Page 84 of Precious Legacy
“I was broken, Vee. I felt ashamed and guilty and…”
“Oh, sweetheart.” Mom comes to sit beside me, taking my mug from my hands and resting it on the table. She pulls me against her chest and wraps me in a hug. It’s like a balm to my soul, calming my thoughts and nerves instantly. She doesn’t question me on how she missed it. The truth is, I hid it for so long until the scars of my past were no longer visible.
“I’m okay,” I reassure.
“You’ve had to see his face plastered around the city, fight after fight!” Varo’s voice is raspy, like it’s filled with regret and guilt, along with the unfiltered rage he’s trying to control. “I feel like the shittiest brother right now.”
“Varo,” Mom scolds.
“Sorry. It’s not about me. I just…” He shakes his head and joins the huddle, squeezing me gently like he’s afraid I might break. “I’m real fucking sorry, Lani.”
“It’s not your fault,” I sniffle, pulling away from the embrace to catch a breath. I swallow hard, still feeling the residual guilt plague my words. “It’s funny, though. For a while, I blamed Roman. If he hadn’t left, I wouldn’t have been in that situation, and…” I shrug.
“Well, at least he’s redeemed himself,” my brother comments.
“Huh?” I snap my gaze to him, brows furrowed. “What do you mean?” I look to Mom, but she’s wearing the same look of confusion as I am.
“Didn’t you know?” Varo frowns. “Greedy went missing last week, it’s been all over the news.”
I inhale deeply, but somehow the breath gets stuck in my lungs. My chest starts to feel like a lead weight is pressing on it, and no matter how hard I force the oxygen into my airways, it only hurts more.
“Lani?” Mom clutches my hand, but all I can do is shake my head.
“No, that’s not… Roman, he…” Panic floods my body. My hands are shaking, but I don’t know if it’s with rage or betrayal. I told Roman I wanted to deal with Greedymyway. I begged him not to get involved and he did the exact opposite.
Clutching my face, Mom swipes away the tears I didn’t know had fallen. “This isn’t Roman’s fault, sweetheart.”
“You don’t get it,” I croak. “He wasmine.I had a plan to make him pay, and…”
Mom nods in understanding. “I know,” she soothes. Suddenly, something clicks. Her words begin to resonate with me in a way I didn’t think would.Did Mom go through something like this too?
“He’s taken that from me, Mom.”
Clutching me to her chest, she smooths her hand over my hair. “He didn’t take anything from you, Precious. He did thisforyou.”
Sniffling, I nod in agreement. “I know. But this wasmyrevenge, not his. If he hadn’t left, none of this would have happened?—”
“You don’t mean that, Lani,” Varo interjects.
“I know that!” I whine back. “But he hurt me, and I needed it to make sense.”
“Oh, honey,” Mom clucks. “Sometimes, love doesn’t make sense. And Roman leaving you was no reflection of that love. Did you ever think about that?”
Obviously, I didn’t at the time. Because why would an eighteen-year-old leave their girlfriend and move thousandsof miles away? Why would a guy confess his undying love and devotion, swearing they’d never leave your side, and then do the opposite? I know Roman has told me as much, but it’s the only thing that’s been anchoring me to that night, motivating me.
“Sometimes, love is hard,” Mom whispers, breaking through my thoughts. “But that makes it worth it in the end.”
Slowly, I peer back at her, my jaw flickering with filtered resentment because I hate how right she is. But more than that, I hate how true those words are.
THIRTY-TWO
The incessant dripping of a pipe above me has grown morbidly tiresome. I’m in the darkest part of the corridor, where I’m not even granted natural light. The only reason I can see shit is because of the annoying flickering light that clicks and buzzes outside my cell.
I’ve been here for two days. I know because Officer Shitface visited me earlier to tell me I’m being released soon. If it weren’t for the fact that I know they can’t keep me longer than forty-eight hours without charging me with something, I’d be unsure what day it even was.
Two days. That’s how long I’ve been stuck here, and it’s getting on my last nerve. I’ve been arrested too many times to count, but each time I’ve gotten out of it because of the power my name holds.
Despite the fact we have so many cops under our payroll, not a single one would cooperate this time, and that tells me we have more issues than I originally thought. This wasn’t a coincidence. We need to figure out who we can trust, because these cops were on someone else’s payroll. The raid was sanctioned by someone outside of The Five, and I’m alreadytaking names. Starting with the guy who pinned Alanis to the wall with unnecessary force. I’m almost certain he’s the last name on my list; the one that’s been evading me.
