Chapter 97 Disconnected from reality - mddos
Simón
Two weeks had passed, and the lady's attitude was distant. She looked at us differently and had thrown Father Gabriel out of the clinic. They hadn't discharged her because she would have sudden hysterical episodes. Several times we had witnessed her unusual behavior; other times, she remained withdrawn, and worst of all, she hadn't cried again.
According to Inés, that attitude was worse. Her father and brother took turns weekly, and the three of us took turns daily. What more could we do? Until the doctor deemed it appropriate, she wouldn't be released from observation.
Last night, Cebolla stayed, Inés took the morning shift, and now I was on the afternoon shift with her brother. I tried not to coincide with Mr. Fausto. The week he took care of her, we left Inés in charge almost all day. Due to the care for her, the search for the mastermind behind Roland's death had been intermittent. To be honest, I hadn't done my job well.
I had downloaded information from the boss's phones, from the heads of each city, but I hadn't analyzed it yet, and time was running out. It was crucial that before the reading of the will, I had a clear idea of who the bastard was that had taken down my friend. I would skin that son of a bitch alive.
"Simón," Inés brought breakfast, "Eat, you haven't been eating well. You're acting just like Cebolla. I've already reprimanded the rest of the guys." I ran my hands over my face.
Today she would stay at the house since Mr. Fausto was returning on Monday, and I didn't want to run into him.
"For the first time in my life, I don't know where to start organizing the mess left by Roland's death."
"Start with the lady. You're the only one she halfway listens to. I've also noticed she has a great acceptance of Cebolla. She ignores the rest of us."
"What do you want me to tell her?"
"To make an effort! We're all sharing the same pain with her."
Inés began to cry. I hugged her. This shit hurt.
"I promise I'll try. I can't delay any longer. I have to take charge of Roland's businesses."
"Will you continue with the cartel?"
"I'll follow the orders given by my friend, but first, I need to find the scumbag who ordered his murder, and I can't neglect his legal businesses. That's what Mrs. Sandoval will live on."
"You're right, Simón. That's where my pay comes from." We tried to laugh, but it didn't work, and a second later, she burst into tears. "Crying is what Mrs. Verónica needs. Bring her back. She needs to return to reality. They killed her husband; they took a son from me. Take care of yourself and Miguel, take care of all of them."
In those "all of them" were Gustavo, Arnold, Daniel, and Aníbal, though I also saw great affection for three more. However, we were all confused.
"I'm trying, but I don't know how. And make sure he doesn't hear you say his name; you know he doesn't like it. He only accepts it from Mrs. Verónica. Have the guys been with you?" She nodded.
"I don't like that topic with the men either!"
"Those are his preferences, and that stays between us. I'm sure of that. He doesn't like anyone knowing that part of his life. I don't want anyone making an off-color comment about it, especially not Mojón." My old lady smiled; he was the youngest of the group.
"Something tells me no, something's up with him. He's never told me. Cebolla still has a story; I see him differently. Something's going on with him."
"What are you getting into now?"
"I confess to you, I started doing double penance prayers for all of you. It worked with Roland. I ask the same for each of you, and for Miguel, I hope he finds what he truly wants. My boy has never been honest with himself. He holds a great resentment in his soul. I haven't reached the heart of that Cebolla yet."
"He likes being that way, although in our..."
Seeing the look in the woman who had been like our mother made me shut my mouth.
"I'm telling you, he never opposed being with women. In fact, he enjoyed the ladies a lot. It was a surprise for me to find out his inclination was towards men. Maybe he's bisexual."
"He keeps secrets, Simón. I discovered yours, Roland confessed his to me, and I won't rest until I know Cebolla's. Each of you is troubled by something. He might like both sides, but if he were really sure, he wouldn't have kept it a secret for so long, not from us. And look, only we know, and that bothers him. To the rest of the staff, he's heterosexual. That makes me think a lot."
"You really play the part of a mother."
"The prayer can do everything, I do it by faith, after seeing the change in Roland, I can attest to that. If my kneeling in the early mornings results in seeing my children on the right path, I won't have wasted my time."
"Are you going to ask God to make Cebolla stop messing around? For each of us to get our act together? I find it hard to believe with Mojón."
I received three slaps, my comment embarrassed her, though I couldn't see her turning red because of her skin tone. I kissed her forehead.
"Stop saying such nonsense! You'll see, Arnold, you'll stop being the way you are."
"What do you ask for me?"
"A woman, children... a beautiful family." The half-smile on my face vanished. "That you find more adrenaline in taking care of your children than in shooting people."
"If it consoles you, I only take down the bad guys, I leave the others wounded."
"What a great act of nobility! I'll kneel twice a day for your souls. Remember, Sunday is the mass that Father Gabriel is offering for my boy."
"We'll be there."
"Have breakfast, give the lady a kiss from me. The boys will stay at the house from today as you requested, except for Cereza, he's the only one married, but Clarisa agreed to come tomorrow, she's bringing me the kids."
I finished breakfast under Inés's supervision, that beautiful woman won our hearts, if we have one, who would have thought, she's put up with us for so long, never feared any of us. I showered, got ready, and left for the clinic to relieve Cebolla and also to talk to Mrs. Verónica. Since I woke up, I felt something strange in my chest, something told me things weren't right, damn it!
I must be missing something, and I don't know what the hell it is! If I hadn't seen Roland's body, I would swear it was all a lie. My eyes watered. Now, I've even become a fool, Inés's penances were messing with all of us, in front of her I acted tough, but alone I couldn't help but wipe my tears. I arrived at the parking lot. I called my friend to tell him to come out.
"Good morning," I greeted. "How's Mrs. Verónica?"
"They had to sedate her, she had a crisis last night."
"For heaven's sake!" I sighed, I was seriously considering admitting her to a psychiatric hospital.
"Come out, let's meet at the entrance."
"Santiago hasn't arrived."
"Is she still asleep?"
"Yes."
"Well, tighten up and get here quickly."
There was no need to abuse the clinic's protocol, it was better to maintain respect. I saw Cebolla in the hallway, we greeted each other and at that moment my watch started alerting me, I looked and opened a small screen, I checked Mrs. Verónica's pulse, it was very high, I saw her location and seeing her move, I started running. Miguel followed me, turning the corner in the hallway we saw her entering the elevator which was closing, she literally looked like a madwoman.
"Damn it!"
My second-in-command shouted, he took the other elevator while I started running up the stairs, I couldn't be in an enclosed space feeling helpless, in a moment like this it was vital to move.
I kept going up the stairs, I don't know if it was a gift or I had some skill, a bit more developed than most people. But in these extreme tension cases, a series of synchronized and assertive calm decisions unfolded before me. I climbed the stairs four at a time, reaching the sixth floor of the clinic very quickly.
I could say three things happened at that moment; Cebolla entered through one door, I came out the other and ran towards Mrs. Verónica, who was climbing the wall to throw herself into the void. I must have flown with how fast I moved, I managed to grab her by the waist just as Cebolla grabbed me by the legs, as I had launched myself into the void.
I dragged and pulled Mrs. Verónica's body towards me, pressing her against my chest, she writhed in anger at seeing her suicide attempt thwarted, at that moment Dr. Mendoza arrived and sedated her, her brother also arrived at the rooftop, his face was perplexed, I carried her back to her room.
"It's time for the family to make a decision, as a doctor I recommend she be admitted to a psychiatric hospital, she needs to be attended to by specialists as soon as possible."
He informed, looking at Santiago, who nodded, at that moment I saw a couple of tears running down his cheek. The one who dies remains at peace, the odyssey is reflected in those of us who are left with the pain of loss.