The Hustle (Irreparable 4)

He doesn’t answer, offering only a shrewd smirk as he stares at the phone in his hand. As I inch closer to his desk, his gaze rises, meeting mine. His hostility with me may have diminished last night, but it is back with fury this morning. I smile, hoping to alleviate the madness I see staring back at me.

His lips part as he rises and rounds his desk to greet me. My breathing gains speed as he wraps a hand behind my neck.

“What did you ever see in Mr. Hunter?” he asks, the bite in his tone strong, like it was when he ambushed me in Tug’s lobby.

My knees tremble as I stand vulnerable to the man who controls me. “I was foolish.”

“That’s my answer!” His hand fists my hair and he pulls until I whimper from the pain. “I want the truth, Maria. I want to know why you loved him? Why you were going to marry him and let our son call him daddy?”

Tears form in my eyes as I struggle with responding. Eduardo wants me to be honest, but the truth is the wrong answer if I want to leave this room without facing the wrath of his fists. He’s a classic, case-study sociopath. He doesn’t believe raping me and not claiming his son was wrong. Therefore he can’t understand how I fell in love with another man. “I don’t know.”

“Tell me,” he roars, yanking harder on my hair.

“He made me feel safe,” I cry out uncontrollably and cower. “He made Javier feel safe.” His grip loosens and he takes a step back, wearing an expression of genuine confusion.

“You and Javier don’t feel safe with me?”

The lump forming in my throat suffocates me, stifles the voice I need to answer, so I shake my head. As I look into Eduardo’s eyes, I see something I’ve never seen before and I fight a smile. A smile, because I’ve finally discovered his weakness. It’s the same reason I was able to steal from him and escape all those years ago. As poorly as Eduardo treats me, I’m his Achilles’ heel, a soft spot he can’t deny . . . He always comes back to me. I’m the mother of his child. Despite the machismo bravado he wears on the outside, inside—I matter.

“I’m sorry,” I say to further expose his frailty.

“Go!” he shouts, his thunderous voice bouncing off the walls.

I scurry from the room and slam the door behind me. Tears leak from my eyes as I sag against the wall, questioning if I pushed too hard and if I’ll be punished for it later.

The door to his office opens and I turn my head to him. His eyes are wet as he leans close to me. His hands comb through my hair on both sides of my face as he looks directly at me. The reflection of love in his gaze conflicts with everything he’s ever put me through.

“I’m sorry,” he says, his voice small and cracking. “I’m making plans for us. Plans that will ensure you and Javier are safe. We can leave this life behind and be a family. I love you both and I won’t lose you.”

I cup his cheek as a smile forms. “I love you, too, so much, Eduardo.”

“I want to make things right between us. My mother died when I was very young. I don’t want Javier to ever know what that feels like. What can I do to fix this, Maria, tell me?”

Our gazes clash as we stare at each other in silence. This is the moment we both search for the hustle. He wants to know my angle and I want to know his. The love he feels is there, but this moment is the ultimate test of my loyalty.

“Succeed in your plans,” I answer, holding his cheeks as I kiss him on the mouth. The effort it takes to play him is near debilitating, but as I continue to kiss him, the hate I feel grows easier to ignore. “Succeed, take us away from this life. Protect us.”

“I will,” he whispers.

“One more thing, baby,” I say, kissing him once more. “Sleep with me in my bed.”

He hauls me into his arms, promising to do what I’ve asked. As my cheek presses into his chest, my heart swells. Not out of love for this man, but out of love for another.

There’s finally light at the end of the tunnel.

I’ve conned the master.

Eduardo will soon pay for what he’s done.

I will find my way back to Tug.

I storm through the front door at my brother’s house, shouting for him and Tori. There’s an ire silence rippling through the air as I quietly climb the steps to their bedroom. The sound of a woman sobbing clouds the air and elevates in intensity until Tori appears from behind her bedroom door.

The horrific scene forces me to my knees as every trace of air is sucked from my lungs. She clings to Little A’s lifeless body, stiff as a board and dripping in blood. She drops him and that’s when I see the hole in her abdomen.

“I hate you,” she screams before collapsing in front of me.

I reach out to touch her, as tremors wrack my body. Nothing audible comes out when I open my mouth, but pain and regret and despair threaten to strangle me. As I place my hand on her head, I feel nothing as though she’s made of air.