The Foiled Plan (War of Sins Book 2)

‘Congratulations,’ I lean in to kiss Yuyu’s cheeks.

What were the odds that she’d go into labor so soon?

She’s lying in bed, her pale cheeks ruddy from effort, but there’s a radiance to her that makes her look so beautiful.

‘Thank you, Noelle,’ she gives me a smile.

My brother hasn’t left her side the entire time she’s been in labor, holding her hand throughout the entire ordeal. Raf had told me all about it, since I’d preferred to stay away for that period, afraid it would trigger bad memories.

‘He’s precious,’ I tell her, my eyes softening as I take in her newborn son.

I don’t offer to hold him, or get a better look. Not when I know it could have an adverse effect on my psyche.

‘Thank you so much for coming here. I know it hasn’t been easy with you guys,’ she takes my hand in hers, giving it a quick squeeze.

My lips tug up in a tight smile, and I assure her it’s my pleasure.

God knows, though, it really hasn’t been easy. Something changed since that time on the roof.

Raf changed.

I don’t know if it’s the death of his brother, or if his issue is with me, but he’s been more distant than ever.

He comes to bed at dawn, getting only a couple of hours of sleep before he’s up again, leaving the house to conduct whatever business he has pending.

In a way, I wonder if he’s doing all this to avoid me. We haven’t exchanged more than a couple of words here and there since Michele’s death. Sometimes he gazes at me as if he’d like to say something, but ultimately never does.

I wish he’d yell at me. Blame me for what happened. Anything but this silent treatment that’s slowly killing me. Yet, even if he did bring it up, I would remain staunch in my reply. I don’t regret what I did. I’m not sorry I disregarded my promise, and most of all, I’m not sorry I saved him.

My arm is getting better and it no longer pains me as much. I’m aware that I’d been lucky—all things considered—to only get away with just a scratch. I’d been lucky that I hadn’t been killed by Michele’s errant bullet. But in that case, death would have been more than welcome. And that is what Raf doesn’t seem to get.

How am I to continue living without him?

He was about to put a bullet through his brain to save me. How is that acceptable, yet my sacrifice is not? He fails to understand that my love for him is not any less than his. And just because I’m a woman, that doesn’t mean I can’t protect him as well.

While Yuyu is busy breastfeeding her baby, I take a step back, ready to leave the room. The moment I am about to go out the door, though, I reel back, my entire brain jolted from inside out. I reach with my hand, placing it on the wooden frame of the door as I seek to stabilize myself.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I try to take deep breaths, hoping it’s just the beginning of a migraine.

But as images flash inside my mind, I know it’s not.

‘What are you going to name him?’ Lucero asks, her hand on my baby bump.

‘You can’t know it’s a boy,’ I reply, a small frown on my face.

Oh, how I’d love for it to be a boy. Because if it’s not… No, I can’t think about that.

I couldn’t bear to do that again just to give Sergio an heir. I’d rather die.

‘It will be a boy. Trust me, you have all the signs,’ she sighs. ‘If only he’d get a doctor here. Or at least a midwife.’

Since my pregnancy had become evident, Sergio had locked me in the west wing of the house, with only a couple of people allowed to see me. It had been his punishment for what I’d done, but also his way of ensuring that I wouldn’t do anything to harm the baby—as if I’d ever try something like that.

‘It’s ok, Lucero,’ I give her a tight smile. ‘We’re going to be fine,’ I tell her as I gently caress my stomach, sending all my love to my baby.

Regardless of the circumstances of his conception, he is loved.

‘Mali,’ I whisper after a brief pause. ‘His name will be Mali,’ I repeat, absentmindedly bringing my fingers to my neck.

‘Noelle, are you ok?’ I hear someone’s voice in my ear, but I can only muster a small nod. ‘Let me call Raf. He’ll come get you,’ I turn to see my brother looking at me with worry in his eyes.

‘You don’t have to bother him. I’m sure he’s busy,’ I mutter, feeling a little weak in the knees.

‘Nonsense,’ he shakes his head, whipping his phone and dialing Raf.

‘Take a seat,’ he guides me to a chair while he talks to my husband on the phone.

Mali

I bring my hand to my chest, a searing pain bursting inside of me. Spreading my palm above my breasts, I breathe slowly—in and out. I feel the absence of something. What, I couldn’t say. But my soul yearns for something ineffable. I just know I’m missing a crucial part of myself.

The more I dwell on it, the more inconsolable I become.

Mali.

‘Noelle,’ I feel arms shaking me.

Blinking repeatedly, I focus on the person in front of me.

‘Raf,’ I utter his name, startled.

When did he come?

‘Let’s go home, pretty girl,’ he says gently as he swoops me in his arms, tucking me to his chest.

‘But Cisco and Yuyu…’

‘They won’t care if we’re here or not. They have their new baby to care for,’ he tells me.

His hot breath is on my cheek, his scent invading my nostrils as he holds me tight.

‘I didn’t realize how bad this would be for you or I would not have suggested the trip.’

Opening the car door, he deposits me in the passenger seat, buckling my seatbelt for me. He pauses for a moment, looking at me with a strange expression on his face before shaking his head and getting in the driver’s seat.

The drive home takes a while, and with Raf barely talking with me, the silence becomes awkward. Since Cisco had decided to relocate with Yuyu to another place at least until the baby is a few months old, we have the brownstone all to ourselves.

And that means even more awkward silence.

‘It feels so good not to have so many cars following us around,’ I add after a while, trying to lighten the mood.

Raf had managed to get the bounty off his head removed, and as the new Guerra head, he is no longer in danger from random attacks.

‘It does, doesn’t it?’ He attempts a smile, but he doesn’t glance at me, his eyes on the road.

My face falls, but instead on dwelling on it, I turn my attention to the moving landscape. He might be mad at me, but he’s bound to get over it at some point, right?

It’s a little disconcerting, though, that he’s been shutting me out like this. I’ve gotten so used to him being part of my daily routine—an extension of myself—that this rift between us is making my heart hurt.

From the outside everything looks perfect. He’s still the doting husband and the worried lover. But it’s when we’re alone that he becomes aloof, seemingly seeking to be as far away from me as he can.

I miss our talks. I miss the intimacies. I miss him.

Since the incident on the roof, he hasn’t touched me. He claims he was worried about my injury, but I wonder if it’s not something else.

‘Mali,’ he suddenly says, and I whip my head around, my eyes widening. ‘What did you mean by that?’ he asks, and I realized that in my stupor, I’d said the name out loud.

‘Nothing,’ I murmur, doing my best to keep my expression neutral.

‘Are you sure? Did you remember something more from the past? You were really pale.’

‘No, just tired,’ I force a smile on my lips.

He turns to me, his eyes narrowing at me as if he’s trying to decipher something from my features—as if he’s sure I’m lying.

‘You’d tell me if it was, wouldn’t you?’ His words are measured, yet I don’t miss the implication.

‘Of course. You know I tell you everything.’

‘I’m here,’ his hand finds my thigh as he gives it a tight squeeze. ‘I’m always here for you, Noelle.’

I don’t respond, ashamed of my little lie. But I’m worried that if I keep freaking out on him about my past, one day he’s going to have enough.

The last thing I want is for him to finally see how screwed up I am and realize I’m not worth the effort.

Given his new position, he needs someone strong by his side. Someone who can help him trudge his way through the New York society and get back what was taken from him. He doesn’t need a fumbling fool who is afraid of her own shadow.

The long and tedious journey gives me enough time to reflect on myself—on my strengths and my weaknesses.

And so I come to a startling realization.

I need to change. I have to show him that I’m not a dead weight. That I’m not a slave to my mental issues. More than anything I need to bring something to the table so that I become indispensable to him.

That way, he’ll never tire of me.