The car ride was silent except for the sound of Mira's soft breathing beside me. My knuckles ached from how tightly I was gripping the armrest, but I couldn't release it. If I did, I wasn't sure what else I would break.
Donna Carmela. My own mother. The one person I thought would never disappoint me. And yet, she managed to shatter me in a way no enemy ever could.
I had stood at her bedside, heart in my throat, relieved beyond words that she had survived. And what did she give me in return? A declaration that she was in love with a man young enough to be her son. A man I didn't know, couldn't vet, couldn't control.
Alejandro. I memorized the name the moment it left his mouth. His face, his posture, the way he had the audacity to stretch his hand to me for a handshake. He was no more than a boy in my eyes, yet he stood there acting like he belonged in her life. Acting like he had the right to breathe the same air as my mother.
It burned.
