Page 60 of When Sinners Fall
So I talk to her in Spanish to make sure she gets the point. I talk about the fact that if she doesn’t do as she’s told, she’s pointless to us. And that if something’s pointless, it might as well be dead. I also let her know that she’ll be used until she is almost dead to see if she wants to change her mind about behaving, and that maybe, just maybe, with the right amount of begging involved, she’ll get another chance at surviving.
She calls me Diablo. She spits it at me and starts throwing old witches' curses my way as if that might change what’s going down. I chuckle my way through it and think back on my own mother’s version of the same heritage. She’d like these sounds.Regardless, I’ve been cursed for a long ass time. Cursed when I talked back to her. Cursed when I showed her disrespect. Cursed every damn day of my life when I came home with bruises on my skin that showed weakness.
I listen, though. I listen to the vengeance she’s throwing at me, and I listen to her talk of God and what he’ll do to me for my sins. Maybe she’s hoping to change my mind with the latter. She won’t. God? Yeah, I screwed my position with him long ago. Damn sure we were done the first time I broke a neck and didn't ask forgiveness for it.
I reach for her leg halfway through the next curse. “El Dragòn,” she snaps, kicking at me. “Diablo.”
Dragon.
Devil.
Her sudden rush at me makes me grab a bunch of hair and sling it downwards, eyes boring into Shaw. He moves quickly enough after his screw-up, trying to get her out of my grip before I do what he doesn’t want to see, but she manages to bite my fucking forearm in the process. I growl at the pain and force her straight to the back of the room. Shaw’s in between us before I know what’s happening, his chest fronted up to me and his back pressing her to the wall.
“No. You're not doing this," he grates.
I glare at him through her continued curses and keep my grip exactly as it is. “Move.” He doesn’t. He keeps on staring like he’s gonna try this shit with me even though he knows he’ll lose.
I’m not down with that.
My grip on the girl drops, so I can give all my attention to Shaw. He gets thrown towards the other side of the room, and I watch his body bounce off the old stonework. He reaches for the gash on his chin I just caused at the same time as I move straight at him again. The punch lands heavy into his ribs, and my foot kicks his legs out from under him so he’s eating dirt and I’m standing right over him.
“You wanna talk about that some more?” He coughs a few times whilst I’m listening to the curses that keep coming behind me. No answer, though. Good. “Stay the fuck down.” It isn’t until I see the little witch trying to bolt, and hear Carmen shouting, that my attention goes back to what I came in here for.
I catch her hair again about three feet from the door and dump her ass back on the table. She’s pushed back up it until she’s crunched to the wall, and I hold my hand out so Carmen knows what I need. She gets on with bringing it to me like the professional bitch she is. Before this witch knows what’s hit her, she’s branded on the base of her foot and I'm letting go. Fuck cream and pads for the pain.
Carmen starts leading her out of the room. “Wait outside. I'm not done with her yet.” She nods back at me as I turn for Shaw, then leaves. “What the hell was that?” He glances up at me, then back at the floor, so I reach down and grab hold until he’s on his feet where any Cortez should be. “Stop Shaw. Stop fighting it, stop pushing me about it, and stop trying to be a fucking hero.” He frowns and tries opening his mouth. “Don’t. You’ll only disappoint me some more, and I’m not cool enough to deal with it. Go. I’ll meet you out front.”
A breath blows out of me as I walk to switch the furnace off and Shaw storms out. I've got a while before it cools down anyway, and if Carmen can't make the witch behave, I will. I hook a hand outside, calling them back in. Although - I look at the woman still spitting and cursing me for my sins - I could kill two birds with one stone. That's one way to get this done and turn a Cortez brother into the man he needs to be.
I look at the bite mark on my arm, all blood and imprints. That's gonna be a pain in my ass. “Where's Mariana?” I ask.
Carmen shoves the woman away from her, wiping her dress down in disgust. “With Hepez. At the bar.” Good. Safe.
“Keep her out there. And find Shaw. I want him back in here.”
She leaves, and I get my lighter and smokes out before reaching for my bag. Some antiseptic cream and pads get pulled out, and I start cleaning the bite mark up to apply a bandage. It's just me and a limping witch intent on cursing me then. I run the rag over my chest again, pulling it up my neck and through my hair. She'll realise that crap doesn't work by the time this Dragon’s done breathing fire at her. I'm done trying to be nice about this. With both of them.
“You gonna give in?” I ask.
She spits more curses at me and keeps herself backed up into a corner.
Guess not.
CHAPTER TWENTY - TWO
WREN
Distracting myself with teasing Dante didn’t take up much time, and being stuck in the house grows tiring damn fast.
I fire up my computer, check my emails, make sure to keep the clients I’m working with updated and ensure the orders and reservations are all on track. When I’m not even frustrated over the three calls with Bridezilla, I know it’s the captivity talking.
I fire off a quick text to Mom and tell her I’m swamped with work and will be out to see her soon.
At lunchtime, the buzzer on the door sounds, and I question if I should even answer. Dante didn’t say not to open it, right?
Men carrying boxes stand behind the door.
“Delivery for Miss Campbell,” he says in a deep voice.
