Chapter 227: I Sold My Soul to the Devil and Her Name is La Madre
Alex spoke to Maria about his past for some time, and by the end of it, Maria had come to a better understanding about why he was so… unique… In the end Alex received five more affection points than he lost from the woman at the start of their conversation. Bringing Maria’s affection to 20/100.
However, Maria had simply listened to Alex’s backstory, and commented on it for some time. But after the man was done explaining things he was quick to ask the woman for her own. After all, that was only fair.
This was a conversation that Maria was dreading and because of this she drank what remained of the wine in her glass before sighing heavily and beginning her own tale of woe. All while staring into the bottom of her wineglass, and the residue that the red liquid had left behind.
“It’s not a story I like talking about, in fact… I don’t even like thinking about what happened…. But since you were open about your past with me, I suppose it’s only fair I do the same… Just promise me you won’t pity me once this is all over…”
Alex nodded his head silently, his usual smug expression had completely been replaced with a gentle and solemn one as he grabbed hold of the woman’s dainty hand and assured her everything would be alright.
“I promise I won’t look at you any differently.”
This statement, while reassuring caused a bitter smile to form on the woman’s pretty lips, where she then began to explain exactly why she abhorred violence so much.
“When I was a child, I lived in the territory that is now occupied by the Jalisco Cartel… My mother was a tailor… And she and my father ran a mildly successful business. One day…. One day the cartel came in, demanding that my father and mother use their business as a cover for their operations.
Alex felt his gut wrench when he heard this. Part of his deal with La Madre was that she would only use him as a weapon against the other cartels. According to their contract, she could not remotely use him as a weapon against innocent civilians. Alex may be a violent sociopath who reveled in violence, but he wasn’t so villainous as to murder innocent people.
Thus, he genuinely felt bad for Maria, and immediately expressed his condolences.
“I’m so sorry to hear that…. But wait I don’t understand. If they took your mother, then what did they do with you?”
Maria’s hand trembled while her eyes watered, it was clear that she was having a hard time reminiscing about this. But she ultimately calmed herself when Alex grabbed hold of her hand once more, and in doing so, revealed how she had escaped with her life intact.
“My mother tried fighting them… it was a pointless struggle, but it was enough to buy me time to escape. After all, those murderers didn’t have their focus on me… I ran as fast as I could, and as far as I could. It didn’t matter though. Eventually one of them caught up with me.
He and the others captured me… and put me in a different vehicle from my mother… I think they were driving me north towards the border, probably to traffic me into America where… Well you know what happens to young girls who get trafficked…
But surprisingly enough, the man who found me stopped the vehicle. When his comrades starting shouting at him, he pulled out his gun and shot them both in the head… He then pointed me in the direction of a nearby church, and told me that my parents were dead and I should seek refuge with the Church.
I don’t know what happened to that man after that… As I did what he said and ran to the church, where I was raised as an orphan from that point on… So you see, the reason why I was taken aback that you enjoy violence so much… Is because I thought you were like the men who killed my parents…”
Alex finally understood why Maria lost affection towards him when he said that he enjoyed fighting people. And thus he sighed heavily and shook his head. This caused the woman to mistake his actions and quickly ask for clarification on why he reacted this way.
“What? What did I say?’
Alex immediately knew the woman was about to take offense to what he just did and was quick to correct himself.
“It’s nothing you did, I’m just thinking how cruel the world can be… Maria, I’m not going to promise you that I am a good man, I’ve done a lot of bad things… And there is still a lot of evil that I need to do in this world. But I draw the line at harming innocent people…
So I guess at the end of the day I’m still better than the men who murdered your parents. You have every right to think I’m a bad guy, and cease communications with me, but I just wanted to be honest with you…”
Maria was taken aback by Alex’s words, and was quick to ask just how bad of things he had done.
“When you say you’re a bad guy… What exactly does that entail?”
Alex looked left and right first to make sure nobody was paying attention to their conversation before explaining just how wicked he could be.
“The worst I have done is kill people who tried to kill me… I have blood on my hands, so I’m not going to pretend like I am innocent. But at least the men I hurt were murderers and not innocent people.”
Alex was blissfully ignoring the deaths of innocents he had indirectly caused by employing the Los Zetas as hitmen against his step-father’s extended family. But he could justify that in his own mind as rooting out a bloodline of vipers who would never allow him and his loved ones to remain in peace. Thus he didn’t consider those innocents as well innocent…
Of course, he would never mention this to Maria, because she was not the type of woman to understand his reasoning, or the lengths he would go to in order to protect his women. Still, the idea that he had blood on his hands instantly made Maria realize something was off about Alex. Something she had never actually thought about until now…
The young woman furrowed her brows and had a stern expression on her otherwise pretty face as she asked Alex a question that he figured sooner or later would come up.
“Alex… Why exactly are you here in Mexico?”
Alex smirked when he heard this. He had decided not to lie to Maria in order to win her heart. And he also knew that what he was about to say would lose his major affection points. But at the end of the day, that was the risk of being honest with people. Thus he took a sip of his wine before telling her while he was south of the border in a metaphorical manner.
“To storm the castle, and rescue the heroines from the tyrant that lies within…”
Though he spoke in a not so direct manner, Maria was smart enough to understand what this meant. But she still wanted Alex to admit it aloud.
“You don’t mean that you are going to—”
Alex once more smirked as he nodded his head, slightly impressed by the women’s ability to catch onto what he was saying, and thus did exactly as she wanted.
“Bring down the Jalisco Cartel? Absolutely!”
Though Maria’s affection didn’t immediately drop, partially because she wanted to sway Alex away from this path, and thus she was quick to attempt this.
“Alex, even if you do manage to accomplish something so incredibly foolish, you will just be creating a power vacuum! A new cartel will rise in Jalisco’s place, and will be just as brutal, if not moreso! Please don’t do anything stupid!”
Alex however was undeterred. This was the exact nature that his story arc was seemed to be leading him in, and in this manga he could not defy the main plot he was supposed to live. Thus, he informed the young woman that it was already too late to turn back.
“It’s too late Maria… I’ve already sold my soul to the devil, and her name is La Madre…”
Even a civilian like Maria knew exactly who Alex was talking about and froze on the spot when she heard this name. The young florist immediately understood exactly what Alex had just admitted to and stammered for a few seconds? Struggling to believe this was reality. But in the end, despite the dread she felt over knowing the answer, she asked the question most prominent in her mind.
“You… You’re a Sicario for Los Zetas?”