Cemetery Boys(45)

Yadriel’s dad gave Diego’s shoulders an encouraging squeeze and said something into his ear. Diego stepped forward. In one hand, he held the rosary, and in the other, his long, curved blade. The gold calavera charm swung from the hilt, but his hand was steady.

“Muéstrame el enlace,” Diego said, his voice strong and firm. Yadriel remembered how shaky and unsure the words had been coming from his own mouth during his failed attempt to release Julian.

The golden thread sparked to life, running from the rosary to the center of Beatriz’s chest.

She smiled, several decades’ worth of dimples showing in her cheeks.

“?Te libero a la otra vida!”

Diego cut his dagger through the air.

As it sliced through the thread, Beatriz closed her eyes. There was a flash of golden light. Beatriz disappeared in an explosion of glittering marigold petals.

“Whoa,” Julian breathed, dark eyes transfixed and lips parted as the glowing flowers cascaded to the ground.

The light faded until they were just orange petals dusting Beatriz’s grave.

Sandra sighed. Enrique smiled at Diego, and Diego beamed back.

“Well done, mijo,” Enrique said, tugging Diego into a tight embrace.

Yadriel’s throat closed up and his eyes stung. “Come on,” he said, standing up and turning toward the gate.

Julian gave him a confused look from where he remained crouched behind the sarcophagus.

“Let’s get out of here—”

“Yadriel?”

He jerked to a stop and spun around. His father stared at him, brow furrowed. Diego was handing Beatriz’s rosary back to Sandra, falling deep into conversation.

“Uh—” His eyes flickered to Julian, who ducked lower, trying to stay out of sight. “Dad. Hey.”

Enrique approached, and Yadriel panicked, not knowing what to do.

Julian mouthed something, and Yadriel didn’t need to read lips to recognize the curse. It was like he was arguing with himself. Julian’s face screwed up in disgust, and Yadriel had no idea what he was doing, until he rolled forward and disappeared right into the sarcophagus.

Yadriel sucked in a breath, staring at the spot where Julian had vanished.

His dad came to a stop next to the sarcophagus. “Are you leaving?” he asked, eyeing Yadriel’s backpack.

“Uh, yeah,” Yadriel tried to gather his thoughts and focus. “Me and Maritza are just going to hang out for a little while.”

The frown deepened. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, it’s not safe—”

Yadriel tensed. “We’ll be fine. She’s bringing the boys. We have an assignment for school to work on,” he quickly added.

“Oh.” That seemed to placate him, but only a little. Yadriel noted he was wearing the same clothes as the previous night. His checkered shirt was rumpled and half untucked. Had he gotten any sleep since Miguel died?

“I should probably get going…” Yadriel waited for his dad to turn around and leave already. He shifted, but his dad didn’t move.

“I wanted to check on you…” Enrique trailed off awkwardly, scratching at his mussed hair. “And apologize.” His eyelids drooped with exhaustion. “Anoche—”

“It’s fine,” Yadriel cut in. He didn’t want to talk about this right now. Especially with Julian in earshot.

Or, well, he wasn’t sure what the acoustical setup of being inside a stone coffin was like.

“I didn’t mean to say…” His father squinted, looking for the right words.

Yadriel swallowed hard. It didn’t seem fair for his dad to look so conflicted, and for Yadriel to feel bad about it. He wanted to hang on to his anger. He deserved to be angry, didn’t he? But that still didn’t keep him from feeling guilty. Even if his dad said and did stupid, hurtful things, he was still his dad, and there was something particularly unsettling about seeing him upset.

But right now, he just needed to rush through this conversation so his dad would leave. “Look, Dad, seriously, it’s fine—”

“I’m still learning.” He exhaled a short laugh. “Your mamá was better at this. And without her here—” He paused, his brow suddenly furrowing as he looked past Yadriel. “Without her…,” he tried again but trailed off, eyes wandering to the sarcophagus.

Yadriel tensed. “Dad,” he said, trying to regain his attention.

Enrique started, his gaze going back to Yadriel.

“Can we not do this right now?” Yadriel edged around the stone slab so he was standing between his dad and where Julian was hidden. “I’m in a hurry.”

His dad frowned, deep creases tugging down his mouth below his mustache. “But—”

“Maritza’s waiting for me—”

“No quise lastimarte, Yadriel.” Enrique’s voice was quiet when he spoke, giving Yadriel pause.

His fingers tightened into fists. A sour mix of guilt, anger, and embarrassment tumbled in his stomach. Red-hot shame burned in his cheeks as he stared down at his shoes.

Yadriel bit back his knee-jerk reaction to say “It’s okay,” because it wasn’t. It didn’t change what his dad had said. If it had been a mistake, his slip of the tongue was more telling than his apologies.