Peyton let out a small laugh. “I tried to be nice to your daughter and she threw it back in my face. I think she hates me, Don,” she admitted with a defeated sigh. It was the truth, though. You could hate someoneandbe intrigued or attracted to them. The emotions weren’t mutually exclusive.
Don shook his head, reaching to grab Peyton’s hand. “Hadina is… She’s a very closed-off person. She finds it difficult to let anyone in—she always has—but that doesn’t mean she hates you. I think she’s just scared to let you in, to accept that you’re here.”
Peyton tilted her head, pondering the old man’s words. “Why would she be scared to let me in? Hadina doesn’t strike me as the type of person to be afraid of anything.”
“You’d be surprised what my daughter is afraid of, Peyton. She’s lost a lot and she’s wary of anyone new in her life, or anyone who’s close to me. She’s protective, that girl.”
Peyton held her tongue for a moment before she whispered, “I think I’m the one who’s scared.”
Don brushed her off with a wave of his hand. “We’re all scared of something, Peyton. But you can’t let fear rule your life. I’ve been telling Hadina that for a long time.”
“I’ve never been very brave, Don. Losing Melina only made it worse.”
“Fear is natural,” Don stated. He gave her a sad smile but the pity in his eyes was like a blow to Peyton’s stomach. “You have to make a choice whether you want to let it consume you. Live your life for both yourself and your sister.”
Tears blurred Peyton’s vision and she sniffled while wiping her eyes with the palms of her hands. She didn’t understand how she was still unable to think of Melina without her heart breaking, tears threatening to drown her.
Melina had been the light of Peyton’s life and it seemed that she would be haunted by the girl’s death forever. They had looked so similar that people had often thought they were twins, despite Melina being Peyton’s senior by two years. Peyton didn’t think anyone could love their sibling as much as she loved her big sister; they shared a bond that she’d never been able to find again. Melina was her best friend, confidante, and protector. She had always put Peyton first, ensured her safety and happiness were placed above her own, and Peyton felt lost without her.
“Sorry,” Peyton apologized to Don, shaking herself back into the moment. “It just doesn’t get easier, you know?”
“I do. Losing my wife was like losing the best part of me, half of my heart gone for good. We carry the pain of their deaths to honor them in life, by continuing on like they would want us to, even when it hurts the most.”
Peyton blew out a soft breath and gathered herself. “Thank you. I appreciate your kindness.”
Don smiled. “The world needs more kindness.”
“Indeed it does.”
* * *
Her talkwith Don had been almost cathartic. Peyton wanted to remember her sister for the bright person she was, rather than dwell on the girl’s death and the pain it caused. Melina had wanted the best for Peyton, had helped push her to work hard in school and aspire to go to college. In fact, Melina was the reason behind Peyton’s aspirations of becoming a doctor. Peyton just had to focus on saving and getting out from under the thumb of the Adis family—of Hadina—so that she could continue with her life plans.
It was this realization that led Peyton to hide behind the wall, peeking around the corner as she waited for Hadina to leave the office. She had heard her boss telling someone on the phone that she’d be leaving soon to meet with a contact, whatever that meant. Peyton had been waiting almost twenty minutes by the time Hadina clicked the office door shut and made her way down the hallway. Pausing until she heard the familiarclickof the front door, Peyton crept slowly into the office.
The room was the way it always was: organized and stylish. If she were being honest, Peyton hated just how gorgeous it was decorated and she knew in her bones that it was Hadina’s stylistic choice. There was something about the black accents, deep greens, and sharp edges that just screamed Hadina. Peyton was jealous of her employer’s eye for decor.
“Focus, Peyton,” she whispered to herself, tiptoeing over to the desk.
Papers were stacked neatly in piles, letters deposited into a box at one corner of the desk. As quietly as she could, just in case Don was passing by, Peyton ruffled through the drawers. She wasn’t sure what she was looking for, what information she’d have to find to gain her freedom. But she needed to findsomething.
After the drawers proved a waste of time, only previous months’ bills and neatly organized research into different laws hidden inside, Peyton moved on to the cabinet in the corner of the room. People always kept important documents in metal cabinets in the movies, so maybe Hadina had done the same.
Pulling the drawers open one by one, Peyton rifled through the folders and papers. Nothing caught her eye, each thing more boring than the last. The bottom drawer, however, was locked, which piqued her interest. She had never tried to pick a lock before, so she rummaged through the desk drawers again in hopes she’d find a key.
“Fuck!” she muttered under her breath, slamming the last drawer closed.
Grabbing a couple of bobby pins from the back of her head, Peyton knelt down in front of the cabinet. They always showed people picking locks in the movies using hairpins, but she wasn’t exactly surehowto do it. She opened up one of the pins, sticking the ridged side into the lock and twisting it around. When nothing happened, she cursed and tried the flat edge.
Peyton pulled her phone out of her pocket and Googledhow to pick a lock. She was surprised by just how many tutorials popped up, and how in-depth they were.
“Hell, even locked doors can’t protect us, I guess,” she said as she watched her third tutorial. It seemed to be the least complex and easiest to follow, so she straightened her bobby pins and tried again while the voice on her phone guided her actions. She glanced down every so often, making sure she was getting it right, and then went back to pressing her ear to the cabinet to listen for theclickthat would tell her she was on the right track.
Peyton could have yelled in celebration when she finally heard the sound of victory before she quickly tugged the drawer open. Seeing a pile of guns, black leather gloves, and a gleaming dagger was not what she thought she’d find, but it sent a shiver down her spine anyway. She picked up the dagger, looking at the carving on the side of the black blade.
Sé a la luz.
Peyton grabbed her phone and opened up the translator.Be the light.Her brows furrowed at the translation. Why would anyone own a dagger like this, so sharp that it could cut you with a look, if they were to be the light? It didn’t make sense and Peyton didn’t understand. Hadina seemed like she thrived in the darkness, her eyes and hair as dark as night, like shadows she could command.