Page 89 of The Dark Side

"Hold on, mama. Don't run away just yet." Jolie didn't want to stay, but she felt obligated, like she used to feel all the times her so-called friends talked crap about her. She was to blame for the loss of their star football player. There was no getting around the blame.

"Thought you knew better than to come back here. Guess my message didn't get through."

Jolie was already over his ridiculous threats. "My family lives here. You think you scare me?"

"I think you're a dumb bitch."

"Great. Well, out of the two of us, I graduated high school, so…" Jolie moved for the house again, but Santiago had her wrist. She knocked him off, taking a step back. He smelled worse up close. "Don't touch me."

"Or?" he challenged again with a cocky smirk. "Vinny ain't here, mama. And you're to blame for that."

"I wasn't the one who robbed a bank."

"But you are the one who told him how."

Jolie clenched her teeth, unwilling to expose the guilt that fell into her gut.

"Never seen anyone take a plea deal so fast."

"I didn't know he was going to actually do it!" she fought desperately. All these years, no one listened. No one cared either. They assumed that she turned on Vincent to save her skin, and maybe there was some truth to that, but he set her up first. He used her first. Everyone seemed to forget about that one heartbreaking fact.

Had she gotten any sympathy? Did anyone come up to her and say what an ass Vincent was for what he did to her? Vincent took her future in his hands when he didn't have any right to it. He nearly destroyed her life.

"I'm not the one you gotta convince, mama. If you come with me, my uncle would love to talk to you."

She chuckled, a defense mechanism to hide the bubbling panic while she stepped back. Jolie had never met Vincent's dad. In fact, Vincent never once spoke about him. "I'm not going anywhere with you. Vincent told you to leave me alone."

"You think he gives a fuck about you anymore? You left him to rot in prison for five years. Had to make sure you didn't go to the parole hearing."

The comment stayed with her. She had missed the parole hearing because of Adrik. Vincent was the furthest he’d ever been from her mind. She didn't care what happened to him now. But Santiago's comment meant something.

"You sent that person to my apartment, didn't you?"

Santiago nodded, but anger twisted his lips. "A friend of mine. Now fucking dead because of you."

"What?" Jolie knitted her brows. "What are you talking about?"

"Like you don't know. Got friends in high places now, huh? Mixed up with those Russian bastards over in Tampa. Got yourself a nice setup, right, mama?"

Jolie ran a hand through her hair. Did Adrik do something? Would he go back on his word? "He didn't. He wouldn't." She looked at Santiago. "You're lying," she determined. Adrik promised he would leave it to the cops. Not killing her attacker was the only reason she agreed to move into his house. He kept going on about being honest. Adrik wouldn't lie.

But Santiago would.

"I always told Vinny to watch out for you. You were always too fucking smart while pretending to be dumb as fuck."

Jolie shifted. She never liked Santiago, but she never believed he would hurt her. Now she knew better. Jolie backed up, moving further from the house. Santiago followed, smirking as he did so. He liked the fear in her eyes.

"Hafesays I got to leave you alone. But how will he find out, huh?"

Jolie sneered. "You'd have to catch me first." Jolie turned and ran to the car. The driver popped out of the vehicle, ignorant of what was going on, but rushed to open her door. She stared at Santiago from over the door, daring him to try. It was the first time she acknowledged the strength Adrik's family had.

Santiago nodded, backing up and spitting on the ground. "This ain't the last of it, mama," he promised.

The driver looked back at him. "Who is this?"

"No one," Jolie assured as she slipped into the car. She stared at him through the darkened window. Five years ago, Santiago was the loser everyone made fun of. He was the acne-covered wannabe, hanging around Vincent, if only to look more important than he was. Even with all the new piercings and tattoos, there was clearly no improvement.

But he did have the same spider tattoo as the man who attacked her in her apartment. He called them friends. Did that mean Santiago was in a gang? Adrik had mentioned the Toxins. Jolie wouldn't be surprised if he got involved in that lifestyle. Santiago was always looking for more attention than he got. Jolie used to ask Vincent why he kept Santiago around, and she could hear his reply like he was right beside her.'He's like my bodyguard. Don't worry, mama; he's on our side.'