Page 52 of Trapped

“I’ll have Efren drop you off after I get my sibling settled in,” I say in my anger. I close the bedroom door behind me. A loud bang sounds from the object she throws at it and a string of curses follows. But I keep walking, because I know the truth. I saw it in her eyes. I just need to make sure the evidence aligns with the nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I know why people go crazy in solitary confinement. I pace around the empty house. How much longer is Silas going to leave me here? I look at the clock and see it’s been forty-two minutes. So, maybe I’m dramatic, but this feels a lot like neglect.

I walk into the kitchen and let out a sigh. Why didn’t I tell him? Why couldn’t I get the words out? About Lucia, about how I feel.Pinche cobarde.I am a coward. I walk from room to room, taking in the empty feel of the house. The bedroom is the only room with furniture. The kitchen has minimal items and appliances. I make myself a coffee and sit there… And sit there some more.

My mind is the last place I want to be trapped in. I meditate on Silas’s words. He’d have Efren drop me off after we found his siblings. He’d just drop me off, and we’d pretend like this never happened? All this shit is causing more stress than I need in my life. I don’t even want to think about what a divorce process would look like. I don’t want to think about how much I thought he would fight for me. That he’d say, “You’ll live with me inTamaulipas forever.” And what did I expect? That I’d live there, and we’d live a happy black picket fence life? I have to get back to Lucia.

A vehicle sounds in the driveway, and I rush to the window. Ale closes the door to the truck and helps another woman out of the passenger seat. I narrow my eyes to get a better view of the woman. She looks older, and it takes a minute before the soft features register with me. I blink several times to confirm if I’m seeing this correctly. It’s Josefina. Silas’s mom.

I shift and think about running back up the stairs. I could jump in the shower or something until my anxiety calms. But I don’t have enough time. I watch as they make their way up the driveway, then move back to the kitchen counter and let out a deep exhale.

I see Ale first when she opens the door. She’s wearing a red flannel, jeans, and a matching red cap. She gives me a tight smile, then Josefina walks in behind her. Her eyes widen when she sees me. I jump to my feet to meet them.

“Thalia?” She looks at Ale, then back to me.

“Hola,” I say nervously. She looks at the dress, still clinging to me from the night before. I walk toward her, opening my arms for a quick embrace and press a greeting kiss to her left cheek. The last time I saw her was the day my father had Silas set up with the police. I had waited for her to reach out after everything, and she never did.

“Here, I can help you.” I grab the suitcase and look at Ale for guidance on where to go.

“We’re going to take these upstairs to the room, Tia.” Ale grabs the other suitcase and moves up the stairs. I follow behind her until we reach one of the empty spare bedrooms. Ale looks down the hallway, then back at me.

“You need to get out of here. Right now.” She moves into me, and I move backward. “Thalia, I know everything. Kiko Maestasknows about your daughter,” Ale whispers, and I look up, seeing the empathy in her eyes. My throat closes. I search around the room.

“Thalia, Silas had a DNA test done on her. He thought she might be yours, but I don’t know how he’ll react when he finds out she’s his. When he finds out you kept this from him.” Her words hit me, and I feel the walls closing in around me.

Tears pool in my eyes, and I look up to find her pleading ones. I shake my head, and my feet move quickly down the hall. My hands shake as I throw the few items I had taken out back into the suitcase. Why would he get a DNA test? I turn the diamond on my finger, then examine it closer. This isn’t just like my original ring.It is my ring.

“How did he know?” Ale watches me remove the ring and place it on the end table.

“He found the threats in your safe. He thought you might have had a kid during the time you were separated.” I nod, and we move quickly with the suitcases down the stairs.

“Hold on. I need to go get your phone. I’ll meet you in the truck.” Ale runs back up the stairs. I drag my suitcase down the remaining stairs.

“Where are you going?” Josefina asks.

I look up to find her looking me over, desperate to figure out what’s going on. I feel overwhelmed by the various emotions raging through me. She had been so kind to me, and I don’t want to lie to her.

“Thalia, are you okay?” she asks.

The concern in her eyes is real. That motherly intuition reading the panic surfacing from me. Our heads turn when the door bursts open, and Silas emerges. His face is flushed with fury.

“You lied to me!” He lunges for me, and Josefina places her body in front of mine like a shield.

That familiar flight or fight decision surfaces from the pit of my belly. He looks at his mom and shakes his head. His finger points at me, like a knife slicing through my heart. Josefina stays close to me and looks between us.

“I asked you who she was, and you looked straight at me and lied!” He’s screaming now and pacing by the front door.

“Silas, let me explain.” My voice shakes as I make my way to him.

To touch him, to beg at his feet if I have to. The moment I touch his arm, he pulls away as the hurt in his eyes hits me. He opens the door behind him.

“Get out!” he yells.

I struggle to move. Ale rushes down from the stairs, gun in her hand.

“Silas, calm down,” she says.

“What the fuck’s going on?” Josefina asks.

---