Chapter 232 - Vulnerable - meters
Arnold
She got angry and headed to the party. When she passed by me, I stopped her. I liked having her close; she smelled wonderful. I saw she was crying.
“I thought I told you that I don't deserve your tears. Your eyes are too pretty to cry.” Her lip trembled. “Stop dancing with idiots and be more selective.” I kissed her hair and walked away. I entered the house through the kitchen, and as I did, the Boss was coming out of his office.
“From that look, a Mexican girl must have ruined your night.”
“Are you going to give me a hard time too? I already apologized to her.”
“What did you do this time?” I smiled. We walked toward the exit.
“Stupid things. I tend to do that.”
“Arnold, before we join the party, I need to talk to you.”
I looked at the Boss. He was going to tell me something, and from his body language, it was an unpleasant topic. He invited me to sit in the small dining room.
“Does this have to do with what you talked about with Any alone?”
“Yes, and first I’ll tell you that I will only say and act on this matter according to your wishes.” My heart beat strangely. “You know how I am. You are Nikolay Petrov's son.”
He had always been direct, but he should have prepared this a bit. I couldn't speak; he was analyzing me. My pulse quickened.
“Breathe, Arnold, breathe. Any showed me a video where the leader of the Russian mafia told Tommy that I had something of his. I asked her to tell me what she knew about Petrov, and she confessed they had been monitoring him for twenty-seven years. He was with several prostitutes.” I closed my eyes.
“The Colombian prostitute's name was Lina Delgado.”
If I thought life wouldn't give me bitter surprises, I was definitely wrong. I didn't like hearing that name. She might be my mother, but she was a witch.
“Any didn't know that woman was your mother. I confessed it to her. Now you know. I couldn't look you in the eye if I didn't tell you. I'll support whatever decision you make.”
“What do you mean by the decision I make?”
“He's looking for you because he wants you to take over his empire.” Anger started to rise. “You are the heir to the Russian mafia and have the qualities to be the leader.” Roland's expression was sad. “After all, he is your father, and you have a brother who is in poor health.”
“I’ll only say this once, Boss.” Roland straightened up. “My brothers are Gustavo, Aníbal, Daniel, and I see Roland, Miguel, and Simón as my fathers. My mother’s name is Inés. I will only consider those in your organization as my brothers.”
“I won’t be part of any organization where the great Don Roland Sandoval doesn’t lead. I won’t kill unless it’s an order from Simón or any of you. If I get involved with that mafia, it will be to dismantle it. But I want to make it clear, this is my family. I hope you respect my decision.”
My eyes watered, and when I looked at Roland, his eyes were the same. The hug he gave me was priceless.
“Damn! My intruders have definitely softened me. I feel like crying, not like a wimp.” We laughed. “Arnold, I’m proud of what you said. I want you to know the feeling is mutual.”
“You can tell the guys, I have no problem with that. They’re certainly going to give me a hard time about it.”
“Now you have to take a bit of your own medicine.”
“Roland, I just want to go to bed.”
“Of course.”
“One more thing, the guy from the Bet tried to mess with Lupe. Pacho punched him twice, and I took the liberty of firing him. I told him he works until Monday.”
“So be it. People need to learn that we respect women.”
“Thanks. Can you keep an eye on her while she goes to sleep with her parents?”
“And you say you’re not turning into a pile of crap?”
“Maybe, Boss, but I don’t want to spread it around. She deserves something much better. Goodnight.”
……
Roland
My heart was both wrinkled and rejoicing. Seeing someone stay by your side out of loyalty, affection, and respect was one of the best feelings. What a wedding party. When I got to the dance floor, Veronica was dancing with her brother.
I didn’t see my mother or my father-in-law anywhere. I didn’t want to think about what celebration they were at. In fact, I had a nice session pending with my wife. She looked at me, and I winked at her. Simón and Miguel were each with their wives.
Just looking at them was enough for them to come to the table where I was sitting. I saw Lupe with her parents, and she looked pensive, making faces with her mouth. She must be biting the inside of her cheek. I needed to talk to her.
“Is it serious? Any left over half an hour ago, and you’re just showing up now.”
Simón commented that it was four in the morning, the baptism was at nine, and the priest had gone to bed hours ago. Inés had also followed suit. I sighed.
"I was talking to the person involved," I said.
"The topic is Arnold?" I looked at Miguel and nodded.
"We're listening, boss," Gustavo commented.
"Nikolay Petrov is Arnold's biological father. He's looking for him and needs him to take over the mafia," I said. Everyone stood up; they wanted to take our brother, and he was our little brother.
"That bastard won't..." I looked at Simón.
"Calm down, Rata. Arnold made it clear that we are his family, his brothers, parents, and mother. I felt proud hearing him defend us as his family.
"He made it clear that he won't work for any organization that I don't lead and will never take an order to kill from anyone other than Rata. I guess when our children grow up and feel proud of us, it will feel similar, but honestly, that guy's response moved me. Now he wants to be alone, and I'll send someone to him if she wishes."
"I think it's better to rest for a couple of hours; we need to be ready by eight for the baptism."
"That's a good idea," more than one person said. We looked at each other. "Talk to him tomorrow."
"The little guy turned out to be the heir to the Russian mafia," Aníbal commented mischievously.
"I already told him to put up with our teasing."
"Poor kid, as if he didn't tease us. He's a pain in the ass," Cereza commented. Rasca Culo was quiet. Before we left, I looked at him, and everyone waited to see what he would say.
"I'll just say he should never go to Russia," he began to shake his head. "We must prevent him from stepping foot in Russia."
"We'll keep that in mind. Now, let's rest." I approached Lupe, and Verónica was already heading towards me. "Lupe, may I have a moment?"
"Of course, sir." We walked away.
"Your boy received some bitter news." Her eyes showed alarm. "Even if he never says it, if you care about him, you should know that he never asks for this kind of thing. But now he needs a friendly hand outside his usual circle for support, understanding, or company. He's in his room." She looked at me; she was a perceptive girl. She nodded and walked away. Verónica arrived.
"Something's not right, is it?"
"Is everything ever right?" I hugged her. "Let's get some sleep; we have less than two hours before some intruder or my beautiful princess wakes up. My daughter was beautiful, that little troublemaker will be my Achilles' heel, and my sons better not find out."
"Will you tell me?"
"After a good romp, I'll tell you everything." She rolled her eyes.
"Let's say goodnight and then pamper each other."
……
Guadalupe
I had been listening to Arnold cry for over five minutes. A man like him crying? It must have been something serious to leave him like that. I turned red when Mr. and Mrs. Sandoval caught me eavesdropping at the door.
Mr. Sandoval entered his room without saying anything, and Vero stayed looking a bit longer. I felt my face heat up. A few seconds later, she came out, handing me a long silk robe.
"Be smart."
I turned even redder. She smiled and walked away. I closed my eyes, knocked, and when he didn't respond, I entered. He was lying down, his back to whoever entered. I turned on the bedside lamp.
I put on the robe and at the same time took off my dress. It had ruffled sleeves, leaving my shoulders bare. I wasn't wearing a bra. I took off my heels, my stockings, my accessories, and let my hair down from the ponytail. I climbed onto the bed and reached him, whispering in his ear.
"I know you're awake. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone how sad you are." He turned around, his eyes red. The bedside lamp's light revealed them.
"You're a little frog," he said with no hint of mockery.
"I ratted you out out of jealousy."
I confessed. His sad eyes broke my heart, and seeing how quickly they filled with tears, he laid his head on my abdomen and clung to my waist. I felt the robe get wet from his silent tears.
I began to stroke his hair. I didn't know what he was going through, but if he allowed me to be by his side while he cried, I would be there. I had seen him kill in cold blood, without any remorse. I had seen how cold he was with women, only respecting his brothers, Inés, and his brothers' women. Seeing him so vulnerable only made me love him more. This was the Arnold everyone talked about.
"I'm here, Arnold. I'll stay here, don't worry."
He didn't say anything, just tightened his grip on my waist, and I felt an overwhelming urge to cry. It was the first time I felt he was mine...