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Anna
I retreatto the bedroom and take a hot shower, attempting to wash away my shame and cleanse my mind. The very air around me feels heavy and oppressive, and my mind is like quicksand, trying to hold me down and pull me under, but I fight it.
As I close my eyes, I picture the smile on Rafael’s face, the pride in his eyes. I try to hold onto that, but it’s so hard. I get out of the shower and wrap a towel around me before going to the closet.
“Anna.” I turn around and find Rafael, one hand braced against the doorframe. I eye him, my stomach knotting under his stare. “Your sister wants to speak to you.” He holds the phone up, and I stare at it for a second, my heart rate skipping pointedly. He covers the microphone, frowning. “You don’t have to speak to her yet if you don’t want to.”
“She’s my sister,” I whisper.
“I don’t give a fuck who she is. If you don’t want to speak to her, you don’t speak to her.”
I take a cleansing breath and hold my hand out for the phone. His eyes lock with mine as he places it in my hand. I imagined so many times what it would be like if I ever found her, but now that it’s happening I find myself recoiling, afraid of disappointment. We’re not children anymore. She’s no longer the protective older sister I once knew, and I’m not the innocent little girl she tried so hard to preserve. I place the phone to my ear, my heart beating erratically.
“Hello.”
There’s a pause. “Hey,” she says, her accent more American than Russian, but with just a hint of our homeland lingering beneath.
I don’t know what to say to her. Rafael turns to leave, but I step forward and grab his hand, halting him. I don’t know why. I just…need him. I have no idea what to say to Una, and I glance at him as if he can help me, but this is the one thing he can’t help me with. I have to do this on my own. His fingers thread through mine, his thumb skating small circles over the back of my hand.
“Thank you for helping me,” I say. We’re strangers, but Una risked everything to try and save me.
“I…you’re my sister,” she takes a breath. “I looked for you.”
“I know. Rafael told me.”
Another long pause. “I will get you out of Mexico. I will. It’s just not safe right now.” What? No.
“I’m safe with Rafael.” I’m grateful to her, I am, but she’s still a faceless dream. Rafe is real.
“Okay. Well, I love you,” she whispers. “And Anna, be careful. This world is full of enemies.”
I hang up because I don’t know what else to say to her. Handing the phone back to Rafael, I meet his gaze. “She called you?”
“Nero did.”
“She’s with him?”
He scrubs his hand over his face. “I think they’re together.”
“Together?”
“She’s his.” My eyes go wide. “She wants to be his.” He clarifies.
“Why would she want to stay with a man who blackmailed her?”
He moves closer, his eyes locking with mine. “Why would you want to stay with a man who kept you captive?”
“That’s not the same.”
“Isn’t it? Just know that no one could make Una do something she doesn’t want to do.”
“I don’t like him,” I say.
Rafael tosses his head back on a laugh. “Yeah, he can be a prick.”
“He bought me.” I fold my arms over my chest. “He’s more than a prick.”
Rafe grins. “He did buy you to give to Una.” I glare at him. “Sometimes it’s easier to buy something than take it by force. Dominges isn’t the easiest to deal with.”
