Chapter 6
"Okay, are you in position?" A voice came through my phone. I stood at the corner of a supermarket's parking lot.
"Yeah," I answered.
"Alright. El Curso is on your way," Maria informed me before hanging up. I waited there, trying to look as casual as possible. After a day of planning, we had decided that today was the day that the crime boss recognized me.
As planned, not a minute later, a tall man came running out of nowhere with two "policemen" after him. This guy was wearing a muscle shirt, so I could see his arms covered with tattoos. El Curso looked like a mean old dude, but I had to pay attention for the right moment. Soon enough, El Curso ran through the parking lot and to the back of the supermarket. I called off the working actors so I could come in. I then followed the tattooed criminal back there.
When I found him, he seemed to have been waiting out for the police, as he hid behind a dumpster and a tree. I walked closer and began lying.
"Hey, are you okay?" I asked, worriedly staring at the man in front of me. He glared at me lightly.
"No, didn't you see the cops after me?!" He hissed. I frowned.
"Hey… I know you, you're all over the news, man!" I chuckled like I was congratulating him. He rolled his eyes.
"Does that mean you're going to turn me in, huh?" I raised an eyebrow.
"No, man. I can help you out," I told him. His eyebrows shot up in surprise, but then he narrowed them in suspicion. I held up my hands passively. "I'm no trouble, promise. It's an honor to actually meet you, you're so famous! Anyway, I just thought I could help a fellow criminal out."
"You're a criminal?" He skeptically asked me, giving me a quick scan. I nodded.
"Now come on before the police come back. Unless you want to be thrown into prison?" He followed me after a moment of hesitancy. I led him down the back alley that connected to all the stores. We ran for a while until we reached another parking lot where my car (it was a rental, I'm poor, remember?) awaited us. We hopped inside before driving off in the opposite direction of the police. The tension between us was a little awkward so I decided to break the ice. "So… why are the cops after you?"
El Curso looked at me with a tough expression. I would have assumed he wouldn't have told me but he surprisingly grunted and began to explain. "Someone ratted my crew out for a trade," he said.
I nodded, now understanding what Maria did.
"So why'd you help me?" He asked. I shrugged nonchalantly.
"Well, to be honest, I was kinda hoping that I can join your family or crew," I said. El Curso pulled out a cigar and a lighter before lighting it. He offered it to me but I shook my head. Ugh, I hate smoking. As the crime boss puffed out large clouds of smoke, he furrowed his eyebrows.
"And how should I trust you?" He questioned. "How do I know you're not with the police?"
"I was a bodyguard, but never really a part of the force," I lied. "Those jerks killed my brother so I quit a while back and now I want payback. I heard that you're one of the biggest and toughest people in all of L.A., so I thought I could join you. I'm turning over a new leaf, I guess you could say."
El Curso smirked at me, a mischievous action that spread the same feeling through my body. "You're a little young but I could see that there's more to you than meets the eye," he chuckled. "You have some potential in you, kid, and I could use that. Plus, you did save me from the coppers back there."
I smirked.
"Alright, how about you come over to my place tonight and I'll see what I could do if you want to be a part of the group," El Curso suggested. He handed me a card, which supplied his phone number and address. It also had a gold symbol on it. I dropped him off at a specific location per his request. We both bid our silent goodbyes before I drove away. At once, I called Maria. She picked up almost instantly.
"Well you're not dead yet so that's a good sign," was the first thing she said. I rolled my eyes amusingly. "How'd it go?"
"It went well. I'm meeting him at his place tonight," I smiled. She laughed enthusiastically.
"That's great! If he's already inviting you over, that means he likes you or has taken interest in your ability," she explained. I pulled into my driveway before getting off and making my way to my house. "So, want to come over to prepare?"
"Nah, I want to get some rest before I head over there," I declined. I tossed my keys on the cabinet near the front door before walking over to the fridge. I pulled out a bottle of water then made my way to my room. "Don't worry, I remember my training when I became a bodyguard."
"Oh." She sounded a little disappointed, but I didn't pay much attention to it. I sat on my crappy bed and placed my bottle on the bedside table. "Well, tell me how it goes tomorrow."
"Okay. Bye." Then we hung up. I sighed tiredly before settling myself on my bed. I stared at the blank white ceiling. It was prickly and bare, completely boring. It was quiet in my room and the entire house, nothing made a sound and it was driving me crazy. Then, an idea came to mind.
"Oh. It's gonna be a big night, we're gonna have a good time. It's gonna be a big big big big big okay this is getting sad," I frowned at the sad attempt. I blew out a heavy sigh as I squeezed my eyes shut and willed myself to go to sleep.
Many many sheep. One fluffy sheep hops the fence. Two fluffy sheep hop the fence. Three fluffy sheep hop the fence. Four shaved sheep hop the fence. Five cold-shaved sheep hop the fence. Six miserable shaved sheep hop the fence. Seven depressed bleeding sheep hop the gate. Eight angry bleeding sheep hop the spiked gate. Nine scared tailless sheep hop the burning gate. Ten dead sheep laid on top of the spiked burning gate.
"AH!" I screamed, snapping awake instantly. My eyes frantically looked around the room until I settled back on the boring (it's empty) ceiling. I tried to calm my nerves, even my heavy breathing. I bit my lip as I remembered that horrific dream. It has been the same for a while – ever since I moved here, I've had weird and disturbing dreams. They won't stop and it's driving me crazy!
I took a deep breath. It's okay (it'll never be okay), it's alright. It was just a dream. I harshly rubbed my face to snap me awake, but I decided to drink some water instead. I pulled out my phone and checked the time.
It's 7:30 already?! I was asleep (trapped) for two hours? I shook my bewilderment away as I quickly shot out of my bed, but I immediately regretted it when black dots cloud my vision. After that moment passed, I went to go get my keys. Once I left the house and got into the rental, I drove like a maniac toward the address on the business card. Hm, who knew that even drug dealers had a life.
After an hour of driving in L.A. traffic and half an hour of trying to find the stupid address, I've made it to El Curso's apartment building. It was huge and expensive looking.
"How could I have missed that?" I mumbled aloud. I got off and went inside. It was just as nice as I had imagined it two seconds ago. I looked at the card again and, thankfully, there was a room number. Surprisingly, it was the penthouse. When I got there, two large bodyguards stood by the door. They were like the duplicates of Freight Train, which obviously scared me.
"Hey, fellas," I squeaked as I stood in front of them. They towered over me menacingly. "Um, I'm here to see… El Curso."
They seemed to get even angrier. They smashed their bodies together to completely block the door.
"No entry," they said in unison, their deep gruff voices sent shivers down my back.
"Actually, he said to meet him here," I retorted weakly. I showed them the business card he handed me. One of them snatched the card from my fingers and inspected the item. He showed it to the other guard before they both looked at me.
"Do you have any weapons?" The one on the right asked roughly. I did have a gun, it was in my pants. But I couldn't just throw away my means of protection. So I shook my head. They looked at me for a long moment, so long in fact that I started to believe that they were robots that ran out of batteries. It wouldn't be a surprise if those two were genetically mutated to make them look so big and mean. But then they finally stepped aside to give me enough room. As the left one opened the door, I looked at them skeptically.
There was only a sliver of room to let me pass. I sighed quietly before glancing at the two jerky guards then back at the door. I squished my way past them, suddenly feeling them slowly close the gap I had while half of my body was trapped between their bodies. I squirmed frantically but I successfully managed to free myself. I dusted off my clothes, jumping a bit when the door slammed behind me. I rolled my eyes and looked at the interior of the home.
It was ridiculously awesome. It was clean, fancy, and expensive. There's even a shark tank! I ran over and observed the aquarium, so absorbed in the swimming fishies that I failed to hear someone walk next to me. It was too late when I turned to my left.
"Woah!" I exclaimed, jumping back slightly. El Curso smiled lightly. He looked completely different from when I last saw him. He wore a clean vanilla suit with black shoes. His face wasn't dirty and sweaty anymore, instead, it was clean. His black short beard was fluffed up along with his hair and, now that his face is cleaner, I could properly see multiple scars on his face.
"It's good to see you, kid," he chuckled. If I didn't know this guy was a criminal, I would have thought he was a real nice man. "Sorry for scaring ya. I could see that you took interest in my pets."
"Pets?" I repeated disbelievingly. "That's a shark. That's awesome!"
He laughed light-heartedly. "Yeah, she's a sweet girl too." He then led me to his brown leather couch. As I sat down he made his way to a table, on it were various bottles of liquor and glass cups. He turned to me. "Want a glass?"
I hesitated. I need to get on his good side, which means I need to be like him. If he sees that we're more in common, I could gain his trust faster. "Yeah, uh, please."
He nodded before pouring out the beverages in two glasses. Once done, he brought them over, handed one to me, and sat down across from me.
"So, I didn't catch your name…," he trailed off.
"Oh, my name is Carlos Garcia, coincidentally," I chuckled.
"I see you don't need to change your name," he chuckled. "You already know me and what I do. Can I ask you why you want to be a part of the family? We aren't exactly the nicest people."
"As I said, someone killed my brother and I want revenge against the police. Why I want to be a part of your group is for… another personal reason. I wanted another life that I could be proud of, I guess," I explained seriously. He stared at me for a moment before nodding in understanding.
"Trust me, I felt the same way when I took over my father's legacy. When he died, I wanted to prove to myself that I could be better than him. But everyone always compared me to someone else, no matter what I did. So when I took charge, I made it my goal so that people knew my name, not my father's," El Curso sighed. He took a swig of his drink while I stared down at mine. I swirled the yellowish-brown liquid.
"I tried everything to get anyone to notice me back before I moved to L.A.," I laughed lightly. "I get it. I've never had a girlfriend, no proper job, no reason to even be special. I knew I wasn't and a lot of people made sure of that. I was just the stupid helmet-wearing teenager of Minnesota, who was immature and dreamed too big."
"I guess we share something in common," El Curso smiled softly. I returned it. It wasn't fake, I wasn't acting at the moment. What I said was true and that smile was genuine. I can see why Maria hasn't left him yet because even though he's a criminal, he can understand what I'm going through.
"Why do they call you El Curso anyway?" I raised an eyebrow. I took a small sip of my drink, but I nearly spit it back out. Oh yeah, it was alcohol.
"'El Curso' means The Curse," he frowned. "Like all names, you are given them. My mother thought I was a curse to the family because of my father's death. But I kept the name to show no fear, even what others think of me."
I stayed silent, pondering about what he said.
"I can see a lot of potential in you as I said before," he spoke up again. We both made eye contact. "You're like me when I was young and now I can help you become who you really are."
"What do you mean?" My eyebrows raised in confusion.
"My business isn't just about selling drugs, mijo. I made the Garcia family better by giving life to those who want a change," he explained. "Many of my people were imprisoned in their own homes and minds. I helped them break free and escape. I helped them realize how strong they could be. The drugs... that's how I get by. But when it comes to other people, I help them grow."
I grew quiet again.
"And I want to help you grow too. I want to make you into who you really are meant to be," he said sincerely. "You are like me but you can do better."
I'm not like him. He's a criminal and I'm a cop. I'm nothing like him (are you sure?) because I don't sell drugs and resort to violence. But I have to play the part (are you really acting?) just so I can get on his good side. So I nodded and he smiled. He reached out his glass halfway across the coffee table.
"Let's make a toast," he proposed. "To the growing family."
I forced a smile and held out my glass. "To the growing family."
The glasses clicked before we both gulped down the rest of our drinks. I nearly vomited, but I held my ground and swallowed the nasty liquid that left a burning taste in my mouth.
"It's getting late. I think you should get back home," El Curso suggested. We both went to the front door, but then he held out his hand. "It was good to meet you, Carlos. And thank you for helping me out earlier."
"Honestly, you're not what I expected. You're a really nice man," I smiled as I shook his hand. "So does that mean…?"
"You'll have to prove yourself more if you want to climb up the family ranks," he chuckled. "I'll call you in a few days so you can get started. Hasta luego, chico."
"Later." After squishing past the security guards and leaving the building entirely, I sighed in content. Today went… well. Nothing bad happened, which is a good sign. I honestly think that El Curso is a fake because no crime boss would ever be that nice to anyone. It was the first day and I've learned a lot about him.
(So alike) I wonder what he means that we are the same. We did share how people thought of us but nothing more. It made me ponder as I drove over to Maria's. I had to tell her everything he told me so we can properly make a plan.
Somehow, even when there doesn't seem to be a problem, a hint of doubt crept into my mind. I didn't know what I'm second-guessing (Liar) but I ignored it. There's nothing to worry about and soon enough, everything will go back to normal.
(Right?)
TBC...