Echoes of the Past

Chapter 22

As soon as Carlos left, Ava and I were left alone in the small, dimly lit room. Erica was finally asleep in Ava's arms, her little chest rising and falling peacefully, unaware of the chaos around us. Ava looked at me, worry clouding her eyes.

"Do you think we can trust him?" she asked softly, glancing at the door where Carlos had disappeared.

I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling the weight of every decision bearing down on me. "I don't know, Ava. But I'm trusting no one until I'm sure. What if he went to tell those men who kidnapped us? For all we know, he could be working with them."

Ava frowned, biting her lip. "And if he isn't? Cole, where can we go? We're stuck on this island, and we don't even know where to head next. We have no money, no plan... we're just... lost."

"We won't be lost for long," I said firmly, trying to reassure her, though I wasn't sure myself. "I think we should leave here as soon as we can. It's too dangerous."

"To go where?" Ava said, her voice tinged with frustration. "We don't even know where we are. How are we going to get off these islands and find a way back home? How did we even end up in the Bahamas?"

I clenched my fists, remembering the way those men had grabbed us, drugged us, and tossed us into that nightmare. "They drugged us, Ava. We must've slept for hours, maybe even days. Whoever did this wanted us far away from home—so far that no one would ever find us."

Ava shook her head, her expression softening as she glanced at Erica. "I think we should stay here and wait for Carlos to return. He seems sincere. And if he was with them, why would he be so upset about his brother getting involved?"

I sighed, staring at the shabby walls of the room. "I hope we're not making another mistake, Ava. We can't afford one."

Ava hesitated, then spoke with determination. "Cole, I need to find a phone. I have to call home and let my boys know I'm okay. They need to know I didn't just abandon them."

I nodded, understanding her pain. "We will, Ava. But not yet. We have no money, no way of paying anyone. Let's wait for Carlos. He might be our only shot."

Hours passed, each minute dragging as we sat in silence, lost in our thoughts. My mind kept racing, thinking of every possible way this could go wrong. But when the door finally creaked open, Carlos stepped in, followed by a familiar figure—Juan, the man of the supplies. He was disheveled, his eyes wary, but he wasn't hostile.

Carlos sat down, eyeing us carefully. "I'm glad you told me the truth about what happened. Now, Juan, tell them what you told me."

 Juan, sat down with a sigh, avoiding our gaze. His hands were trembling slightly, and he looked every bit a man who'd been thrust into something far beyond his control. "I... I didn't have anything to do with your abduction," Juan began quietly. "All I was supposed to do was bring you supplies once a month."

I narrowed my eyes, my suspicion still there. "Who asked you to bring us the supplies? Who's behind all this?"

Juan hesitated, glancing at Carlos, who gave him a nod to continue. "I never met him. He never said his name. He'd just call and tell me what to buy, where to deliver. The last delivery was hard—I didn't know anything about babies, and I had to ask a friend for help. He paid me a lot of money, more than I'd ever seen."

Carlos cut in, his voice edged with frustration. "I told you not to accept it, Juan. No one pays that much for simple deliveries. You should have known."

Juan hung his head, shame etched across his face. "I didn't have a choice. I can't find work here, and I needed the money. A man would come to pay me in cash. He was foreign, always with two other men. They'd give me my wages and enough to buy whatever was needed."