Right Choice
Cruz left the room with Presley and Anderson, unsure who he was feeling more concerned about. Both of the people he loved most in the world were hurting and he
sure who needed his help more.
Presley slipped her hand into his and leaned her head against his shoulder and twisted her lips sideways. He recognized the expression as one she made when she was struggling with what to say and was thinking
about her next words.
Anderson though, walking on the other side of him was unusually stoic, nothing to say and pensive. His features were schooled into a mask Cruz never saw on his friend before and it was causing Cruz to be very worried for whatever thoughts were going on in his head.
“Did I make a mistake?” Presley suddenly blurted out.
“You think he should have been set free?” Anderson finally spoke with a raised eyebrow.
“No.”
The impact of her words made Anderson stumble and Cruz’s feet come to a grinding halt.
“Presley! He’s your brother. He said he was sorry.”
“I don’t know if I believe him.” She whispered. “He’s spent the bulk of his life faking s**t. Who is to say today wasn’t all a way to make sure I didn’t kill him. I know Belkin said the only visitors he’s been granted have been nurses and doctors but what if one of them actually talked and he knew I was the new Donna of the Bartoli family?”
Anderson shook his head, “then he would have thought he was coming home to be set free. Yet, he said nothing the entire time we picked him up from the docks. Not a word. He was almost resigned to his fate. I think he thought he was coming home to die.”
She shook her head, her hair falling around her face in a frame as she fought a
Cruz looked at Presley, “are you thinking he believed he was coming home so you could kill him personally?” “I do. I think Odin was expecting Belkin would have convinced me Odin was too much a risk and for us to put him down. He came in playing the psych card knowing we’d be taken off guard.”
“Do you know what?” Cruz put his hand on her shoulder, “I think he was telling the truth. I think almost dying at the hands of Liborio made him realize how much he f****d up. After what I saw in there, it’s my opinion, he’s been playing fast and loose all his life, manipulating and twisting truths, he always believed he held the upper hand. I think he thought he was the one in control over Liborio and he was getting the better part of the deal. Liborio clearly confessed his feelings for you to Odin. Odin thought he was getting rid of his debt. You would be out of his hair forever and he’d get his parents to himself again.” He gave pause, “and me as well. He was really pissed off when he found out you and I were dating. He made comments to break us up, remember? With you out of the picture with Liborio, it meant, in his f****d–up brain, we were all his again. believe when Liborio carried you on the ship, unconscious and not in a good way, especially after his own beatings, he realized he underestimated Liborio.”
found
“Come on Cruz,” Anderson shook his head. “You really believe he has feelings for Presley enough he cared she didn’t die? He said it himself in there about how he has hated her his entire life. He can’t suddenly not
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hate her.
“Anderson, I don’t think he hates her.” Cruz stared into Presley’s eyes. “I think he’s jealous of her. I think hes envious of her. I think he’s spent his entire life wishing he were more like her and less like him. I believe the anger in him is because he’s always felt less than her.” He sighed, “but, despite all his protests and all his screaming of the contrary, you are his sister.”
“Why would you even think it?” Anderson shook his head. “I’m thinking more like Presley. I feel he played us. He didn’t want to answer how he kept huge secrets from us, and he was scared of truly dying and so he played us.”
“No.” Cruz was firm in his convictions. “I really think the biggest part of all of this is the Shae thing.”
“What?”
“Did you see his face, Anderson? Come on. You know, better than anyone, what his facial expression is for when something has him completely put off. He made the same face in there he did the time we took him to
the fusion restaurant and made him try the blue cheese tacos.”
“He hates blue cheese.” Presley whispered.
“Really hates it. He said if he wanted to eat mold he’d lick a petri dish.” Anderson agreed.
“His expression in there talking about f*****g the same guy Presley did, was blue cheese.”
“It is gross.” Presley lifted her chin up and echoed the same shuddering movement Odin made in the other room. “The idea we both put our lips,” her words were cut off by Cruz’s hand over her mouth.
“Don’t even say it. I find it funny how Shae made sure to tell you he was in love with Odin and you at the same time but never mentioned how he broached to Odin about you being in a poly relationship with him. It’s
disgusting.”
“It really is.” She took a breath. “I feel we have managed a lot of crap lately. One down, Estrella, then we dealt
with Shae and Odin.”
“Don’t forget Ramona and those two who tried to off you with her.” Anderson added.
“And my father,” Cruz nodded, and a grin stole his features. “Can I say how much I’m loving the fallout of the video of him having an affair with a married woman? It makes me giddy.”
Anderson chuckled, “of all the things to get you off.”
“Fucker murdered my mother and acts like he’s some holier than thou virtuous man.”
“It’s been a lot.” Presley whispered and then shot another look at the door of the room they’d left. “You’re sure we did the right thing?”
“I think sending Odin to a place where he won’t be able to manipulate anyone, where he’ll be forced to attend treatment and face the demons in him and he’ll actually have to do work,” Cruz pointed at her with wide eyes, “let’s be real, he’s the laziest piece of s**t known to man, is going to be worse than death. He’s going to his own personal hell. If you kill him and there is no afterlife, what punishment is that?”
“What if there is an afterlife though and he goes to the real hell?” Presley asked seriously.
“Then this will be practice for him. You made the right decision. Even if everything in there is an act, this is still the right decision.”
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“Okay.”
“Now I know we’ve done a lot but there is one more thing we need to do to move forward Cruz watched her carefully and then looked at Anderson who gave him a supportive nod.
“Which is?”
“You need to confront your father and Marsha.”
Presley stared at him in confusion. “Why?”
“Your mother too.”
“Cruz.”
“Presley, we talked about this in therapy. Your parents and Marsha should have protected you better. You need to talk to them and let them know their behavior has caused you great pain but,” he held his finger up to her, “not becoming extremely angry and telling your father you’re cutting him off and never speaking to him
again. You need to get it off your chest, all of it but you need to do it in a healthy way. Marsha hiding her
sexuality from Odin and not taking the responsibility of her failed marriage. Her secret keeping behavior led Odin’s anger to fester. The anger in there he was talking about is a direct result of her behavior.”
“Cruz,” she protested.
“Your father took his side too many times to count because he felt bad for him. He would have let you get sold off to a mob boss to cover Odin’s crimes. He might feel guilty for it but not guilty enough to stop it from happening. He has more guilt over Odin and his failed first marriage than he does to you. You need to tell him to his face you’re not letting Odin come ahead of you anymore.”
“He’s my dad.”
“He is your dad, and you love him and he’s a good dad most of the time but let me remind you what we talked about in therapy this week. Boundaries are necessary as part of a healthy and productive relationship.” “Cruz is right,” Anderson nodded. “We all allowed, Odin to treat you like s**t, Presley. All of us.” He reached out to hold her hands, “I’m sorry for my part in this. I’m sorry for participating in the pranks, the tricks, and the bullying. Halima and I have been talking a lot as have Cruz and me. We really hurt you. I hope someday you can forgive me.”
She pulled him into a hug, “I forgive you Anderson. Thank you for being here for me today.”
“Thank you for letting me get the closure I needed from him. I know it didn’t seem like he and I talked much in there, but I heard what I needed to hear. He’s a coward. I never loved him romantically and I would never have encouraged him, but he should have told me the truth. I could have supported him the way a best friend would have. His bullshit about orbiting us was his way to try to guilt us for the fact he’s never been honest or put the effort into our friendship we put into it. He can’t take accountability for his actions. I think sending him to the smolt farm is the best idea. Better than shooting him in the head and it being over and better than letting him go free.” Anderson sighed, “we all created the monster in there and you were the one who paid the price. I’m sorry Presley, I am really sorry.”
“I appreciate this Anderson.” She kissed his cheek.
“Since we’re friends again, how about helping a friend out and giving me some pointers with Halima?” Cruz pulled him back, “don’t you dare give him pointers. I’m enjoying the way this asshole isn’t having
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everything handed to him on a silver platter for once. The days of him shimmying up to a women.
her eating out of the palm of his hand are over and I for one, am happy to see it. He clapped Anderson bil shoulder, now, let’s get out of here.”
Draping his arm over Presley’s shoulder, he was in awe of her strength and the woman she was becoming right in front of him. She wasn’t losing the gentle part of her heart with all the coldness being the president of a conglomerate business empire was demanding of her and the fact she was holding onto her humanity while being tough was teaching him in ways he never expected.
He kissed her temple, “I love you, Ladybird.” When she smiled at him, he shot one last glance in the direction of the door and gave a decisive nod. This was all for the best.
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