Miguel's POVI spotted the thick black smoke in the sky from half a mile away from the orphanage, and my heart twisted in my chest. It looked bad.Perez had emphasized that on his call, but seeing the sight of the smoke made everything way more real, and my heart couldn't take it. I thought of the children, the nuns, and the lives I had promised to make better.Tears laced my vision, and I increased my speed, driving through multiple red lights without care. They needed me, and I had to be there. I wasn't one to pray. I didn't believe in anything other than death. But for the first time since my mother's death, I found myself praying again.I prayed that the smoke was only exaggerated and no one had gotten hurt. As I got closer, I saw that the cops blocked the entire front yard of the orphanage. I swerved my car off the road and pulled to a stop on the other side of the road, and there was no getting any closer than I already was.The second I stepped down, I was greeted by a gut-
Ava's POVI paced around the room, feeling deeply unsettled. Miguel had been gone since last night, and he still wasn't back. What was going on over there?I was worried sick, especially with the way he just left after telling me the orphanage was on fire. That was quite the news to drop on someone before rushing out like that.Not knowing what was going on out there was driving me crazy, and staying in here wasn't doing anything to help me calm down. I needed to go to him and know what was going on.I unlocked the door and went to meet the guards downstairs for the second time. “I need a ride to the orphanage.”“I'm sorry, Ma’am. We already told you. We can't let you leave the premises without permission from the boss,” the leader said.I hissed, “You've got to be kidding me,” I breathed, “Miguel is out there, and I—” I sighed, realizing how pointless this was.They had their orders. They were obviously not going to let me leave because they thought I'd run away. I headed upstairs
Ava's POV“I'll go get you a drink,” Miguel suddenly offered and left us alone.Awkward silence filled the room as I tried not to stare at the little girl for too long.We barely knew each other, yet the way she looked at me was as if, she knew me in another world.“I think you should sit,” she suddenly said breaking the silence.My brows raised and for a second my brain went blank before her words replayed themself.“Oh! Yeah. Thanks,” I settled into Miguel’s seat. “So what's your name?” I asked.“Gracie.”“I'm Ava,” I whispered.“I know,” she said with a smile.“You do?” I raised a brow.“Yeah. He mentioned you.”“He did?”“Mmh. Mmh,” she nodded.“What did he say?”Gracie opened her mouth to speak when Miguel returned, and that was the end of it. We spend the next hour talking about Gracie’s love for elephants, colors, and all sorts.By the end of the conversation, I was certain the little girl loved Miguel to death, and he loved her, and honestly, I knew I'd love her, too. I was b
Ava's POVThe DiAngelos were the enemy? I couldn't believe it.My heart drummed in my chest, and my entire body trembled as I stood there, rooted to the ground at the sight of them. I couldn't believe this, nor did I understand it.They were CIA agents, and yet they were at this party. It didn't make any sense. I swallowed the bile that had settled in my throat and darted my eyes to the broken champagne glass on the ground. Everyone was staring at us —at me.“I'm so sorry,” I gushed and held my dress up as I attempted to crouch and clear it up, but Miguel stopped me.“Leave it. The cleaners will get it,” he looked at me carefully, concern etching itself on his face as he pulled me aside, “Are you okay?” he asked with a hand on my shoulders.My eyes darted to the DiAngelos, who were now glaring at me, and I felt a cold chill run down my spine. Did this mean they were never actually CIA agents? Did this mean they fooled me?“Ava,” Miguel jerked me out of my thoughts, “Are you okay?
Miguel's POVPerez held the burner phone in his hand, examining it carefully. He had been looking at it for over ten minutes, and I was now on my third joint.“You found this in your bedroom?” Perez asked for the fifth time, glancing at me, and I nodded again, holding the cigarette away from my lips briefly.He looked at it again, “And you're positive it belongs to her?”It was the same set of questions over and over again and it was starting to piss me off. “I think so,” I said through gritted teeth.He sighed, twisting the phone in his hand, “How did you find it?” he asked.I removed the joint from between my lips and pressed it on the ashtray, “It doesn't matter.”Perez frowned, and I faced the ashtray, watching the ash as I recalled how I found the burner phone. I found it under our bed a few days ago. To be precise, I found it the day after she went missing at the mall, and I have held onto it since then.I had suspected that something was going on with her from the night befor
Ava's POV“No. It's not!” I exclaimed, getting to my feet.I couldn't understand how he could be so chill about this. I just told him everything that I had been hiding from him. I was expecting some reaction. I expected him to get mad and yell at me or something, but instead, he was smiling.I couldn't understand it. I couldn't understand him. “How can you be okay with this? I just told you they sent me here to kill you!” I screamed the words at him.“But you didn't,” he muttered, folding his arms. He looked almost amused as he stared at me and I hated the way my heart reacted to that.“But I could have,” I insisted in a lower tone.“Yes, you could, but you didn't. I'm still here because you allowed it,” he said and shrugged, cocking his head a little, “I'm sure they know that too. You have been careless.”“Careless!” I echoed and smirked, “I spared you, dumbass!” I exclaimed, getting riled up again.“Dumbass,” he chuckled, “That’s a first,” he grinned, and I glared back at him in r
Miguel's POV“This doesn't sound like a good idea,” Ava complained for the umpteenth time, folding her arms as she paced the room.She had been pacing for so long, I was starting to get dizzy, watching her the entire time.“It's a good plan,” I insisted with a smile."I agree. It's a great plan," Perez agreed with me. “She's going to know. This is a terrible plan. She’s not stupid." Ava cried out.“Trust me, I know her well. She will fall for it,” I said, sounding very convincing.“You know her well?” Ava repeated, “How well??” she asked, and I sensed something in her voice that made me feel hesitant.“We grew up together,” I answered.“And she had a little thing for him too,” Perez joined the conversation and laughed.“She had a thing for you?” Ava asked, looking stunned.I frowned, wishing that the idiot with us would keep his mouth shut instead of rambling nonsense.“That was a long time ago. It is out of context,” I defended glaring at him.“That's so not true. It did matter to h
Miguel's POVThe darkness only lasted for a second."Miguel!" Ava yelled.Time stopped.Indira’s face turned morbid as her gaze fell on me, but the blood gushing out of her like a fountain, made it impossible for her to speak. One DiAngelo down. One more to go.I moved my gun to Lino, but before I could pull the trigger, he vanished.The Diangelos men began to shoot at me, and I yanked Ava into a corner, pressing her to the ground as bullets began to fly. My men attacked, and gunshots echoed through the air.I grabbed Ava by the wrist, taking the opportunity to get her away from the crossfire. I placed her in my vehicle and took her to a safe house where Mason was waiting.“You're bleeding,” she pointed out, staring at the blood stain on my shirt as I stopped the vehicle.I looked at myself, suddenly remembering the shot Indira had fired. It burned. But Ava didn't need to know that.“It's fine. It's just a scratch. How are you? Are you okay?”She shook her head, “You saved me. You w