Destroy You (Destroy #3) (28 page)

I nodded. I wasn’t going to try to be tough. I don’t know if I’d ever be able to be near an open flame again without seeing Trinity as the fire overtook her.

“When you get a chance, I want you to talk to Reed. He knows a thing or a thousand about PTSD,” Toni told me.

Again, I nodded. I’d already planned on doing something, I just wasn’t sure what. Between this episode and last night’s nightmares, I didn’t want to face a lifetime of reliving that event over and over. I’d never forget it, but I didn’t want to have to continue to relive it, either.

She sat quietly for a few minutes before she spoke again. “Do you think he was in there?”

“Your father?” I asked, and she nodded. “Hard to say. We’ll have to wait and see what your uncle says. How are you doing with that, by the way?”

“It’s weird. I guess even before I knew anything, or remembered rather, I never really felt that sense of family with my parents. I feel it with Javier, though. It’s like I finally have a place I belong.”

Her eyes got big, and she looked down at her phone. “My uncle—could he have been in there when it blew up?”

I swallowed hard, trying to keep myself from vomiting again. She’d already lost so much. If they were inside serving the warrant, he could have been in the building when it blew. Certainly more than enough time had passed for them to arrive there.

Reed joined us in the den before I had a chance to come up with something to say to her. “I don’t know anything yet, but I wanted to be in here with you. I just heard the news on the radio.”

Reed’s phone rang, and he looked down at the screen. “What’s going on, Daniels?”

We all watched him to try to read his face while he talked. “I’m in here with her now—” He looked at Toni, and my heart broke, seeing the despair on his face. “Yeah, I’ll tell her. Are you sure, though—No, I guess it can’t wait if the news is going to report it. I’ve got to go.” He hung up and closed his eyes for a minute.

“Toni, I’ve got bad news—”

“Who? Tell me right now, Reed Martin, or I swear—”

Reed went to her and firmly grabbed her by the shoulders.

“My uncle?” she asked, her lip quivering on the verge of sobbing.

“Perez is fine. It’s Leo. He chased your dad into the building. Neither of them were seen after the blast,” Reed finally answered.

“Let’s go,” she demanded.

“Go where?” Reed asked hesitantly.

“Take me there. I want to go, I need to go, please. I’ll beg, I’ll bribe you, tell me what you need and I’ll do it.”

He shook his head. She started to argue, but he held his hand up to stop her. “C’mon, I’m not trying to be an asshole here, but we’ll be in their way. Taking you down there won’t help. Please, don’t fight me on this.”

Toni nodded, but I could see her searching the room with her eyes for something. I spotted a set of keys on an end table a second before she did, and when she lunged for them, I was ready for her.

I grabbed on to her waist and spun her away from the table. She more than lived up to her nickname as she kicked, clawed, and even bit me.

“Let me go,” she screamed.

My hands were searing with pain as the pressure I exerted to hold her ripped open my blistering burns. “Fuck,” I shouted in agony. “Would you help me hold on to her, please?”

Kate entered the room and put her arms around Toni’s shoulders. “Shh,” she cooed in her ear. “I’m here. I’ll stay with you until you don’t need me to.”

She crumpled to the ground, and Kate sat next to her. Toni practically curled up in her lap and quieted down while Kate stroked her hair. She shook violently with the force of her sobs, and I felt powerless to help her.

Kate glanced up at her husband. “Can you take Trent in the other room and change the dressings on his hands? I’m sure you’ve handled worse when you were in the army, but if it’s too bad, I’ll come and fix it.”

Reed dropped his hand on my shoulder and guided me out of the room. “C’mon, your hands are bleeding through your bandages. Let’s give them a minute alone in here while I see how hard my wife’s job is.”

In the kitchen, Reed pulled out a first aid kit. Aiden had them stored all over the house. He also had an emergency stockpile of food, batteries, candles, and if I wasn’t mistaken, gold coins. “Is there an impending apocalypse I’m unaware of? And are those gold coins?” I asked him to distract myself from the pain while he pulled the bandages away from my skin.

He shrugged. “Aiden is Aiden. Jeremy’s the comedic relief, Cameron’s the brooder, I’m the organizer, and Aiden is the worrier.”

“Bullshit,” Aiden said, startling us as he entered the room. “You try not to overprepare for every possible disaster after your kid is born. Especially after the last couple of years in this group.”

“I’m wrapping Kate in bubble wrap after I’m done with him,” Reed grumbled.

“Exactly, so stop flipping me shit. And by the way, asshole, those are candy coins. Scott likes them, but he kept getting into them, so I started hiding them,” he said to me.

“Toni isn’t going to give up on wanting to go down there,” I said.

Reed reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone. He stood silently, reading a text, and scowled at the phone. “It looks like she’ll get her way. Javier just texted me that the Yakima Police Department wants her to come in to identify remains to verify if they belong to her father.”

I scrubbed my hand across the top of my head. “I don’t want her to have to see that.”

“None of us do, but with her, uh, his wife in a coma, there aren’t any other relatives that can do it. Miguel’s dad is missing, probably on the run, so there’s no one else,” Reed said.

We all went back into the den together to break the bad news. Reed let me explain it to Toni. She dried her eyes, straightened up, and nodded. “When do we leave?” she said calmly.

“We can go now if you’re ready,” I answered.

Kate stood up. “I’m coming, too.”

“You don’t have to do that,” I told her, not wanting her to be around the smell of burned bodies in her condition. Lord knows that’s a smell I wish I wasn’t familiar with.

Her brown eyes narrowed, and she tossed her blond hair over her shoulder. “Toni is one of my best friends. I haven’t had many of those in my life, and I intend on taking care of her. Now get your ass in the kitchen and let me fix that piss-poor first aid job my husband did so we can get this over with.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said automatically, then turned my head and smiled. “I think your wife has the mothering thing down,” I called back to Reed as I followed her.

He smiled at her and nodded. “Yeah, I don’t think this kid is going to get away with very much.”

Becca stormed into the room. “Don’t you even think about going without me! Aiden, can you watch the kids?”

He bent down and kissed her on the cheek. “Of course. Go be with your girls.”

“I love you,” she gushed.

I pointed my thumb in their direction and turned to Reed. “Are they always like that?”

He nodded. “They used to be worse, but they’ve settled in some.”

Aiden straightened up and rolled his eyes. “Like any of you are any better. I’ve heard Jeremy’s horror stories about you and Toni in the sex room.”

“I heard my name,” Jeremy said as he walked in. “Why did I have to hear about Toni’s dad on the news? They are now listing him as missing. None of you shitheads know how to use a phone?”

I cringed. It wasn’t likely he was going to let us live down not calling him. We weren’t trying to leave him out, but we weren’t really thinking about anyone but Toni.

“Yeah, I’m pretty pissed at you guys, too. Especially you, sis, you should have called me. That’s, like, Twin 101,” Cameron said, walking in behind Jeremy.

Kate pointed back and forth between them. “Were you two together?”

Jeremy shrugged. “We were talking.”

Cameron watched Jeremy and seemed disappointed with how Jeremy played it off. After what seemed like a long pause he said, “Yeah, don’t make more out of it that it is, sis.”

When Toni reemerged after freshening up, Jeremy hugged her hard. I’d always tried to accept their friendship, but it wasn’t difficult anymore.

“We have to go to Yakima so I can identify my dad’s body,” she told him.

“I’m coming with you,” he said without hesitation. She nodded and moved back to stand next to me.

“I’ll stay and keep Aiden company,” Cameron volunteered.

“Good, you can help me rein in the tornado if Hope needs me,” Aiden agreed. “Tornado” was what we’d all started calling Scott now that he was mobile.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you guys,” Toni said in a teary voice.

I took her hand and squeezed it. “I’m here, and I’ll always be here,” I reminded her.

She tried to smile at me, but it didn’t reach her tear-filled eyes. “Thank you for never giving up on me. You are my happily ever after.”

I shook my head. “Nah, that means our story is done. This isn’t over. We are to be continued, but I’m looking forward to more chapters with you.”

Chapter 36

Toni

The drive to the morgue in Yakima was the longest forty-five minutes of my life. I tried to prepare myself for what I would find when I got there, but how can you? I tried to imagine seeing my father laid out on a slab, but I kept expecting to see him sleeping. In one part of my mind, I knew I’d be looking at a burned body, but it was hard to brace myself for that.

Reed pulled us around to the back of the hospital, and we followed him to the entrance of the morgue. My imagination hadn’t steered me wrong here. It was just as cold and sterile as I’d pictured. The coroner showed us into a room with a large window. When they pulled up the blinds, I saw a body on a table, covered by a white sheet.

The coroner left us to go into the other room. Becca, Kate, and Jeremy stood in the back by the door while Reed and Trent flanked me. When Reed nodded, the coroner pulled back the sheet. Trent gagged, and Jeremy rushed over and led him out of the room.

The first thing I noticed was charred flesh. I was suddenly glad not to be in the same room with his body. The smell must have been horrendous. Then I began to notice facial features beyond the burns. The nose was a little too wide and so were the man’s lips.

I pointed but couldn’t find words. This just couldn’t be happening. I was as ready as I could ever be to see my father’s dead body, but this wasn’t him. “That isn’t my father,” I squeaked.

“Are you certain?” the coroner asked through an intercom.

I nodded vigorously and ran out of the room without speaking. I continued running down the hallway and didn’t stop even though my friends were calling my name. Javier came out of a room midway down the hall, and I ran straight into him.

His eyes were red, and there were tracks of dried tears down his face. “Leo?” I asked.

He took several shaky breaths, and his lips quivered. “Yes, but at least the bastard that killed my sister is in here, too. I’m sorry, I know he was your father, but I’m glad he’s dead.”

I took a step back, and he let me go. “He isn’t in here. That isn’t him.”

“What?” he nearly shouted.

Reed rushed down the hallway. “I just spoke with the Yakima PD. They are working on identifying the John Doe recovered from the fire. Apparently, Santos Motors was also under investigation by Immigration on suspicion of hiring undocumented workers.”

“Where is Antonio Silva, or Padilla, whatever name he’s using?” Javier demanded.

Reed exhaled forcefully and tugged at his hair. He dropped his arm and looked Javier in the face. “No one knows right now. I’d like to tell you we’ll find them, and I’m sure we will, but he’s proven himself skilled at evasion.”

“Do I need to worry?” I asked them.

They looked at each other for a second and turned to me. “I think he’s going to try to get as far away from here as possible, but you are his daughter, and I don’t know how far he would go to hold on to you.”

Javier shook his head at me when he saw I was about to argue with him. “He ran with you once. I won’t lose you twice. You don’t have to be constantly on guard, but I think some extra safety precautions are in order.”

Trent, who had approached us without me noticing, dropped his arm around my shoulders, making me jump. “Maybe now is a good time to take a spontaneous trip. I don’t know about you, but I could use a change of scenery.”

Luckily, my winter quarter classes had just ended. I’d managed to survive all of this without too much damage to my grades and hadn’t had to take my classes online like Becca and Kate had to do. I think, all things considered, the school would let me take a quarter or two away.

“Yeah, I could use a break. I know I only have one quarter left, but Central will still be there this summer or next fall. Let’s leave for a while,” I agreed.

Javier raised his hand slightly. “I have a suggestion.”

***

My uncle walked ahead through the perfectly lined rows of headstones. I twisted my hands around the grocery store bouquet I insisted I bring. I couldn’t believe I thought I needed these daisies. They were dyed ridiculous hues and way too tacky to leave here. I turned to head back to the car, but Trent grabbed my elbow and kept me moving forward.

“I can’t. I’m not ready,” I stuttered.

“It’s time,” he said and gave me a gentle push.

Javier stepped away, and both he and Trent gave me some space to be alone. I dropped to my knees and put my hand on top of the warm black granite. Closing my eyes, I let the last few days replay in my mind.

Javier wanted to come back to San Diego, and Trent and I were ready to leave the same night, but we had to check in with the FBI and take care of Leo’s final wishes before we left.

Reports of sightings of my father trickled in over the next couple of days, but the trail went cold at a private airport. The FBI was scouring over flight plans, trying to narrow the search, but I didn’t think he’d be coming after me.

Miguel won’t be a problem, either. Apparently, with both our dads on the run, the FBI considers him a possible target and has sent him into the Witness Protection Program until they are apprehended. One of the FBI agents promised me Miguel would get only the best of placements, like Backwater, Mississippi, or Freeze-Your-Nuts-Off, Alaska.

The hardest thing I had to do before we left town was to go to see Graciela one more time. I’m not ashamed to say now that I hate that woman. She made me miserable my entire life, and all because I was the living reminder that her husband had strayed. I’ll never understand why she agreed to take me in and raise me as her own. I wish they’d let Javier have me.

However, I didn’t get any satisfaction out of telling her that he’d left her while she was in a coma. She lifted her chin and glared at me. “He’ll come back to me. He always has. Even your slut mother couldn’t take him away from me.”

I turned around and left. I didn’t argue, yell, or slap her. Sure, I wanted to do all of those things, but she ceased to matter in that moment. My mother was none of those things. The only thing she was guilty of was believing the bullshit that came out of my father’s mouth. Graciela had friends; someone would help her, because I’d never voluntarily go near her again.

I opened my eyes and set the flowers down in front of the tombstone. Tracing the engraved letters with my index finger, I felt the first tear slide down my face. “Hi, Mom,” I choked out. “I’m sorry I haven’t been here before now. And I’m so sorry I forgot about you. I remember now, and Uncle Javi has been telling me stories. How is it possible to miss you so much when I only just started remembering you?”

I forced myself to take a few deep breaths and wipe away the tears falling steadily down my face. “It’s weird, but I feel you around all the time now that I’ve started to remember. I hope Leo is there, wherever you are. I wish I’d known him better, too. We found out the guy they thought was my dad was some poor guy working three jobs to take care of his family. He got trapped or something, and one of the other agents saw Leo run back for him to help him get away.”

“Leo was a great guy. You might have started out with the wrong man, but you settled on the right one in the end. I’m glad you knew love like that before you died.” I smiled and realized Javier was right. I was a lot like my mother, but hopefully Trent and I would get more time together than she’d had with Leo.

I kissed my fingers and placed them on the neighboring headstone. “I hope you’ve found her again, Leo. Thank you for saving Trent.”

A warm California wind blew against my face, and I could swear it felt like fingers caressing my cheek. I lifted my hand to my face and held it there, trying to hold on to the feeling for a little longer.

Trent walked up behind me and extended his hand. I took it, and he helped me to my feet.

“Are you ready, Wildcat? We’ve got a date at the courthouse.”