"...and then he kicked me out. Just like that, excommunicated by the Pope himself." Benito said, sarcastically comparing their holier than thou father to the head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Niña squinted her tired eyes at her long-lost brother. She was exhausted, not just physically but emotionally. This was the first time she's seen Benito since she had set him up and sent him away to almost a decade of prison time. "And what the fuck do you expect me to do? You're a grown ass man."

"Hermanita..." He stumbled over closer to her but just a little. Benito was a man who kept his composure, even when he was drunk. It took him a lot to face his little sister at this helpless time of his life, but with a little liquid strength, anything is possible. He reached for her cheek and softly rubbed it. "You ruined my life. I wouldn't even be here right now if you hadn't betrayed me. Don't you think it's time for you to pay?" He pinched her and she rolled her eyes, slapping his hand off of her face.

"If you think you can come to my house and blackmail me, you're fucking dense. You of all people should know better." she cocked her head, damn near laughing in his face.

He smirked back. "I just want you to remember you have a heart. You're..." Benito paused. "..not like us, Niña, you were never coldblooded." His smooth voice began to break a little and Niña could feel her own eyes watering. There was so much to unpack in this interaction and she wanted it to be over. "I need help and you owe me."


Niña folded her arms and let out a small breath, rolling her eyes again before backing into her doorway and turning around. "Just come in. I'll give you something for the night and I'll talk to papi in the morning." Benito closed the door behind him and followed silently.

"We good!" Niña yelled. Tyron was just as observant, aka nosey, as she was so she knew he was already aware someone else was in the house. She prayed under her breath that he didn't meet Benito tonight, or ever.

"Is that your little boyfriend?" He asked Niña, tauntingly. She ignored, finding a small stack of loose cash on the front room table and counting it.

"Here, $90." She handed him the money with a blank face. "This should get you through the next few nights."

Benito's entire face changed. The minute the money touched his hand, he snatched it and threw it on the ground. "You serious?" It was clear that he felt disrespected. "This won't even get me through a night in a decent hotel around here. Are you that out of touch?"

"Beggars can't be choosers, nigga, I'm sure you'll find something." She shrugged and began to walk away.

"I'm not a beggar, Niña." He was starting to get impatient. The words hurt. "I am the brother you betra-"

Niña turned around and cut him off before he could even get out the word. "I'm fucking tired of you trying to guilt trip me!" She rushed back over to him, getting in his face. "You know you would've done the same damn thing."

Benito stepped even closer, getting in her face as well. "And what do you know about me? Hm, grilla?" Grilla was a word Niña hadn't heard in a long time but it hit her hard. Her own brother was more or less calling her a cheap prostitute. She squinted her eyes, ready to hurt him with her next line.

"I know you just sat there and watched while Matéo died."

Without another word Benito grabbed Niña by the neck and pushed her all the way back, her head pressed against the window. She let out the smallest gasp and grabbed onto the windowsill as his grip tightened. She wasn't physically retaliating out of respect and guilt but that didn't stop her from getting the last word in.

"Matéo hated y-" Benito banged her head against the window before she could even finish the sentence, really choking her this time. She stood in his hold, waiting for it to be over.

"You know NOTHING about me and Matéo. You couldn't even begin to understand the complexities of brotherhood when you stabbed your own family in the back for a life that you were gonna abandon anyway. You made all this money shaking your ass for the world while I was rotting away in prison and you think you can look down on me?" His voice was quiet but it was firm enough to hear the hate in it. Matéo was Benito's twin brother who was killed while Benito was held down and forced to watch. A death that has haunted the family for almost decades now. It was a touchy subject for all of them, but even touchier for Benito who lost his brother and then lost his freedom shortly after. They were emotions he never fully learned to cope with behind prison walls.