Page 39 of When Sinners Rise
I dig in, shoving the burger into my mouth and tearing through the layers. It’s delicious, and I enjoy every bite. The fries are next, shovelling them in as soon as there’s room in my mouth to chew. The plate’s clean before I’m full, but at least I won’tstarve now. Food is energy, and energy means I have a fighting chance. Not to escape but to survive.
My expectations have rearranged in my mind. Now that I’m outnumbered and overpowered in every way possible, fighting isn’t an option. Stay alive. Get to Naja.
Those are the two things at the forefront of my mind.
The door clicks open, and I push the plate away from me as Dragon comes back into the room. He surveys the tray and plates, and for a moment, I expect him to rage at Shaw or me. But he doesn’t. He dumps a bag on the bed. “Get dressed.”
Another flashback. This time, the trainer yelling out commands as we walked the room she kept us in and made us dress in scraps of material to please their customers, or even the Cortez brothers themselves.
I pick at the corner of the bag and let it fall open. Jeans and a T-shirt. A few other items that all look reasonable, and I actually feel relief douse me.
“Get on with it. We have a plane to catch.”
I take the bag back to the bathroom and do as I’m told.
A plane isn’t good. A plane means America, surely? That’s where they’re from. Is that where Naja is? How will Landon know I’m there? The questions and thoughts spiral as I pull on the fresh clothes. And the confidence to ask questions evaporates now Dragon’s back in the room. So, I stand and wait for my next command when I leave the bathroom. I can’t help Naja or myself if I’m broken.
Without any spoken words, Dragon leaves the room and turns to me as if I should be in step behind him. I look to Shaw, waiting for him, but he just looks through me, as if I’m a ghost, and grabs his suitcase.
I follow, though, and Shaw follows me.
The car is waiting outside the hotel rather than in the garage, and for a moment, I look out and wonder if I’ll ever be back. Just for a moment, before climbing inside.
If I had run, would I ever be able to live with myself? Would I ever be safe? They came for me after all this time. What could I do to keep myself safe? Naja couldn’t, Jackson couldn’t. And I know I don’t want to put Willow in danger. Could Landon keep us all safe?
The airport is busy, and we wait, tediously, for the flight to board. Dragon presented the fake passport and boarding passes with no problems. It was my last hope that someone else might intervene. But they wouldn’t leave anything to chance. Not after all of this, would they?
Shaw remains stoic as we move to business class on the flight. Dragon takes a seat next to me, with Shaw on the other side. I look over at him, but he keeps his head facing forward.
Dragon looks comfortable and relaxed in comparison. And that’s enough to keep me wary.
At thirty thousand feet, there’s nowhere to run, so I resign myself to enjoying the little comforts that business class offers. They can’t hurt me here, so I have the length of the flight to build my resolve.
Stage one: get to Naja. Then, we can get to stage two.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
SHAW
The flight landed an hour ago. There weren’t any problems, and she was quiet and well-behaved the whole damn way. Surprising, but I expect that’s what the threat of your sister getting killed does to you. I slept while Dante watched over her between us, and then he did the same for the last hours. She didn’t speak or acknowledge anything other than saying thank you for the food when the cabin staff brought it over. Don’t know how I felt about any of it. Still don’t.
Mariana drives us through heavy traffic around the outskirts of San Antonio, then veers towards the back roads heading out to the holding facility. It’s silent the whole way, but I can already hear those girls whimpering from here in my head. I doubt either of these two give a damn – certainly not Dante, but I never did learn to switch it off. Yeah, it might be arousing in some way when I think about the free access to fucking, but it still cuts close to the bone for me. Sometimes, all I can see is that night long ago when it was Mariana crying, when everything changed. I felt that fear in her that night, and I saw Dante rageat himself and everything around him. She was like them really – scared, helpless, desperate.
Eventually, we pull up, and Dante yanks Miri out the back to tow her into the building. I stay in the car, watching it happen. She doesn’t even fight him; she just hurries to keep up with his strides until they’re through the door and out of my sight.
“How was London?” Mariana asks beside me.
I frown. “Fine.”
“I’ve never been.” I don’t engage in conversation. Why bother? It’s not like we’re friendly most of the time. “You okay?” I pull my stare from the door and look at her.
“What?”
“Something’s on your mind. I know we’re not close, but you are my twin, Shaw. I can tell.”
“Yeah, whatever, screw you.”
“Hey, dipshit. I’m trying to be nice here.” I get out of the car and slam the door, heading for the inside of the building. She’s out and coming around the car to stop me before I get there. “Well, fuck you, too, then. Anyway, you’re not going in there.” She tries handing the keys of her Aston to me. “Abel wants you back at the house. Now.” I push past her and go inside anyway. “Shaw?”
