Page 20 of Ashes
She spins toward me and growls. As she tries to start toward me, she sways on her feet and has to catch herself on the bed.
“Lie down,” I command. “Was that your little plan? To escape?”
Her nose crunches as she sits down on the bed.
Yeah, it was her plan.
Even if there was a huge risk of her dying in the process.
She’s either recklessly brave or completely insane.
“You lied to me,” she says, lifting her chin up. “My father confirmed that you killed Alex.”
“I heard that, but it’s not true.”
“Why would my father lie?”
“I don’t know. It was my father who killed your brother. He told me that himself.”
“No.” She shakes her head. “I saw your father while I was looking for my brother that night. He was in a different part of town. I don’t think it was physically possible for him to get to Alex before I did because there’s only one road leading to that spot, and Alex was still breathing when I found him.”
I observe her face.
I don’t think she’s lying.
“Why would my father lie?” I ask.
She shrugs. “I don’t know. Maybe he wanted it to be a Santarossa who killed my brother instead of a random soldier.”
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“Yeah, and neither do our fathers’ stories. Because there’s clearly more than one story.”
“If there was something they were covering up, they’d make sure their stories matched. And why would they do that? Why would they lie to their own family?”
“Maybe there was someone else involved. My father just implied I have a half-brother, so who knows what else he’s hiding.” She presses her lips into a tight line. “Or maybe their stories are different because I told my father I saw yours, so he could’ve altered his story because he didn’t think you and I would ever talk about it. Hell, maybe you have a half-brother out there too, and your father is lying to protect that secret from you so you wouldn’t know you can easily be replaced.”
Fire burns in Paola’s eyes.
“So you weren’t with Alex and lured my brother into a trap? You weren’t there with him? My father swears you were and that he let you run away.”
“I wasn’t there. I’d never just run. I’d fight for my brother or die trying. I was looking for him and I found him too late.” Her eyes fill with tears. “He died in my arms.”
I don’t think she’s lying, and now, I don’t think she’d run either.
“That would mean both our fathers are lying,” I say. “But why? It makes zero sense.”
“I don’t know. Maybe they’re playing some game. Was your father happy with Rodrigo taking over after him? Because my father and Alex didn’t get along all that well.”
I think about it for a few moments.
“My father and my brother had their differences, but nothing too significant or too much of a problem.” That I know of.
“What if there’s someone else? Someone who knows our fathers’ secrets? Their secret children or something else?” she asks. “What if that person killed our brothers and then found a way to blackmail our fathers? We both know there’s bigger fish out there. I mean, sure. Why lie to your own family? Lie to everyone else, right? But I know my father doesn’t trust me. I don’t know about yours. If we knew the truth, we could’ve become a liability.”
She’s right that our fathers’ stories are full of holes, but the whole thing seems stupid.
Only, I don’t trust my father either.
