Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 88447 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88447 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
“I don’t understand.” Mrs. Cordova sat back down, her expression troubled. “How did this happen? I thought you had moved out to North Carolina the day you graduated high school.”
“I did. I got the hell out of here and didn’t look back. I had a good life on the East Coast, a great one working as an EMT, away from all the drama and vile bullshit of my father’s world. Daddy dearest was equally happy to have me gone. I was an embarrassment to the family, never doing what I was told, always asking questions no one wanted to answer. I was literally the black sheep in their perfect white family. He liked to pretend I didn’t exist, and I had no problem with that.”
“What changed?” Diego asked, earning a stern look from his mother.
“Why, he decided to run for Governor of Arizona, of course.” She tapped her lip, a mock thoughtful expression furrowing her brow. “How could I, a man who has voted against the Hispanic and African American community at every turn, still get their vote? Oh, I know, I’ll start parading my illegitimate daughter around. You know, the one that looks so much like her dirty mother who abandoned her at birth.” She gave a harsh, mocking laugh. “Great plan, except I didn’t want to have anything to do with him, and he had no leverage over me. I never wanted or used any of his money or connections. Everything I got, I earned for myself. I thought I was safe. I thought I would be able to spend the rest of my life forgetting about him. I was wrong.”
Diego released my shoulder and moved closer to Selena. He tossed his long braid over his shoulder as he said, “So he took your daughter.”
She turned, not giving up her space as she met his gaze and nodded. “When he first called me, I hung up on him. Then I changed my number. When his goons showed up at my house, I refused to answer the door, so he took my daughter. She was sixteen months old, and my father had his men steal her away from me in the dead of night. Except my partner Jayden, Cameron’s father, woke up and tried to stop them. If it had been a fair fight, he would have killed them, but all Jayden had to defend himself was a baseball bat. See, Jayden didn’t grow up in the same world that I did. He was a kind, gentle man who didn’t see the need to have a gun in the house. We were both EMTs, so he’d seen more than his fair share of kids accidentally shooting themselves or someone else with an unsecured firearm. He wanted Cameron to be safe.” She dashed away a tear, then took a deep breath. “Now I only see my daughter once a week, if I’m good. There have been months where I’d been kept away as punishment for not playing my role well enough. She’s almost three years old, and she barely knows me.”
Diego tried to hug her, but she pushed him away. “Do not touch me.”
“Selena…” Diego helplessly held out his hands. “Why didn’t you come to me? I told you I would always be here for you. I would have helped you get your daughter back in a heartbeat.”
“Because you’ve proven, when under pressure, your word isn’t worth shit.” She turned back to Mrs. Cordova as Diego staggered slightly, like she’d slapped him. “Your mother, on the other hand, always keeps her word. Do we have a deal, Mrs. Cordova? Layla and Cameron are being held in the same place. I’ll help you get in if you help me get my child out.”
“And what will you do once you have your daughter?” Mrs. Cordova asked. “Your father is a very powerful man. Not as powerful as me, but he could certainly cause problems.”
“I’ll do whatever it takes to keep Cameron safe.”
“You are not the same girl I remember,” Mrs. Cordova said softly. “Perhaps I misjudged you.”
“Mrs. Cordova, no offense, but I really don’t give a shit how you feel about me. All I want to know is if you’ll help me rescue my daughter and free Layla.”
“I will, with one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“After we rescue your daughter, you will allow Diego to be responsible for your safety. You will do whatever he says and go wherever we send you.”
Selena’s eyes went wide. She glanced at Diego then back to Mrs. Cordova. “No way.”
Mrs. Cordova held up her hand, her red nails gleaming. “Do not dismiss my offer so easily. I’m giving you a chance, a real chance, to keep Cameron safe and happy. Living a life on the run is no way to raise a child, I can promise you that. Give Cameron an opportunity to have a normal life, Selena. Do the right thing for your daughter.”