Santos scrambled in the dark as his heart thumped with fear and his forehead dripped with sweat.
Where. Was. Blanca.
He looked all around, screaming her name as loud as he could, but there was no answer. The island was silent save for Santos' beating heart. He replayed the previous night's events over and over in his mind. One moment, he was holding his beloved in his arms and the next-- she was gone. Had she been detained? Kidnapped again? Or worse... killed?
For three days and three nights, Santos did not eat, bathe or sleep--he merely searched and called out Blanca's name. It was only when he walked directly into a palm tree, because he was so tired, that he allowed himself to close his eyes.
After a brief siesta, Santos awoke to find the island was undergoing an unbearable heat wave. Before starting up his search, he walked over to the waterfall to cool himself down--the same waterfall in which he and Blanca made love under just a few days before. Santos splashed the cool water on his hot face, and then, he looked down at his reflection.
"What will you do, El Presidente?" Santos said to himself.
"I don't know, El Presidente," he said back to himself.
Just then, Santos heard footsteps, and he looked up to find a man standing above him. Santos squinted as he looked into the man's eyes--partly, because the sun was right behind his head--but also, he seemed to recognize him.
"I'm sorry to intrude," the man said, with a warm smile. "I was going to take a dip in the water, but I'll return later."
He started to walk away, but Santos stopped him.
"Excuse me," Santos said. "Do we have the same nose?"
The man turned around, confused.
"Come again?"
Santos stood up and stared at the man's face. Indeed, they had the same nose, eyebrows, and fantastically high cheekbones.
"What is your name?" Santos said.
"Leonardo," the man answered.
At that moment, Santos and Leonardo both gasped, realizing the truth.
"Father? Is that you?" Leonardo asked, his voice quivering.
"Leonardo! My long-lost son!" Santos screamed, going in for a hug.
Ah, yes. You see, Leonardo was taken from Santos when he was only a child, after Santos cheated on Leonardo's mother with her half-sister's half-sister. After the affair, neither Santos nor Leonardo knew where the other one had ended up, but they both dreamed they would reunite one day. Leonardo, in particular, knew nothing about his father; before his mother died, she told him to never speak of Santos, for he ruined her relationship with her half-sister's half-sister-- and with her half-sister.
After a few minutes of hugging and some joyful tears, Leonardo explained that he had lived on Tigrititi Island all his life, and he wanted to introduce Santos to his wife and children! Santos agreed, and then explained how he wound up on this island, why he was dressed as a pirate, and how he was searching for his beloved, Blanca. Leonardo insisted that Santos stay at his house while he searched for Blanca, which Santos gratefully accepted. It was at this moment that Leonardo asked what Santos did for a living. Santos paused, and then casually stated that he was the President of North Ecuaduras.
Leonardo's jaw dropped. "I'm related to the President of North Ecuaduras?"
Santos nodded with pride. What perfect timing for him to re-meet Leonardo! Reuniting with his long-lost son was about the only thing that could lift his spirits right now.
Leonardo's house was quaint and lovely. His wife, Lauretta, and three children, Carlo, Augustus and Paco, welcomed Santos with open arms. And so, Santos began his new life on Tigrititi Island; each morning, he would wake up at sunrise, enjoy a nice breakfast with his new family, go off searching for Blanca through the evening, and would be in bed by ten. Santos truly enjoyed getting to know Leonardo and his family, but with each passing day, his hopes of finding Blanca dwindled, and he felt lonely and morose.
One night, Santos returned from a day of hopeless searching to find Leonardo sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for him. Before Santos could even sit down, Leonardo cleared his throat and began an obviously rehearsed speech: he'd been thinking, and seeing as he was Santos' only son, he felt he should be next in line for the presidency, and he'd like to make it official. Santos stared at Leonardo for a long moment, and then he burst into laughter. He knew it was rude, but he couldn't help it! Leonardo had no idea how to run a country. He grew up on a random, pirate-ruled island in the middle of the sea! Leonardo clenched his jaw as he listened to his father's guffawing.
"Then teach me," Leonardo said.
Santos took this in and, after a few moments, he stopped laughing. Although he was shocked at the request, he could not deny the earnestness in his son's eyes. Santos then nodded and told his son he would be happy to teach him all he knew.
"Thank you, father," Leonardo said, smiling widely. "I'm sorry if I was rude just now--I was nervous. Can you forgive me?"
Santos sighed, put his hands on Leonardo's shoulders and looked him square in the eyes.
"You are my flesh and blood," Santos said. "There is nothing you could do that is unforgivable to me. Nothing."
Leonardo blushed as his father said these words. This newfound relationship was everything he'd always hoped it would be, since he was a boy. Finally, he had a father. And not only that--but his father was a president!
And so, from that day on, Santos took Leonardo with him when he went out searching for Blanca, and along the way, he told his son everything he knew about being an excellent president. Leonardo listened closely and carried around a notepad, so he could jot down every detail of his father's wise words. Highlights included: "Be nice, but also scary," "Choose your signature animal wisely," and of course, "Presentation is everything."
One evening, after days of searching the island together, Santos and Leonardo wound up on the beach. Santos was in the middle of an important story about the time he escaped from a group of hungry hyenas, but he paused when he saw the great ocean before him. As he took in the endless horizon, he prayed for some sign that Blanca was alive. And then, miraculously, his prayers were instantly answered! In the distance, Santos could see something floating in the water. He squinted as the object moved towards him.
"Leonardo," Santos said. "What does that floating object look like to you?"
"A fantastic leopard coat?" Leonardo asked.
"My God, it is," Santos said, almost in tears.
Sure enough, the coat shortly washed ashore. Santos grabbed it from the water and held it close to him.
"It smells just like her," Santos said. "Aside from the overwhelming seaweed stench."
Santos knew the coat meant one of two things: either, Blanca was dead, or she had been kidnapped and taken to sea and so she dropped her coat in the water as a message to let Santos know where to find her. Santos instantly decided it was the latter.
"I must leave, my son," Santos said. "Blanca is clearly out at sea, and I have to find her."
It was at this moment that Santos noticed a shift in his son's behavior. Within an instant, Leonardo turned icy cold.
"I understand," Leonardo said, not meeting Santos' eyes. "Of course, before you leave, I'll have to ask you to sign this..."
Leonardo swiftly lifted a ten-page document out of his back pocket.
"Which ensures that I am next in line for the presidency," Leonardo said, confidently.
Santos laughed at that. He could not sign, for Leonardo was not at all ready! Besides, Santos didn't have time to entertain this silly matter any longer. He had to find his love.
That night, Santos slept in his son's house one last time before leaving on his long journey. Meanwhile, downstairs, Leonardo furiously told his wife what had happened. Santos was leaving him once again-- and once again, for one of his "passions!" And on top of that, he wasn't going to promise him the presidency? Lauretta rubbed her husband's back, trying to calm him down. And after a few moments of fantastic back rubbing, Leonardo realized something. He didn't need his father's stupid signature! He was Santos' only son, by blood-- and he knew from all of Santos' lectures that North Ecuaduras was a traditional country that highly valued bloodlines. Surely, if he could just make it there, the North Ecuadurasian people would grow to love him. Leonardo looked at his wife as he made a decision: he would take over the minute Santos died, with or without his blessing. The only question was... when would that be?
The next morning, Santos readied himself for his journey at the crack of dawn. He was about to leave a "thank you note" in the kitchen when Leonardo surprised him. He smiled and offered Santos some coffee before his trip, but Santos politely declined. Leonardo then insisted he walk his father to the docks for one final goodbye.
Once they were near the sea, Santos walked ahead of Leonardo, eager to begin his journey. But then, he stopped and looked back at his son. He felt badly that he was leaving him, yet again, and he wanted to make things right.
"Leonardo," Santos said, calling behind him. "You are my son. And now that I've found you, I will not let you go."
Leonardo's eyes began to water as his father said the words he'd been hoping he would say all his life. But still, he was angry.
"You cheated with my mother's half-sister's half-sister," Leonardo said, overwhelmed with years of hostility.
"I know, but still-- "
"There is no 'but still.' My whole life has been leading up to this moment," Leonardo said. His eyes were wet with tears, but that did not stop his legs, which moved slowly, methodically, towards his father. Santos sensed that Leonardo's anger was growing, and he tried to quell his rage.
"I thought I had lost you forever," Santos said. "But I never stopped hoping I would find you."
Leonardo continued walking towards him, not hearing a word out of Santos' mouth.
"And now that you're here-- together at last-- I will never lose you again," Santos continued, hoping to convince him.
When Leonardo finally reached his father, he was staring daggers into his eyes. Their faces were so close together that Santos could feel Leonardo's breath on his cheek.
"I'm not going anywhere, father," Leonardo said. "I'm here to stay. But I can't say the same for you."
And then, out of nowhere, Leonardo pulled a knife out of his back pocket and stabbed Santos in the stomach! Santos' knees buckled below him as he fell to the ground, screaming in pain. As Leonardo watched his father bleed, time seemed to slow down around him, and he instantly regretted his actions.
"Oh God, what have I done? What have I done?!" Leonardo cried, bending down to hold his father's dying body. "I'm sorry, my father," he said, cradling Santos in his arms.
Santos held his gaping wound as he looked at Leonardo.
"You are my flesh and blood," Santos said, repeating the words he said to him just a few days ago. "There is nothing you could do that is unforgivable to me. Nothing." Santos choked from the pain as he said his last words. "I forgive you, my son."
And there, gasping in the arms of his long-lost son, Santos...appeared... to die.
However.
What Leonardo didn't know, is that Santos had anticipated that Leonardo might try to murder him that morning... and perhaps he wore a bullet-proof vest at the time of the incident... and so it is possible that Santos was not really bleeding to death in the arms of his son... but perhaps, he was very much alive.