CHAPTER 32: WHISPERS IN THE DARK

Xitllali

I let go of Guillermo’s hand. My fingers felt strange without the warmth of his.

Valdo and Mateo got to work immediately. They moved quietly through the broken room. Mateo went to the front entrance and moved large pieces of broken wall and an overturned table toward the shattered window to block the view from the street.

"The street is completely empty now, Boss," Valdo whispered as he returned to the main room. "But we can't stay on this floor. Once the sun comes up, anyone passing by will see our shadows through the broken glass."

Guillermo stood near the burnt counter. He nodded slowly, but I noticed something was wrong. His movements were stiff. He leaned heavily against the burnt wood, holding his left arm tightly against his ribs. He was trying to hide his pain, but I could see how hard it was for him to breathe.

"There's a basement," I said quietly, looking at the three men.

Guillermo turned his dark eyes toward me.

"Under the storage room," I explained, keeping my voice low. "It's an old cellar. I used it to keep flower bulbs cool during the summer. It has thick dirt walls and a heavy wooden door. If we go down there, no one will see us."

"Show us," Guillermo ordered.

I led them back into the dark storage room. I knelt on the cold floor and felt around until my fingers touched the rusty iron ring on the trapdoor. I pulled it up and it creaked softly, revealing a dark hole in the ground with a short wooden ladder leading down.

The smell of wet earth and old roots filled the room.

"Mateo, stay up here," Guillermo said. His voice sounded weaker than usual. "Find a dark corner and keep watch. Valdo, you're coming with us."

Valdo climbed down the ladder first, shining his flashlight on the dirt floor. I followed, carefully stepping down the wooden rungs.

When Guillermo followed, the heavy trapdoor closed above us with a dull thud. Valdo set his flashlight on a wooden crate nearby, letting the beam cast a pale, dim glow against the damp walls so we could see.

"Sit," Guillermo whispered to me.

I felt around until my back touched the cold wall. I sat down and pulled my knees to my chest. A moment later, Guillermo sat beside me. The space was so small that his broad shoulder pressed against mine, and his long leg touched mine.

For a long time, nobody spoke. The street above us was completely silent. We couldn't hear anyone walking over the broken glass, any trucks passing by, or anyone talking. There was only silence.

The adrenaline that had kept my heart racing since four that morning slowly began to fade. As they did, I started to feel the cold around me. The ground was freezing, and the cold seemed to reach my bones. I began to shiver, and my teeth started to chatter.

Then a strong arm wrapped around my shoulders.

Guillermo pulled me firmly against his side. I gasped at the sudden touch and placed my hands on his chest, trying to push him away.

I was still angry about everything he had done to my life. I was still trying to protect my heart from him.

But the moment my palms touched his chest, I froze.

He was burning hot.

His body wasn't just warm. His chest felt like a furnace beneath his coat. Even through his shirt, I could feel the terrible heat coming from his skin.

"Guillermo," I whispered, suddenly afraid. I moved my hand to his neck.

His skin was burning. Sweat covered his body, and his pulse raced beneath my fingers.

"I'm fine," he whispered weakly. He gently moved my hand away from his neck, but he didn't let go of my fingers. Instead, he held my hand tightly against his chest. "It's just the cold air."

"You're not fine," I whispered, leaning closer so Valdo wouldn't hear my fear. "You have a really bad fever."

"Keep your voice down," he murmured.

I could hear how hard it was for him to breathe. Every breath sounded heavy and wet. The man who had been giving orders and planning a war was now struggling just to breathe.

My heart ached, and I hated that it did. I wanted to hate him. I was still mad at him, but sitting beside him, feeling his burning body as he tried to keep me warm, I found it hard to hold on to my anger.

"Valdo," I whispered. "Do you have any medicine in your bags? Antibiotics? Anything?"

"No, Señora," Valdo replied from the other side of the cellar, "We left everything in the truck."

I closed my eyes as a tear rolled down my cheek. We were in a hole in the ground, and Guillermo was getting worse by the minute.

"Don't cry," Guillermo murmured. His thumb moved weakly across the back of my hand. "I'm not going to die, Xitllali. I told you I'd fix everything."

"You're burning up, you stubborn fool," I whispered, resting my forehead against his shoulder. "You can't fix anything if you're dead."

He didn't answer immediately. For a few minutes, the only sound in the cellar was his heavy breathing.

Then his fingers tightened around mine.

"Xitllali," he whispered. His voice was very weak, but I could hear how serious he was.

"I'm here," I whispered back, my hands shaking.

"Listen to me," he said, struggling to take a deep breath. "If my heart stops... if I don't make it out of this cellar..."

"Shut up!" I interrupted, my voice breaking. "Don't say that."

"Listen," he insisted weakly. He placed my palm against his burning chest, right over his racing heart. "Valdo has his orders. If I die, he'll take you straight to the southern border. He has a passport ready for you. You'll have a new name and a new life. Severo will stop looking for you once he knows I'm gone."

I sat completely still in the cold cellar. My blood ran cold.

"What are you talking about?" I whispered, tears falling onto his shirt.

"I let you go once," he said quietly, his voice filled with pain that had nothing to do with his injury. "Two years ago, I signed the papers and let everyone believe you were dead so you could be free."

"But I couldn't breathe without you," he confessed, his voice breaking. "I tried to stay away, Xitllali. I swear I did. But I couldn't do it. I just... I just needed to see your face again."

His head slowly fell to the side and rested against my shoulder.

"Guillermo?" I whispered, my heart pounding.

He didn't answer.

The hand that had been holding mine so tightly suddenly went limp.

His fingers slipped out of mine and fell to the floor with a dull thud. The man who had ruled his world with fear and turned Mexico upside down was now completely still against me.

"Guillermo!" I cried, grabbing his face with both hands.

Across the small cellar, boots scrambled against the dirt. Valdo rushed to my side in an instant, snatching up the flashlight and swinging the beam directly onto us. The harsh light fell on Guillermo's pale face.

"Guillermo, wake up!" I sobbed, shaking his broad shoulders.