Dalila
I love parties, except when they’re my own. I hate being the center of attention. I want to jump out the window and escape, but I know my mamá is looking forward to hosting my birthday party. Every family member will be here along with neighbors and friends.
To calm my nerves, I put in my earbuds and listen to Shadows of Darkness. Instead of thinking about Lucas, now every song somehow reminds me of Ryan. It’s completely annoying. When the song “Too Tough to Fall” comes on, I think about Ryan not backing down when Rico confronted him and when he was in the cage at the underground club. As I close my eyes and listen to “Heartbreak,” the lyrics trigger questions about Ryan’s love life. I wonder if Ryan’s left a trail of heartbroken girls back in the US like that redheaded girl Mikayla from the concert.
I yank my earbuds out in frustration.
Margarita, Coco, and Galena are already downstairs. My sisters love parties. They also love being the center of attention, which is fine with me.
“What did you decide to wear?” Lola asks me as she sets a water pitcher on my nightstand.
I shrug. “Maybe the white dress.”
“What about the red one your mamá bought for you?” She grabs it out of my closet. It’s a beautiful fitted dress that still has the tags on it.
I look at the dress Lola is holding. What if it was bought with illegal money my papá made from representing clients like Santiago Vega?
I need to stop thinking about it. Papá is a lawyer, that’s it. A powerful lawyer. He helps people who might not live their lives within the law, but that doesn’t mean he’s involved in any illegal activity. He’s not connected to drug lords, even if his clients are.
That thought doesn’t make me feel any better.
“Lola, I need you!” Coco yells from the hallway. Lola places the dress on my bed with an apology and quickly leaves my room to tend to my sister.
Soft music starts playing and I can hear people starting to arrive, their voices carrying throughout the courtyard into our rooms. The courtyard is brightly decorated with colorful lights. Tables with enough food to feed an entire town are placed around the house.
I hold the red dress up to my body in the mirror. It’s soft and beautiful and feels like silk against my skin. As I slip into it, I push away all negative thoughts.
After putting makeup on and getting texts from my friends asking where I am and accusing me of wanting to make a grand entrance, I’m ready to celebrate my eighteenth birthday.
“Mija, you look gorgeous,” Papá tells me as he walks into my room.
Mamá is standing beside him, wearing a long white dress fit for a queen. Her hair is in a perfect updo and her bright red lips accentuate the beauty of her flawless honey-brown skin. She opens her arms wide and pulls me into an embrace as she wishes me a happy birthday.
Papá holds out a little box wrapped with silver paper and a big blue bow.
“It’s your present,” Mamá chimes in.
“Open it,” Papá says.
After carefully unwrapping the box, I open it and suck in a breath. Inside the box is a stunning necklace with a big ruby heart surrounded entirely with diamonds.
“It’s too much,” I whisper as I finger the sparking jewels.
“Nothing is too good for you, mija,” Papá says.
Mamá takes the necklace out of the box and secures it around my neck. “It shines as much as your spirit and is as beautiful as you are, Dalila. Inside and out. We can’t wait until you graduate from medical school.” She smiles warmly. “You’re the perfect daughter.”
“She’s right. You make us proud to be your parents every day,” Papá says.
Mamá leaves the room after being summoned by Margarita. Something about being low on tortillas.
I grab Papá’s elbow before he can walk out of my room. “Papá, can we talk for a second?”
“Sure, mija. But only for a second. We have guests to attend to.”
“Why did you hire bodyguards tonight?”
“Because we have a lot of guests and I want to make sure everyone is safe,” he tells me.
“Why wouldn’t we be safe?”
He cocks a brow. “Why all the questions?”
Suddenly I don’t even want to bring it up. Is it because I’m afraid of knowing the truth? “I heard something at the club the other night.”
He places a comforting hand over mine. “What did you hear?”
I swallow and my heart starts racing. “Nothing. I just want to make sure you’re okay. I know you’ve been under a lot of stress and now you’ve hired bodyguards for tonight. It all worries me.”
“Whoa.” My dad holds up his hands as if halting my concern. “Don’t worry about me. It’s my job to worry about you. I’m a lawyer, Dalila. My ultimate goal is to help my clients with their legal issues. Sometimes it’s stressful.” He kisses the top of my forehead. “Come downstairs. Everyone is waiting to wish you feliz cumpleaños.”
“Okay,” I say, but there’s a nagging feeling inside me that he’s holding back the truth of why he’s been under a lot of pressure. My abuela’s letter is proof of that.
Fingering the jewels on my neck anxiously, I walk down to the party. A huge chorus of “¡Feliz cumpleaños!” erupts in our courtyard.
I want to retreat and hide from all the attention, but instead I do what’s expected of me. I plaster a smile on my face and walk gracefully down the stairs to the waiting crowd, half of whom I’ve never seen before.
“I love the necklace!” Soona cries out as she envelops me in a big hug. “It’s beautiful. Why have you been hiding that from me?”
“It’s new,” I tell her. “A birthday present.”
I greet my cousins and get hugs from my aunts and uncles while classical music echoes through the speakers scattered throughout our courtyard. It’s not Shadows of Darkness, but it makes me think of better times. As I weave my way through the crowd, I see my dad’s business associates and clients. It’s easy to spot them. They’re wearing expensive suits, and their wives, girlfriends, and children are dripping with shiny jewels.
Passing the hallway mirror, I feel like one of them and it just makes me feel embarrassed. I wonder how many meals that little homeless boy Sergio could buy with all the jewelry here tonight.
After talking to a couple of my cousins and making small talk with my father’s clients, I head to the food table.
“Did you miss me?” Rico asks, coming up behind me. I turn around to see him holding a beer. “I haven’t seen you since the cage fights.”
I manage a smile and dodge his question.
He sets his beer down on an empty table. “Show me the gardens. It’ll be like the old days when we were kids.”
I lead him through the house and walk out the back door. Nobody is out here except for one of the hired bodyguards for my celebration. I’ve always felt safe at home, even at night when I come out here to be alone. The inviting smell of the flowers is familiar and comforting, something I’ll miss when I go away to the university in Mexico City.
Rico’s following me, but he’s concentrating on his phone and hasn’t even stopped to notice the impressive yellow-and-white frangipani. I close my eyes as I breathe in their fragrance and my stress level immediately lowers.
When I open my eyes, Rico’s face is inches from mine. Before I can pull back, he presses his lips to mine and wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me close. I’m not ready for this. Not now. Not with him.
I push him away, glad when our lips separate. “Rico, we’re just friends,” I tell him.
He looks too sure of himself as he closes the distance between us again. “I know you like me.”
“As a friend.”
He laughs. “Come on, Dalila. Last year you were upset when I was texting other girls. I’m not preoccupied with anyone now. You don’t have to play games with me.”
“I’m not playing games, Rico.”
“Have you ever had a boyfriend?”
I don’t tell him I’ve been too busy trying to make up for Lucas’s death to have time to devote to someone else. “Not for a while.”
“You’ve been too sheltered by your parents, stuck in this compound.” His slightly arrogant attitude shines through with a mischievous smile. “Your dad will approve of us dating. Don’t think so much, and let me be a distraction.”
Rico presses his body to mine again, so close that I can feel how much of a distraction he wants to be.
“Let her go,” a deep, commanding voice orders. A voice I’ve replayed in my head over and over since I met him at the Shadows of Darkness concert.
It’s Ryan.
He’s standing a few feet away from us wearing a suit that’s meant for someone a few inches shorter and not as muscular. He’s also got a walkie-talkie hooked on to his belt.
Rico’s grip on me loosens. “What are you doing here?”
Ryan gestures to his walkie-talkie. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“It’s obvious you’re the hired help, pendejo. Nothing more.”
The insult doesn’t seem to faze Ryan. He takes a step toward us. “The hired help is telling you to get your hands off her.”
Rico stands tall. “I’m warning you. Leave us alone.”
“If you touch her again without her permission,” Ryan says, not backing down, “you’ll wish you listened to me the first time I said it. I don’t give people two warnings.”