Chapter 35

I arrived at Luis’s room, pushing the door open with a creak. The air inside was filled with the scent of medicinal salves mingling with the sterile cleanliness of the space. His caretaker surely was doing her best.
The room was as quiet as ever, except for the rhythmic hum of the machines that surrounded his bed.
And there he was, Luis, looking as pitiful as ever. His body lay in the same limp, uncooperative posture it always had—his head tilted slightly to the side, saliva dripping unceremoniously down the corner of his mouth onto the pillow.
God, this was so heart-wrenching to watch. One would think I’d have gotten used to it by now.
“Morning, champ,” I said, stepping into the room. My voice echoed faintly off the high ceilings, filling the emptiness.
Luis didn’t respond—he never did—but had never stopped me, had it? I bet he always looked forward to my visits. I was literally the only one who genuinely cared for him.
Of course, he’d naturally love me too.
I walked over to his bed, tapping his shoulder lightly as if that would somehow jolt him into replying. “How are you doing today, huh?” I asked, though it was more for my benefit than his.
His blank eyes stared at the ceiling, unblinking, unmoving. My shoulders sagged. Fuck this.
With a sigh, I pulled up the chair beside his wheelchair and plopped down into it, running a hand through my hair. “You’re lucky, you know that?” I started.
“You don’t have to deal with Papá and his ridiculous ultimatums. Do you know what he said to me this morning? One month. One. Month. To find my mate, or else I’m stuck with Rosa.” I leaned back, throwing my arms over the chair dramatically.
Luis, naturally, said nothing, but I continued anyway. “You remember Rosa, right? Of course, you do. The overly sweet one with the scary obsession with floral perfume. I swear, she bathes in the stuff.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, groaning. “I mean, she’s nice and all, but I can’t marry her. Not because she’s terrible, but… well, because I’m a coward who never wants to get married or fall in love with a girl. Dang—the thought alone nauseates me.”
I glanced at Luis, half-expecting a sarcastic quip. But as usual, I received nothing. Right, he couldn’t talk.
“You heard me. A coward. When it comes to emotions, anyway. I don’t know how to tell Rosa that I can’t like her back. She’s a good friend—was a good friend. But I can’t My voice trailed off, and I drummed my fingers on the armrest.
Hugo, as the unhelpful peanut gallery that he was, chimed in. “It’s bold of you to think Rosa still likes you after all these years. What she had was probably a pesky girlhood crush, so let it go!”
I frowned. “I didn’t say Rosa still likes me,” I shot back internally, my annoyance obvious on my face.
Not that Luis would see it anyway.
“Sure sounded like you did,” Hugo replied with a smug tone that made me want to roll my eyes into another dimension.
Could he just shut up and let me and Luis have our brotherly moment to ourselves?!
Before I could tell Hugo to suck my dick, something caught my attention— a movement. My head snapped to Luis, and for a second, I thought I was imagining it. But no, there it was again. His fingers twitched, just the faintest flutter. The source of this content ɪs.net
My heart leaped into my throat. “Luis!” I bolted out of my chair, nearly knocking it over in my excitement. “You moved! You just—you moved your fingers!”
My cousin who hadn’t moved in years finally moved his fingers!
I knew it! I was all the medications Luis needed.
He didn’t do it again, but I didn’t care. I dropped to my knees beside his bed, grabbing his hand like it was a lifeline. “You can hear me, can’t you?” My voice was softer now, so much hope radiating from it.
“You can actually hear me.”
His eyes remained unfocused, but I was convinced. I could feel it in my gut. He was still in there, locked away in this broken body.
I let out a shaky laugh, squeezing his hand. “You’re stronger than all of them, you know that? Stronger than Papá, stronger than Álvaro, stronger than me. And I promise you, Luis, I’m going to fix this. I’m going to help you get back on your feet.”
I leaned closer, lowering my voice. “For what they did to your father. For what they did to you.” My grip on his hand tightened as anger flared in my chest. “Papá thinks he can just sweep it all under the rug, like it didn’t happen. Like you didn’t lose everything because of him. But I’ll make him pay, Luis. I swear it. I just need… I just need a little more power. Enough to stand on my own two feet without him dominating me.”
I sighed, leaning back on my heels. “But not the Alpha position. No, screw that. The Alpha position is just a bloody throne. It’s all politics and pretenses, and I’m not about to fight for something that ties me to the same system that destroyed your life. I don’t need that kind of power. I don’t know the kind of power I need yet, but I’ll find it. I swear it to you
Luis’s hand was warm in mine, and I could not explain the kind of smoothness it sent to me. I had always felt like the lucky one.
The one who still had a father… a family. The one who didn’t break down after witnessing that gore sight. I was the lucky one indeed.
The one who didn’t have his father and the rest of his family murdered by his uncle.
I sat there for a while, talking to Luis about everything and nothing. About Papá’s ridiculous rules, about my plan to avoid Rosa, about how much I hated the heavy crown of family expectations that always seemed to hang over my head.
And even though Luis didn’t say a word, even though he didn’t move again, I felt like he was listening. Like, for the first time in years, I wasn’t completely alone in this.
Eventually, talking wore me out and I rested my forehead against the edge of his bed. “We’ll get through this, Luis. Both of us. One way or another, we’ll make sure you make it out of this mess.”
I’d do anything to help Luis. Anything at all.