Inez's face goes carefully blank, and her eyes shutter closed. She opens them again after a moment and smiles—it's a rare thing, to see her smile like that. It lights up her face, softens the icy mask she wears. "Yes, Anjalee, I am fine. I…" she looks at me, swallows hard, seeming to hunt for courage. "I may as well tell you, I suppose. You are all aware of the general outlines of the situation, I hope?"
The willowy woman with auburn hair speaks up—her voice is so soft and quiet I can barely hear her. "I would not object if you explained things a bit. If…if you don't mind."
Inez's smile holds as she regards the speaker with open affection—an expression I don't know if I have ever seen on her face before. "Of course, Naomi."
A long pause as Inez gathers her thoughts.
"To be honest, I don’t really know where to start. It is very complex. I suppose I must give you some context so you can understand the present situation." She looks to me for courage again, and I smile; she lets out a breath. "I have not spoken of this at all for many years, so please forgive me if the telling is difficult. Inez is not the name I was born with. I was born Sophia Bruna Santos de Silva. Legally, my name is Sophia Bruna Santosde Silva Sousa. Sousa is the surname of my husband—Rafael Sousa."
"You'remarried?” The question is blurted, shocked, by the woman with scarlet hair. "Holy fuckin’ shit!"
Inez rolls her eyes. "It's not what you think. It was not a love match. Nor was it my choice. There are details which…I…" she trails off, glancing at me for support.
I move to her side. "Ladies. I am Lorenzo Oliveira Araujo. I have known Inez for…well, a very long time. Her father was a Brazilian warlord and crime kingpin, and she was raised to be his successor. That was her role and purpose in life, whether she liked it or not. She and I…developed an attraction for each other. It was forbidden, since I was the hired help and she was the boss's daughter—as good as a princess, in that part of the world. She was betrothed to her father's right-hand man—as she said, it was against her will. Her father gave her a choice—an ultimatum. Marry Rafael Sousa, or face the consequences."
The willowy woman, Naomi, pales. "What…what were the consequences, if you don't mind me asking?"
Inez lifts her chin, expression hardening into the icy mask of venomous indifference she has shown the world for so long—her armor against the pain within. "I refused. Rafael was…is…a vile, disgusting, evil, depraved…thing. A creature of…of…utterly unspeakable…" she shakes her head, trailing off. "Sorry, I…" she lets out a breath. "I refused to marry him. My father locked me in a cell, chained me to a bed, and had his men rape me. It…I…"
I jump in. "It lasted three days. I was…unable to stop it." I clear my throat. "She was married to Rafael after that."
Silence boils in the room as the other women process what was just said.
"Inez," the woman named Naomi whispers. "No.No."
"Your ownfather?" Myka asks, her voice shaky. "He…he allowed that to happen?"
"Allowed?" Inez barks a laugh. "Heorderedit."
"Be glad you cannot fathom the evil some fathers are capable of, Myka," Naomi says, her voice low, her tone indicating a personal knowledge of what she says.
Inez and Naomi share a long look—this Naomi has been through her own hell, I would guess. After a moment, Inez sighs. "I was forced to conceive and birth a child. My husband, while I was recovering from what was done to me before the wedding, murdered my father and those loyal to him and took over his empire. I…" she drops her eyes, fists clenched at her sides. "What I must tell you next is very difficult for me. As you can probably imagine, I was…not in the most stable headspace at that time."
The scarlet-haired woman lets out a sarcastic laugh; she has what I believe to be a Boston accent, though I am no expert on American regional accents. "No shit? I can't imagine why. I'd have been pretty murdery."
"Murdery," Inez echoes, her voice faint. "Yes, Terra.Murderyis a pretty damned apt way of describing me."
"What you must know is that she was trained from the time she could walk to be a killer." I glance at Inez, and she gives me a small nod to continue. "She was her father's executioner when she was as young as sixteen or seventeen. I mean that literally. She was, and is, as competent an operator as any of your men."
"I gave birth," Ine says, taking over. "It was long, agonizing, and traumatic. I was…broken. Mentally, physically, emotionally. After I gave birth, I…had a mental break. And I…” A sigh, a touch of her hand to mine for courage. "I went on a rampage and killed everyone who worked on the estate compound owned by my husband, formerly belonging to my father. Everyone. Innocent people. Women. Teenage boys.Everyone."
Silence once more.
Slowly, the red-haired woman levers to her feet, snags her cane from the back of the couch, and crosses to Inez. She pauses a foot or so away, leaning on her cane, and then gently, gingerly gathers Inez into her embrace. Inez is stiff, arms at her sides, eyes closed as the woman embraces her.
Naomi moves in, next, and then the others, one by one. I move out of the way as the women, all seven of them, surround Inez in a huddle.
No one says anything. I hear a sniffle, a shuddery breath—Inez fighting for calm.
"Let—let me go," she hisses. "I can't—I…let me go. Let me go."
A soft voice whispers something I can't make out.
"No—I can't—I can't," Inez says. "I won't be able to—"
Another whisper.
"NO!" This is a ragged screech from Inez.
