The floor rose toward me. Dante caught me before my knees struck the tile. I fought him with every fragment of strength left in my body.The floor rose toward me. Dante caught me before my knees struck the tile. I fought him with every fragment of strength left in my body.

letting crueler men rule it.
Victor was one of the crueler men.
Yes.
But you kept him.
Too long.
You trusted him.
More than I trusted anyone.
Why?
Dante stared at his hands.
When I was fourteen, my father was shot outside a restaurant. Victor pulled me behind a car and covered me with his body. He took a bullet in his shoulder.
The memory did not excuse Victor.continue reading …