silence continues until I can’t take it anymore. “Are we going to talk about the big news we were just blasted with, Mateo?”

I look away and stare out the window. I can hear Mattie’s breathing pick up. I know that he is still processing the clusterfuck that is the news of hearing that Julian’s father is his father and, worse, that the person who had been hurting his sister was, in fact, his half-brother, Julian. If I am frank, I also have a hard time with this.

“I can’t,” he finally says. He shakes his head, and I understand. It is all too much, but what I can do is offer my brother the support he needs.

We sit there in silence for a couple more hours until I see my sister wrapped up in Eduardo’s arms and Emma’s pregnant friend, Liv, being held up by Dax. She is crying hysterically, and I can only assume it is not good news. They pull out of the parking lot and follow suit, returning to our place.

A week passes, and we find ourselves at my least favorite place. There is peace you should have knowing that your loved ones are no longer suffering and their souls are laid to rest, but that isn’t always the case. Some of the souls were taken before their time, driven from their bodies by someone or something that took their life. They took them from their families, children, and left them to figure out things independently. To live a life without them. The last time I was here was when my parents died.

The last time I was here was to attend my own funeral. I got to experience what a person would feel like if they could hear everything that was said, and experience all the sadness of the life they left behind.

I listened to my sister crying, and I wasn’t able to console her. Julian had her wrapped around him forcefully. He fully supported her financially, but without her consent in anything, and he appeared to everyone as the ever-doting boyfriend.

Not everything is as it appears.

Loud thunder cracks across the sky, pulling me from my morbid thoughts. It is fitting that a storm should be approaching. It feels like an omen of what’s to come. It’s as if the angels are weeping with us. I see my sister and all she has had to go through. She is so supportive of her friend, but she truly had no one there to support her when we were laid to rest? Julian may have been there, but that was all for show. That was before Eduardo came into the picture, and before she became best friends with Liv. But our cousin got her out and away from Julian, and she found her way back to Eduardo who has been keeping her safe ever since.

Jameson is there, too. He is sitting silently near Eduardo and Dax. He is alone and stares out across the cemetery. I can’t take my eyes off him; he looks so beautiful—and mine.

I want to go to him and let him know that I am here. I want to have him support me as Eduardo holds onto Emma, like she is something so precious to him. I close my eyes and imagine that Jameson is holding me. His strong arms envelop me in a solid embrace. I tilt my head back a bit. I can almost smell his musky scent of steamy nights mixed in with my earthy scent of questionable intentions, making the perfect scent for just us.

I decide to send him a text to let him know that I miss him, but his reply is always the same.

Jameson

When can I see you again?

I want to go to him, but I can’t. I decide that after I return, I won’t let myself be away from him any longer.

Evie

I have to go away for a while, but when I get back, I would like to see you.

It feels good to tell him this, but I just hope he can wait.

Jameson

How long will you be gone?

I bite my lip, not looking at the phone, trying to determine how long we will be away.

Evie

I’m still trying to figure it out. It will take a couple of months at the most. I have some family business I need to tend to.

I am waiting for his reply, but I don’t get one. I look over at him, see him reading the text, and then placing the phone in his pocket. I slump my shoulders in defeat. Does this mean he isn’t going to wait for me? Are we over before we have begun? I panic, not even thinking before I send off the message.

Evie

Please wait for me…

That’s all I can say, and I hope I’m not too late. I curse myself, and this makes Mateo look at me with concern. I shake my head, not wanting to talk about it. It will just make me sadder than I already feel. Besides, Mateo has enough going on in his mind to worry about something that should be a priority at this point. Literally, everything else is more important than this, except it isn’t to me. It’s just my happiness, but that is something I haven’t been allowed to indulge in.

The priest talks about the Kingdom of God in a long-winded speech about His son returning to be united with Him. I look around at all the people who made the trip for this young man whose life was taken too soon.

As the ceremony ends, everyone is walking to their cars. I have already been sitting in ours as Emma is in the SUV watching from the window at her friend suffering alone by the gravesite, refusing to leave.

She stands there holding her single red rose and staring down into the grave. It’s as if she doesn’t want to throw her flower in the grave because that will be it—the final goodbye. She releases it, and I can’t help the gasp that leaves my lips. I almost didn’t expect her to do it. I almost wish she would have walked away with it, but what’s the point? Acceptance is all there really is to move forward now. She looks up at the sky as if she is cursing at her God.

Tears fall down my cheeks, witnessing such a private moment. I swallow the sobs that threaten to escape. I wipe my tears from my cheeks and look at my brother. I grab his hand for support.

“Come on, Mattie. Let’s go home.”

We have a lot to discuss when we get home—the only home that we have to go to now. Just when I think I can’t feel any worse, I feel my phone vibrate.

Jameson

I’ll try for you.

I take a deep breath, and I feel like I am losing him. I feel him pull away; if I didn’t know that, I could see it. I watch him answering his texts just as we are pulling away to head to the airport. He hesitates, looks away, and then pockets his phone. He rubs his temples as if I make his head hurt. He is tired of waiting on me, and why should he? He is an attractive man. I know that, but I can’t help but want to selfishly keep him, and make him mine. I wish to possess his mind, body, and soul. I have never felt this connection with anyone. I also wish I could relay all my thoughts and the intensity of my feelings for him without scaring him away.

Taking our seats on the airplane, the flight attendant comes around to make sure our items are stowed away correctly. I rest my head against the seat and think about everything that happened earlier today and hope that I am not away for too long. I take out my phone and send one last text to him.

Evie

Please.

I set my phone down, the flight attendant giving me a dirty look as I was told repeatedly to turn off our electronic devices. I tuck my bag under the seat, but keep my phone out. I’m getting ready to turn it off when I see a message pop up.

Jameson

I’ll wait for you.

That’s all it says, and that’s enough to put a smile on my face and ease some of my tension for now.