When he was rubbing it into my skin, it felt as though he was marking me. I don’t see anything, but I know it’s there. I should wipe it off, but instead I flip off the light and return to my closet to get dressed, secretly enjoying the fact that I can carry some of him with me for the rest of the day.
Bandit pops her little head out from inside of one of my shoes. “How did you get in there?” I scoop her out, putting her in a pile of my clothes. She turns a few times before plopping down to watch me.
“I guess jeans will have to do.” I grab them off a hanger, sliding them on before I put on a real bra and pull a hoodie over my head. I pick up Bandit, putting her in the front pocket. I smile, thinking about how I asked for a kitten, and then one appeared. I might have been stealing this whole time for no reason when I could have simply been asking for what I wanted. What would have been the fun in that though?
I head straight for Cesar’s office. As always, Anderson is standing outside. He reaches for one of the doors, opening it for me. Cesar stands from behind his desk.
“Valentina.” I don’t miss how his eyes light up when he sees me. Have they always done that, and I hadn't noticed? “Come.” He steps from behind his desk. “This is Carter Longview. Your lawyer. He’s here to talk to you about your father's estate.”
“Hi.” I give the man a small wave. I don’t remember ever seeing him before. My dad did always keep me tucked away as best as he could. I knew he was a bad man. That’s about the extent of my experience with him. I never found the courage to sneak around his home. It dawns on me that I don’t have that problem with Cesar.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” The lawyer gives me a half smile and doesn’t reach out to shake hands.
“Sit.” Cesar motions toward the chair behind his desk. Bandit pokes her head out to see what is going on. She gives a hiss to Mr. Longview, who takes a step back.
“She’s harmless,” I lie. “As long as you don’t touch her.” I pet Bandit’s head as I move around to Cesar’s chair and take a seat. “So this is about my father?” I kind of want to get this over with. Cesar is in his suit and looking far too handsome. How many times have I thought about him having his way with me on this very desk? He spends so many hours in here. I used to fantasize that I could distract him from his work, that it was a special power only I had over him.
“It is about your father, yes.” The lawyer opens his briefcase.
Cesar steps over to stand beside me as the man begins pulling papers out. “He left you everything.”
“What?” I reach for the papers. I hadn't thought much about what happened to my old life. I know we’re in hiding, that this prison is, in part, for safety even though it chafes. I figured that whatever was left of my father’s money belonged to my mom. She earned it by being married to that man.
“When you turn 21, it’s all yours.”
I lift the papers, not sure I want anything that belonged to my father. I don’t know how I feel about him. He wasn’t kind, but that doesn’t mean I don’t miss him. Maybe he could’ve changed. I don’t know, because I never got the chance to find out. He died in a car accident when I was young.
The lawyer clears this throat. “That is to say, it’s all yours as long as you have remained...”
I cock my head at the lawyer, who is pulling on his tie with a pinched look on his face. “Remained what?”
“A virgin.” Cesar finishes for him.
My eyes snap to Cesar. “Come again?”
He smirks.
I kick myself for my phrasing, then realize I have more questions than ever about my father, his estate, and what the hell Cesar is talking about.
11
Cesar
“What does being a virgin have to do with anything?” Her cheeks redden slightly at the question.
“Simple.” Carter places some papers on my desk, and Valentina leans forward to peruse them. Her kitten jumps up and sits, her tail twitching.
Carter points. “Here, your father stated in his will that you were to inherit all of his holdings upon reaching your 21st birthday as long as you remained ‘pure’ during the preceding time. So, in other words--”
“That’s gross.” Valentina sits back.
“Excuse me?” Carter pushes his glasses up his nose.
“I didn’t know my father, not really, but trying to control my sex life from beyond the grave is particularly low.”
“I don’t disagree.” I had hoped there was some way to invalidate the will, but I never found a way to do it. Besides, the law won’t matter to the other Colombian families if they discover Hector’s final wishes weren’t met. They wouldn’t accept Valentina as the heir, and a bloodbath would certainly ensue. I gesture at Carter. “Go on.”
“As I said, you must make it to 21 as a virgin.” He swallows hard. “And to my knowledge, that is the state of the matter.” He glances at me, which makes this entire situation infinitely worse.
I glare right back at him, and he continues with a fearful quickness, “Ms. Cruz, you have been sheltered here by Mr. Saldana and have remained pure in accordance with these documents. Therefore, you will inherit a large sum of money as well as vast property and land holdings in Colombia.” He taps his pen against the dollar amount in the document.
“That money is mine?” Valentina shakes her head slowly. “That’s not possible.”
Carter adopts a patient expression. “It is as long as you make it to your birthday as a virgin. Every penny, plus more, since the money has grown in the interim thanks to the investment bank in charge of the funds. You will inherit--”
“Wait.” She turns and looks at me, her brown eyes inscrutable. “You kept me here, kept me under lock and key to make sure I was a virgin?” Her voice rises. “Do you have any idea how messed up that is?”
“That isn’t the only reason.”
“Then why else?” Her eyes glisten with emotion. “You wanted to what--keep me here until I came of age and inherited all this? And then what was your plan? Force me to turn it over to you?”
“No plan.” I reach out to stroke her hair, but she dodges back.
“So you just let my mother and me stay here out of the goodness of your heart?” My Valentina may be sheltered, but she isn’t stupid.
“Not exactly. I felt a sense of--”
“You felt like once I came of age, you’d be able to get your hands on my father’s money.” She stands and backs away from me. “You lied to me. You didn’t keep me behind these walls for my safety.” Her eyes widen with her own realization. “You did it so I could stay a virgin.”
“No, little mouse. No.” I follow her. I always will. I will chase her to the ends of the world if that’s what it takes.
“What happens if I’m not a virgin?” She wipes her eyes and turns back to Carter. “Tell me what happens.”
“Though I understand it’s a sensitive topic--” He attempts to appear caring but fails and looks nothing short of smarmy. “If you fail to remain a virgin until you are 21 years of age, your father’s will specifies that his estate will pass to the next in line.”