put Riel, or both of them, in foster homes. The stability that Isaias offered had made Lizette idolize him, and had quickly turned into a fierce love and devotion. That love had apparently soured somewhat over the years as Isaias showed his true nature, but was it still strong enough that Lizette would choose him over her own sister?
And then there was the FBI, listening in on the conversation. Would they go along with this, even though they’d easily be able to follow the trail of money? Or would they double-cross her and her sister once this deal was through, and seize the assets anyway?
There were so many other risks, so many things that could go wrong. Riel tugged her fingers through her disheveled hair. There was no point agonizing. It was her only hope. She dialed her sister’s number.
Her heart beat painfully as it rang, and Riel sent up a silent prayer that Lizette was alone. That she’d be sitting in the kitchen with her coffee, enjoying the only quiet moment of her day before everyone else was up.
It rang once, twice, a third time, and Riel balled the sheets up in her sweaty fists. Midway through the fourth ring, there was a click, and a quiet, uncertain voice came on the line. “Hello?”
“Lizette?”
There was a short silence, in which Riel’s muscles tightened like bowstrings. “Riel, is that you?”
“Yes. Is Isaias with you right now?”
“No, he’s in bed. Oh my God, Riel, where are you?”
“I’m back here in Portland. Be quiet, Lizette, don’t let Isaias hear that I’m talking to you, okay?”
She lowered her voice. “What happened? He said you ran away with that Evan.”
“I did for a little while, but I’m back.” Riel took a deep breath. “Listen, Lizette. If I talk to you about something, can you promise you won’t tell Isaias?”
Lizette’s voice shook slightly. “What is it, Riel? What’s going on?”
“You have to promise me you won’t tell him, that you won’t say anything to anybody. Because if you tell, it could put us in danger, all of us. You, me, Isaias, the kids. Can you promise?”
There was another silence, and Riel squeezed the sheets so hard her hand started to ache. “I promise,” Lizette finally said. “I won’t say anything.”
Riel let out the breath she’d been holding. “Good. Good. Okay, Lizette…pretty soon, hopefully, Isaias is going to give you a bunch of money, put it in an account for you.”
“What? Why?”
“I don’t know what he’ll tell you it’s for, but the real reason is we’re doing something risky, and he wants to make sure you and the kids are taken care of in case something happens.”
“Riel, what are you doing? Don’t, whatever it is, just don’t do it if it’s too dangerous—”
“We have to do it. And don’t worry, we’ll be okay. This is all just in case.”
“But, Riel—”
“I’ll explain it all so that you’ll understand afterwards. Please, just trust me.”
Lizette sobbed into the phone. “I hate this so much. I hate that you guys do this work. I wish…”
She broke down, and Riel’s lips tightened. “You wish you’d hadn’t been pulled into this crap. You wish Isaias made his money some other way…or that you hadn’t married him at all.” Lizette sobbed again in response, and Riel listened, hoping the latter was the correct explanation, that Lizette wished she was rid of her horrible husband. “Well, you knew what his work was when you married him, Lizette. You knew what you were getting into.”
“Riel—”
“And besides, that’s why we’re doing this,” Riel cut in. “To escape this business. If this works out, you won’t have to worry anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“No more mob bullshit, Lizette. We can all live normal lives.”
Lizette sniffed and took a shuddering breath. “Really?”
“Really.”
Her sister’s voice steadied. “What do I have to do?”
Riel squeezed her eyes shut. “There’s a United Bank account under the name of Nora Mejia. I’ll text you the account and routing numbers. Put the money in there. And if something happens to me—”
“Riel, if something happens to you, I’m not going to be worried about money—”
“I’m going to be fine, everything’s going to be okay, but just in case, Lizette. Because if something happens, you and the kids are still going to need money. I just can’t rest easy unless I know you guys are going to be okay, no matter what.”
Lizette began to cry again, not saying anything.
“I’m going to text you a number,” Riel continued. “If something happens to me, call it. This person will