Page 62 of Counting the Stars

“Si,” Lucia confirms. “He’s more reliable than any GPS out there.”

“Come on, Rex. Show me your stomping grounds!” He leads the dog out the door and then turns to me. “Just text me if you need anything, okay?”

“Thanks, Alex.” I give him a quick wave and watch him exit. I’m not sure who is happier to be going on a walk, him or Rex.

Lucia shuts the screen door fully, then turns and studies me thoughtfully. “How about we head into the kitchen to have some tea?”

“That sounds like a fabulous idea,” I agree and let her lead me into a small galley-style kitchen.

“You can take a seat over there.” She points to a bistro table near a small window that overlooks the deli. I take a seat and peer outside to see Alex strutting down the street with Rex proudly leading the way.

“It’s funny,” Lucia says, looking over my shoulder at Alex and her faithful companion. “Even though they are human and canine, they give off the same energy: friendly, loving, and protective.”

I wholeheartedly agree. Alex has been my rock through my healing, and I know now that I could never have taken that step without him. Even after we returned home from his parents’ anniversary dinner, after he was mocked and challenged by afamily that should only want the best for him, Alex shoved that all aside to focus on me and my needs. Do I sound like a girl in love? Yeah. I do.

“Did you know about me? Did you ever meet me?” I blurt out. As much as I enjoy thinking about Alex, I can’t handle the suspense any longer.

“I knew about you, but sadly, we never met until today.” She walks to her stove, picks up a blue ceramic kettle, and places it on a burner. “Besides our parents, it was just Miguel and me. There was a six-year age gap between us, but it didn’t make a difference. He was the best big brother a girl could ask for.”

“He was an amazing father.” I can already feel the hot tears prickling behind my eyes.

“I have no doubt. He’d watch me after school until our parents came home from work. He never complained about being stuck with his little sister. To be honest, I think he enjoyed the company as much I did. He used to make up silly card games, would participate in the tea parties I created for my dolls, and made the best grilled cheese sandwiches.”

“Oh my gosh! I loved his grilled cheeses,” I gush. “He was a sous chef and could make the most magnificent meals, but whenever he asked me what I wanted to eat, I’d always request a grilled cheese.”

“My brother loved to cook. I’m so pleased he found a job that I have no doubt he loved. I’m also happy you got to enjoy his grilled cheeses just like I did. I’ve tried to recreate them over the years, but I can never get it just right.” She brings over a small tin of butter cookies and takes the seat opposite me.

“Me neither! One day, I insisted that I watch him from start to finish. I was convinced he had some sort of secret trick or ingredient.”

“Did you find out?” Lucia leans in enthusiastically.

“Everything was completely normal. When I told him that he must’ve snuck something in when I blinked, he told me that all he did was add love.”

“That sounds so much like Miguel.” She sighs wistfully.

“D-do you know why my mom and dad ran away?” I stammer, feeling the mood in the air change. It’s somber, but I need to know this.

“I was only twelve when he left home. It was devastating. I cried for weeks, but I understood.” The kettle begins to whistle, and Lucia stands to move it off the burner. “Your mom and dad met in middle school. I was so young when they got together that I really don’t remember a time without Caterina in my life.”

“I guess you knew her pretty well. At least until you were twelve.”

“Oh yes, I adored your mother. She didn’t have any siblings and said I was the sister she always wanted. Miguel and Caterina never treated me like a third wheel or a pesky little sister. They’d take me along with them to the movies or to relax at the neighborhood park on a warm day. They had such a beautiful love…so pure. Even from a young age, I could see it.”

Lucia pours us both a cup of tea and sits back down.

“What happened?” I wrap my hand around the warm teacup.

“Your grandmother, Caterina’s mother, passed away at a young age, leaving your grandfather to raise your mom on his own. Your grandfather’s name was King. I don’t know if that was his real name or his street name. My parents tried hard to shield me from him. To this day, I’m not sure what he did for a living, but I know he had a gambling problem and would take his grievances out on Caterina when things didn’t go his way. He was a very harsh man.”

“My mom never talked about her past. I had no idea she had such a rough upbringing or that she lost her own mother.” A pit forms in my stomach. I hope to God Michelle isn’t right and there is no crime or Witness Protection Program order. After Jax gathered all the information he could of my family tree, it looked pretty basic—except he could only find details on my dad’s side of the family. There was nothing concrete on my mom’s.

“Miguel tried so hard to protect her. I know there were a few times he jumped in front of her to take the brunt of King’s anger. They had plans to wed as soon as they graduated high school, but Caterina didn’t turn eighteen until that August. Until then, she was still under her father’s control.”

“Their anniversary was a few days after Mom’s birthday. I never really thought about why they chose that date. I was just a kid and happy to have two celebration cakes in the same week.” I smile thinking how that one week in August was always a favorite of mine and Mari’s. We would make homemade decorations, cards, and presents. No matter how terrible they looked, my parents always acted like they won the lottery. “I’d say everything worked out for them, but it couldn’t have if they left home.”

“No.” Lucia winces and takes a sip of her tea. “Things did not go as planned.”

“Why? What happened?”

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