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Thirty-one
Mateo
My mother squeezes me from behind, her dark eyes beaming in the mirror. “You look so handsome, mijito.” I swallow the lump in my throat, hating the way the white tux squeezes around my body, suffocating me. “Don't worry, it will all be over soon.” Her eyes grow cold and distant. The loving mother from before is no longer standing behind me.
“What do you mean? It will never be over. I'll be living a life of misery. Is that what you want for me? To be miserable?”
Her smile is malicious and her bright red lips widen. “I remember being you once. Already hating the man I was supposed to learn to love. Walking down that aisle was comparable to walking straight to my death. We all have paths we must take to get us to where we are meant to be. One day you will understand why this has to happen.”
My eyes widen in the mirror. “Understand what? What have you done?”
She straightens the flower in my pocket. “Don't worry, mijito. I'm simply doing what's best for the family and that no longer includes your father.”
I turn around, pulling out of her grip and hear two guns click behind me. “Now listen to me, Mateo. You will walk down that aisle because it is your duty. You've already caused enough trouble as it is and that ends today.”
“You. You've constructed this whole thing, not Father. Why?”
She sighs heavily. “Because it should have never been his to begin with. This…” she lifts her hands, “should have all been mine. I wasn't going to stand around and lose everything when your grandfather died. So I did what I had to do. I got rid of the problem by setting a small fire.”
I gasp. “You killed Gabriel's parents. But why? Did you think Marcus was getting too powerful and would come after Dad?”
She huffs. “Your father always had so many secrets that he didn't think I knew about. He didn't think I knew about the man he snuck off to see every chance he got. Your father could never love me because he was too busy in love with someone else.”
“What man?” Then I think back to the fire. Her motive to start it suddenly makes sense. She was trying to get rid of my father's lover—Gabriel's father. I suck in a breath, becoming light-headed. They were more than best friends and partners.
She smiles, patting me on the shoulder. “I knew you'd catch on. You are a lot like me. One day this will all be yours when the day comes to bury your husband.”
“You have an agreement with Santiago.”
She nods. “More like an agreement with his father. I promised to get rid of your father and give you to his son to form an alliance. He agreed to allow me to sit in your father's place.”
I shake my head. “You don't really trust that, do you?”
“I don't trust your father, and this is my way out. Now let's get you out there. We don't want you late to your own wedding.”
I remember Santiago's words at the warehouse. “We have an agreement after all.”
I thought he was talking about my aunt, but he was really talking about my mother. She tugs on my arm and I plant my feet on the ground. “If Father isn't in on this, then why is he going along with it?”
She laughs. “I convinced him it was his idea. I made a few suggestions and made sure he got a visit from some of his worst enemies. I reminded him each time how he would benefit from forming an alliance with the Moraleses. Then all his business deals started going wrong and he lost control of the situation. Gabriel Castaneda blamed the wrong person all these years and it really worked in my favor.”
“The person who blew up my car…was that you?”
She shook her head. “They promised not to let it get too far and that they wouldn't actually let you get in the car.”
“You nearly got me killed. Your own son.” Before she could say anymore, I push past her, hitting her shoulder with mine. The guards follow me, making sure I go where I'm supposed to. The inside of the house almost matches the outside. Red roses and ribbon covering everything. It's beautiful, but too bad it isn't real. Once again my mother is trying to destroy all beautiful things for me by mixing them with the ugly.
My mother is back by my side, taking my arm. “Smile, mi amor. Today is the beginning of our new life.” I search everywhere for my father, but he is nowhere to be found. She shakes her head and presses a quick kiss to my cheek. “Your father won't be walking with you today. It will only be me.”
My skin turns to ice each time she touches me. I don't know who this woman is, but it isn’t the woman who raised me. We exit the back double doors and there are rows of white chairs on each side of the aisle we walk down. Each row is filled with people. Some I recognize and some I’ve never seen before in my life.
My mother's long cream dress gets caught on something on the ground. She yanks at it to no avail. She bends over and smoke rises in the air, followed by colorful sparks of red, blue and gold. Everyone's gaze lifts to the display of fireworks, even my husband-to-be.
It's obvious by the surprise in his eyes that he wasn't behind it. My mother fidgets with her dress, checking it over. The fireworks are still going and Santiago is yelling over them. “Can someone please figure out where the hell the fireworks are coming from?”
Someone yanks on my jacket–a man I've never seen before. He has dark blond hair and a red tie tucked under his black suit jacket. “I have a gift for you, Mateo. Consider it your something borrowed and something blue. You'll know when to use it.” He winks, sliding a blue gun into the back of my pants. My mother is still distracted by the loud booming in the sky as well, covering her ears with her fingers until it ends.
“Now that the show is over, how about we continue having ourselves a wedding.” Santiago gestures to the man at the piano to continue and apologizes to our guests.
