Charles’ POVAlma’s words replay in my head even after she finishes. My mind races, trying to process it all. For a while, I just stare at her, with my mind caught between rage and pity.Rage, because if she’d told me everything sooner, I might’ve been closer to tearing Ricardo apart by now. Pity, because she was only twenty when she had seen Linda die. A kid. And if her mother pimps out girls for a living, then Alma’s entire life must’ve been a hell I can barely imagine.She looks at me with wet, pleading eyes, waiting for me to cast judgment.But I can’t.Because I understand now. She wasn’t born a monster. She was made into one. Ricardo bent her until she broke, until she believed his lies. She was a victim of his Machiavellian games, same as Linda, same as the missing girls.I take her hand in mine and my thumb brushes over her knuckles. “You were a victim,” I murmur.Her lips part in shock, like she expected me to hate her forever. I don’t, and I can’t.Do I hate that she kept th
Last Updated : 2025-10-14 Read more