Chapter 357 - Goodbye Inés - mdfour
Aníbal
She wouldn't be my wife if she hadn't reacted that way, and yes, that damned woman from Santander hits hard. Ana looked at me, with the phrase "I told you so" written all over her face. I didn't look away until her wide hips disappeared from my sight. When I turned around, Verónica and Patricia were looking at me with a mix of joy and anger.
"I can barely stand, I didn't want her to see me like this, now I can talk."
"You don't have to make excuses with us. Right now, she feels mocked by my husband who went against her wishes, and well, that part is erased because you came back, but it all went wrong again when you didn't tell her and excluded her from taking care of you." Verónica was absolutely right. "It hurts her that she was ignored. Not everyone puts love first like I did, you know her."
"Besides, the ashes thing was an insult."
I looked at my friends, knowing this would happen. Shirly was lovely, but when she got stubborn, there was no stopping her. We stayed silent. Roland worried me, not because of the three slaps he received, but because of his silence. He had been holding Verónica's hand the whole time, but his look told me he was thinking about a lot of things at once.
Half an hour later, the rest of the team arrived with their wives. Some hugged me, others just shook their heads, the younger ones came to support me while the older ones kept their distance.
"Any news about Inés?" Simón asked.
"Nothing," Vero replied. "I don't like this silence." Ten minutes later, Alfredo came out with teary eyes.
"Inés wants to say goodbye, she wants to talk to her sons, then to her daughters." My lip trembled.
"What!" Arnold was the first to shout.
"There's no way to save her, she's very bad. If she makes it through the night, we might see some improvement, but right now..."
Alfredo shook his head. We all went in. Ana was right, I handle emotional situations better. Roland was still silent, and everyone noticed. When we entered, they didn't even bother to give us surgical gear. My old lady's face was like stone, and we all tried to hold back.
Images of my black queen preparing us dinner whenever we arrived, giving us her blessing, waiting for us with her rosary to protect us, a bunch of damned demons. The woman who welcomed me with open arms the night the boss found me scared on that corner. She, my beautiful black queen, was now minutes away from leaving us.
"I love you all, thank you for considering me a mother to you."
At that moment, Arnold knelt beside her, and I looked at the rest of us. We were ten men who probably had the gates of hell waiting for us, though we were trying to reverse that now. These men, who were shooting at those bastards a few hours ago, trying to kidnap our wives, were now about to cry like little kids.
"Don't cry, I prefer this. I didn't want to deteriorate from cancer or lose my faculties to a tumor. God heard me."
"Old lady!" Simón said, his voice breaking.
"Hold on to your wives, watch over your children, leave revenge aside," she said, looking at Roland.
"I won't promise you anything," Roland replied arrogantly. At that moment, he was the cold man we all used to fear.
"Don't throw away everything you've gained, Roland. You made a promise, your wife is at stake." At that moment, Roland's gaze changed. "That's it, son. I was going to die, maybe not today, but in a few months. At least I offered my life for my grandchild."
Miguel broke down at that moment. There was no more pride in men not crying. We were just a pack of men crying over the loss of their mother. The women came in, and to my surprise, Shirly was among them, pushing Diana's wheelchair. Though she gave me a murderous look, in another circumstance, I would have laughed just to annoy her more.
"I love you all, each one of you came into my life when my children needed it most. Take care of my grandchildren and my children..."
The beep of that damn machine echoed long and loud, only the gasps of stifled sobs could be heard. Each wife hugged her husband, and it was Mrs. Josefina's arms that consoled me. I was so grateful for that.
When I looked at my wife, who was being hugged by Mrs. Consuelo, she was already looking at me. I saw so much disappointment. Damn! She’s really hurt.
"I love you, Sweetheart."
I mouthed the words. For a moment, I thought a demon had possessed her; the eye roll she gave me was something I had never seen before. I have it tough with Shirly, and now, when I need her emotionally.
I looked at my mother’s lifeless body. Not caring if I fell without my crutches, I slowly walked towards her to kiss her forehead. After me, each of us did the same, her ten children. Freddy might have been the newest addition.
But since he got promoted, she welcomed him as her new baby. Alfredo closed her eyes. It was a fact, we would no longer have our mother’s scoldings or her blessings.
……
Veronica
I’m worried about Roland. Since we left the clinic, after spending the whole day there, he hasn’t said a single word. He’s lost in his thoughts, and I’m very afraid of his retaliation against whoever orchestrated the kidnapping attempt.
We arrived at El Renacer. They’ll give us Ines’s body tomorrow, and the funeral will be the same day. The children were asleep; no one wanted to wake them. Due to the shock of what happened, each of our friends went to the room they have at the ranch.
The only one who didn’t was Shirly. She looked for Gregorio, who was sleeping in the crib next to the bed where Karen lay with her children. No one said anything to her. She’ll be surprised tomorrow to see her brother at the breakfast table.
I lent my car to Shirly. She only said goodbye to us, completely ignoring them and, of course, her husband. At least Anibal has stayed out of it; I guess that’s for the best for now. He hasn’t taken his eyes off her.
"Dear, don’t leave him alone."
My mother-in-law whispered in my ear. My husband’s hands have stayed in the pockets of his jeans, clenched into fists. When we were alone, I approached him. It was already eleven at night. The only ones who stayed at the clinic were Diana and Miguel.
"Let’s go to bed, honey."
I had only seen that look in his green eyes once before, and it was when I was kidnapped before our wedding. It’s a terrifying look.
"Roland?"
"I need to be alone."
He brushed past me, went to the area where we keep the car keys, and left. I couldn’t help but let the tears fall. "God, don’t let him throw away everything he’s achieved."
I forced myself to go up the stairs. When I reached our room, my four children were on our bed, sleeping soundly. They looked so big and angelic. At that moment, I felt my chest tighten. Roland needs me!
I ran out to find him. He must be in the cabin; that’s his refuge. I grabbed the keys to the other car and drove as fast as I could. Sure enough, he was there. The shattered windows of the truck didn’t bode well. The inside of the cabin had received the same fury. I saw drops of blood on the floor, and in the farthest corner of the room, curled up like a scared little animal, was Roland, rocking back and forth.
"Honey." I approached.
"Leave me alone." His hands were bleeding.
"I’m not going to!" I was determined.