A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow - Laura Taylor Namey Page 0,79
to a show and Katy and I crashed in the living room after. It wasn’t me
Me: I believe you
I write this because it’s true.
Orion’s forehead creases with strain. “Enough with waiting to catch those arses.” He whips his head left to right. Checks his watch. “I’d never ask you to accompany me for this. I can drop you somewhere you’d love, like Fortnum and Mason, just until I handle this situation. But I’m going straight to Roth’s place. Gonna make him admit it and repair my walls. Now.”
“No!” My pulse beats ten steps ahead of my fear.
“What do you mean, no? They went too bloody far this time. They destroyed almost our entire exterior!”
My skin glazes with dampness. What can I say? I promised Flora I’d keep her confidence. “But what if you’re wrong? What if it’s really not Roth and his boys. What if—”
“Look, we’ve been dealing with that group and their antics long before you got here. We know it’s them, and the town’s sick of it. Sick of spending our time with scrub brushes and solvents.” He brings up the picture again, swearing richly. “Sick of bullies, Lila.”
“But look, it’s two colors. Black and light gray and it’s not any of the same symbols. And none of the other instances had so much damage. It’s probably just some kid.” Orion keeps shaking his head. “You don’t know what Roth is capable of if you go over there, accusing him with no proof. You said he’s a hot head. He could snap.”
“Fine, I’ll not go alone. Remy’s off today. He can get here soon enough. He’s got his eyes set on law school—becoming a solicitor. This will give him some cross-examination practice early on.”
“But Orion you can’t just—”
“I’d do it for him, any day. He’ll come.”
My breath quickens. Would Jules go for this idea? Worse images flash: Flora’s trembling face and please don’t tell Orion, and Orion getting his face smashed in, and this whole charade going on and on and… “Wait! It’s not Roth. I… I know who’s been doing the tagging—not this one, but the others.” I hear myself, the words breaking free of their sentences, pelting me back in jumbled order. A gust between my ears.
The disbelief in his eyes tears me from face to foot. “What do you mean?”
“It’s not Roth who did all those symbols, all those months. It’s not them, Orion. Let it go.”
“How can you possibly know?” he asks, his voice dragged across weathered brick.
I squint, rattling my head. “I…”
“Lila, I appreciate why you’re trying to stop me. But I need to put an end to this and I’ll handle myself just—”
“It was your sister,” I spit out, hating myself. “Flora. I caught her tagging.” Forgive me, Flora.
A ragged shock, then his expression hones to hard marble as he listens to the events from that night I jogged after Remy’s pub.
“Please don’t tell Flora I told you. Don’t tell your dad. Just let it ride. She begged me. Begged. The damage to your shop from last night couldn’t have been her. She has proof, okay? She told me she’d stop and she has.” Tears well my vision. “Promise me.”
“Promise you? Promise… you?” Heat rolls out in waves from him. “Christ, Lila, is this why she’s working with you? Some kind of payment to buy your silence?”
“It’s not payment. I wanted to help her. She’s hurting.”
“You don’t think I know that? Me of all people? You don’t think I know?” His hand dashes out. “Hurt aside, she still did wrong and she needs to be held accountable.”
“I agree.” I dig my fingers into my aching temples. “But Friday she told me she went and cleaned up the wall where I caught her. She’s doing really well working at the inn. She’s opening up. She was just desperate to be seen and heard. To be remembered. She was crying out—”
“That wasn’t your choice to make.” One step forward. “She’s not your sister. She’s not your responsibility. This is our family. Our business. You made the choice for all of us.”
Oh, the words. I have no more room, no place left inside to hold them. I get right up to him, setting my face into iron. “Flora’s my friend. Doesn’t that mean anything? All she wants is for things to go back to the way they were. I know how she feels, even if we’re not going through the exact same thing.” My hands slice the rancid air between us. “So yeah, I could’ve