Sorrow In Her Scars

Chapter 23- Azrael

"Loyal?" I question, "Like a dog?" I tilt my head.

Lucio glares up at papá but papá just smirks at me, "Just like a dog, Azrael." Laughter crawling up his throat when Lucio scowls.

"A!" Someone yells, shaking my shoulders roughly, "Azrael, wake up!" The voice yells once more.

My eyes flutter open, blinking up at Rico who stares down at me with a pale face, "Tio is here, A." He whispers, his voice cracking with fear as I sit up quickly.

"What?" I breathe, "What do you mean he's here?" I ask in disbelief. That man hasn't bothered checking in on us for year and now he's here all of a sudden. What the hell was he doing here?

"He's mad, Azrael." He whispers, "He's yelling at Loki because Loki wouldn't let him see me." He informs, "Lucio told me to stay upstairs but i'm scared, I don't want Loki to get in trouble." He says, hugging my arm tightly against his chest.

I carefully move myself out of his grip before throwing on some shorts. I cup Rico's face, "Stay up here, Mano." I demand, kissing his temple, "I'll tell you when it's okay to come back down, okay?" He nods, without question as I tuck him back into bed.

I rush down the stairs, hearing the shouting coming from outside, "¡No me hagas patearte el trasero, Lucio!" I hear my uncle shout, my throat clogging up with emotion at his familiar voice. It reminds me that I still have family other than Rico and the reminder always hurts more because it felt like we didn't.

When I step outside, the argument drops when everyone turns to me. My eyes find a shirtless Lucio first, his features are clouded with anger as he stares my uncle down before moving his attention towards me, softening when he sees the expression on my face. Then my eyes move to Loki, whose rigid in his spot as if he's looking at a ghost and it must be how it feels for him because Loki always went against my father's wishes about being around Santiago.

Finally, my eyes clash with my uncles. He's frozen in place as he stares me down in awe, "Mija..." He swallows, his face twisting with pain at the tears that stream down my face. I felt like I was always fucking crying, this was never a problem before.

It felt like a punch in the gut when he speaks again, "You look just like you're mother." He utters, his eyes analyzing every single feature.

My lips curl in disgust at the comparison, "No, I don't." I deny, stupidly but deep down I knew I did, I was a spitting image of her and I hated it.

"Come here." He says, softly.

I don't move, "Why are you here?" I ask, my voice shaking with trepidation as I stare at him. He looked so much like my father, it almost hurt to look at him.

His eyes narrow, "Come here." He demands but I don't move, "Azrael, it's me." He tries, "It's me, Mija. I'm not here to hurt you, I just want to hold you. I miss you." He croaks, stepping forward only for me to take a step back. "Talk to me, what did I do? Why don't you want me here?" He asks, cautiously.

"You forgot about me and Rico." I sneer.

He shakes his head, "Never, you know your father didn't want me around." He tries to excuse.

My vision clouds at his words, "That's fucking bullshit and you know it!" I yell, ignoring the way Lucio tries to pull me against him, "He told you that if anything were to happen to him to promise him you'd be here!" I scream, choking on my sobs, "You weren't there when they took him! You weren't there when mamá beat the shit out of me!" His face pales, "I called you. I looked for you and you disappeared." I breathe, "Papá told us that if he weren't here that we would be able to trust you to keep us safe but he was wrong." I grit, "So I'll ask you again, why are you here?"