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“Yeah, us. The Four Dark Horsemen.”
So many feelings twist inside me, and while I accepted my love for my woman, I don’t know how to process all this, especially with his constant mood swings. Hardening my words, I snap, “What do you want, Santiago? I highly doubt you came all the way here to talk about our past. Whatever happened, happened.” Then a thought hits me. “If you thought this speech would make me feel guilty and give up Jimena, then you have another think coming. I will never do that. She’s mine, whether you like it or not. I’ll burn the world, but no one is going to take her away from me. Even you.”
We have a long stare-off as the wind swirls around us, intensifying, and the sky darkens while clouds gather. If we keep this shit up any longer, the rain will soak us because the storms here are brutal.
You cannot be outside when they are raging.
“I’m standing in front of you right now as a brother who loves his little sister very much. She’s a ray of sunshine—hope—a beautiful and innocent creature who should have never fallen for a serial killer like you.” I tense and straighten up. The insults are back. “She deserves a prince who would adore her and bask her in light and happiness without any darkness tainting her. You’re a villain and you always will be one because these desires rule your soul. You’re much older than her, and she’s pregnant at the age of twenty. Not to mention your past. Who would have been happy with such a choice? As a brother, I’d never pick you if I had any say.”
I stay silent at this, allowing him to let it all out while pain mixes with rage within me because he’s a hypocrite.
Such a fucking hypocrite who kidnapped his own wife, but I guess it’s all good since she has no brother?
“Well, if this is your stance on the matter, I can’t do anything about it. You’re welcome to stay on the island until the storm passes under one condition. You will not upset Jimena, because if you do? You can fend for your-fucking-self in the storm.” I turn around, ready to march back to my car, but he grabs my arm, halting my movements, and spins me around to face him once again. “What?” I free myself from his hold as he steps closer, and we both scowl at each other. “You have some other bullshit to tell me? Spoiler alert: I’m not interested in hearing it.”
“I’m not just her brother. I’m your best friend too.” An odd note coats his tone, and an emotion flickers in his gaze that I cannot name because I’ve never seen it before. “And as your best friend, I’d say to any brother out there…anyone’s sister will be lucky to be loved by you.” My eyes widen at this. “A man who’d sacrifice everything if it meant protecting his family. A man with integrity and loyalty. A man who’d go against his friends for the one he loves because she’s the most important thing to him. A man who values his friends even when they are not around and keeps his promises. And finally, a man who has one compass, obsession, and madness in this world that controls his darkness, and that’s his woman.” He exhales a heavy breath as if saying all this hurts him on some level too. Part of me wishes for him to shut up so he won’t open up all these feelings we don’t know how to deal with. “We are a brotherhood because of you. You’re the glue that kept us all together through the years, and you made a lot of sacrifices for us without asking for anything in return. You risked your life for ours. You gave your all to us…and it’s our turn now, Florian.”
“Enough, Santiago. Stop it.” He needs to shut up because it’s becoming hard to breathe.
He continues, though. “So as a brother…I’m warning you that if you ever hurt my sister in any way, I’ll kill you. But as your friend, I know you’ll never do that. You’re one of the people I trust the most, so how can I not trust you with her?” Our gazes clash. “Te amo, Florian. Gracias por todo.”
Something inside me snaps because for years, I thought choosing Jimena meant losing him, and as sappy as it sounds…I never wanted to lose one of my best friends.
I wrap my arms around him, and he does the same, both of us trapping each other in a fierce hug that heals the broken pieces around us and puts them back together, forming that special bond once again while thunder rocks the sky and everything around us darkens even further.
That’s the theme of our friendship, though, isn’t it?
Darkness connected us all because we never turned our backs on each other and instead embraced each other’s vices.
“I’m sorry for lying to you all this time. I shouldn’t have.”
“Yeah. And if you kiss her in front of me, I’m going to punch you.”
I laugh. “Then prepare to meet your sister’s wrath because she quite likes this face of mine.”
“Do you want to make up or not?” There is not much heat behind his words, though. “You’re walking on thin ice.”
“Yo también te amo, Santiago,” I say this time, seriously. “Thank you for being a great brother and friend. Or should I say…future brother-in-law?”
Loud whistles echo in the air, followed by a boom in the sky, and we both swing our heads to his yacht. I grin when I see Octavius and Remi leaving the captain’s cabin. “Look at you two being all lovely with each other.” Remi elbows Octavius. “Let’s hug too.”
“No.”
“But you still love me, right?”
“Yes.”
He sighs. “I guess that’s enough.”
Of course they are here.
They’d never allow Santiago to go alone and potentially do something to me.
My best friends. My family. My brothers who’ll always have my back even if I screw up.
They jump on the deck and reach us in five strides, smashing into us from both sides and creating the familiar circle that we used to do as kids, our arms tangled together. “The Four Dark Horsemen are back.”
Collective groans meet Remi’s statement. “Would you stop being so corny? It gives us a bad reputation.”
