Hi everyone!

Here is the latest chapter. Honestly speaking, I have had this chapter written for about two months but I didn't publish it because I always like to have at least a couple of chapters done before posting a new one. Chapter 26 has been a challenged for me. I have deleted it and written it a couple of times and I am happy to say it is nearly done :). As soon as I start Chapter 27, I will post Chapter 25.

Boots of Spanish Leather has become bigger than what I originally thought. So many threads that have to be woven in together in order to make it a cohesive piece of writing.

Usually in the summer, my muse runs wild. I have so many ideas in my head and I think I am going to start writing a second part to I Won't Give Up. Some one shots of my favorite OTP. Let's see were life takes me. So, here is Chapter 24.

This chapter is setting the stage for the big climax of the story. Just a little hint... Some of the characters I have introduced in the previous chapters are going to come back... ;)

Please R&R and thank you all for your patience. I am still writing away :)

Chapter 24

[Part 1]

Friday, August 8th, 1997, 10:09 am

"No, no! A little bit more to the left!" shouted Matt.

Tara rolled her eyes and made her way to Matt's room where Luis Mario was struggling with a massive portrait of Andy Warhol making out with Mao Zedong.

"How about we take a break guys and go get some breakfast," said Tara

"Yeah, let's," muttered Luis Mario as he wiped the sweat from his brow, an annoyed look on his face.

Matt pouted and flopped onto his deep purple spread and batted his eyelashes.

Tara rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. "What do you want?" she asked.

Matt smiled and grabbed his wallet from his nightstand. "A BLT with extra mayo, please! And home fries…" He handed Tara a twenty and wink at Luis Mario, who just shook his head and walked out of the room.

Tara grabbed the bill and pocketed it. "You are something else."

Matt stood. "And don't you forget it." He gave her a small peck on the lips, something that has become a habit for both. "Now, go get my food." He said and gave her a smack on the bottom.

Tara laughed and walked out of the room, dodging all the boxes that cluttered the loft.

Luis Mario stood waiting by the door and he smiled as he watched her walk towards him.

"Ready?" he held out his arm.

"Ready," she smiled as their arms intertwined together.

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Friday, August 8th, 1997, 2:31pm

"It's hot in here!" whined Matt.

"If you stopped wiggling so much, you won't be as hot," answered Tara as she lay down on the table.

"She's right," agreed Luis Mario as he stood by the sink, with his arms crossed. "Just hold still and the doc will surely be here soon." He glanced at the clock on the wall. "Plus, we have only been waiting here for 45 minutes. Not long enough."

"Geez, the sarcasm," said Tara as she put one of her hands behind her head, making herself more comfortable.

"Is getting you nowhere," answer an elderly woman, with a no nonsense aura to her.

All three people in the room straighten up and watched as the woman opened up a folder.

"Tara Knowles, age 19, first pregnancy," read the woman nonchalantly.

"Yes, ma'am," responded Tara.

"It's Dr. Coco."

Tara blushed. "Sorry," she whispered.

Dr. Coco looked up and gave Tara a tiny smiled. "Nothing to be sorry about, Tara. I know I come out to be brash. I am but don't take it personally; it's just my personality. Now, who are these guys?"

"We are her roommates," answered Matt excitedly. "You are Italian aren't you?"

"She has a mouth, let her answer," replied Dr. Coco. "And yes, I am."

Tara giggled and she saw Luis Mario struggling to hide his smile.

"Now, Tara, I see that you are about 20 weeks pregnant and this would be your first fetal ultrasound."

"Yes, Dr. Coco."

"And you have been taking your prenatal vitamins? Which clinic or hospital are you going to?"

"Yes. The one in Bushwick—Wyckoff Heights."

Dr. Coco took a pen from her lab coat. "Now these questions are going to be personal. These men could step out if you want."

Tara looked briefly at Luis Mario and Matt.

"You better not kick me out," whispered Matt.

Dr. Coco gave Matt a look.

Tara laughed. "It's fine, they could stay."

"Fine by me. As there been any spotting or bleeding during this pregnancy? Age of first sexual encounter?"

"No and No. Sixteen."

"How many sexual partners?"

"One," Tara blushed a little.

"Baby Daddy," responded Matt.

"Matthew," muttered Luis Mario.

"Is the father involved?"

"No," muttered Tara, looking down at her hands.

"We are the unofficial Baby Daddies," said Matt proudly.

"Matthew, if you don't shut that trap, I will kick you out of the room," Dr. Coco looked up from the medical chart in front of her.

"Sorry, ma'am," whispered Matt.

"Dr. Coco," the doctor glared at Matt. "Now, Tara my estimate is that this baby was conceived in early April making the due date between Christmas and New Year's Eve."

Tara felt her heart flutter.

"Now, unless there are any complications, your child will be delivered vaginally. Are there any medical conditions that I should be made aware of? In either your part or the father's? The more medical history I know about both families, the better."

"Ummm," Tara paused, feeling suddenly uncomfortable in the room. She cleared her throat. "I have been healthy all my life. My father is a drunk, my mom committed suicide when I was nine. She suffered from depression." She saw Dr. Coco's pen moving. "The baby's father has a genetic heart disorder that has been passed down from his mother. His brother, Thomas, passed away from it when he was six."

"Ok, that's something we have to monitor. How is the father's health? And how about the paternal grandmother and grandfather's health?"

"Jackson has a robust health. Has never suffered any form of complications due to his heart disease. Gemma, on the other hand, has had heart surgery before. She has a huge scar that runs in the middle of her chest. My baby's paternal grandfather also had robust health. He passed from a motorcycle accident and I don't know anything about his medical history."

Dr. Coco scribbled for a couple of moments and clicked off her pen and pocketed it. She closed the folder and walked over to the sonogram machine and started playing around with some buttons. Tara felt her heart flutter.

"Will I able to know the sex?"

"Gender would be the correct term due to America's current political atmosphere," responded Dr. Coco as she motioned for Tara to lift her shirt. "Is it possible to see the gender? It's a little bit early but you might get lucky. Don't get too excited cause it might not happen. This will be cold." Dr. Coco squeezed a blue gel into Tara's small belly. Taking the wand, Dr. Coco spread the gel around her lower belly.

Matt jumped from his seat and clapped excitedly as he rushed to Tara's side. She held out her hand and he grabbed it, squeezing it tightly. She locked eyes with him and gave him a genuine smile. Tara turned and looked at Luis Mario and he nodded his head in encouragement. Taking deep breaths, she looked at the screen and saw that Dr. Coco was still trying to get the best view of her baby.

After a few more moments, she clearly saw the head and little belly. Tara felt her eyes water when the most amazing sound came from the machine.

"Is that…" she whispered.

"Heartbeat," mumbled Dr. Coco.

Tara felt a few tears slip by.

"Omg, that's my little munchkin in there!" whispered Matt. She looked over and saw the tears dwelling in his eyes. She squeezed his hand and she smiled when he squeezed back.

"You know you are the godfather, right?" she laughed.

"Like duh, Mopey!" he responded, smiling even brighter with the news.

Dr. Coco moved the wand a bit more. "Sorry to burst the little bubble here but the heart rate is a little bit too slow. Now, this could be completely normal in a fetus this small," Dr. Coco looked over at Tara and saw her panicked face. "But given the paternal heart condition that exists, this is something I would like for a cardiologist to monitor for the rest of your pregnancy, just to make sure it does not turn into a complication for you or the baby prior to and after birth."

"Does that mean Tara should be careful throughout her pregnancy," asked Luis Mario.

"It means that certain precautions, such as no stress or anything that could distress the baby, should be taken. But like I said, it's nothing to be concern about yet. At this point, we are just taking a precaution. Now, as for the gender of the baby, let's see if we could see something," Dr. Coco gave Tara a wink, which eased her a bit.

Dr. Coco moved the wand a bit. Tara, Matt and Luis Mario looked on. "Seems like this baby is very modest," chuckled the doctor. "Legs are crossed."

Tara tried to smile but failed miserably.

Dr. Coco turned off the machine and reached around the machine for some paper towels. Matt reached over and grabbed them from the doctor and started wiping Tara's stomach.

"Listen Tara," Dr. Coco touched her shoulder, "you look like a nice girl so I am going to give it to you straight. Right now, the baby's heart rhythm is a little bit slow. This is called fetal bradycardia. The cardiologist will be able to tell us more as to why this might be occurring but honestly, right now, I am not too concern. You need to come down for another check up every two weeks until birth. If there is any spotting or bleeding or you just don't feel right, have me paged right away and go to the nearest emergency room. I am going to give you my card. Now, I know some amazing cardiologists. I'm going to call them up and schedule an appointment for you for the upcoming week. Bring me those results the week after that. Ok?"

Tara nodded.

"Now, here is your baby's official photo," Dr. Coco reached towards the machine and ripped the squares.

When Tara had those pictures in her hand, she felt the smile spread across her face once more.

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Friday, August 8th, 1997, 4:01pm

"How about Prudence if it's a girl or Maxwell, if it's a boy?"

"Meh," responded Tara. "How about Lucy? Or Sadie?"

"I feel like we are listening to a Beatles CD," said Mr. Diaz.

Luis Mario chuckled as he rewrapped the pan with aluminum foil.

"Excuse me, Mr. Diaz, but Maxwell is an awesome name!" explained Matt as he opened the wine bottle.

"Yea, for a Beatle song," teased Luis Mario as he put the pork shoulder in the oven.

Tara rubbed her small belly. "When will the pernil be ready?"

"About another two hours," responded Luis Mario.

Tara groaned. 'But I am hungry now…" she whined.

"You are always hungry." Matt sat next to Tara with his glass of wine. "Mr. D, are you sure you don't want a glass?"

"No, thank you, Matt," smiled Mr. Diaz. "So, Tara what else did the doctor say?"

"Basically, that they want to monitor the baby's heart rate for the remaining of my pregnancy, to make sure there isn't anything wrong." Luis Mario walked over to where they were all sitting and handed Tara a bowl of grapes, which she took gratefully.

"Nothing will be wrong, mi Tara. Positive thinking goes a long way." Mr. Diaz paused. "Maybe you should contact Jackson. He should know what is going on, Tara."

"Why would she?" asked Luis Mario as he sat in one of the couches. "Tara has made the decision not to have him involved for a reason."

"Yes, but haven't you thought about the future ramifications if he doesn't find out and what that could potentially do for the child," pondered Matt as he took a sip of wine.

Tara sighed and popped a grape into her mouth. This is not the first time they all spoke about Jax not knowing about her pregnancy or her lack of interest in telling him. Yes, she worried about her child not having Jax as a father and eventually resenting her for it. But at least her child wouldn't grow up in the shadows of Samcro and their ever expanding criminal enterprise.

She tuned them out for a bit and enjoyed her grapes, while she thought about her baby. Yes, she was worried about her baby having a heart condition but she had good faith that everything would turn out ok. Even Dr. Coco told her not to worry too much about it.

She leaned towards Matt and put her head on his shoulder. Subconsciously, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer, enjoying his conversation with Luis Mario and Mr. Diaz. Tara noticed that they had moved on from her baby and were now talking about the difference between all-American families and Latin ones. Tara closed her eyes and rubbed her small belly.

She missed Jax; very much so. The few times she called her father, their brief conversations were mostly filled with silence and awkwardness. She couldn't muster to ask him about Jax, when their own father/daughter relationship was so damaged and strained. She thought about calling Hale a couple of times or even Donna, but she figured that Charming was now a part of her past and it wouldn't do her any good to keep in touch with people from there, especially since she was trying to move on.

Looking around, without moving an inch, she was glad she made the decisions she did. In her darkest moments, she found some light in the form of Luis Mario, Matt and Mr. Diaz.

She glanced at Luis Mario, as he sat back in one of his couches, a beer in hand and his dark hair pulled back in a messy bun. In the past weeks, he had truly been amazing. Not only did he let her crash at his apartment basically for free, he also bought the baby a small bassinet and even rearranged her bedroom so extra furniture could fit once the baby arrived. He accompanied her to her monthly appointments with her OB and was her rock when she had her first breakdown once it hit her that her relationship with Katie was basically over. He gladly helped Matt move in and often they bickered back and forth much to her amusement and sometimes annoyance. Luis Mario was one of those rare men, who loved passionately and protected those who were closed to him.

She snuggled closer to Matt, who in a few months had become the best friend she always desired. He was delighted to leave behind his closed minded family, who were still uncomfortable with him behind gay. He moved within two days of getting the offer from Luis Mario and since then, there was constant changes in the apartment, with Matt bring in much color to Luis Mario's basic color scheme. Every week, he brought home some extraordinary or weird art piece/ furniture. Matt also insisted in having family dinners, a tradition he brought from home. So, for the past few weeks, she, Luis Mario, Matt and sometimes Mr. Diaz, had "family dinner" on the roof of their building, with Sunday being their big feast day, were both Luis Mario and Matt spent hours cooking massive feasts that she massively enjoyed, especially since they were often Latin or Italian theme or sometimes fused together into a Latin-Italian infusion meal. Tara was amazed that her belly was as small as it was, given that she was constantly eating delicious meals, she never knew existed given her sheltered life in Charming. She also appreciated the effort they were making in making them feel like a small, close-knit family—the family she truly never had.

Then there was Mr. Diaz. She smiled as she looked at the old man, sitting across from her, one hand in his ever present cane. She can't recall how many times, they sat together in the roof, watching the sunset over the New York skyline, sometimes in silence, both enjoying the tranquility of the moment. Other times, the air was filled with laughter, as he told her countless stories of growing up in the countryside of the Dominican Republic. He has also become part of her small family, becoming the father-figure she always needed in her life.

Matt's fingers subconsciously started playing with her hair. Tara allowed for her eyes to flutter shut. The voices surrounding her slowly started fading, as she slipped into a deep slumber.

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Friday, August 8th, 1997 8:01pm

This was her favorite part of the day. The city still thrived as fire hydrants kept the kids squeals at the maximum. She loved to see the sun setting over the New York skyline, the beautiful hues of orange, yellows and reds, making the city seem more vibrant before the twinkling lights of the buildings took over, making New York a city of artificial starry lights.

She smiled as she watched kids run around, chasing each other, while dodging cars to the dismay of their parents, who sat in front of their respective buildings in foldout chairs, talking with one another, beer cans or long boys dangling from their hands.

"It's very nice, isn't it?"

Tara smiled as she felt Mr. Diaz stand next to her.

"As bad as a reputation as New York City has, I find this place magical," said Tara as she watched the sun get lower in the sky, a content smile on her face.

"Like everything in the world, this city has its good, bad, and ugly," Mr. Diaz paused. "Mi Tara, you and I have to talk about something."

Tara followed Mr. Diaz as he sat in one of the chairs the roof had for lounging. Both he and she took their time sitting, making themselves comfortable. Tara patiently waited as Mr. Diaz got his thoughts together. So long she waited that the sun had completely set and the Christmas lights that hung all over the roof were the only source of lighting for the pair.

"I know you have had a couple of rough months and things haven't turned out the way you expected them to. Life as dealt you a hard hand, mi Tara. You have been betrayed by many but there is a point in ones life that we have to let things go and move forward towards a path of peace and righteousness."

"Mr. Diaz, if this is about my child's father…"

"It's about your cousin," Mr. Diaz interrupted.

Tara felt her heart sink. "What about her?"

"She isn't doing so well. She lost a lot of weight. She is very pale, almost looks like a corpse. When I see her, she is always jumpy and looks around like…" Mr. Diaz runs a hand over his face. "I think Katie is on something. Or something is going on with her."

"Mr. Diaz…" Tara whispered. "What are you saying?"

Mr. Diaz looked into her eyes. "What I am saying is that, either Joey is beating on your cousin or…" he paused again.

"Or what?"

"Heroin."

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Friday, August 8th, 1997, 10:43pm

She had about 15 minutes left. She promised that 11pm she would head downstairs.

She sat on the steps and took a couple of deep breaths, rubbing her stomach as she did so. At about 20 weeks, the baby is moving a lot and pressing on her bladder.

She heard the clacking of high heels on the stairs and she pulled herself up, managing to stand right as her cousin was finishing walking on the final steps up to her apartment.

Tara tried hard not to gasp at what was standing in front of her. Her once vivacious cousin was rail thin, who had lost about 20 pounds since Tara last saw her. Dark circles and heavy eye shadow made her eyes look like a raccoon and her once luscious red hair was lying flat on top of her head. Mr. Diaz was right… Katie looked very bad.

"Katie," whispered Tara as tears threated to spill. "Oh my god, Katie."

Katie's eyes looked at Tara, no emotions conveying behind them. "Why are you here?"

"I came to check up on you. We haven't spoken in a while."

"Yea and let's leave it that way." Katie turned to open the door to her apartment.

"Katie, please." Tara moved closer. "Please talk to me."

Katie paused and kept her back turn to Tara. "There is nothing left to say, Tara," she whispered her voice cracking a bit. "You should go before…" Katie stopped talking and shook her head. "Just go, Tara, please. If you have any form of affection left for me, please leave and don't come back. It's better that way."

Tara placed one of her hands on her cousin's shoulder. "I love you, Katie. Whatever it is, please let me help you. I can help you. You could come and stay with me."

Katie slowly touched Tara's hand and squeezed it. Tara noted how her cousin was trembling. Tara hoped that Katie would turn around but she remained facing her door refusing to look into Tara's eyes, a move that Tara took as a massive sign that something was terribly wrong.

"You are pregnant," whispered Katie.

"Yea, I am," Tara moved closer until she could see the tears streaming down her cousin's face. "Katie, come with me. Let's just walk out of here."

"Shhh…" whispered Katie. "The walls have ears. Tara, please leave and don't come back. Don't think of me. Think of the baby."

"What do you mean?"

Katie shrugged Tara's hand off and shakily opened her door. "Just get the fuck out of here and don't come back," she screamed, her eyes pleading with Tara to leave. Giving Tara one nod, Katie slammed the door on Tara's face, much to her shock.

Tara stared at the closed door for a few moments, her mouth open in shock. Shaking her head, Tara turned around when she heard someone climbing the last few steps to Katie's floor.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," smiled Joey, who was accompanied by a man about his age. "Hector, look, this is an old friend of mine. Tara."

Hector looked at Tara with a gaze that turned her inside cold.

Looking back at Joey, Tara hardens her gaze. "Please move out of my way, I was on my way out."

"Why are you leaving so soon? The party is just about to start," replied Joey, his hand grazing the front of his trousers.

"Move," she said more forcefully. "Or I'll scream."

Both Joey and Hector started laughing.

"Where do you think you are, Tara? Some fancy high rise in Madison or Park? Women screaming is part of everyday life in Spanish Harlem or any area where the undesirables live." Joey took a step forward. "Now, I am usually not into fat pregnant chicks, but I could make an exception for you. Hector can have Katie while I take my turn with you."

Tara moved closer to Joey, until they were centimeters apart. "You think I am scared of you?" Tara jammed her finger into his chest. "I don't know what the hell you are doing to my cousin, but I will get to the bottom of this and I will make you pay, you son of a bitch. Now, move out of my fucking way."

Joey smirked and Hector cleared his throat.

"Is there a problem?"

Tara looked around Joey and saw Luis Mario walking up the steps, Matt following close behind him.

"No, I was just leaving." Tara noted how Hector moved quickly from the stairway looking at Luis Mario's massive body form and muscles. Joey still looked unimpressed, that stupid smirk on his face.

"You must be the filled-in-father," Joey said. "I should say congratulations but do keep in mind, that Miss Knowles has a bit of a past to her."

Tara took the couple of strides to stand next to Luis Mario, who had reached the landing. Luis Mario put his hand on Tara's lower back. "Matt, please go downstairs and hail a cab. We aren't staying long."

Tara looked at Matt, who nodded his head and made his way downstairs.

Luis Mario pulled Tara closer to him until his arm was wrapped around her ever-expanding waist. "You must be Joey. Now, I am not going to waste my time with scum like you but I'm going to say this once and you better listen. Tara is mine. That child is mine as well. You ever fucking threaten her again and I'll make sure you walk with a limp for the rest of your pathetic life. Leave her alone and I suggest you start forgetting about Katie too. I'm coming back for her soon, so pack your shit and go crawl back to the fucking hell you came from."

Luis Mario didn't even wait for Joey to respond before turning himself and Tara away from them and walking down the stairs together.

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Friday, August 8th, 1997, close to midnight

"What do you think it is?" Matt asked before shoving the rest of his hot dog into his mouth.

Tara shrugged as she played with her straw. "Mr. Diaz thinks she might be on drugs. I have a feeling it's much more."

"Like what?" gently probed Luis Mario.

"I don't know, Luis Mario. Clearly, Joey is holding something over her. She is scared. Terrified."

"We should go to the police," said Matt as he stole Tara's papaya juice and helped himself to a big gulp.

"With what proof?" countered Luis Mario.

"That guy is a major creep. And I have a feeling that he is not one of those to stop until he gets what he wants. Tara, you aren't going back to Katie's unless you are with one of us," said Matt. "He obviously wants you and wants you bad."

Tara sighed. "I just don't know what to do."

Luis Mario grabbed her hand. "We are here for you. And we support whatever you have in mind," he paused. "Whatever you decide, we support you 100%"

Tara gave him a small smile. "Thanks," she whispered looking into his eyes. Her heart start fluttering a bit and she remembered how Luis Mario claimed her as his in front of Joey. Part of her was wondering if he only did it to instill fear in Joey. The other part was wondering if he truly saw himself that way although she has made it very clear that he is just a friend—one of her best friends.

Tara squeezed Luis Mario's hand before letting it go and letting it drop to the side of her untouched food. Luis Mario looked away and stared into the distance.

"Are you going to finish that?" asked Matt as he tried to simultaneously talk and swallow. This resulted in him spitting a few bits of food in front of him.

"You are so disgusting sometimes," said Tara as she pushed her hot dogs in front of him. Matt swallowed and flipped her off as he took a massive bite from her unfinished food.

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Wednesday, August 13th, 1997, mid-afternoon

"My feet still ache," whined Tara as Matt walked over with a bowl of popcorn.

"That's cause we spent most of the day serving the rich pricks of NYU," he whined right back as he flopped right next to her.

Tara pressed the play button of the VCR and the opening scene of Matt's favorite movie came on.

"I can't believe you have never watched this."

Tara took some kernels of popcorn. "Didn't really have time to watch movies in Charming," she replied.

"That's no excuse. There are always reruns on TV," sassed Matt as he loudly chewed on popcorn. "This is a Bette Midler classic."

"And so is Hocus Pocus and you never saw that one," sassed Tara right back as Bette Midler drove in the rain, a look of shear panic on her face.

Matt threw a few kernels at Tara.

Tara immediately became engrossed in the movie and couldn't help but to note the similarities between the characters and herself. Tara immediately fell in love with Cee Cee and her courage to pursue her dreams. But it was Hillary that made Tara tear up, especially her move to New York City and her eventual pregnancy with a man she thought was Mr. Right but ended up being a disappointment.

When Wind beneath My Wings came on during the end, both Tara and Matt were bawling their eyes out.

After the credits stopped rolling, Matt wiped his tears and stood to rewind the tape.

"I absolutely loved that movie," said Tara as she wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

Matt was about to reply when there was a loud knock on the door. Sighing, Matt strolled over to open the door.

"Holy crap!" explained Matt as Katie pushed past him tears streaming down her face.

Tara stood as her mouth fell open at her cousin's appearance.

"I can't do it anymore," cried Katie as she embraced Tara tightly. "I can't do it anymore," she sobbed.

Matt closed the door and walked over to the kitchen as Tara tried to get Katie to sit but failed miserably as her cousin just clung to her crying uncontrollably.

Matt walked over to them and gently coaxed Katie to sit down.

"Here, love, you need to put this on your face, so the swelling could go down," he gently placed a wrap bag of peas on Katie's cheek while he turn her face side to side to see the extent of her bruises. Tara sat down on her cousin's other side and was about to start rubbing her hands down her cousin's arm.

"Omg Katie," whispered Tara as she looked at Katie's arm. "Are those…?" her voice trailed off as her voice broke towards the end.

Katie hung her head and started crying harder than humanly possible.

Besides the bruises, Tara noticed the massive angry marks that were all over her cousin's arms and hands. Some looked like miniature volcanoes, red and angry, looking ready to erupt.

"Shit," muttered Matt as he took a closer look at Katie's arms and hands.

Tara just pulled Katie closer and started crying with her.

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Wednesday, August 13th, 1997, early evening

"You shouldn't have told Luis Mario," Tara whispered furiously at Matt as she closed the door to her room where Katie slept.

"Luis Mario isn't dumb. What do you think he would have said if he would have come home to see Katie covered in bruises and t…"

"Don't say it Matthew," Tara walked towards the living room and started pacing and rubbing her arms.

"Don't say what, Tara? That Katie is a heroin user?" Matt grabbed Tara and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Your cousin has a lot of fucking track marks on her arms, hands and legs. She is thinner than a rail. Her eyes are covered in dark circles. Fuck Tara, she is a junkie. I know you might not want to admit it, but it is clear as day, that your cousin has a drug problem. And God knows what else she is into."

Matt took a deep breath. "At the end of the day, this isn't our home. This space belongs to Luis Mario and he generously opened his home to us. Imagine him walking in and discovering Katie's truth. And imagine his reaction knowing that we knew and didn't say anything." Matt shook his head. "We owe him at least the truth. Katie needs to go to a treatment center ASAP. Heroin users are no joke, Tara."

Matt wiped Tara's tears with his thumbs. "Oh Matt," cried Tara as he pulled her into a hug. "What did that monster do to her?"

She felt him sigh. "We need to get her help ASAP, Tara. I have lived in New York City all my life and I have seen what happens to people once they are hooked on heroin. If she is using heroin, it is more likely than not, that she using something else too. We need to get it under control before it becomes out of control. Heroin users tend to turn against their loved ones and start stealing to maintain their habit. I say, we wait until Luis Mario comes home and we take her to a hospital where she could begin detox and eventually, we move her to a place. Like rehab or something." Matt spoke softly.

Tara nodded as she held tightly to Matt. "How are we supposed to pay for this?"

"There are a bunch of rehabs all over that take people for free. The government and private donations pay for it."

"Ok," whispered Tara.

Matt pulled away from her. "We will make this work, Mopey. Let's wait for Luis Mario. Three minds work best when they work together."

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Wednesday, August 13th, 1997, 10:58pm

Tara must have fell asleep after Matt's quick dinner because she sat up suddenly as she could with a belly.

She was disoriented for a minute and then she remembered where she was.

Across from her sat Luis Mario, the moonlight illuminating his haunted features. He sat quietly, his eyes following her every move.

"Luis Mario," she whispered, searching for the lamp of his bedroom.

Given that Katie was still sleeping in her room and Matt refused to sleep with anyone he wasn't sleeping with, Tara had two options as to where to crash for the night—either the living room couch or Luis Mario's bed. She chose the latter.

"You look so beautiful sleeping," he said as he crossed the room to sit next to her.

"Where were you all night?" she asked as she shivered, the air conditioner blowing its cold air.

Luis Mario turned his head and refused to look into her eyes.

It was then that she noted his bruised hands and the shiner in his cheek.

She took one of them and saw the angry marks. "What happened?" she asked softly.

"I found him and I warned him to stay away from Katie," he answered. "He didn't listen."

"Luis Mario…"

"Shhh," he whispered as he placed his finger on her lips. "Please, Tara…" he pleaded with her.

Later on in her life, she tried to understand what exactly happened that night. Maybe it was all the chaos of the day and the weeks that followed. Maybe it was the pregnancy hormones or the summer heat. Maybe it was just that both were so damn vulnerable.

But on that night, Tara did something she rarely did in her life—she let go and felt herself fall down a precipice and she welcomed it.