Once her bonds were cut, Jacinta reached up and let her hair down, grateful that at least some
of it would hide her suspicious gaze. This man did not seem like the type her mother would have
gotten involved with. He was...creepy. She wondered why in the world he would be wearing
sunglasses when there was obviously no sun to be seen.
She decided then that if she were going to speak, she'd only do so in her native Spanish. No
one else needed to know what she had to say.
She was silent for a long moment and then said with an edge of sarcasm, "You want to know
more about me? You want to know how you left my mother for no reason and how much you hurt
her? You want to know how we had to scrape a living to get by on our own? Or do you want to know
how I was always wondering where the hell you were?"
The man endured her outburst very patiently. "Yes, I'm sorry for all of that. But you have to
realize that your mother...well, she was quite different in ways I'd never imagined..."
Jacinta rolled her eyes and shot back, "Yeah, I already know and whether you like it or not,
I have part of that blood in me. Why don't you just go back to where to you came from? I don't know
you."
The man seemed wounded. "You have to realize, Jacinta, that it was frightening to me when
I found out what your mother was. I didn't know how to deal with it. I was young and naive. I didn't
even know I had a child until recently. But I'd like to put that all behind me, to start over again.
Would you at least give me that?"
Her eyes smoldered, but part of her did feel a twinge of pity for him. Still...
"So why the bounty hunter?"she asked, her tone softening a little and sidestepping his
question. "I don't think that was the best way to do this."
The man nodded to Sara. "She's the best in the business. Besides, when I found out you had
been kidnapped..."
Jacinta interrupted with a sharp, mocking laugh. "Kidnapped? Please! I ran away and not
without good reason." She sighed irritably. "So, are we done now?"
"Done?" the man said in confusion. "But we've only just met. I know you're angry with me,
and you have every right to be, but don't you think you should come home now and we can try being
a real family?"
*How dare he scold me like a child?* Jacinta thought. *He doesn't know anything!* "I have
a home, thank you, and you don't belong there. Maybe if you had bothered to find us a few years ago,
it would have been possible. Maybe I would have even liked it." She stood up in a brisk, businesslike
manner and shook her head. "I really don't have anything more to say to you. You missed your
chance. If you think that we can just start all over and pretend like nothing happened, then you're
more wrong than you know. Mom and I have been through too much. She was there for me when
I needed her but you never were. As far as I'm concerned, I never had a father and I don't need one."
________________________
Sara listened to the rapid-fire Spanish, noticing that the two seemed to be getting along. That
was before the last exchange, and the man seemed to deflate. Turning to Sara, he nodded. "Your
contract is fulfilled. Your money is inside, and I'll get it for you."
Turning into the room, he reached out and grabbed a suitcase, which he gave to Sara. Sara
nodded, checking the money inside the case to make sure that it was authentic. Smiling to herself,
she snapped the case closed and looked at Jacinta. "So, it's your move. Do you want to go back
now?"
Jacinta nodded, looking out towards the sky. "Yeah. I don't think there's anything else to talk
about."
Sara nodded, pointing towards Jose. "Well, there's your significant other." Sara and Jacinta
leaped over to the rooftop, landing about ten feet away from Jose. Just as Jacinta turned and started
moving towards Jose, she felt Sara's hand on her arm. "Wait up for a second. I want to give you
something."
"What? It's not like you did anything useful for me tonight." Jacinta shook off Sara's hand,
turning to walk away.
"I want to apologize. I saw how you looked at Jose when I pulled the gun on you, and I am
sincerely sorry about what I had to do. Here. You look like you'd need it more than I do, and I hope
to meet you again. Maybe I can teach you something about your sword fighting." Sara gave Jacinta
back her katana, and then pressed the case of money into the surprised girl's hands.
"By the way, try to keep him out of trouble. I don't want to fight everyone I meet anymore."
Raising her hand, Sara waved Jose over to where the two women stood, and then left the two alone,
leaping off into the darkness of the city.
Epilogue:
Jacinta stared in wide-eyed shock as Sara vanished into the night. She had never expected
anything along the lines of an apology or even sympathy. Yet here she stood, the bounty of said
hunter in her own grasp.
*She gave me her reward money.* She thought, feeling the weight of the suitcase dragging
her arm down. *I can't believe it...*
She waited until Sara was out of sight and then turned toward Jose, whose eyes were also the
size of saucers. She walked stiffly towards him, and the Fixed Idea came to assist her with the
suitcase. "What was that all about?" Jose asked.
Jacinta ran a hand through her hair. "Well, it turns out my father was out looking for me. He
sent that woman to come "rescue" me from your evil clutches."
Jose started, then let out a delighted scornful laugh. "Rescued? Please!" He grew serious
again. "Your...father, you said? But..."
She held up her hand to stay the oncoming question. "I know, I know. He wanted me to go
back with him and start over. He wanted us to be like the family we never were. I told him it was too
late. I already had a family." She smiled at him a bit sadly. "I really would have liked that, you know.
But too much has happened."
He slipped his hand into hers. "I'll say. From now on, don't go outside for practice."
A/N: This is a collaboration between Black Inque and myself, and I think that we did a damn good
job at producing something that is both revealing and action-packed. Besides, when would these two
ever meet in any other way?