Mika

Thirty-Three-Asiel

"Mika, what did you see?"

Mika forces out a breath and says, "People. Caged girls and boys. Diablo's big secret is kidnapping teenagers from the street. They're malnourished and have horrible living conditions. Holy shit."

Images of caged girls and boys ring through my head like a continuous tape. Replaying the same message over and over again. The realization sends a green light to my stomach, and I turn away, barfing on the floor. My stomach throbs as I clutch onto it, shaking my head to hopefully escape the urge to vomit again.

He's such a piece of shit.

Any man that feels like it's necessary to kidnap children, teenagers, and adults for their own wealth deserves to have a bullet through their skull. It's fucking disgusting. How could they live with themselves? They ruined families, childhood, lives, and all for their fucking pockets to be full. Why are the wealthiest people in the world the most corrupt?

A laugh threatens to slip out.

Isn't it hypocritical for a Jefe like me to call out the corrupts in the world when I'm one of the leading familias of the underground? My familia name is tainted with blood from my papa's reign. All the bodies and familias he tore apart for his own enjoyment. Plenty of his actions strengthen the Morterero name, but it weighed on my soul. If Mika and I were going to be the commanders of the underworld, it will be a period for underdogs to take over in harmony.

Mika drags her back down the doorway, slumping onto the floor, burying her face in her palms. "Oh, my fucking God! I can't believe this. Asiel, I'm sorry for ever defending that piece of shit. I-I just never thought he was capable of swooping this low. He promised all the Angeles wanted to work here. I'm a fucking idiot."

Using my sleeve, I wipe the excess from my chin and pull the blazer off my arms, tossing it on the ground. My hands reach in my pocket for a strip of gum, something I always take on occasions like this. When the chances of vomiting are higher than my chances of living.

"You aren't an idiot, Mika," I protest, the rough tone of my voice almost frightening myself. "You're one person in charge of over dozens of Angeles. Your attention can only go so many ways. No one can blame you for this."

My hands stretch to caress her knee, but she swats my touch away. "It's because of you, Asiel. You're distracting me. Diablo is rebelling against me to prove a point. A stupid fucking point. He's using young, naive people. People like me."

Pink blossom coats my cheeks as embarrassment fills me like helium inflates a balloon. "What's the point? What is he trying to say? To prove? And how am I involved? All I have been trying to do is help you, Mika."

Mika scoffs. The air whirls by my ear as the sharp blade soars, piercing the back wall. "That's the problem. Why do you care? This doesn't concern you. It's between two business partners, no bystanders. It's my problem. I'll take care of it on my own."

She gets up to make a beeline for the hallway, but I boost from my butt to my feet and grab her arm, firmly keeping her still. "I care because you're my girlfriend. You're the most important person to me. Mika, we're in a relationship. I'm not sure if you understand how it works, but we share problems like this. We depend on each other, help each other, and care for each other."

"Why? What's the point of all this? To live in an imaginary world where everything is fine? Look what happened. I enjoyed my life for two fucking seconds, and everything turned to shit." Mika says, her eyebrows mar in a frustrated expression.

My heart bleeds for Mika.

For her happiness, her lowest moments, her mind, her body, her entire collection of nerves and cells that make Mika the woman she is. Subconsciously, she discloses clues about her past in her sentences. Meaning to or not. The hardships she faced. The people who took advantage of her distraction to use it against her when the moment came. Venom supplies the blood in my veins, tainting a part of me.