Chapter 218: The Seventh Circle of Hell
Alex slept for what felt like a lifetime after enduring more drugs than he was accustomed to. Alex was far from an addict, but he enjoyed what may be referred to as prohibited substances every now and then. But he had never done anything like methamphetamine before. And it was not an experience he wanted to repeat.
Thus, the day after his little kidnapping Alex spent it entirely inside his hotel room, sleeping off the mixture of drugs he had been administered by the cartel’s kidnapper the day before. Alex, of course did not even notice the text message from the florist who, after some internal debate decided she would take Alex up on his offer to communicate via text.
This, of course, caused the woman to pout after being left on reading for a full 72 hours. But after Alex was finally back to his normal self, he checked his messages to see not only were there about a million texts from his harem, as well as voicemails all of which were full of panic. But there was also a message from Maria.
Feeling as if he had missed a huge opportunity Alex texted the woman back with a message that justified his lack of communication.
“Sorry, the last few days I have been recovering from a pretty dire situation I happened to find myself in. I probably should have gone to the hospital, but that’s not exactly something I as an American am willing to do unless my life is in danger…”
This text immediately elicited a response of worry from the purehearted and traditional maiden who immediately checked on Alex’s health.
“Oh, no! Are you alright? Is there anything I can do?”
Alex smiled when he saw this before sending another text message one that assured the woman he was alright now, even if he was still suffering from the aftereffects of the particularly dangerous concoction of drugs that was forcefully given to him by the cartel.
Perhaps Maria’s curiosity about what had happened to Alex got the better of her, but to Alex’s surprise she immediately agreed. Setting a time and place to meet up. Which Alex quickly agreed to before placing down his phone and entering the shower.
After spending three days in bed sweating out all the drugs in his system, Alex realized he stunk to high heavens and needed to properly cleanse himself. Thus, he entered the shower and cleaned himself off before getting dressed in some expensive casual clothes.
Soon enough, Alex took a cab to the little diner that he had agreed to meet Maria at, where she was already sitting at a table waiting for him. The young beauty quickly waved at the man, where he then sat in front of her, and sighed heavily. It was a sigh of complete and total physical exhaustion which caused Maria to feel quite a bit of concern that she was quick to express.
“Are you sure you’re alright? No offense, but you look like you have been through the ringer—”
Alex nodded his head, before waving towards the waiter and ordering some caffeine along with a nice lunch that was easy on his stomach. He then spent a solid thirty minutes explaining how he was drugged and kidnapped by the cartel before being injected with methamphetamines. All because the daughter of a drug lord was a fan of his.
This story was a lot to take in for Maria, and it was clear by the look on her face that she had a particular disdain for criminals, let alone the cartel. But at the end of Alex’s tale she took his hand and comforted him.
“I can’t imagine going through such an ordeal, and just because you are a professional athlete. Those bastards have no decency, especially that wretched girl. How could she ever think drugging and kidnapping you was remotely acceptable? There are plenty of other ways to get in contact with you if she was really that big of a fan!”
Alex tried his best not to scoff and roll his eyes at such an obvious statement, and instead forced a smile as he thanked the woman for her kind words, while also acknowledging the message the system had given him.
“Thank you… At least now you know why I didn’t respond to your texts these last few days…”
[Maria admires your bravery in the face of such a dangerous situation and is happy that you escaped from the cartel with your life intact!]
[+5 Affection from Maria!]
[Marias Affection: 10/100]
This message caused Alex to feel slightly better, as he looked at the beautiful young florist with a caring smile on his face. Eventually, the bill came, and Alex paid for the entire date without even thinking about it. Maria had even reached into her purse to pay her fair share, but before she could get her card Alex had already pulled out a stack of cash and not only paid the waiter, but also handsomely tipped him.
Maria was shocked by how much of the local currency Alex had given the server, and was quick to realize that because he was a professional athlete from America, he probably had a lot of money, which caused her to comment on the whole situation.
“I forgot for a second that you were a professional athlete… You must make a fortune, right?”
Alex sipped the last of his coffee before standing up, and helping the young woman out of her seat where he spoke about his wealth.
“Yes, and no… In America professional fighters don’t make a lot of money, unless we are the champions of our divisions. Which I have yet to achieve. So while the money I make might be considered a lot here, I would be living in poverty in America if not for the fact that I recently inherited an insane amount of money…”
Maria was slightly distressed when she heard Alex’s financials were not great, at least until he mentioned the money he had inherited, which she was curious about, but knew better than to ask for specifics regarding a man’s income, unless she wanted to present herself as a gold digger.
Thus she kept silent, and instead followed Alex back to the cab, which took her back to her home. After all, today was her day off, and she did not need to go to the florist’s shop. Once the cab arrived at Maria’s family’s home. She stepped out of the car, where Alex followed her. The young woman had a nervous smile on her face as she spoke about the date she just had with the handsome foreigner.
“I had a great time. We should do this again, assuming you will be staying here in Mexico much longer. After the experience you had, I wouldn’t blame you if you fled north of the border, and never returned…”
Alex however shook his head, as he denied that he was so cowardly. With a boastful gesture, by pounding his chest with his fist he assured the young beauty that he wasn’t leaving anytime soon.
“Do you think I am really that kind of man? The Cartel doesn’t scare me, they just caught me off guard that’s all. Had it been a fair fight, I would have taken at least a few of those bastards with me to the seventh circle of hell!”
This arrogant remark caused Maria to giggle slightly, as she made a jest of her own at Alex’s expense.
“I hope the reason you are destined to the seventh circle of hell is for violence and not sodomy…”
Alex immediately feigned offense at this, as he playfully placed his hands on his ass while mocking the woman for her crude statement.
“How did you know my terrible secret!?!”
This remark immediately caused Maria to break out into an uncontrollable fit of a laughter, while Alex joined her. While the two of them laughed at their own jokes, a message appeared in Alex’s vision from the system yet again.
[Maria enjoys your sense of humor and finds you to be both funny and charming.]
[+5 Affection from Maria]
[Maria’s Affection: 15/100]
Alex then ceased his laughter before being serious with the young woman, assuring her that they would indeed be able to meet again, while also giving her a fair warning about himself like he had done when they first met.
“No, but for real, though. I’ll be sticking around for some time. After all I’ve got business south of the border that isn’t finished yet. So if you want to see me again, I’m all for it. But like I told you when we first met, I don’t think I’m the kind of guy that you will want to be with when you get to know me…”
Despite Alex’s warning, Maria was not deterred. Perhaps it was because Alex had yet to actually reveal his more sinister side to the purehearted young maiden that she did not take his warning seriously. Or perhaps she enjoyed spending time with him so far and wanted to see how far she could take it. Either way, she assured Alex that they would likely be seeing each other again.
“You let me be the judge of that! Anyway, Alex I had a wonderful time, and so long as you don’t end up falling afoul of the cartel again, I’m sure we will see each other soon enough. Until we meet again!”
After saying this, the young woman unlocked her door, and shut it behind her, leaving Alex to return to his cab, where he would take a long silent drive back to his hotel.