“What are you talking about? You’re not close to me or Audrey. Why would you ever be on our side?”
Lonzo pressed his lips together, looking as frustrated with me as I was starting to get with him.
“Emilio! Come down here! You took her from me when you knew she was mine.” A crash made us both flinch. Lonzo let me go and went to the door, unlocking the locks as quietly as he could before cracking it open to peek down the hall. The door faced the living room, and I prayed whomever was standing there wouldn’t see him.
“You stole from me first. You knew how much I loved Anjelica, yet you stole her from me. It’s only fair. You did this to yourself, Hermano,” Emilio hollered back. He was somewhere above, probably on the staircase or just above it. “You get what you give.”
“That isn’t the way of our family. Our father would spit on your grave.”
“Yes, he would, wouldn’t he?” Emilio answered. His voice cracked, the hurt apparent in his words. “He would on yours too, brother. You’ve done nothing but hurt everyone around you.”
Jonas laughed. Yes, he had to be drunk. I’d never heard him so upset, even when I’d first encountered him face to face in the back of his car, drugged and coerced into a deal that would forever change my life.
“You’ve left me no choice, Emilio. I loved you, yet you stole what I wanted the most. I can’t have that in my business. There is no traitor left alive. You knew that. Those are the rules.”
“Fuck you and your brotherhood rules. They only apply to everyone else but yourself. I don’t need you,” Emilio hollered. A moment passed with silence before a shot rang out.
Then all hell broke loose.
More shots rang out, not only aimed toward the staircase but ricocheting into the hall and hitting the door.
Lonzo slammed the door shut, locked one of the locks, and dropped to the floor where I had just done the same.
“Fuck! They’re killing each other out there!”
My shoulder burned, shooting sharp pains into my chest. I reached over to rub it, afraid I’d hit it hard when I fell to the floor. My hand came back wet and crimson and my mouth dropped open as I realized I’d been shot.
“Lonzo?” My hand shook, the pain turning up in intensity as the moments ticked by. The shots ceased and popped now and then. I wondered who was alive or dead. Was I either? I chanced a peek at my arm and found that I’d been hit in the flesh of my upper arm. I couldn’t tell if it’d gone through it or not, but already, I felt like passing out.
Lonzo creeped over and crouched over me, examining the wound.
“I think it’s lodged in your arm. Can you move it?”
I shook my head, feeling faint and sweating profusely.
He reached over for his shirt, swiping it off the bed. He ripped it into a long piece and wrapped it snuggly around my arm.
I groaned with each movement and almost passed out when he tied it tight.
“Okay, you have to get out of here. I have to see what’s going on. If Jonas thinks I’m here, he might turn against me. If he doesn’t find out I’m here, I might stand a chance to talk to him. You have to go.”
“How the hell do I get out of here now?”
Another loud shot, followed by a loud thump like a body dropping, made us both duck again. My arm screamed in pain as I moved though I tried and failed to keep my motions slow.
“You can make it. Come on, over by the window.”
He reached the window and pushed at the remaining wall. It fell forward with a small thump into the grass below.
Of course. A secret escape route. Great.
“Come on!” he hissed, dragging me over to the opening. It was small, narrow enough for him to get out, so it had plenty of space for me to drop out of.
He peered through before helping me out. I felt the ground only a few feet from the hole. Thank goodness his room was on the bottom floor, even though it was somewhat elevated.
I crouched in the grass, looking around to make sure there wasn’t anyone else around. It was clear. The fight was going on inside the house. Looking back, I found Lonzo picking up the panel and hopping back inside to replace it.
“Wait! Where are you going?”
He grinned and winked. “This is all I know, all this bad blood. There is no changing my life. Maybe in another life, we’ll meet again. You…you go home. I’ll make sure whomever makes it through doesn’t bother you again. You just stay away from them both. You hear me?”
I nodded, my bottom lip trembling from the chill of the night and the aching throb in my arm.
“Oh, and here, Liz,” he tossed my purse out the opening, then paused to look at me one last time before sealing the panel again.
The night felt even more desolate as I stood in the middle of the back yard, alone once again.
I was stuck on my feet, afraid to move. Another pop of a gun, and I snatched up my purse before turning to run toward the fence surrounding the property. I hoped there’d be an opening somewhere to go through because I doubted I could make it over the damn fencing without passing out from pain. My tiny plea for help was answered in an unlocked gate. I slipped it open, my fingers barely cooperating as I smeared a tiny smudge of blood on the metal. Wiping it off as best I could with one hand and my shirt, I closed the gate behind me, peering around to make sure no one saw me, and scurried down the alleyway, away from the hell of that night.
When I was blocks away and feeling like utter hell, I slipped into a cluster of bushes that badly needed a trim. There, hidden by prickly branches, I yanked out my cell and hit Audrey’s number on speed dial. The evening had turned into night, even though I could still see some of the sun’s last rays sinking beyond the horizon. It rang and rang, until it clicked to voicemail and I ended the call.
Dammit, Audrey. I needed her, and she was nowhere to be found. Great.
I struggled back to my feet and stumbled through another alleyway, hearing voices in each house I passed, filling the air with laughter, chatter, and squealing children. The sounds of happiness I’d never know filled my head as I made my way. I moved away from the inferno that’d been my life and the truths that dug into my core like ice picks, never to let me go.
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Audrey
I’d gotten to Liv just in time, finding her limping down the alleyway after a nasty stumble. She’d lost a lot of blood and was looking deathly pale. I’d finally gotten her on the line, and she told me where she was, so I’d raced down there as fast as the damn L.A. traffic had let me.
I prayed I wouldn’t be too late.
Sitting at the hospital ER waiting room, I watched them scoop her up onto a gurney and rush her into the back, telling me to give the clerk all her information and wait there. I’d done as they’d told me to and settled into one of the hard shells of a chair to wait what felt an eternity for Liz’s prognosis.
Waiting was worse than torture.
The hour turned into two and then three. I kept bothering the clerks for updates, and when they had none, I had to restrain myself from shoving the sign up boards and paperwork off their desks. I wanted to shout at them to find out what was going on. I needed to know. It was a matter of life and death, and I would not leave them alone until I knew if my sister was alright or not.
Instead, I quietly retreated to my chair to wait even further.
This was the loneliest and lowest moment of my life.
I’d sworn I’d take care of Liz, keep her safe, fed, happy, and thriving.
I’d failed.
I leaned forward and dropped my head into my hands. I failed our mother, Liz, and Saul. Nothing could ever make this moment better for me. How had it come to this? I should’ve fought harder for her to stay away from Jonas…from Emilio.
Instead, I’d let her do what she wanted—run amuck with lovers, drinking, shoving the drugs down her throat like there was no tomorrow. She lived like she wouldn’t ever have to answer to anyone, and it’d come down to this.
Wh
at if she died? I shook my head and sat up, swallowing down my devastation. No…she couldn’t die. She’d fight, wouldn’t she? She’d make it through somehow. No matter what shit she’d gotten into, she’d gotten herself out of messes as big as this one before. She had to do it again. She had to. There was no other option, and I’d be here to push her until she woke up and spoke to me again.
And then, we’d move on without the trouble of the Esperanza brothers and the insanity surrounding them. We’d finally be free.
I fished my phone out of my purse and hit Saul’s number. Every ring made my heart race faster in panic. If he didn’t answer his phone, I’d fall to pieces. There was just so much I could take, and this was it. My resolve was about to break as the last ring began. He wasn’t going to answer. He was going to let it go to voicemail where I’d sound like a babbling fool, begging him to come here and save me. Save us.
We’d given him a ride out in the middle of nowhere, not knowing who he was or what his motives in life were. But I knew now why he was there and why we were destined to meet. We may have saved him with a ride, but he’d truly saved me.
“Audrey? Are you alright?”
His voice made me suck in a breath, not realizing I’d stopped breathing.
“Saul…” I tried to keep it together, but I couldn’t. Bursting out crying, I tried in vain to sound coherent. My words were a mess as I explained what happened and where we were.
“I’ll be right there. I’m out the door on a plane right now to get to you. I’ll be there in couple of hours. Can you wait for me?” I heard him shuffling around his place, probably throwing on shoes and a jacket. He’d leave with just the shirt on his back. That’s the kind of person he is.
“Yes, I’ll wait. I’m not going anywhere. They haven’t told me what’s going on with Liv yet.”
“I’m sorry to hear all this. I’ll be there soon, okay?”
“Okay.” The line went dead, and I dropped the phone back into my purse. My face was a mess, my nose dripping like a leaky faucet. I jumped to my feet, eyeing the tissues on the clerk’s desk. Snatching up a couple more of them, I sighed as I waited for them to return so I could pummel them for the millionth time about Liv.
“Miss Westing?” A doctor in blue hospital scrubs and a black stethoscope dangling from his neck came out a set of automated double doors and scanned the waiting room.
“That’s me!” I hopped over, wiping my face with the tissues. “My sister…Liv…is she okay?”
If he said no, I wasn’t sure what I’d do.
He gave me a sympathetic smile and waved me over. “Come with me, please.”
I was going to break down soon. One step in front of the other, I willed myself to follow.
Please let Liv be alright.
***
The glare of the sun poured through the window, and I reached up to pull the blinds closed. The day was warmer than the ones prior, but it amplified the smog hanging across the horizon over the city. The view wasn’t anything special, but it was calming for once.
“This thing isn’t fucking working.” Liv pressed the PCA pump button over and over, and I peered over at the pain injection device that supposedly gave her a dose of painkiller each time she pushed the button. I doubted they’d been generous with the dose, that or Liv was just used to taking too many Percocets when she shouldn’t have, so the medicine wasn’t strong enough for a pain in the ass like her.
“It says your dose has been injected and you’re locked out until the next one in ten minutes.”
“Fuck.” Liz laid her head back against the pillow, adjusting in her bed for the umpteenth time. Her arm was in a sling and wrapped up in a protective bandage. The bullet had to be fished out of her arm and the limb immobilized. It had traveled deeper into her limb toward her chest. If it had been on a slightly different trajectory, it would’ve been in her chest.
I didn’t want to think about that.
“Want me to get the nurse again?” I asked.
She shook her head. Her face was a perpetual scowl.
“When did they say I’m out of here?”
“They said it might be another day or so.”
“They better give me the good shit when I leave because this stuff isn’t cutting it. My arm is killing me.”
“Your arm saved your ass. You could be on a chest tube and ventilator from what the Doctor told me. Count yourself lucky, Sis.”
Liv squeezed her eyes together before she fluttered them open. Tears lined her lids and sparkled as she gazed at me.
“I don’t feel so lucky.”
“Oh, hush. We’ll get through this.”
Large tears slipped down her cheeks, spotting her gown as they fell.
“I’ve got stuff to do,” she muttered.
“What do you mean?”
She closed her eyes. “Nothing. I’m babbling. Have you heard from Lonzo?”
I sighed and fished out the letter which was dropped off at the house earlier that day.
“No, but there’s a letter here that someone tossed on our doorstep today. Along with a twelve pack of beer. I’m thinking it might be from him.”
She opened her eyes, which were swollen with dark circles under them. She was anemic for losing a lot of blood, but wasn’t in the range for a blood transfusion. I wasn’t sure if that was good or not.
“Can you read it to me?”
I gave her a sweet smile. “Of course. You sure you want me to read it?”
She nodded, and I proceeded to rip the envelope open.
“Dear Liz…” I peeked up to my sister to make sure she hadn’t changed her mind. She often did, so I wouldn’t be surprised, even though I wanted to know what the note said too.
“Go on.” She closed her eyes, lying back again, probably from exhaustion.
“Dear Liz, I’m sorry about your injury. I hear you’re doing fine, and that makes me happy. I hope you don’t get angry with me for telling you this with a letter, but I can’t risk contacting you with Jonas still fired up and upset about the shooting. Everyone left before the cops got there, but Emilio was hit in the chest and died on the way to the hospital. Jonas has left for Mexico and will have his brother’s body shipped there, which is what I’m still doing here, making arrangements.
“I’m forever tied to this family, in more ways than I could ever tell you. Though you and your sister have touched my heart with your music, talent, and beauty, I’m afraid our paths must differ from now on. I’ve convinced Jonas to allow Noble Records to take over your contracts immediately with an adjustment in the contracts, and leave you to your best. He’s devastated with his brother’s passing and losing you too, even if you may not believe it. He wanted to find you after hearing Emilio died, but doesn’t want to be reminded of him, so I talked to him and convinced him to leave you be, as a token of his affection.
“I’ll miss your company and music, but I will check up and see how you’re doing.
“Also, a word of caution. When I told you I knew everything. I meant everything. Do not give Jonas any reason to return to you. You can’t stay alive in this life. Keep him away from you and those you love the most. Do whatever it takes. You won’t hear from him again if you do that. Figure it out. I know you will.
“Take care of your lovely sister Audrey. You need each other more than you will ever realize. I can only hope that in another life, we will meet again. Take care, Lonzo”
The note ended, and I stared at the words feeling confused but comforted. I never knew he cared so much. Maybe he was a good man stuck in a violent job. Regardless, I liked his note and felt he would keep his end of the deal.
“What did he mean by he knew everything, Liz?” I inquired, staring at the neat handwriting of our ex security guard. “What else does he know?”
She shrugged and turned away from me.
“Just what I had with Emilio and all. Guess it’s over now.”
I nodded. “Sorry to hear about Emilio.” I placed a hand on her good shoulde
r, but she faced away from me and let her tears soak her cheeks. It made me feel terrible for her. Her heart was as shattered as mine. Both of us were left broken beyond repair.
“Hey, you want anything to drink? They said you need to get more fluids in before they can turn off the IV.” I wanted to lighten the mood and placed the letter on the bedside table where her phone sat and my purse teetered on the edge.
She flipped her eyes open and looked over toward me. For a moment, she studied me hard, like she wanted to say something. I waited patiently, hoping she’d tell me anything she was holding back. She let her eyes drop to the table for a moment and then back up. This time, her eyes shined with the familiar light I was used to seeing in them. I hoped that meant she was getting back to herself.
“Yeah, can you get the nurse to give me some more cranberry juice? That stuff is good. Icy cold, you know, with the chunks of ice in it? Almost frozen?” She smiled and licked her dry lips.
“Sure thing, Sis.” I turned and headed out to the nurse’s station, glad to have something useful to do. She’d been so quiet since she woke up after her surgery last night, even after I asked her over and over if she was okay. I was more than happy to be doing something for her now.
Saul had gotten there late that night, and his presence had been a huge comfort. Now, he was resting at our house, and I would be heading there soon to get some rest too.
“Excuse me?” I tapped on the counter, hoping to get someone’s attention.
“Yes? Can I help you with something?” A young blonde nurse with brilliant glassy blue eyes and red scrubs came up to me expectantly.
“Yes, my sister, Liv, in room 409 would like more cranberry juice. The more ice in it the better.”
She nodded. “Let me check her chart to make sure she can have that, and I’ll get that right to her, okay?”
I smiled and thanked her before heading back to the room. There, I found Liv asleep, or at least pretending to be.
“She’ll bring it over in just a few.”
Liv peeked through the slits in her eyelids. “Thanks, Sis. You should get some rest now too.” She closed them again and sighed.