“Do you really believe The Tribunal would end your life over such a minor slight?” I stare at her, incredulous. “You are panicking. Stop. Think. Breathe. What you’re saying doesn’t even make sense.”
She shakes her head in denial, spewing more fragmented thoughts from her mouth.
"I expected this day would come... I knew it would. We should have left the state. But then it doesn't matter, I suppose. IVI is everywhere, aren't they?" She pauses to take a deep breath and continues, "Just leave my son out of it. That's all I ask. If you plan to take me, let me call someone to come look after him. He doesn't have anything to do with my decisions. I won't let him pay the consequences..."
"Hazel," I growl.
Her eyes snap up to mine.
"I'm not here to take your son away from you. And I have no intention of taking you from your son. If and when you decided to come back to the Society, there would be punishment, but it wouldn’t be nearly as severe as you are imagining. As it stands, I have no reason to turn you in as long as you help me."
"Help you?" She blinks. "How can I possibly help you?"
"Tell me where your brother would take Ivy to hide her."
Her face pales, and she shifts, averting her gaze. "Why would you want to know where Ivy is?"
"Because she's my wife."
"No." The protest falls from her lips with blatant disgust. "She wouldn't. She wouldn't—"
"She wouldn't marry the likes of me?" I sneer. "I assure you, she did. And now I need to find her. Time is of the essence, so tell me what I want to know."
She clenches her jaw, shaking her head. "Even if what you're telling me is true, I can't betray my sister. If she's gone into hiding, it must be for a good reason."
"Fine." I pivot toward the staircase. "Then I'll take your son and be on my way. And, in fact, I’d dare say you are correct. You should expect an army of Sovereign Sons to descend on your house before nightfall. You could run, I suppose, if you are willing to leave your son behind."
"You bastard!" She lunges at me, gripping my arm and trying to drag me back. "You aren't taking my son anywhere."
"Then tell me what I want to know.” I shake her off and glare down at her.
Her eyes move toward the staircase and then to the front door. I watch her face as slow acceptance sinks over her. There's nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide. She's trapped, and she knows it. But she's wasting my time, and it's time I can't afford to lose, so I throw another motivation at her.
"Not that you seem to care, given that you abandoned all of them, but perhaps it would interest you to know I have your youngest sister, Eva, at my house."
Her eyes narrow as she curls her hands into fists. "Is that a threat?"
"Take it as you will." I arch an eyebrow at her. "But understand this. If you don't help me find my wife, I will make life miserable for all of you. I have been kind enough not to divulge your location even though I've been aware of it for quite some time. However, that grace is quickly dissolving in the face of your resistance. So it seems you have a choice. Help me find my wife and bring her back home to me safely, or let your entire family pay the consequences of your actions."
Tears cling to the edges of her eyelids, and she turns away to wipe them, stewing over her current predicament with a stubbornness that must certainly be a Moreno trait. I recognize it well enough from Ivy.
"Fine," she whispers reluctantly. "I will help you, but I need to know that Ivy won’t come to harm.”
"She is safer with me than anywhere else.”
"That must be why she ran from you in the first place," Hazel hisses.
"We’re running out of time." I nod to the staircase again. "And I'm running out of patience."
Her eyes dart to the keys she dropped on the floor, and she moves woodenly to pick them up. "One more thing." She tilts her chin up defiantly. "How can I trust that you won't give up our location or hand me over if I go with you?"
I consider my words carefully. I am accustomed to taking what I want without regard for the feelings of others. I am a De La Rosa, after all. But some sliver of humanity in me wants her to trust me because she’s my wife's sister, and I know Ivy loves her. It feels strange to acknowledge this truth, particularly because I still don't want to believe it myself, but the longer I am without my wife, the more obvious it becomes.
"You can trust that I won't betray you," I answer stiffly. "Because my wife would never forgive me if I did, and despite what you might think, I… I care about her. I want her home with me where she belongs. That's all I want. And I have no reason to turn you over unless you refuse to help me get her back."
Hazel's face softens just a fraction as she studies me, searching for lies. When she is satisfied I am telling the truth, she offers a small nod.
"Okay. Let me get my son. We'll need to drop him off at school first."
* * *
"What is this place?" I ask.
Hazel shifts the car into park and turns off the ignition, staring up at the yellow house that looks just like any other on the street.
I was beginning to think she was driving without any set purpose in mind, intent on fucking with me, before she finally took the exit for Lafayette. From there, she drove the route to this house as if
