Chapter 346

Marvin I was in Lucas’ car, on the way back to the Castillo estate. We had already been driving for a long time, an uncomfortable vibe swinging in the air as no one knew what to say. Each second stretched into minutes, and eventually into hours.

The only noise was the sound of the radio.

How could I say something, when I had yet to process everything. In a span of 24 hours, I was forced to make a decision, and lost someone who I thought was my friend.

My brother betrayed me.

I had lost Elena.

There was nothing to say.

“Tiago, as far as everyone’s concerned, you didn’t see anything today, and nothing happened today.

” 1 instructed, my voice cutting through the suffocating silence. As Tiago had already revealed, he didn’t always used his brains. “You saw nothing, you know nothing.”

Tiago remained silent as I continued. “And you keep this from our father, Tiago. He must never find out…that you betrayed me.” The words almost made me chuckle. “I will deal with it. I’ll tell him that Panther betrayed us, threatened us-so I had to take care of it. Done.”

“Marvin, L…” Tiago spoke hesitantly, but I was in no mood for his attempts at reconciliation.

Whatever happened, happened, and there was nothing that could fix this. Nothing.

I cut him off. “You should also never speak to me again, Tiago. We are brothers in name, but that’s as far as it’ll go. My decision was final. The bond between us, which had already strained, had finally snapped. “Do you understand me?”

“I do and I’m sorry.” Tiago whispered, his voice filled with guilt.

“I don’t need your apologies, I scolded him. “It’s Anya you should be sorry to. Live on for her. Do something worthy of her memory.”

That poor girl had lost her life over nothing, and that was on him. He should’ve never made her worry about him in the first place.

Tiago nodded, knowing the only thing he could do was take in my words.

Lucas knew better than to answer. See, all he had to do was drive and keep his mouth shut.

Some time later Tiago fell asleep in the backseat. How he could sleep through all of that? I truly had no idea, but I guess everything dealt with their trauma differently.

He had just heard Panther got Anya killed.

He had killed Panther himself.

And now he was napping.

“You know.” Lucas cleared his throat, being the last person I wanted to talk to, I didn’t hate him nor cared for him, really-but seeing him with Elena did something to my heart, and I could tell by his face, that whatever he was about to say-would be about her.

“Elena was worried about you. She has always been worried about you.”

“Hmm.” I hummed, pretending to be uninterested. “How is she doing?” I mumbled.

“You broke her, Marvin.” Lucas said. “I know she lied, but you should know she did it for a good reason. She did it because she didn’t want any of this to happen.”

“I didn’t make her fall for me. She’s the one who decided to do that.” The words felt heavy as they left my mouth. It was a truth I had come to accept. “If anything, I tried to push her away because I thought I would be the one to hurt her, but—“

“She ended up hurting you?” Lucas questioned, probing deeper into the wound I was trying to hide.

“No, I’m not hurt.” I lied, forcing a chuckle. There was a certain bitterness in that laughter.

“You don’t have to be like this around me. I’m not Mario,” Lucas said, his words subtly reminding me that I didn’t have to wear the mask of indifference with him.

His candidness coaxed another chuckle from me, but this time it was genuine, “I’m not hurt.”

“Okay.” He accepted my words with a knowing smile.

“Do you have feelings for Elena?” I couldn’t help but ask my brother.

It was silent, then he repeated me. “Feelings for Elena?” He most certainly bought time to choose his words carefully.

“To be honest, I barely know her, but if I didn’t know who she was and saw her walking down the street, I think I would’ve asked her for her number.”

I turned to him, giving him a small smirk, but the sides of my lips were trembling.

“You know how hard it was to interrogate her when she was sitting right in front of me?” Lucas said, his own smirk matching mine. “I nearly fell from my chair when she turned her back.”

I laughed, cutting him off. “What are you getting at?”

“Elena is waiting for you to call her, and if you don’t… well, she will find someone else because she can.” Lucas’ words felt like a punch to the gut, but maybe it was better this way.

“That’s good. I still want her to be happy.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. Positive.” I said, but my heart begged to differ.

“Elena tried to mention that you know George Torres? I assume he likes you.” I shifted the subject.

“He does.”

“Does he know who you are?”

“He does.”

“And he still likes you?”

“He does.”

“What kind of man is he?” I was curious about the man who hated me that much.

+5 Посид “One that resents the Castillos for murdering his partner, Stevie Maddens. Even then, Elena managed to get him off your back, so he’ll leave you alone.” Lucas answered. He must’ve misunderstood my question or he was either really rooting for Elena and I to be together, something which just couldn’t be.

“Can you do one thing for me?” I requested.

“Anything, brother.”

“I want you to stay close to her. Elena is naive, clumsy-and she doesn’t have many friends-”

“I know, Marvin. Don’t worry.” Lucas reassured him, knowing what I would ask. He had undeniably observed her as well.

“Thanks “Don’t thank me. Elena and I are friends.” Lucas put the emphasis on friends, “By the way, Elena told me that when she visited Stevie Maddens wife, she told her Panther was not alone. He was with a platinum blonde girl? She had really long hair.”

“P-Platinum blonde?” The view in front of me began to spin as I thought about my sister who had had that hair color for a long time in the past.

Did she know of Panther’s plans?

“Do you know her by chance-

“No, I wouldn’t know.” I said. How could I ever betray my own sister? No matter how terrible she was, she, was still family, same as Tiago.

Also, I hadn’t expected anything less from her. She had always been trouble.

“Too bad,” Lucas clicked his tongue. “Now what will be your next step?”

“My next step?” I paused, letting the weight of the question settle in.

My best friend sent me to prison, brother sent me to prison, and my sister set me to prison.

What was there left to do when everyone was out to get me?

“From now on, I will focus on the business, and the business only.”

After all, sometimes the only way out of pain and betrayal, is through working.

Months had passed since that fateful day. Life had moved on, and we all tried to cope with the big changes in our own ways.

I had revealed the truth about Panther to my Mario, about how he was behind Anya’s murder and planned to target us next.

Of course Mario, who did in fact see him as his son, was left with many questions, but I had managed to turn the story around in order for him not to question my right to make the right call.

Instead, in his eyes, I was hailed a hero. A savior of the Castillo family, and everyone had to know.

We had also interrogated the rest of the man and had to get rid of five, who had strong ties to Panther.

Our family had called a truce with the Hernandez, but I knew better than to trust them. Only time would reveal the truth behind their intentions.

My relationship with Victor had mended over time, our bond strengthened by the shared experiences, and his changed behavior.

Tiago, on the other hand, had distanced himself from the family business completely. He had left the estate and had thrown himself back into his studies.

Karina, who tried her best to hide her true feelings about losing Panther, had put up a front and pretended to be fine. Still, I kept a close eye on her, watching her every move.

Lucas, ‘the detective, was still around. He had been spending time with the Castillos, spending time with Elena, and reported everything back to me. I was glad, she would be safe with him.

Elena. The mere thought of her made my heart twinge. I was slowly getting over her, but every now and then I couldn’t help but stop by the bar where she worked, just to ensure she got home safely.

She didn’t know as I had never got the chance to tell her, but I had bought the bar under a pseudonym when I learned she was about to lose her job. All of it just so she could pursue her passion.

One sunny day, I found myself in the backyard, watching Stanfield, Victor, and Lucas engaged in conversation from a distance.

Stanfield had accepter my offer, left his job at the prison and had joined us. As expected, he was the type who could get along with anyone, even Mario Castillo who was skeptical of him at first.

Luckily I could reassure him that the situation with Panther was a one time thing, and I would never let my guard down ever again.

Suddenly, I felt a tap on my shoulder. Turning around, I found Amelia standing there, her eyes twinkling with mischief. I smiled warmly at her. I did feel guilty for pulling her away from Elena, but there were just some things she was better off not knowing “You might lose your new right-hand man to one of your brothers, Marvin,” Amelia teased, pointing ar Victor.

I shook my head, laughing with her, “I sure hope not. I ruffled her hair affectionately. I looked at her.

dressed in her maid uniform. She was working so hard, it was admirable, but at the same time I felt bad.

“What are you studying, Amelia?” I asked, genuinely curious.

“Business Administration!”

“The same as Tiago,” I muttered, more to myself than to her, thinking about my brother.

“Yes, we go to the same university-so I actually see him around sometimes,” Amelia added, giving me a soft smile.

“Well, if you ever need an internship, you know where to find me.” I patted her shoulder. “The door is always open.

“I know,” Amelia smiled brightly. “I just don’t know if it would be smart for me to administrate you know,” she leaned closer. “Pills?”

“Pills?” I laughed at her accusation. She had always been witty. “I’m talking about the liquor business you idiot!” My finger touched her head as she giggled.

Amelia suddenly turned serious, “Speaking of liquor, have you thought about getting back with Elena?” She asked. “I don’t want to interfere, and don’t ask me how, but I know about her dad and her brother.”

“Have you seen her?”

Amelia squinted her eyes. “Yes,” she admitted. “She didn’t want me to feel like she abandoned me.”

“Understandable.” I nodded. “But I can’t go back to her. What do you think Mario will do to her?” I asked, my heart heavy.

He had no issue with me eliminating Panter, so who knew what his reaction would be.

“He accepted Lucas, Amelia responded simply.

“Lucas is my brother, Amelia. It’s different, I explained. “And he’s a detective, not DEA.”

Amelia gave me a sharp look, yet playful. “It’s funny how Elena was willing to go against her family for you, but you won’t do the same for her.”

“W-What?”

“Just saying!”Amelia sang with a nonchalant shrugged as she patted my shoulder before walking away.

Her words went through my mind. Was she correct?

No.

I had made the right decision by protecting Elena. She deserved a life away from the danger and complexities of my world where she didn’t belong.

‘Yet Amelia’s words struck something within me, the lingering question of ‘what if echoing in my mind.

What if I said screw if and told Mario the truth?

What if I would risk everything to be with her?

What if….