chapter 36: Eden
chapter 36: Eden
“I know,” Salvatore said gently. “We knew.”
“No.” I shook my head. “You don’t get it.”
I feel hollowed out.
“She didn’t just sell me. She watched me rot. She filmed it. She kept filming it.” My mouth trembled. “She sent it to you like a souvenir.”
I turned to Apollo. “Where is she right now?”
He blinked. “You sure you—?”
“Where. Is. She?”
He tapped the screen a few times, frowned, then nodded toward the map. “Condo in Coral Gables. Penthouse level. Gated building, security cams on every floor. But I can get you in.”
I grinned.
Apollo grinned back. “Now that’s the kind of crazy I respect.”
Gio stood. “Eden—what are you planning?”
I turned to him. “I’m going to look my mother in the eyes… and ask her if she remembers the sound I made when I cried for her.”
Gio looked at Salvatore, but Salvatore didn’t stop me. He wouldn’t. He couldn’t.
“You’re not going alone,” He said.
My jaw flexed. “I don’t need backup.”
“Tough,” Salvatore growls. “You have it anyway.”
I didn’t argue.
Just looked back at the screen—at the name that used to mean safety. And now meant war.
Apollo started working, mumbling code under his breath.
And I went to grab my knife.
I didn’t speak again until we were in the car, driving toward Coral Gables. But when I did, it wasn’t a whisper.
It was a vow.
“She’s going to die.”
—
16 years ago
I’m sitting on the edge of the couch, my legs swinging back and forth, the fabric of my dress swishing with every movement. Mama is sitting behind me, gently parting my hair, her fingers working their magic. I don’t know what she’s doing, but it feels good. Soft. Relaxing. Her hands are warm, and the smell of her perfume mixes with the scent of the coconut oil she always rubs through my hair.
The TV’s on, but I don’t really understand the movie. It’s something about two people falling in love. I don’t know how people can do that, how they can just look at each other and be happy. I’m not sure what love even is, but when I look at Mama, I think I must love her because everything feels calm when I’m with her.
She brushes through the tangles and hums a little, her voice low and soothing. I glance up at her, and she smiles back at me, her eyes twinkling. I’m not sure what’s on her mind, but I can tell she’s happy. She always is.
She finishes my hair and then spins me around in the chair. “Look how beautiful you are, my little angel,” she says, her smile stretching wide.
I look at myself in the mirror. My brown eyes look back at me, a little unsure, but when Mama says I’m beautiful, I believe her. Without her words, I don’t think I’d feel pretty. But when she says it, it’s like the mirror lights up, and I’m something special.
“Do you like it?” she asks.
I nod, my eyes still on my reflection. “Yeah, I like it.”
Mama leans in, brushing a stray hair from my face, and then she straightens up. “The reason I got your hair done today…” she starts, her voice quieter, almost secretive.
I look up at her, puzzled. “What’s the reason?”
She smiles, looking at me with that same spark in her eyes. “Well, sweetie, you’re going to meet your new dad.”
A new dad? I don’t really know what that means. “A new dad?” I ask, my voice small. My little heart skips a beat.
“Yes,” she says, her hands smoothing over my hair one last time. “We’re going to live in a big house. We’re moving to America, and he’s going to take such good care of us. You’ll be treated like a princess.”
“A princess?” I repeat, my eyes widening. “Like you?”
She laughs, a soft laugh that makes my chest feel warm. “No, honey,” she says, shaking her head, her smile playful. “I’m not a princess. I’m a queen.”
I furrow my brow. “Why can’t I be a queen?”
She pauses, her expression softening, then looks at me seriously. “Because, darling, there can only be one queen. But there can be as many princesses as you want.”
I don’t really understand. But I nod, accepting her answer. It makes sense in a way. She’s the queen. She’s my mama, and that’s enough for me.
I turn back to the mirror, looking at my reflection again. A princess. Maybe I could be that. Maybe I would be.