Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 89772 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 449(@200wpm)___ 359(@250wpm)___ 299(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89772 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 449(@200wpm)___ 359(@250wpm)___ 299(@300wpm)
All my life I wanted to know about the man they called El Diablo. Never considering the significance of what that meant.
Because in order to meet The Devil I needed to say goodbye…
…to my father.
Chapter 8
—Cruz—
“You failed me.”
Three words that were far more ruthless than his brutal assault on my life.
“You had one job! One. Fucking. Job! The only thing I ask of you, the only thing I’ve ever asked of you! And you can’t even do that! You left her! You left your sister! For what? For pussy! You left my daughter for a girl you didn’t even know? What the fuck kind of brother are you? What kind of man does that make you? Who leaves their flesh and blood for pussy, Crucifixio? Who?”
My head spun.
My eyes ached and blurred.
My breathing slowed down.
He ignored my obvious distress as he continued to strangle what little air I had left. My lungs burned with the effort to try and breathe.
“Now she’s gone! Was it worth it? Was chasing pussy worth losing your sister? My daughter!? I trusted you! I fucking trusted you!”
Despite my vision starting to fade in and out, I could still see his murderous stare had never wavered from mine.
“She trusted you, Crucifixio! How could you leave her? How dare you betray me? I have given you everything!”
His fierce grip only intensified with each word that left his mouth.
Stronger.
Harder.
Deeper, into the wall I went.
My eyes fluttered, and my body started becoming limp. I was losing consciousness.
“Did you watch the time on the video, Cruz? Because I sure as fuck did. It was less than an hour, one fucking hour after you arrived! You couldn’t even protect her for more than an hour! Your lack of conviction disgusts me! No son of mine would choose chocha over family!”
His voice echoed through my head as a piercing ringing in my ears devoured me, creating dark spots to dance across my eyes. My head felt like it weighed a thousand pounds while my hands fell limp down to my sides.
“I’m so disappointed in you.”
I could sense myself drifting away from my body.
“I made it my mission to shield you, but now you’ve left me no choice! You want to be a Martinez, yet you’re out chasing pussy when you should be protecting your family.”
All the fight in me gone.
“You’re no fucking Martinez.”
Vanished like it was never there to begin with.
“I can’t stand to look at you. Do you understand me? Are you hearing me?”
And then everything went black.
“You. Disgust. Me.”
Before the last word left his mouth, he let me go and I instantly crashed to the ground.
Cough, cough, cough…
I sucked in air, blowing it out just as fast as it came in.
Gasping.
Wheezing.
Gulping.
Panting.
I swallowed hard, my throat so fucking dry it burned. I gagged over and over again, feeling like I was going to throw up. Nothing came out, merely pitiful puffs as I suffocated on my own desperate breaths. Dry heaving all over the wood floor beneath me.
“You’re not my son. My son would never put pussy above his family. Ever.”
“I…know…” I rasped, gasping for my next breath. Through a glossy gaze, I slowly looked up at him. Suddenly winded for a completely different reason.
My eyes immediately widened, and my heart dropped, seeing my life flash before my eyes through the end of his loaded gun.
“This is how your legacy begins? With your sister as your first victim? Maybe this is where I should end it for you. Huh? Eye for an eye, Crucifixio.”
I felt fear for what felt like the hundredth time that night. His gun was inches away from my face, aiming right at my forehead.
“You don’t fuck with what’s mine.”
“I’m…I’m…” I choked out, trying to find my voice.
He shook his head, glaring at me with so much hate and love all at once. Battling the hatred he felt for the one he loved.
Adriana had always been his little girl, his firstborn, she was the light in his life.
In all our lives.
What did I do? What did I fucking do?
“Trusting you was my biggest mistake. You have failed your entire family. Where was your honor? If something happens to her, just know her blood is on your hands. You gave my enemies exactly what they wanted. Your blood, hers, your mother’s, it’s valued at a much higher price than mine. I can’t protect you any longer, Crucifixio. You want the truth? I’ll give you the fucking truth.”
He crouched down to my level.
“I faked my death, because I chose love over reason. I chose your mother over everything and everyone. Right or wrong never mattered until her. At the end of the day, who is a man without his family? I couldn’t bring her, you, your sister… my entire world into that life. It was no place to raise children and I didn’t know God existed, until I looked into your mother’s eyes. I know I didn’t deserve a happy ending, but God forgive me. El Diablo killed for it anyway. In order to save myself, I had to bury enemies. Do you understand now? Is it making sense? Anyone could have taken your sister. In the Devil’s world, revenge is best served through loved ones.”