Lesson One
HENDRIX
Three.
Several more blows to my face and chest and blood seeps from my mouth like it's the fountain of bad decisions.
Four.
Another kick to the gut and one of my father's valuable lessons begins to dwindle from my thoughts.
Papa always said to count when you find yourself against a wall with nowhere to go. He said focusing your thoughts on something simple and repetitive keeps you from feeling the pain inflicted.
Fuck, I miss him.
"Have you had enough, boy? Or should I scatter your blood all over this floor like the fucking puddle of stupidity that you are?" He grips my shirt in his fist and shoves me against the cement wall.
Attempting to keep my eyes open, my body flails back and forth, struggling to look the Mexican scum in the eyes. "You'll pay for w--hat you've done to my family." I manage to mumble through the trauma, sending my body several warnings that I'm not going to make it out of this alive.
Fuck, how did I end up here?
Just a few years ago, I was so sure of where my life was headed. I had my career figured out. My brother Hansel took his place as mafia king. Life was looking up after losing two of my uncles. Then my father. My hero. The man who had all the answers vanished.
And Hendrix Vasquez died along with him.
"I haven't done shit to your family, Hendrix. I told your brother we would stay out of your way, but now that you're here. I'm sure Hansel will understand why I had to kill you. Don't you think?"
"That's a load of shit. There's always one rotten egg that comes out of you fucks. It'll never end." I shout, feeling the painful weight of my words. "If it wasn't for Salvador my Papá would still be alive and that's something you'll pay for until I kill every last one of you motherfuckers."
"And how do you think you're going to do that? From where I'm standing, you're pretty outnumbered." He chuckles as I glance around at the other four men in the dimly lit room. Their guns holstered on their hips, black suits dress the rest of their soon to be corpses along with matching black masks draped over their mouths. Like they're trying to hide the marks of disdain that are drawn all over their hideous faces.
"I'm not afraid of you, Eduardo. I've been tailing your ass for weeks and you know what? You're about as weak as my left nut. Although it serves a purpose, it ain't good enough to get the job done." I spit out, flexing the muscle in my jaw.
Smirking from his surprised expression, I try to figure out my next plan of attack. I've been scoping out Eduardo Ambriz's operation for weeks now. I thought it would be an easy takedown, but clearly, I underestimated the strength of the fucking asshole. A few punches later and I wound up in the basement of some warehouse. The place reeks like beans and fucking piss. A nasty combination that I'm glad my blood is masking the stench of right now.
"Ah, the boys got jokes now." His henchmen snicker as he glances at them. "Alright, let's put your fists where your mouth is, hotshot." He releases his grip on my shirt and I stumble forward, bending at the waist to catch my breath.
Although I don't have much experience in brawling, the rage that feeds my hot headed warfares has seen me through many victories over the last several months. These five dumbasses in front of me are the last heirs of Salvador Ambriz and I'll die fighting to end every one of them because that's what a Vasquez man does. He looks fear in the eye and tells it to fuck off. Dying in the name of avenging my Papá's death is more honorable than anything I'll ever do in my lifetime.
Eduardo takes off his jacket and tosses it aside. Rolling up his sleeves, he steps closer to me. "If you can defeat me, I'll let you kill the rest of my men."
"¡Qué carajo, jefe!" (what the fuck, boss) His men shout as he chuckles.
"Dije sí malditos idiotas. No hay forma de que tenga la resistencia para igualarme." (I said 'if', ya fucking morons. There's no way he has the stamina to match me)
"I wouldn't be so sure, Eduardo," I fire back, stretching out my neck and readying my fighting stance. Spitting a wad of blood onto the cement floor, I step forward and gaze into his devious eyes. "Bring it on, bitch."
He chuckles as I watch his body move and carefully pace myself. Although this fight is entirely unfair because he beat my ass to a pulp moments ago, I would be a coward if I didn't go into this with determination.
Eduardo's fist comes flying at me first as I slide to the left. Tightening my fist, I throw my first punch as my arm knicks the sweaty skin on his cheek. "Not bad. Not bad." He swipes his fingers through his beard and I take the opportunity to lift my foot and jab it into his gut. He grunts and staggers backward, his eyes full of fury as he regains strength and stomps towards me with his fists flying.
I'll admit the fucker has a good arm, but there's just one problem with how he operates. He's messy as fuck. Eduardo's loose fists cause his blows to soften and he loses the sharp hold he could have over his opponent.
Missing the next few swipes at him, he catches me off guard and flips me backward by tripping my ankle. "Ah, fuck!" I shout as my head slams against the cement.
"You put up a good fight, Vasquez. I'll give you that." He squeezes his boot against my neck and pushes down as one of his men's phones rings, forcing him to look towards the sound.
"Fucking turn that shit off!" He shouts. Using the distraction to my advantage, I grab his boot and twist the fuckers foot causing him to fall to the ground. The sound of his skull hitting the pavement is music to my ears as I scramble and jump on top of him. Securing his arms back with my knees, I deliver blow after blow. Chuckling as the blood spews from his lying mouth, I hear my victory bell ringing in the distance.
Every time I get the pleasure of ending a lowlife scumbag, I feel more powerful than I ever have. It wasn't until I opened the can of badassery that my true self started to shine. All those years of not answering my family's call. Sitting on the sidelines picking up the emotional pieces and lending a listening ear, I finally realize why Mama and Papa love what they do. They, too, feel as empowered as I do. Ending a life that would do more harm than good is unbelievably satisfying.
"Fuck!" One of the men shouts as a gunshot fires in the distance. Glancing towards the noise, I'm suddenly taken by surprise as an intense tingle forms in my stomach.
Looking down, I see the silver plated handle of a knife sticking out of my abdomen. The pain quickly starts to subdue all my thoughts. "You were never going to walk out of here alive, Hendrix. I hope you burn in hell for all the lives you've taken." Eduardo spits out, shoving me to the side.
"You son of a bitch..." I breathe out, getting to my knees. Attempting to stand up, the fucker kicks me in the gut and my body flies towards the bricked wall. Another gunshot fires off, but this time sounds closer.
"What are you fuckheads standing there for?! Go see what's going on!" Eduardo shouts as he spits more of his dirty blood onto the floor.
I can't believe the motherfucker shanked me! It just goes to show that none of them can be trusted. Their mouths are so full of lies even the devil himself would spit these fucking thugs back out.
Struggling to get to my feet, I use the wall for support and try to tear off a piece of my white tee. Biting the inside of my cheek, I pull the knife out and growl like a predator, injured from fighting his arch nemesis.
Seeing the blood spill out from my wound, I apply pressure as Eduardo staggers towards me and jabs his knee into my laceration. "Fuck! Don't be fucking a pussy! Kill me, you coward!" My voice trembles with agony as I try to keep my eyes locked on him.
Feeling lightheaded as Eduardo struggles to speak, I suddenly hear the door get blown open as my body falls sideways. Giving in to the weight pressed on my eyelids, I shut them for a second and another gunshot greets my ears.
Flickering my eyes open and shut, I feel a strong pair of arms flip me onto my back. Attempting to focus on the figure in front of me, my eyes feel like they're betraying me. "Papá...?"
"You're safe, my boy. Hold on..."
