Tainted Reality (The Rememdium Series Book 2) by Ashley Fontainne Page B

sister grated on Roberto’s last nerve. He tried to act concerned and hide the fact he knew exactly what happened to Maria before he left for his bachelor party. Though he didn’t agree with Benito using the girl as a sacrificial mule, he feared the man enough to keep his opinions to himself.
    When the dead started walking around, Teresa’s terror went into high gear—and so did Roberto’s. Even though she didn’t know the intimate details of Benito’s involvement, Teresa had completely flipped out. She ran around the house like a crazy woman, actually going in circles several times. When the news reported what was happening and Teresa saw the disturbing images, her connection with sanity—which was already strained from the disappearance of Maria—severed. Between heavy bouts of crying, she grumbled about Maria and how she’d worked so hard planning the wedding for nothing.
    Stupid, stupid woman. Those trivial things no longer matter. Just take one look outside.
    Glancing over at Teresa’s sleeping frame less than twenty feet away, Roberto grimaced. He wished he could sleep. Then again, if he did manage to shut his eyes and rest, would the dreams be worse than reality?
    “No way. Nothing can be worse than this. I’m living in a nightmare— while wide awake.”
    Even though he’d mumbled them, Teresa stirred at the words. Roberto held his breath and didn’t move, praying she wouldn’t wake up. He, too, was stressed beyond belief, and if she woke and started whining again, Roberto feared what his reaction would be.
    Oh, I know what I’d do. Shut her up for good.
    Satisfied she was still out, Roberto paced back and forth in a wobbly circle. He wanted to punch something—or someone—to get rid of the seething fury burning inside his mind. The fifth of tequila he’d already downed hadn’t helped wash away the insanity of what was going on outside of his house. Nor did it help erase the images of the two bodies upstairs he’d killed.
    Again.
    He didn’t know how or why, but Benito and his stupid schemes were at fault for what was happening around the world. For the first time in years, Roberto wished the distance between Arizona and El Salvador wasn’t so far. If the distance was closer, he’d leave, find Benito, and then beat the fool to death.
    How could Benito have unleashed such a plague on the world? Didn’t he pay attention to what his scientists concocted? Hadn’t the formula undergone testing to ensure it worked before being distributed? The stuff was supposed to be addictive, not deadly.
    A disturbing thought hit him, right in the gut as though punched by an invisible hand.
    What if Benito did this on purpose?
    The thought made Roberto’s stomach sour and head spin. Benito was a damaged, vicious man. Roberto knew about the horrible things he’d endured for years from Mario. Everyone except Teresa and Maria knew the late Mario Alvarado was nothing more than a lowlife pedophile. Though he had no evidence to support his belief, Roberto also felt Benito had been the one to kill the old bastard and frame another. Roberto kept quiet, thinking Mario reaped what dirty seeds he’d sown, and Benito was justified in seeking revenge against the sick fucker.
    Roberto assumed after Benito took over the reins, he would eventually get past the years of abuse. Move on and enjoy the treasures he stole from the old geezer. In some ways, he did—like boning the man’s daughter. However, when Benito discovered Mario’s secret hidden in the safe, the San Salvadorian street trash turned into an obsessed man. A crazy fool driven by his own insecurities and insatiable desire to have his name whispered in awed, hushed tones by other drug dealers around the world.
    Unwilling to think about the disturbed man any longer, Roberto shifted mental gears. He thought back to when Carlos, Santos, and Gregory didn’t answer his calls or return to the bachelor party.
    Roberto realized there was a problem and naively assumed