Page 103 of Made to Sin

Seeing her eyes light up and her face brighter than when I saw her last month was enough for me to know I’d spent my money in the right place. My recent paycheck was gone but not wasted.

“I wanted to. You go ahead first. Sheryl told me someone was waiting for me, so I’ll be right back.”

“Take your time, I still need to eat breakfast.”

I nodded and left Ha-Jin’s room to continue my trek to find room number one-thirty.

One-twenty-eight.

One-twenty-nine.

I stopped in front of the sign with the number one-thirty. For some reason, my heart pounded faster in my chest as I had something to anticipate.

The door was propped open, a sole lady sitting inside on a gray-leathered recliner. The low sound of her TV playing some telenovela as her round eyes amply stared.

I knocked twice as a courtesy before walking in. “Hi, are you Tori by any chance?”

Her short chestnut, bob-length hair swung over to see who interrupted her binge session. She raised a confused eyebrow when she saw me. “Who’s asking?”

“Sorry, my name is Katarina. I heard you’re looking for me?”

“Oh, you, come in.” She sat up a smidge straighter and gestured me to sit on the fabric ottoman across from her.

I sat, not following how she knew me.

Upon seeing my confusion, she explained, “I saw you come in with Luciano last month. I was just curious who the special woman in his life was— other than Eda and me, of course. That boy never brings anyone around.”

Everyone who was telling me that I was special to Luciano was feeding into my alter ego. The same crazy one that wanted to see what the crush I had would lead to.

I gave her an awkward smile. “Pardon me, but I think you guys are getting the wrong message. We’re just… roommates.”

“I’m not saying that to say it, Katarina. Contrary to what people may believe, that boy is a real sweetheart. And in the years that the shelter has been standing, no other woman was invited to come here with him. If he brought you here, you must meansomething to him.”

“Don’t I know it,” I muttered.

She smiled a sad smile, looking almost sorry for me. “Don’t believe me? Let me tell you a story to see if you’d change your mind,” Tori proposed.

I had a feeling her words would worsen my growing crush on Luciano, but she started before I could protest.

“When I first came here, the shelter was small and empty. There were about ten volunteers, including Eda and Luciano. I was still young, barely in my late thirties when I found the courage to run away from my husband.”

My heart stilled at the sense of familiarity I felt with her. If Marco hadn’t been shot, would I have had the courage to run? Traumatized from what happened with Mamma, probably not.

“It was expected that any man, young or old, scared the living daylights out of me. But, as cliché as it sounds, Luciano was different.” She paused and then smiled like she was reliving the nice things he’d done for her. “He was patiently doing his best to help all the victims here. For me, he would walk about ten feet away, so I felt safe. He kept trying to start conversation with me, despite my lack of response. He donated funds when I was too scared to go start work again.”

A warmth enclosed my body because as I listened to her memories, I remembered how he saved me too. Taking me in was one thing, but he also helped me find my own groove in the world.

I perked up for the bad parts of her story. Every tale had to come down from its climax, right? He couldn’t be perfect… right?

Wrong.

“At the beginning, I rejected his attempts, avoided him at all cost. I thought he would exploit me the same way my husband did. I mean what man freely throws money to help someone like me?”

I bit my lip, awaiting her answer to the question that had been haunting me the past few months too.

“Turns out, he went through it himself. He understood what it was like to witness the abuse of a parent, to experience it. He had it much worse than anyone could imagine. It’s not my story to tell, but no matter how old he is, I know there’s a boy trapped under the mighty skin. He’s desperately looking for the same safety that he helped other people find.”

My stomach nauseating twisted repeatedly as I imagined Luciano as a beaten little boy. It was easier to see him now and expect him to act the part of a Made Man. I forgot nobody grows up loving the shadows, you just learned to love them before they buried you first.

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