Chapter 182

“I have no wish to hurt you, but my sister—”

“Will be fine.”

She shook her head. “They will come. They will keep coming. They will never stop until they kill her and take her son. I know these people. They are animals. They will never give up.”

“Then neither will I. I can be an animal, too. And I’ll prove it.”

***

January 25, 11 p.m.

Orlando

“Stop worrying and enjoy yourself. Everything here is fine,” Laila Torres said over the phone to her sister as she leaned over her sleeping nephew’s crib to pat his rising-and-falling back. “Jorge fussed when I first set him down, but after a quick bedtime story and a kiss from his tía, he drifted off. How is the concert?”

“It is good. The next band will start in a few minutes, but maybe I should come home now?”

“No, you should not.”

“Are you sure? I feel guilty, leaving you to babysit…”

“Why? I love to. Jorge is a joy. And mamás deserve a little time away for fun.” Valeria had be