Page 93 of No Greater Oblivion

His eyes widen and his lips part but I storm into the bathroom and slam the door shut behind me. At the last second, I flip the lock before walking over to the sink and turning on the cold water. I wish I could drown myself but that would require a much larger body of water and to get to the pool, I’d need to pass Alejandro again.

And I can’t. I can’t face him.

My body heats. Tears prickle behind my eyes and a burning sensation creeps up my throat. I part my lips to draw in breath but a strangled sound escapes instead. I clench my teeth to stop it from happening again but I feel it deep in my chest, the urge to scream.

With trembling hands, I manage to splash water on my face but it does nothing to help. I turn off the sink and grip the marble edge so I don’t topple over. Everything inside me tremors; my bones quake and my muscles tighten and I wish the blurriness in my vision would clear but it seems to get worse with every strangled breath of air I manage to drag into my lungs. And then I stop breathing all together.

I realize then how trapped I am and I don’t mean in this house. I’m trapped in a relationship with someone I left my entire life for. Someone who barely acknowledges my existence anymore and doesn’t listen to me when I speak. How could I have been so wrong, so foolish? How could I have made a mistake like this?

“Dahlia?” Alejandro knocks on the bathroom door. “Dahlia, abre la puerta.”

What is there for me back home? I withdrew from my grad program, left my job, and don’t have any internships lined up. There’s the apartment at Marcia’s but I spent more than I should’ve from my savings and I won’t last more than three months. Karina lives with Brent now and there’s no one else I can fall back on. I am completely alone.

Am I stuck here?

“Dahlia!” He knocks again. “Mujer, ¿qué te pasa? ¿Por qué te encerraste?”

I think I am. I think I’m trapped.

And the only way out is through.

Taking a moment to compose myself, I wait a few more seconds before opening the door. There’s no use trying to walk past him because he stands in the doorway, overwhelming me with his size and stature.

The clarity and stability in my voice shocks even me. “We came here to be alone and in less than twenty-four hours you haven’t been able to have a single uninterrupted conversation with me.”

He at least has the decency to look embarrassed. “I’m so⁠—”

“Keep your apology to yourself and get out of my way.”

I push past him and into the bedroom where I snatch my phone off the nightstand and head outside. Last year, I spent many long days walking the grounds of the villa and managed to find plenty of places to hide. There was little privacy to be had and I needed to assert my independence in any way I could.

In summer, the garden is in full bloom and it lasts well into the autumn months. Tucked between two olive trees, I sit on a stone bench and scroll through my contacts until I find the one I’m looking for. Hoping her number hasn’t changed all these years, I draft a text message and hope for the best.

Me: Lyss? It’s me…how about that coffee sometime?

Her response comes mere seconds later.

Lyss: Absolutely.

23

HE’S KIND AND HE’S GENEROUS AND HE’S GENTLE…

Alejandro

The Past

Barcelona, Spain

“And you’re sure?”

“Positive,” Ferrer says on the other line. “I overheard Regina and Sandro discussing it when they thought they were alone. The shipment coming in from Galicia is an important one; twenty-five million euros worth of product.”

The pen in my hand stills. “Did you hear anything else?”

“Enough to know he’s struggling. His men are abandoning him left and right, including the lower ranking associates. Without anyone willing to sell for him he’s losing money, not to mention clients. From my understanding, Don Ruben Caceres is his biggest competition.”

Footsteps in the hall catch my attention and I angle my head to see who’s entering the kitchen. Dahlia drops her phone into her purse and beelines straight for the fridge, barely casting a glance in my direction.