All Chapters of Faking My Death to Escape the Cartel King : Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

XitllaliI 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 vo

XitllaliI woke up to the sound of quiet, steady breathing.For a few seconds, I didn't open my eyes. My whole body ached as if I'd been beaten. My back was stiff, my neck hurt, and both my legs were numb from sitting on the cold floor all night.I slowly opened my eyes.The cellar was still dark, but a little gray light came through the cracks in the wooden door above us. Morning had come.I looked down at my lap. Guillermo was still asleep, but he looked different now. The painful frown on his face was gone, and his jaw was relaxed.I reached out with my hand and gently touched his cheek with the back of my fingers.His skin was cool. It was a little damp with sweat, but the terrible heat from the night before was gone. The thick clay packs I'd placed on his chest and neck had dried overnight, leaving cracked patches against his skin.He was safe. He was going to live.I let out a long, shaky breath. Then I leaned my head against the dirt wall and closed my eyes. It felt as if a hea

XitllaliI stared at Guillermo in horror. He was clearly not okay; he leaned so heavily against the dirt wall that I wondered if it was the only thing keeping him on his feet."You can't do this," I whispered, my voice shaking.I stepped closer and reached for his arm with trembling hands."Guillermo, look at yourself. Those men will tear you apart."He didn't pull away from my touch, but his eyes remained cold. They were the eyes of El Crotalo. Hard, calculating, and without a trace of fear."I've walked through worse than this, Xitllali," he said. His voice was low and rough."Not while you're bleeding to death!" I cried, tears filling my eyes already. "Please. Please don't do this. Not for me."He reached out with his hand and grabbed the back of my neck. His fingers were warm, and his grip was firm but surprisingly gentle. He pulled me closer until I had no choice but to look into his eyes."I'm not doing this just for you," he murmured, his breath brushing against my cheek. "I'm

Xitllali“Guillermo!” I screamed.I ignored the broken glass and sharp stones under my boots and ran into the cold mist. I dropped to my knees on the wet cobblestones just as his large body fell forward.I wrapped my arms around his chest, trying to catch him, but he was too heavy. We both fell onto the cold street. I turned my body just in time to keep his head from hitting the wet stones, taking the fall on my bruised knees instead."I've got you," I gasped.My hands slipped against his coat. It was soaked with blood. Warm blood poured from the wound in his left shoulder.“Guillermo, look at me. Stay awake,” I begged, pressing both hands against his wound to stop the bleeding.His eyes were half-closed, and they kept rolling back as he struggled to breathe. His face was pale as ash. Firing the gun had torn his wound open again, and there was so much blood on the wet street around us that I was terrified“Her blood...” he mumbled, his voice so weak I could barely hear him over the ri

XitllaliBeatriz’s question hung in the quiet air.I knelt on the floor beside Guillermo, my knees soaking up the dampness of his blood from the floral rug. My heart pounded so hard it hurt my ribs.For two years, I had been Esperanza to her. I was the quiet, smiling girl who brought her leftover lavender to help her sleep. I was the girl who swept the sidewalk every morning and never caused any trouble.Looking at her shaking hands and wide, fearful eyes, I realized that girl was gone. Esperanza had died the moment Severo’s men fired their guns into my shop.I took a slow, shaky breath and looked down at my hands. They were stained with blood."Um... Esperanza isn't my real name," I whispered, my voice hoarse and breaking.She took another step backward, her back hitting the floral wallpaper of her hallway. She looked at Valdo and Mateo, who were still holding their rifles, their faces covered in soot and sweat."Then who are you?" She asked, her voice cracking. "Are you a criminal?