Page 63 of No Merciful Corruption

“And what exactly will that accomplish?”

He scoffs and waves a hand as he collapses back into the pillows. “Ah, ¿qué sé yo?”

I haven’t been able to make sense of any of this. In twenty-four hours, I’ve semi-reconciled with my cousin, found out she’s separated from her psycho husband, and then said psycho husband broke into her home because he was stalking the house surveillance footage and saw my boyfriend’s car in the driveway. To be honest, I haven’t processed the whole ordeal with Brent yet and now there’s more to take in.

Like the fact that my cousin is pregnant and Diego is the father.

Since when did the two of them have a thing? Since when have they been in contact? And most importantly, why doesn’t Alejandro seem as shocked as I am? If not for the fact that he nearly killed his brother in my backyard this morning I may not have been able to put two and two together. And even then—Karina’s horror was what ultimately confirmed the truth and I still can’t believe it.

Karina and Diego?

What the Hell have I missed?

“I told him, lo sabía—” he hisses through his teeth and squeezes the bridge of his nose. “I’m going to kill him. I think I may actually kill him.”

“Why does it sound like you know more than I do?”

Alejandro drops his hand and stares at my bedroom ceiling. “You can’t tell me you never noticed.”

“Never noticed what?”

“How flirtatious my brother has always been.”

I wave a hand dismissively. “Diego flirts with everyone. He flirts with me.”

He shakes his head. “Sometimes I forget how recently you entered our lives. This is the only version of my brother that you’ve ever known.”

“You make it sound like Diego is some sort of wayward, problem child. He isn’t. He’s a good brother.”

I don’t know why I suddenly feel so protective of Diego. Maybe it’s because nearly three years ago when I woke up in the villa for the first time, he was my only true friend for a while. It took time for Lettie to warm up to me and my feelings for Alejandro were tumultuous to say the least. Diego has always been the middle ground between his siblings and the glue that held them together. I cannot imagine a version of Diego different from the one I know. Someone who is kind, loving, and loyal.

“Diego has been suspiciously well-behaved the last two and a half years.” Alejandro says. “But he’s always been difficult. He used to go on benders and disappear for weeks, sometimes months at a time. Maybe when we were younger I indulged him too much. I cared more about being his friend than his⁠—”

“You’re not his father, Alex.” I say gently.

He sighs heavily.

“You’re more upset about this than I am.” I lie down beside him and rest my head on the pillow next to his. “Why?”

“I’m upset for the same reasons you are. I’m worried about Karina and what this could mean for her divorce. I’m afraid my brother won’t rise to the occasion and I’ll have to swoop in and save him like I always do. Most of all, I’m paralyzed by the fact an innocent child is going to be born into this mess.”

“You weren’t so upset when you thought I was pregnant. How can our situation be any different?”

He looks at me with an immediately softening expression. “Because we are completely different. We’re in love and they aren’t. We’re together and they aren’t.”

“Is that all you’re upset about?” I hedge. “Or is there something else?”

His gaze drops and he turns away.

“Maybe there’s a bit of envy on your part.” I place my hand on his chest. “You seemed…well…disappointed.”

I hadn’t commented on it before especially since everything unraveled so quickly. Alejandro was visibly distraught when he realized the pregnancy test wasn’t mine. In the span of seconds I watched him move through nearly all the stages of grief until he settled on anger and took it out on his brother. Of course, I’m upset but I’m not upset at Karina. I’m upset for her and the situation she’s now found herself in. We all make mistakes but my frustration stems from my inability to help her during an already stressful and difficult time.

With Alejandro it’s like there’s this animosity or resentment toward his brother. Or perhaps it’s just envy.

“Alex?”

He snaps at me. “It’s fine, it would’ve been terrible timing anyway.”