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I trail off, my mind swirling.
Nothing makes sense, yet everything makes sense. I thought Arturo kept me locked away because he was a cruel, unfeeling bastard. Now I realize he did it because he wanted to keep Liana’s fortune, power, and territory all to himself. He made sure I was none the wiser—dependent on him and cut off from the rest of the world.
There’s the off chance that my mother really was killed in an accident but knowing how much of a weasel my father is, I can’t believe any of this is a coincidence. He deliberately hid my mother’s will from me, isolated me from the rest of my family, and basically held me hostage so he could keep what was supposed to be mine.
If my grandmother is at all concerned, she does an excellent job of hiding it. I’d expect nothing less from the leader of one of the most powerful cartels in both North and South America. She casually walks about her garden, checking her tropical plants before stopping in front of her pet snake’s enclosure.
“Do you know much about the Allegra faction?” Renata asks me.
I shake my head. “My father never discussed business in front of me.”
My grandmother takes a seat in what appears to be a well-loved wicker chair next to a large fern, running her fingers along the rich green leaves. “They were a smaller group, roughly twenty-some years ago. Little boys high off the smallest of power trips. They focused mainly on narcotics, but my people had the market cornered for ages. They were mostly a nuisance, too underfunded and without much manpower. I honestly didn’t expect them to last another two years.”
I take a seat in the chair across from her, picking at my nails. “What else can you tell me?”
“Arturo Allegra was a foot soldier. All my reports said he wasn’t a threat. Just a greedy child with no real business sense, but he was causing problems for us on the west coast. Disrupting deliveries of various goods of questionable origin.”
I shrug. “There’s no need to sugarcoat it, Abuela.”
Renata smiles gently. “Alright, then. Cocaine and other drugs. Liana was one of my most trusted generals. This life… She thrived in it. If there’s one thing I admired most about my youngest daughter, it was that she was a no-nonsense sort of woman. I told her to go to California to deal with this little rat problem of ours…”
I frown, confused. “I’m guessing things didn’t go as smoothly as you’d hoped?”
Renata sighs, but there isn’t a hint of irritation on her face. Only regret. “Love is a funny thing. It happens when you least expect it. They were married within the year. Liana didn’t give me all the details. The way she explained it, marrying Arturo Allegra was the easiest way to keep him from interfering with our business dealings. For a while, it actually worked.”
Cold washes over me, a sudden lump lodging in the back of my throat.
“I’m guessing their time in paradise didn’t last?” Zane asks. He’s taken up a spot between two potted ferns, keeping his distance while staying within earshot.
Renata presses her lips into a thin line. “No, I suppose not.”
“What happened?” I whisper.
“What always happens, my dear. He got greedy.” My grandmother takes a deep breath, watching her snake curl up inside its tank beneath the warm afternoon sunshine. “It wasn’t long before I lost contact with my daughter. I can only guess what that monster did to her. If your treatment is anything to go by, I wouldn’t be surprised if he subjected Liana to the same kind of isolation.”
I don’t know whether I want to cry, scream, or throw up. Maybe a combination of all three. My heart thuds harshly against the inside of my ribcage, threatening to burst right out of my chest. The more I learn about my father, the more I’m disgusted by the fact I spent twenty-one years stuck under his thumb. I’ll never know for sure if my mother truly loved him, but I know without a shadow of a doubt that he never loved us. I grew up believing his lies, that the Marrones’ were all monsters, all the while living under the same roof as one.
I don’t think it’s possible for me to describe my rage or anguish. Arturo tried to take everything from. Hehastaken everything from me. All his wealth and power—mywealth and power—has been squandered to the point that he’s now Esteban’s lackey. Whatever my mother left me in her will probably isn’t there anymore…
But I’m hungry for revenge.
“He needs to pay,” I say firmly, staring off as if in a trance. “For everything he’s done. I want to make him pay.”
“Don’t worry, my dear,” Renata says, casually signaling to one of her maids to bring over a pot of tea. “Arturo Allegra will get what’s coming to him. You leave the fighting to us.”
I shake my head. “I want in.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Zane take a step forward. “Willow…”
“I’m serious, Abuela. I want to fight with you. I deserve justice, not just for me, but for my mother, too.”
“There’s a difference between justice and revenge, dear girl. Which do you want more?”
“Both. I can have my revenge and seek justice, too.”
“Do you even know how to fight?” Renata asks me, not unkindly. She sounds more concerned for my well being than anything else. “Have you ever fired a gun before?”
“Well, I mean, no. But I’ve held one.”
