"Oh. My. f.u.c.king. G.o.d!"I feel so fidgety. I keep looking up at the bathroom door waiting for her to come out.
"What did it say? Am I a dad now? Am I ready for this?!"
The doork.n.o.b jiggles,
"Kaz?"
She steps out of the steamy bathroom with a small white towel wrapped around her. I watch as the drops of water disappear as they roll down her chest.
"Well?"
I can tell that she"s been crying, her eyes are red and puffy.
"Negative."
I step closer to her and take her hands in mine,
"Hey, look at me,"
I tilt her chin up,
"Is that what you wanted?"
A single tear rolls down her cheek,
"I thought I did but..."
She looks away but I grab her again.
"But what?"
"But...maybe I was hoping..."
She starts to cry.
"Aw, love please don"t cry."
I pick her up and hold her close. She responds by putting her arms around me.
"Why does it hurt so much Ricky?"
My heart aches hearing her say that.
"Listen to me Kaz,"
I put her back on the floor and wipe her tears,
"They"ll be a time in our life when we"ll have as many kids as you want, but right this minute I have to keep you safe and a child right now would complicate things."
She sniffles,
"R-really?"
"I swear it. Now c"mere."
I sit on the bed and wait for her to join me. I open the covers for her and she crawls in next to me.
"Wow, you should sleep naked more often."
She smiles,
"Don"t get any ideas, i"m tired."
"Alright then,"
I pull her into my chest,
"Get all the sleep you can, because tomorrow morning we"re going back home."
***
The car ride home was long. Kaz and I barely spoke, I guess the whole pregnancy scare really did a number on her.
I pull into the dive way and roll down my window so I can speak with Manuel.
"Bienvenido de nuevo jefe. ¿Debo traer tus maletas?"
(Welcome back boss. Should I bring your suitcases?)
"Yeah, just take em up to our room."
I hand him the keys and walk over to the pa.s.sengers side and open the door for Kaz.
I help her down but she still seems a little sad.
"I have a meeting to attend right now, would you care to join?"
She looks up surprised,
"Join you for a meeting? Seriously?"
"I mean you are the bosses lady so..."
"I don"t know, I think i"ll go to the gym. I just need a distraction."
"Hm, alright but I still want to pick you up. Here."
I hand her a new phone with my number already in it.
"Whenever you"re ready, i"ll come pick you up. Ok?"
"Ok,"
She kisses my cheek,
"I"ll talk to you later Ricky."
"Señor, su carro ha llegado."
(Sir, your car has arrived)
"Thanks Manuel."
She turns and heads up the stairs. I watch as she slips into the house.
"I swear i"ll make you mine Kazmaria. I swear it."
***
"Hace mucho que no lo veía."
(I haven"t seen him in a long time.)
"¿Yo se, verdad? Pensé que murió después de recibir un disparo."
(I know right? I thought he died after being shot.)
"Él está viniendo. Silencio!"
(He"s coming. Silence!)
I walk into the meeting. The room reeks of weed and alcohol.
"Good afternoon gentlemen."
I walk around the table and glance at their facial expressions.
"I know that some of you have questions but before you ask me anything, let me tell you this,"
I slam my palms face down on the table so that all the murmuring stops and all eyes are on me.
"Yes I was shot a few months ago but as you can clearly see, it was not fatal. Another thing, we are not here to discus my personal life. We"re here to talk business."
I take my seat at head of the table.
"Now, does anyone have any questions?"
No one raises their hand.
"Great, now as I was-"
"What makes you think that you"re in charge here? You"re a f.u.c.king kid for christ sake!"
I can feel my lip twitch. I close my eyes tightly and try to calm down.
"Who said it?"
I to keep my voice low.
"..."
"Ok then. If no one wants to own up I guess i"ll have to be a little mean."
I pull out my gun. Everyone gaps as I slide it in on the table.
"You know the rules people. So i"ll ask one more time. Who said it?"
I look towards the far side of the table were Pablo is sitting. He makes eye contact with me and shifts his eyes towards the man next to him.
"Ah, well fine. Just know that I gave you a chance to speak up."
I c.o.c.k my gun and aim at his forehead.
*Bang*
I watch as his lifeless body falls to the ground.
"Now like I was saying. Someone from my past has managed to infiltrate our gang. My men have already found the man responsible, he"s been linked to our dear friend here."
I nod towards the dead body on the floor.
I press the intercom b.u.t.ton built on the side of the chair,
"Tess, I need someone in here to clean up this mess."
"Right away sir."
My phones buzzes.
"Hey, i"m ready now."
"Alright, you"re all big boys so i"m sure you can handle yourselves according. Now if you"ll excuse me, more important matters need my attention."
I stand up and straighten out my shirt,
"Oh and one more thing,"
My back is facing away but I know they"re looking at me,
"Call me here for something that can be handled over the phone again, and i"ll kill your families. Good day."