Page 11 of Consume

I began to unpack and found the drugs from Rafael still stashed in my suitcase. I had to get rid of these before Grant saw them. I would flush them down the toilet next time Grant left the house.

I emerged from the bedroom and found Grant just staring at the television, which wasoff.

“Can you get dinner? We have nothing.”

“Yup.”

Grant kissed me, walked out the door, and left me alone. What a horrible way to start our new marriage. I did not want to spend the rest of my life having to choose between my brother and my husband.

Then my phone rang. I ran to my purse and picked itup.

“Hello?”

A woman’s voice played on a recording. “You are receiving a callfrom—”

“Joaquín Cruz,” my brother’s voicesaid.

“—an inmate at the San Diego County Jail. Press one to accept this call and two to decline.”

I pressed one as fast as I could. “Joaquín? Are you there?”

“Hey, sis. I needed to hear your voice.”

An ache twisted in my chest. Nothing has changed. Grant has no proof. This is your brother. “Me, too. I miss you. How areyou?”

He exhaled. “Been better. Just sick of this shit, you know? Any progress getting me out ofhere?”

“I’m working on it. Hey, when we were at the jail, you mentioned to Grant that I had an ex named Julián. Why?” I made sure not to ask how he knew about Julián or who he thought Juliánwas.

His voice dropped. “Because I wanted you to findhim.”

“And by him, you meant the little boy, right?”

“Did you find him?” His voice was strange, hopeful and scared at the same time. Maybe I had been right, but it didn’t stop me from wondering why exactly Joaquín had wanted me to findhim.

“I did, but he’s gone. Do you know where he isnow?”

“I’ll take you to him if you get me out ofhere.”

My mouth became dry, and I talked rapidly. “Please, I need to find him. Tell me where heis.”

“Then you know what you have to do. Later, sis.” And with that, the phone wentdead.

Did he really just leverage my son for his freedom? What the fuck? Why wouldn’t he tell me where Julián was? My brain raged against the truth that was right in front of me, scrambling for an answer that fit with what I needed to believe. He had done it to protect Julián. My brother was in jail, the phones were recorded. I had to get him out of therefast.

Grant was wrong about him. So was Mitch.

So was April. She couldn’t have seen Joaquín because he hadn’t been there that night. And Mitch himself had told me that he didn’t see the guy—it had been dark in that room—there was no way he could have seen my attackers face and lots of people had the same build as my brother.

And I hadn’t known that the truck that hit my parents was registered to Rafael. But even if that was true, it didn’t prove anything. Maybe Rafael targeted my father, and when my father was gone, he targeted Joaquín. Blackmailing him. For what? I had no idea, but criminals rarely needed rational reasons for anything. Rafael had probably kidnapped my son to get something from my brother, and once Joaquín found out, he killed Tiffany in a moment of rage. Yes, that made sense if I ignored the fact that there was no way that Rafael or my brother should have known I was even pregnant.

On it went with my thinking in tiny circles and dismissing one idea after another and explaining actions away time and time again. I sat and thought until my head throbbed and my eyelids grew heavy.