They Left Me to Die, So I Became Undefeated in the Cage novel · Chapter 10 of 24

Chapter 10: The Blank Copy

Tomas came back at six in the morning, with his sweater inside out and the drive in his hand.

He stood in the Cellar doorway and did not come in.

"It's dead," he said.

My stomach turned over.

"What do you mean, dead?"

"The IT guys ran it four times." His voice cracked. "The platters are scratched. The files were wiped, or they never wrote. It's blank, Dalia. Everything on it is blank."

He held the drive out with both hands.

I took it.

It was cold.

I turned it over and looked at the label.

There was no new scratch.

"They said five years in a damp room does it every time," Tomas said.

He was crying.

Real tears ran down his face, and he did not wipe them.

"I'm so sorry," he said. "I wanted it to work. I wanted you to have it. I would have given anything."

Beto stood behind me with his arms crossed and his jaw working.

I looked at my brother, and a terrible thing happened.

I believed him.

It was easier than the other thing.

"It's not your fault," I said.

He sagged against the doorframe.

"Mama has the vote at noon," he said. "I tried to talk to her. She won't listen. I'll try again, I'll beg her. I swear."

"Go," I said. "Beto and I will figure it out."

He nodded and wiped his face with his sleeve.

At the door he turned.

"Pastelito," he said. "I love you. I need you to know that."

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