Love, Lies & Red Eyes | ONC 2023 (Complete)

Chapter Ten | Lidia

The ice-blue eyed officer picks Arturo up like he's a tortilla and slams him down into the ground with ease. I can see it clearly now. The bulky muscles, the aggressive stares, the inhuman eyes. The ability to lift Arturo with ease. There's no doubting he's a cadejo.

I clutch my phone harder, turning on the recording like Detective Morales asked me to and pointing it at the scene of the two men on the beach. Well, cadejos who appear as men, but we can't be too worried about precision when our lives are in danger.

My heart beats through my ribcage when Officer Lewis turns to face me, stalking toward me like a tiger on the prowl. Like I'm his target and he is locked on.

Nothing will deter him.

There's nowhere to hide.

The nearest vehicle is at least five meters away and even if I could get there, I have no way to start the vehicle. I'd be trapped inside. A sitting duck waiting to be taken out.

So I stand still, clutching my phone to my chest and live linking Detective Morales. Maybe he already was linked, but if I'm going down at the hands of a man called 'Lucho Lewis', well, I'm making sure Morales gets his evidence first.

In the blink of an eye, Officer Lewis shifts into a bright white cadejo and bounds toward me, closing the space at an impossible speed. I don't know what to do, ducking in on myself and covering my head with my arms.

Someone screams for Arturo. I guess it must be me.

A moment passes. Maybe more. And then I hear a thud. A crash. A squeal.

A wimper.

A howl.

A rip.

A snap.

And then silence.

I don't move. I don't even know how to breathe. The muscles work of their own accord but they don't seem to be working overly well. The air comes in fits, constricting my chest further with each breath.

I can't open my eyes. I can't look at what might be a mangled Arturo. I can't bear the thought of him not being here at the end of this. I can't think of what it means for me if he's not here to protect me. What it means for all of us.

I push the tears away, clutching my phone and praying more than I've ever prayed before that Arturo will be alright.

"I'm the one who made him go," I whisper, crumbling in on myself and landing on the ground where I rock back and forth, eyes still firmly closed and pressed into my knees. "He's gone because of me."

"Lidia," Arturo's hurried voice interrupts my pity party. "We have to go."

It's a hallucination. My mind is running away with me because of the stress. I need to stay focused.

"If you're going to hurt me, just do it," I whisper, tears streaming out my eyes of their own accord. "I can't believe I—"

"Lidia," Arturo presses again, his warm hand finding my shoulder. "Are you hurt?"

A sob escapes me instead of an answer.

His hands press into my sides, lifting me under my legs with ease and carrying me down the street into a narrow alleyway. I don't have to open my eyes to tell it's him. He's real. There's no way I'm realistically dreaming the feel of him this accurately. The way his body relaxes my insides is unmistakable.

"You're alive," I whisper as he presses his fingertips into every inch of me he can reach.

"You're unharmed," he breathes.