AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Jesus.” I put my elbows on the table and press the heels of my palms to my eyes. “Does this happen often?”
“No. I think the mention of Rivera holding you triggered him. How much does he sleep?”
“I don’t know. Four hours, maybe five.” I shrug. “He usually goes to sleep after me, so I can’t be sure.”
“Do you two sleep in the same bed?”
“He waits until I’m asleep, then gets his sleeping bag and spends the night on the floor.”
“Good. Keep it that way.”
“I will most certainly not keep it that way,” I say. “I’ve been trying to convince him to sleep in bed with me for weeks.”
“What? Are you crazy?”
I cross my arms in front of me and pin Felix with my stare. “Did it ever occur to you that, maybe, if everyone stopped treating him like he’s a wild animal, he may get better?”
“Did you see what happened there, Angelina?” He points to the laptop screen. “Do you know how much time he needed to overpower three armed men? Fifteen seconds!” he barks. “I think Roman and I made a mistake by putting all this on you.A girl as sheltered as you can’t possibly understand what some people are capable of.”
I tilt my head to the side and glare at him. “Do you know how they treat snitches in the cartel, Felix? Or thieves?”
“No.”
“Then let me explain to you how very sheltered I’ve been.” I lean back in my chair and look out the window at the garden. “There was this big tree not far from our house, just behind the flowerbed I loved playing around. I don’t know what kind of tree it was, but it had very long and thick branches. Durable,” I say. “When someone was caught giving intel to the authorities or other cartels, they would hang him from one of the lower branches. Hanging people was my father’s favorite way of punishment. I was usually advised not to go to that part of the garden when the tree was occupied.”
“Jesus fuck.” Felix stares at me, his eyes wide. “They did that with children around? What if some of them saw the bodies?”
“Oh, we saw the bodies for sure. Everyone was present when someone was hanged. It was mandatory. A warning of sorts. My nana didn’t want me to go there because of the smell.”
“The smell?”
“Yeah, they sometimes left the bodies for a day or two. The stink was so strong, that even after they removed the corpses, the scent remained in my nose for days.” I shrug. “Then, there was the hunt. That was used for thieves mostly.”
I find it rather funny, the way Felix gapes at me, like he’s seeing me for the first time. I’m pretty sure he knows what kind of hunt it was, but I continue anyway.
“My father’s people would tie the thieves’ hands behind their backs and send them barefoot into the forest. A twenty-minute head start was what they usually got. Then, they would take the guns and go hunting. Sometimes, when there were multiple thieves being hunted, it would last the whole night. I would lie inmy bed and listen to an occasional gunshot, wondering if it was a hit or miss.” I put my palms onto the table and lean forward. “So don’t you dare draw conclusions about what I can or can’t deal with, Felix.”
I get up and walk to the fridge, grab a can of Coke, then head into the living room to wait for Sergei.
“When Sergei comes, we’ll pretend nothing happened,” I say in passing.
“Angelina?”
I stop and look at Felix over my shoulder. “Yes?”
“Does this mean that you’re staying?”
“Yes, it does.”
Chapter 17
The blanket starts sliding down my body. I grab the edge to keep it over me and just barely open one eye. It’s still dark outside. There is another tug on the blanket, harder this time, and the cover slips from between my fingers.
“What time is it?” I mumble and bury my face in the pillow.
“Half past five,” Sergei whispers in my ear and places a kiss on my nape. “I need your help with something.”
“What?”
