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It had been a tough decision to go back to Santo Padre after all these years. Since Alesia left Oakland, she had been all over the country. She had no fixed abode and the older Eslin got, the harder it was to move around.
The fear that Marcus wanted to harm her, had faded over the years—to such an extent that she'd wanted to return to her birthplace to visit the graves of her parents.
A cemetery was no place for a 5-year-old, but it felt like this was the closest she could get to her grandparents. Alesia had been nervous walking towards this place, afraid of memories, afraid of badly processed grief, but she found peace here while her life had become so chaotic.
The crunching of gravel announced someone's arrival. When the footsteps stilled, she turned her head to the side. Her heart seemed to paralyze for a moment at the sight of the kutte. Despite all the pain that motor club caused her, it was a storm of hope that surged through her body right now.
Esai had worn a kutte like that.
Perhaps it had only been a dream, or maybe she'd lost sight of reality, being caught up by grief.
Her glance moved upwards.
Somewhere in the back of her head, there was a voice whispering that this man's posture was taller than her fiance's. Her shoulders slumped; the disappointment immense.
She felt ashamed, for the person who did stand in front of her, had been her best friend for years. But for a moment, a split second, she'd believed that Esai was still with her. That the second time that her life had been destroyed, had nothing but an illusion.
Gilly dropped his glance as if he could feel her disappointment.
On his feet was a bouquet of white roses. She bit her lip. Had he lost someone?
Alesia wrapped an arm around her daughter and pulled her a little closer. She didn't know how to feel. Was she allowed to feel happy? Gilly was willfully a member of the club who had sentenced Esai to death.
Or did he not know?
She felt the urge to run to him, to wrap her arms around him. It had been so long since she had hugged someone besides her daughter. She'd felt terribly lonely, the past years. She hated this distance between them, this proof of a friendship long gone; of a loss that might be less definitive than death, but which hurt nonetheless.
"Gilly," she managed to murmur, her voice sounding like tears were choking her.
"Alesia."
His voice sounded as emotional as hers. He looked up. Briefly, their eyes met. Hesitating, he took a few steps forward, as if he wasn't sure whether he could come closer, and waited for her to tell him to leave. As if he could no longer bear her gaze, he knelt to pick up the flowers.
"I came to lay these on the graves."
To her surprise, he nodded to the graves next to her. "For my parents?" she asked, confused.
"Yeah." The look in his eyes was almost shy. "I do that, sometimes. So they're not forgotten. Because—because you and Neron never visit Santo Padre. At least that's what I thought."
It was such a sweet gesture it caused a chill down her spine. Someone with a heart as big as Gilly could impossibly know what Marcus had done to his son, right? Had it been no club decision? Or did the other charters not know what happened? Did they only know that Esai had died, but not how?
Every breath blew another wave of absence through her body. She was shaking. She'd missed him so much. Before she knew it, her bottom lip was quivering too. Through a haze of tears, she saw the man swallow, fighting his emotions. Then, he walked towards her and pulled her in a bear hug. Alesia squeezed her eyes shut.
Her friend was still like a giant teddy bear; the recent years hadn't changed that. His hugs weren't comparable to anyone else's. She buried her face against his chest. Hot tears rolled down her cheeks while Gilly almost squeezed the life out of her.
A sad smile crossed her lips as she let go of him. She looked to the side, to her daughter, who watched the man curiously.
"This is uncle Gilly," she said to the girl. "A good friend of Mommy."
At least, that's what he used to be.
"Oh." She smiled from ear to ear. "Did you know my Daddy too?"
A little confused, Gilly looked at her daughter. Slowly, he nodded. "I didn't know him very well, we lived miles apart." He caught her glance. "I didn't know that..."
"Nobody does," Alesia muttered. Even Marcus and Diana didn't know. "This is Eslin."
"What a beautiful name."
The girl nodded proudly.
Gilly gave her a small smile. Then, his glance moved to her wrist. Only when she looked down too, she realized he was looking at her infinity bracelet.
"You still wear it."
Alesia nodded slowly. Taking it off had never crossed her mind. Warmth seeped into her heart as she saw the leather cords around his wrist as well.
"You too." Her voice sounded hoarse.
Gilly took some time to leave the flowers on the graves and looked back at her. "Do you want to go to a somewhat... more suitable place to catch up?"
"Yeah, okay," she said, hesitantly. "As long as you don't take me to the clubhouse."
"I won't. I live not far from here."
She nodded. Taking her daughter's hand, she cast one last look at the tombstones.
I will come back soon, she promised. And I will tell Eslin everything I know about you.
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Pariah ✔
Action[Completed. Words: 17.683] When Esai fucks up, his father fakes his death and sends him over the border to Mexico, not wishing to see him again. The only persons knowing that he's still alive, are his father, his so-called killer and his girlfriend'...
