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The Butcher of Barrios (part cuatro) |
| Written by r.e.potter | |
| Wednesday, 06 August 2008 | |
Flying over the Pacific in this dying heap of metal I begin reflecting on my own pathetic life. Where did it all start to go bad? What led me to the Mexican mafia anyway? The answers don't come easy as I look back over to Carmelita who's now begun to cry for her own pathetic life. I reach out to give her comfort but she pulls her hand away in disgust, but I'm not surprised. I should be mad at this woman for betraying me the way she did. But I should be even madder at myself for still loving her the way I do. I watch as her mascara rolls down her face and then across her hand as she smudges it away, and even if she isn't crying for me, maybe i'll cry for her. I get up out of my chair to look for anything; anything that might help us to survive the inevitable. I'm just about to move out from the pilots' cabin when I see movement coming from under the corner console, and it smells like a rat. I was right. It's Manny the MidgetMan.
So what should I do?
The one thing I didn't do earlier, and that's trust him. My gut reaction is to finish off the job the pilot thought that he had already done. But like I told ya earlier, ol' Manny here's one tuff son of a *****. I guess the pilot didn't know or he would have held the fish wire snug a little longer around his thick neck. I reach down and grab him by his collar in a fit of rage and pull him out easily into the passenger isle. I'm wondering what to do with him when I look up and see the open door to the craft and I slide his head out to the open air. His hair is flapping hard in the wind as he looks back inside and sees Santiago's dead body slumped over the chair. He mumbles something as he makes a frantic sign of the cross and then begs me to let him drop. Because either way, he knows he's a dead man.
Should I give him his wish?
Hell no, I pull him back inside the craft shut the door and lock it hard. I have Manny right where I want him. He's a frightened pup and I'm the abusive owner, and I'm about to pull his leach a little tighter. You see Manny doesn't know we're flying on empty, but I know he can fly anything. I also know one other thing; that he's the only pilot we have on board. I tell him if he doesn't do what I ask I'll sell him short to the mob and pin the murder of Santiago straight on him. It's a fate I know he doesn't want. But he says, "they won't believe you, and besides, they all know you took his money." I play it cool but I know he's right. I'm just about to go to plan B, a plan I don't have when a voice behind me speaks out. "Well they'll believe me Manny," Carmelita says as she appears from out the cabin. I watch him as his face changes expressions because he knows they will, and also because he thought Carmelita was falling for him. I know how he feels being doubled crossed by a dame but I don't have time to feel bad for him now, maybe tomorrow. I tell him if he lands this bird safely will find the money and split it sixty-forty. It's funny, but his only choice is our only hope. He takes me up on the offer but then I knew he would. Money has a funny way of making you think, same with broads. Because just when my heart couldn't take anymore drama; Carmelita surprises me as she pushes me against the wall and lays a hard wet kiss on me. I don't buy into her knew found love but I stay with the kiss nonetheless. As sweet as her kiss is I'm also wondering if it's not the kiss of death as well. Because I know she may be up to something and she can't be trusted. It's something I probably should worry about now; but I pick later and stay with the kiss while Manny takes the seat and takes control of the plane.
Are we headed for a happy ending?
Maybe, but one thing I've come to realize about happy endings is that there not meant for men like me. Because I know we're deep over the Pacific Ocean and squeezing a tank that has to be borderline fumes by now. I move into the co-pilots seat and Manny takes this time to tell me that he had no choice but to double cross me, he had orders. I look him in the eyes and tell him only one thing, fly or die. But before he could even respond; my happy ending runs out of gas as the engine to the craft begins to sputter.
So what now?
Brace for impact would be the smartest thing. But we're crashing down deep into the Pacific so what's the point. The plane is still sputtering trying to hang on and oddly enough, as long as it's making noise I have a sense of hope. But then I know hope is only a fool's tool into believing the impossible. Manny looks over and tells me we're out of gas, and I tell him no ****. Just then it all goes quiet as the engine finally stops and all hope is gone. I look back to Carmelita and she's holding the hand of a dead man, Santiago's. I realize then that she never would have been mine. Like I told you before; men like me aren't meant to be happy. As we glide through the clouds in silence; Manny yells something that brings me back to reality. "Pull the lever, pull the goddamn lever." My head is racing with so many thoughts I have no idea what he's saying. He yells it again and this time I hear as he points to a lever on the panel in front of me. I pull it and then he fires back up the engine and takes control of the plane. It's the tank reserve. He laughs but he's the only one who is. As he turns the plane around to head for land I watch Carmelita as her mascara begins to roll down her face again and I begin thinking to myself. Who was I to believe I could ever take her from him? I took so much from him. A man who would have given me anything and I chose his wife. Even when he had his gun pressed tight to my gut; I know how hard it would have been for him to have pulled the trigger. But he had no choice; I knew he had to honor the code.
So what's my next move?
I'm not sure. But as I continue to look over to Santiago I think back to my childhood days when my older brother and I would play in our front yard and dream of a life beyond all possibilities. We were gonna rule the world; funny how things turn out in the end. But there's nothing I can do to bring back the past or even my older brother.
My brother...Santiago
Copyright 2008 r.e.potter |
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| Last Updated ( Wednesday, 06 August 2008 ) |
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