chapter 5
Two of Garcia’s burly henchmen had searched and stripped Ramirez of weapons, tied his hands in front of him with rope, and then hung him like a side of beef from the gancho of a convenient block and tackle hoist. Ramón Garcia had taken off his coat and jacket, and put on leather gloves to keep from bruising his knuckles. Now his gloves were soaked with a deep red stain. Meanwhile, his henchmen averted their gaze, ostensibly to avoid blood spattering into their eyes.
Garcia would make Ramirez pay for stealing from him.
Ramón hit Pedro again, and again, and again.
Garcia would make Ramirez pay for taking his drugs, his weapons, his contraband, and his profits.
Ramón hit Pedro again, and again, and again.
Garcia would make Ramirez pay for taking his woman. And for taking away his secret dreams of an idyllic family life. And for making him suffer such nearly unbearable guilt for causing the death of Gwendolina and her beautiful child.
Ramón hit Pedro again, and again, and again.
Garcia would make Ramirez pay for betraying him. And for shattering his idealized memory of their childhood. And for destroying Ramón’s secret admiration for how Pedro had kept so much of his childhood innocence when Ramón’s own innocence had long since been destroyed by his uncountable acts of evil.
Ramón hit Pedro again, and again, and again…and again.
“Simply ask for forgiveness, and I will show you mercy,” Garcia lied. Then he punctuated his offer with another blow.
But to Ramón’s surprise, a ragged, puffy smile graced Pedro’s bruised lips as he fitfully replied, “Coo…coo…ja-KAO-www!”
Angered, Garcia’s fist struck again and Ramirez’s right eye puffed shut. A trickle of half-clotted blood streamed from Ramirez’s nose, but Pedro refused to yield. Instead, he smiled his same, maddening, self-satisfied smile and wanly crowed, “Koo-chaw…Kah-rooo!”
“My friend,” Garcia said softly. “Simply ask for forgiveness, and all this suffering will be over.”
“No, Capitan,” Pedro said weakly. “It’s not yet time. I’ve always known we would have to pay for our crimes: You for growing evil, and me for ignoring your evil. Because you thought I cheated you, you tried to kill me, but killed the Innocents instead. Because you killed the Innocents, I tried to kill you. I knew you would come for me when I failed.
“Because of us both,” Pedro murmured, “the Innocents were lost. Because the Innocents were lost, we both must pay. All I have to do, is wait until the right time.”
“Tick-a-tock…Tick-a-tock,” Pedro murmured, and then crowed a feeble little, “Arooo-ca-cha…”
Leave a Reply