Chapter 18:

(Camilo POV)

I looked out amongst the rubble and saw as my other family members were making their way over. We looked as broken as our house was. Dolores and Papa came over and someone asked if they had any luck. It was clear they did not. I looked up and saw Dolores beginning to sort through the rubble. None of us had really sorted through it yet and now really wasn't the time, "Dolores?" She ignored me and I let out a breath, "Dolores we can do all of this later," I said grabbing onto her arm. She turned back and glared at me, "You don't have a gift anymore. It isn't more dangerous for me now."

I let out a breath knowing what this was about. I let go of her arm, "I'm not sorry for stopping you yesterday, but I'm sorry for how I said it." She wouldn't look at me, "What if something happened to you or Antonio?" I shook my head, "Nothing happen-," I started but she stopped me. "But what if something did?" She turned back to face me, "All I could do was watch. Do you know what it is like to have to watch everyone you love being hurt and not being able to do anything to help them?" What she said cut into me as I thought about Liv. What I would do to make sure that she was ok. Dolores whispered, "I could have lost you." I took a breath I already lost Liv if Dolores had helped, "Dolores, I could have lost you too." I felt the tears sting my eyes.


- 8 years ago -

(Camilo POV)

It was late at night and no one else was awake. I don't know what made having a cup of water a necessity in that moment but it was and I had to get something to drink now. I don't know what led all of this to happen but I did know one thing I could hear her crying. I heard crying coming from behind the door. I knew that I had to go help her. I took a breath and opened the door.

Isabella was crying into her pillow in the dead of night all alone. I made my way over to her bed and placed a hand on her shoulder she looked up at me and sniffled back, "Camilo." I gave her a gentle smile, "Hey we don't have to talk or anything I just didn't want to be alone." She wrapped my arms in a hug, "Well if you don't want to be alone." I nodded my head into her shoulder, "Yeah."


(Camilo POV)

Why did all the most important women in my life never care about what happens to them, "I know that you don't seem to care about that, but what would I have done if I lost you?" What was I going to do now that I lost Liv? She gave me a sad smile, "I am your older sister. I am supposed to keep you safe." I heard her sigh as she took a seat. "I'm your brother. I am supposed to keep you safe too," I said sitting down next to her. Why couldn't I keep her safe?


(Olivia POV)

I don't know where we were but I know that we hadn't left Encanto yet. The cart stopped and Papa made his way around to me. I felt him brush a piece of hair around my ear, "Sh. You need to stop worrying. I am going to get you out of here and somewhere safe." I whined trying to say something but the gag was still over my mouth. The gag was pulled down for a moment and then suddenly I felt a rush of water coming at me, mostly entering my mouth. As I tried to swallow the gag was back over my mouth, "That should be enough for now. We need to keep going. I don't know where the crack in the mountain is but I want to reach it before nightfall. Tomorrow we will no longer be in Encanto." He spoke to himself as the reigns snapped.


- 11 years ago -

(Olivia POV)

"Mama?" I asked as she brushed back my hair, "Yes sweetie." "Who is Martina?" I asked. She stopped what she was doing and turned my head to face me, "Where did you hear that name?" I looked down at my lap and she knew what I meant and sighed. "Martina was my older sister," she started readjusting me on her lap. "You see she was my parent's oldest child. After her there were my two brothers, you remember them right? Your Tío Hector and Tío Enrique?" I nodded my head. "Well a few years later my parents had me when Martina was already 7."

I smiled at her, "What was she like?" "Very quiet" Mama started, "she kept to herself a lot. She was also very beautiful. She was a big mystery to almost everyone in town including me. When she was 17 there was a terrible accident and Martina didn't survive. I was 10 at the time and never really had the chance to know her." I looked up at her, "Do you miss her?" She smiled down at me, "Sometimes."


(Olivia POV)

I tried to speak but all that came out was mumbles. I cried out and whined and tried to get free. I was laid out in the back of the cart not even sitting up right. I kept moving trying to get the belts off. I was focusing mostly on my hands and feet. I felt myself rolling along the back of the cart until I hit the back wall. When I hit the back wall the buckle of the belt around my hands broke and suddenly I had a glimmer of freedom if I worked fast enough.


(Camilo POV)

As I spoke with Dolores I wished I had a gift like hers. She kept talking about her gift like it was the worst one we ever had. I laughed a little. "I sometimes wished I had a gift like yours?" I whispered. If I did I could at least help Olivia. I would know where she is and I could help her and I could find out what was going on with her Papa. I could just do so much more to help. I could do so much more, "What?" She asked. "I don't get to know who I am. Everyone is always asking me to be someone else to help them with babysitting or to entertain them none of them wanted me to be around as me," everyone but Liv. She never cared about that, "You know I had to start taking a picture of myself every morning to remember what I actually look like."

The more I talked with Dolores the more I realized how much we wanted each other's gift but we both knew who had the best one out of all of us, "Antonio." I hated not doing anything I wanted to go back out and find Mirabel. I wanted to go back out a search for Liv. I wanted to do something to help. We talked with Antonio and quickly realized Abuela was missing now too.

Honestly I just wanted to get up and run back into the forest to find Liv but no one was going to willingly watch me leave.


- 2 months ago -

(Camilo POV)

I sat with Olivia when I noticed her wince a little at my touch, "I'm sorry Liv did I hurt you?" She smiled shaking her head, "NO. It's fine." Her sleeve rolled up slightly and I saw a bruise on her wrist, "Are you ok? Did you hurt yourself before you came here?" She just smiled at me, "I am just a bit of a klutz." I tried to joke, "I get that my uncle is a bit of a klutz too." She smiled at me, "Yeah, but I'm fine. I'm always fine." I tried not to think any more of it and she clearly didn't want to talk more about it, but something about it felt wrong. I just wished I knew what.


(Olivia POV)

I was able to wriggle my hands out thanks to the broken buckle and then I squeezed my arm past the one that kept my arms stuck to my waist. I had to figure something out. I was feeling all the areas around me trying to see if there was anything I could do to make my way out.I was looking for the buckles a loss board in the cart really anything. That was when I heard a crack as I rolled into a back board of the cart. I tapped my hand along the wood until I found the spot that the board was looser.

I pushed my hand against the board harder and harder. Our cart was old and never had been repaired. My heart was pounding as I was trying to get a way out. I heard the board crack as we went over a pothole. I felt along the hole trying to gage how big it was. I didn't have an actual plan about what to do next but, I knew that the longer I waited to do something the greater the chance that I would be dragged away from here and would be less likely to find my way back.


(Camilo POV)

I hated just sitting here and waiting I just wanted to know what we were doing next but, no one seemed to know. Every minute that passed Olivia was getting farther and farther away and all I wanted to do was sneak away and see her. Suddenly the church bells were ringing and Antonio asked what was on all of our minds, "Wait does that mean that she is back?" He hoped off and we went after him, "Antonio." Suddenly Mirabel and Abuela came riding in on a horse.

Tío was talking to Mirabel, granted he had gotten stung by thousands of bees while searching for her. I caught him say, "I will be ok." I couldn't help but scoff, "Not if we don't have a house." Papa elbowed me in my stomach, "What? We don't have a house. I can't say that. What is that? Not a house." I just wanted to do something rather than sitting here. Plus if we were working on the house I might be able to sneak away or something.

Mirabel was talking to us about how we were going to rebuild and Tío Bruno reappeared which should have been a much grander thing but I was just so mentally exhausted, "Ok, so we're gonna talk about Bruno?" Antonio pointed at him with a smirk, "That's Bruno." He began apologizing and talking to Mama and Tía when Dolores elbowed me in the stomach, "You know I knew he never left, I heard him everyday." Why was I the one being elbowed. Suddenly everyone from town was coming over and I pulled back Dolores, "What was that for?" She shrugged, "You always talked about him like he was a monster and I couldn't say anything. Now I can." I sighed, Yeah, because we weren't allowed to talk about him. And whenever people did they talked about him like he was a monster. I barely remembered him and the more I heard about him the scarier the image of him became."

We went over to help but as it got darker I knew that I might actually be able to slip away. I was waiting out front with Isabella and Luisa as Dolores made her way over. Mirabel was going to be a while because she was helping with the plans. Antonio was going with our parents. "Let's head to the church. Not like we can do anything now, they are just planning tomorrow,' I suggested and we all went to the church and claimed our cots. I had a plan. I would wait until everyone fell asleep and then I would go out and search again.

I laid in my cot with my eyes closed as I waited for everyone else to fall asleep. At that point everyone heard that Dolores had feelings for Mariano before she was rolling in bed to go to sleep. An hour or two later I rolled myself out of bed and made my way to the back of the church. I was aware of all the entrances and exits to the church. I made my way past Padre Sanchez and he leaned up, "Camilo?" I turned back to face him. "Olivia?" I nodded my head, "Yeah." He nodded his head again, "Be back before daylight." I nodded my head and left the church going into the woods.


(Olivia POV)

- a few hours before -

My hands were free. My arms were free. I had a hole big enough that I could squeeze through. Papa was keeping a consistent speed and showing no signs of slowing down. This was my chance to get out. I hoped the buckle around my legs or ankles would break on impact but I had no way of knowing for sure. I also knew the moment I left the cart I was going to be stranded and had no way of finding my way back. I had no way of letting anyone know where I was.

I shook it off. I would figure something out. Maybe the cart left tracks or something I would be able to follow? I let out a long breath as I put my hands on the edges of the hole. This was insanity, but after everything that just happened with Papa I no longer felt safe. I began to pull my body through hoping the path wasn't too rocky. I rocked myself back and forth to get momentum 1... 2... 3


- 10 years ago -

(Olivia POV)

- a few days before Mama died -

I heard Mama sobbing from behind the door, "God, please I can't do this anymore. It is bad enough that Olivia has to..." she let out an agonizing breath, "I can't do it again. I won't do it again. I can't let another person enter his life. Please forgive me for what I am going to do and please protect Olivia. I just can't anymore." I walked away knowing she would be mad if I was there. I wonder what she meant and why she couldn't do it anymore? I hope God helps her. Mami is the best and I love her a lot. I want her to be happy.