The Untouchables

12. Abandoned

A cop car comes at 70km/h and stops right in front of my vehicle. Another one stops behind, sirens turned on. My eyes widen, I can't breathe. No. He couldn't know I was coming. He can't foresee fucking everything!

Yet Carlos Quintero walks in front of my car, gun in hand. With the only arm I can use, I hit the steering will over and over, yelling out my wrath in a single breath.

Carlos lazily walks to my side. "Get out," he orders coldly.

I walk out of the car, holding my hurtful arm. I grit my teeth like a furious dog in front of his chin held up.

"You did it," he says. "You saved your ass thanks to a miracle and, instead of going home, you stole food from the tiger again. I have to kill you now. I couldn't wait for you to make another mistake, I knew it would happen."

A cop hits the back of my legs with a club and I groan while falling on my knees in front of Quintero.

"I've nothing to lose." I pull out my gun and shoot the drug lord... but the weapon is empty, no bullet gets into the fucker's brain.

"I took every single bullet from your home before burning it down with your memories. What else were you willing to sacrifice for power?" Quintero spits on me, like I'm the monster here. So I spit back at him. Call me a bitch and I'll become it.

He looks at the spit on his elegant jacket, then crouches in front of me and crushes my jaw between his fingers. "The walking dead will stop moving today. Thank your God that I stopped you from causing further shame to yourself," he growls.

"How can you go home to your family after killing me in cold blood?"

"There's not any trace of innocence left in you. I will go to my house, sit at the table and have dinner with my wonderful wife and my children without any regret about what I've done today. I've killed so many times that I'll barely remember your face. Nobody would come to your funeral, I'll toss your corpse somewhere in the woods if you don't mind."

I lower my head as sobs don't let me breathe and tears make this nightmare appear blurred.

"Look at me, Gabriela," Quintero says.

I knew that I wouldn't die from old age, but it never crossed my mind that I could die as a miserable, lonely traitor. I'm not a bad person, yet that description fits me perfectly and it's not the one of someone that the world will be happy to remember. Not even my family remembers me anymore.

"Look at me!" Quintero yells in my face, forcing me to face his cold eyes again. "Do you have any wish for your family?"

"I don't have a family anymore," I cry.

"Let me guess: people like us killed them."

"No. They are cops, and I'm someone that they're supposed to search for."

Quintero laughs, grabbing my throat as soon as I try to lower my head. "Lonely deaths are the saddest, and sometimes even the most painful ones. But don't worry, you're not special. Life never has a good ending, unless death makes you happy."

He stands up and takes a few steps away from me. Behind him, Rafa and Diego watch the scene with no emotion visible on their faces nor through their bodies.

"Nobody's going to save you this time." Carlos raises the gun between my eyes and I close them.

"I don't think so." I recognize his Irish accent and my eyes automatically open wide in shock.

A shot rings in my ears, then the scream of a man breaks the peace. Everything happens so fast that it takes a while for me to understand why I'm still alive. Quintero keeps screaming at the bullet in his hand before Diego punches him in the face, dropping his gun near me.

I pick it up. "Let's go!" I yell to Diego.

He turns to me just before Quintero punches him in the stomach. Cursing like a hard worker, Navarro tries to push the two away from each other, using his own body as a wall between the fighters.

"Run, Gabriela!" Diego says, hitting Quintero with a kick between Navarro's legs.

I run away as fast as I can. One shot echoes behind me. Then another one. Two close shots in a fight can only mean the worst. I turn to discover who lost the game and a car stops right behind me.

A man comes out. "Diego told us to bring you to his home."

I jump on the vehicle and let them bring me away. Hopefully, I'll see Diego again soon.

It takes around an hour to get to his mansion. When I get in, I'm asked to stay in his office and wait for him while a doctor takes care of my shoulder. While he does his job, I turn the TV on to distract myself while the adrenaline leaves my body and I start to get sleepy.

A woman on the news says that a drug lord has been found dead in the middle of the street. When she says his name, I'm not surprised.

"Give me a tequila," I say to whoever is in the room.

I'm too tired to feel any emotion, but I'm never too tired to get drunk.

Like the news itself isn't enough, a familiar face appears on the crime scene. My father talks about some names that the police have that could be responsible for the death, none that I've ever heard of. He looks happy. He always looked happy at home. Then I used to show up from school, and his smile stayed, but his eyes lost any spark of joy. Even when I was just his innocent little girl, he looked at me like he knew that something would go wrong in my head, one day or another. I can't blame him, because he was right. I'm a fucking death machine.

When the live interview finishes, I forget about him again as my tequila finally arrives.

The maid doesn't move from my side and I give her a side eye. "What?"

"Mr. Gonzáles would like to talk with the boss. What can I tell him?" she asks shyly.

"Invite him in," I say. "Let's get down to business."

I don't deserve to be in this position, but I stay. My time has come, even if it wasn't my choice nor something that I earned. Diego Hernandez, an empty man desperately searching for the other half of his heart, chose to sacrifice his life for me; now it's my turn to save something of his, and all he had were power and a rich business.