Page 128 of High Stakes and Soulmates
Sansón looks at me. “You really don’t remember anything?”
“I remember very little. And most of what I do remember seems to be distorted.”
“When Louis found you four years ago, he was so enraged, he nearly killed you. The blow to your head may have been the cause of you losing your memories. So let me explain what I can and see if you remember any of it as I talk.”
“Thank you,” I say.
“Our lives fell apart when Louis took you from our home when you were a child. He had picked you for some reason and was determined to take you at any cost. When you found out that you were a dhampir after the hell that happened on that ship, the two of us began to question if that was the reason he took you. Maybe he was fascinated by you being something other than human.
“When you were a child, he told you that our mother and I had fallen ill and died, so he ‘selflessly’ took you to save you from a life on the streets, but I found her body torn apart like a monster had done it and you were missing, presumed dead.
“I didn’t hear about you again for many years. I thought you died that night. As I grew older, I got married, I had children, I continued to live my life. And that’s when he found me and tore me away from all of it. That’s when I found you as a husk of your former self. You were struggling to live, struggling to survive after the man you loved was slaughtered by the person holding you prisoner.”
Sansón glances at Ezio before continuing. “I wasn’t around to meet Ezio back then, but you told me all about him when I was drawn into your life. You told me that when you questioned if Ezio might still be alive, Louis told you that he’d slaughtered him that day on the ship, that he’d thrown his body into the ocean to ensure that he never received a proper burial and so you could never properly mourn him. It tore you apart. Things were already precarious.
“He pretended like he brought me in and turned me into a vampire to make you happy, but really, it was so you wouldn’t try to escape or do anything again. He knew that you would always be stuck with him if he had my life under his control because you wouldn’t risk losing the only family you had left.”
Sansón’s lips briefly lift into a small smile. “About a hundred years ago, the two of us got away from him. And for a hundred years, we lived our lives. I’d always had regrets about never getting to see my children grow up, never getting to tell my wife what happened to me, and it led me to meeting our family… meeting Cyrus, Joaquin, and the others. You chose to stay with them and I didn’t want to leave you, so I stayed nearby, visiting often. You’d never really gotten the chance to have a family since you were taken so young. And that family took you in like you were their own. For years you lived with them, and I’m pretty sure Cyrus’s mother saw you as her very own son. And… that’s when Louis found us again about four years ago. He killed the whole family, and when we tried to stop him, he nearly killed me before imprisoning me. But you… you almost died during the attack. Honestly, the blow he dealt to your head convinced me you’d died.
“I don’t know why he came so close to killing you. Louis told me that after you recovered, you couldn’t remember anything he’d done to you, that you could only remember bits and pieces. He manipulated you into thinking thathewas Joaquin andyouwere Cyrus. You remembered so little that you believed him. In your mind he was a familiar face, but you didn’t realize that he was your monster, not your brother. It was so fucked up… all of it was so fucked up, but he loved it so much… I’m so sorry I couldn’t get to you sooner.”
“You’re sorry?” I ask. “It sounds like it’s my fault your life was ruined as well.”
“It wasn’t your fault,” Sansón counters. “We were caught up by that twisted asshole. None of it was your fault.”
But I don’t even know what to say to that.
“He manipulated you. You were extremely hurt after the attack on our family. I didn’t think you were going to live… I wasn’t even sure if I was going to. After the damage he did toyou, it’s no wonder you couldn’t remember. So you can’t blame yourself for being manipulated by him. He was a monster who wanted to destroy our lives more than anything.”
“I know,” I say. “But… it’s just so much.”
“But we’re all back together now,” Ezio says. “Thank you for having taken care of him for so many years.”
“He’s my little brother. I’d have done anything for him. I just never was strong enough. I’m so glad he got wrapped up with all of you. If not… I’m not sure we’d have managed to kill Louis. I’d heard that night at the club that he was going to attack you, Cyrus, to try to draw Ezio out. He’d been so fixated on you that his attention on me had lapsed, and I was able to get free. I heard you were in the office with him and Donovan, and I rushed there… but you weren’t there at all. Donovan didn’t want to be under Louis’s control, but he knew he’d lose his life if he wasn’t. He visited Louis’s estate every now and then, and that’s when the two of us realized that we had similar opinions of Louis. We made the mistake that night at the club of thinking that we could take Louis by surprise, but you can see how well that worked out.
“If only I’d gotten to you sooner… I didn’t realize the extent to which it had gone. I only knew that you were living Cyrus’s life, and Louis was fucking with you. I tried to tell Ezio that night, but Louis nearly killed me, and I couldn’t get it out to him. I’m sorry I couldn’t do more,” Sansón says.
“Please, don’t,” I beg. “It’s not your fault. It’s like I remember moments of my life, but somehow Louis rewrote them, making me feel like I’d done those things with him instead of Joaquin or you. I hope I remember more. Maybe we could sit down and you could tell me a bit about our life.”
“I would love to. I’m not planning on going anywhere anytime soon. I want to enjoy my freedom. I want to live the life that was taken from me, and if you’re planning on living here, I’m not going too far. I went back to Louis’s estate earlier today,and I stole enough stuff to live a very nice life. I’ll split it with you.”
“Why the hell would you go back? Isn’t that risky?”
“It’s fine,” he says. “You should see the shit I stole. We’ll sell it and be rich and you can do whatever you want. You don’t have to live Cyrus’s life.”
I hesitate as I realize that I really am living a life someone else chose. I don’t have to be a detective. I don’t have tobeCyrus.
“I… right now, my head is so full of confusing shit that… I’m not quite sure what I want. So… I guess I’m going to keep living as Cyrus for now… until I better understand what I want to do. And I honestly like this job… I love this life now that I know there isn’t a man out to destroy those I love. I guess I’m like you. I just need a moment to breathe and realize how to be myself again.”
“Do you want to be called Cyrus or Arturo?” Julian asks.
“I… don’t know. Maybe it’s safest to stick with Cyrus in front of people? Maybe I’ll know better soon. Honestly, I guess call me whatever you’d like… because Cyrus makes the most sense, but Arturo feels right. I’m positive I didn’t answer your question at all.”
“It’s alright,” Julian assures me.
“Yeah, some people go by different names,” Atticus says. “Yorick goes by Borick, dumbass, motherfucker, and ‘The Man I’d Love to Watch Cry.’”
Sansón looks concerned but Julian waves him off. “It’s okay, they secretly want each other.”
