The Blood of Three

Chapter 1

Cold rain pelted my hoodie as I ran to my car. My worn, black sneakers splashed in the muddy puddles that lined the sidewalk, trailing mud into the floor of my Mustang. After buckling my seatbelt and starting the car, I pulled out of the driveway and headed down the street. In just a few short minutes, I pulled into the café parking lot in the middle of town.

The small building was old, but had recently been renovated. The cement exterior had been painted a light shade of beige and a cream canopy now hovered over the single glass door. A neat, wooden plate hung in the café window with the words "Sorry, we're closed."

My aunt Meg stood under the small canopy, waiting for her ride home. She was wearing a blush pink polo paired with her uniform khaki jeans. Her dark brown hair was cut to her shoulders and loosely curled away from her face.

I pulled the car up and she quickly climbed into the passenger's seat. "Riley, if there's one thing that aggravates me, it is rain," she told me.

I smiled. "How was work?" I asked.

She shook her head. "It was eventful and frustrating. A man spilt three coffees, a little boy wet himself and a young woman tried to steal a lady's purse, all in the span of the first two hours of my shift."

Chuckling, I began driving out of the parking lot. "Do you want to get dinner, since we're already in town?" she asked. "I don't feel like cooking tonight. It's been a long day."

I nodded. "How about Mexican?"

"Sounds great," she agreed.

I drove a few more blocks before coming upon the restaurant. We climbed out of the car and jogged to the set of double doors. We entered the building with our clothes damp with rain. I led the way and walked up to the front counter.

"How many?" a man asked. His dark hair was cut short and his narrow eyes were a deep brown that shone in the light. He wore a gray T-shirt that had a Spanish phrase across the front, paired with loose-fitting jeans and white shoes.

"Two," I answered.

He nodded and grabbed two menus. "Please, follow me." We followed the kind man around a corner and into a room full of tables. He led us to a small booth beside a window and placed the menus in front of us. Meg and I sat down, facing each other. "My name is Juan," he spoke, gesturing to his name tag. "I'll be your waiter for today."

"Thank you."

He smiled back. "May I start you two off with some beverages?"

"May I please get a water?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yes, you may."

"I'll take a sweet tea," Meg added.

"I will be right back to take your order." With that, he left and headed toward the back of the restaurant.

For a moment, we sat there in silence and looked out the window. "Can you enroll me into a public school next semester?" I asked abruptly. I had asked her on multiple occasions over the past year; however, each time she came up with another reason I couldn't.

"No, I can protect you when you are schooling from the house."

I sighed and dropped my head into the palm of my hand. "Why not? There's nothing you need to pro—."