A few days later, the feeling of uncertainty had evolved into tension. The problem with Alonzo Mendez was most definitely a concern for the entirety of the Delrio/Gill household.
Momo spent even more time away from the house, feeling less safe at Vinnie's place. Phillip was also acting off, seeing his parents constantly bickering back and forth was a bit alarming for the 4 year old toddler.
Nora was very isolated from the rest of the members of the household, still going out during the day to distribute some product to pay off her debts.. It seemed as though her relationship with Vinnie had been fractured, though for pretty valid reasons.
Still, the Brazilian war veteran couldn't help but feel bad about the way he went off on her. After all they had been through, he felt as though this situation wasn't worth burning bridges over. But considering that his fiancé's older cousin decided to do business with a ruthless. cold-blooded cartel leader from the coastal hellscape of Palm Ocean City, while also putting them in potential danger, made it feel a bit justified in the end.
He decided to pay a visit to an old friend, as he was now feeling obligated to keep his guard up. But in order to do so, he needed to pay a visit to a special store in case there was a potential visit from Nora's current employers. He knew exactly who to go to for this.
The sound of a door opening could be heard, alongside a bell lightly ringing.
"Well, howdy." the person behind the counter greeted, having a strong Southern dialect.. He appeared to be a man with ginger hair, a pink shirt, and green pants accompanied by a pair of brown boots. He also wore a teal cap with a logo vaguely resembling that of the confederate flag, though not as explicit. as far as appearance goes.
Vinnie looked at him, giving off the impression that they already knew each other.
"Hey, Scooder." he greeted back. "How's it going?"
The ginger redneck shook his head, seeming down.
"It's been pretty slow here lately." he stated. "Ever since that darn celebri-jerky stayed in my trailer park, I can't think straight. Son of a bitch caused a lot of problems for the community. I'm sure he was the bastard who brought that dang old snake with him and it ended up in my trailer."
"I bet." he replied, now eyeing the many guns on display behind him, in which Scooder noticed.
"So, I reckon you need some more protection?" he asked.
"More like better protection." Vinnie replied.
Scooder looked at him, gently stroking his chin. "So, whatcha need it for? Bears? Raccoons? Deer? Gators?"
The Brazilian shrugged, knowing it would sound outrageous.
"Cartel Members." he stated.
"Ah," the redneck replied, turning around to face the gun wrack behind him. "In that case, I recommend the-"
In the middle of his speech, the redneck immediately spun back around, catching onto what Vin just said. "C-CARTEL MEMEBERS?!"
He slowly nodded in embarrassment. I expected a reaction like that...
Scooder eyed him intensely, looking very alarmed.
"Vinnie Boy, what in God's name have you gotten yourself into?"
The Brazilian war veteran glared at him. "More like: What has NORA gotten me into?"
Scooder looked very confused. "Whatcha mean?"
Ugh, should I explain this to him?
"Look, my fiancé's cousin has been living with us for a little bit. She's been trying to get her shit together and find a place of her own. But she keeps fucking up and working with assholes."
"Wait, fiance?" he asked.
Oh shit. Looks like I forgot to tell him.
"Y-Yeah." he replied. "Sorry. I must've forgotten to tell you."
"No worries, buddy." he replied. "Hey, but congratulations on that. Hope she's been good to you."
"Well, yeah. Kyanna's been more than good to me." the Brazilian war veteran stated. "Her cousin, on the other hand, can't stop working with assholes. I know she wants to move out and get her own place, but the field of work she's doing isn't helping."
"Ah," he replied. "Well, that sounds pretty shitty, friend."
Vinnie nodded, looking a bit worried. "I just want what's best for her. But working with a bunch of POC drug traffickers ain't it. Trust me, I know."
"Right." the redneck replied, now grabbing a bottle out from a small refrigerator behind the counter. "Ya want some Doomshine?"
DOOMshine?
The Brazilian looked at it with caution. "What the fuck is that?"
Scooder then opened the bottle and took swig. Just from the smell of it, Vin immediately gagged with disgust.
"Agh!" he shrieked. "Dude, that shit smells like paint stripper."
He then let out a huge belch. "Eh, but this shit sure takes the edge off. Might help ya forget about them cartel members, eh?"
Vin rolled his eyes. This guy's got problems...
"No thanks. I'm good on that." he replied, waving his hands. "So, can you hook me up with some firepower or not?"
"Oh, sure." Scooder replied. He then handed him a familiar weapon. It was an assault rifle painted black and had wooden parts all around it. It was an AK-47.
"If you're gonna fight the cartel, you're gonna need something like this. And because I'm in a good mood now, I'm gonna give it to ya for half the price."
Vinnie was baffled by this. He's giving me an AK for half the price? I guess that alcohol made him a bit more considerate... Or stupid.
"Jeez, errrr... Thanks, Scooder."
"Not a problem." the redneck replied, taking another swig of his Doomshine.
"Ugh, you should really slow down with that stuff." the Brazilian stated. "It could kill you."
He let out a chuckle. "S-Shush yourself, Vinnie. By the way, if you see Catfish on your way out... T-Tell him my father was an assholeeee... thump!"
Vin shook his head, astounded by Scooder's drunken stupidity, who was now passed out drunk on the ground.
"I'll see you later, man." he said, leaving the store.
Later that evening, Vinnie arrived at his suburban home.
"What a day." he exclaimed, grabbing his key out and opening the door. He went inside, ready to wind down for the night.
"Kyanna?" he called, wondering where his fiancé was. He then looked at his new assault rifle, knowing she didn't need to see it.
I should hide this thing before she finds it...
The Brazilian war veteran then opened his closet, looking for a place to keep his AK. He decided to stash it behind a shelf inside of the closet, which was a simple shoe rack painted brown.
After putting the gun away, he then went out into the living room, still seeing no sign of his fiancé anywhere.
"Kyanna?" he shouted again, still trying to locate his Hispanic lover. But there was no response. The sheer absence of anyone in his house was extremely alarming to him, as this was a very uncommon occurrence in their household.
Oh no, don't tell me they were kidnapped!
Feeling panicked, Vinnie began to tear the house apart, trying to find any sign of Kyanna, Nora, Phillip, or even Momo. Not having them in the house gave him the feeling that Alonzo Mendez had already paid that visit.
HE TOOK THEM! HE FUCKING TOOK THEM! HE KIDNAPPED AND KILLED THEM AND NOW I HAVE TO PAY FOR IT! KYANNA, I'M SO SORRY! FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!
The Brazilian war veteran forced himself to the ground, now breaking down in tears. His mind was in complete and utter distress. His heart was also beating so fast to where he had a difficulty breathing.
As he laid there, seeming to have another panic attack, it was quelled when he heard the sound of a door opening, as well as footsteps walking towards his direction.
"Honey!" the voice of a familiar Hispanic woman shouted, coming in to see him laying on the floor for no clear reason.
Vin looked up, seeing his fiancé standing over him with a look of concern on her face.
"Kyanna!" he shouted, immediately hopping up from the ground.
She looked at him, wondering what that was all about. "What were you doing on the-?"
However, in mid-sentence, the Hispanic woman took a look into her fiancé's eyes, noticing the slight redness and particles of liquid in them.
"H-Have you been crying?" she bluntly asked.
The Brazilian gently wiped his face, trying to hide any evidence that he had been shedding a few tears.
"N-No." he replied, still trying to get the remains out. "I just tried on some new cologne. Got my allergies all flared up, you know?"
She gave off another concerned look, not buying it.
"Are you alright?" she asked. "Like, really?"
Vinnie put his head down, subtly shaking it. It was made perfectly clear that he was feeling overwhelmed. "No, I'm not."
The Hispanic woman then wrapped her arms around him, giving him a tight hug, as well as a few pecks on the cheek. She knew the current problem with her cousin was getting him all worked up. She knew he needed some kind of comfort.
"It'll be OK, Vinnie." she assured.
"Really?" he replied. "So, your cousin is working for an asshole who could have us killed, and you think it'll be OK?"
The Hispanic looked at him in the eyes.
"Yes." she said, gently rubbing his shoulders, which were very firm. "I know Nora's been out of control lately, but don't let that get in the way of what we're trying to do for ourselves. I mean, we're getting married."
Shit, she could be right. I shouldn't worry so much about Nora's criminal lifestyle. Me and her are getting married. Maybe, planning the wedding will be some sort of light in this darkness.
"I'm sorry, Kyanna." he said, giving an unnecessary apology.
"Sorry? For what?"
He sighed, not so sure himself. "I don't know."
The Hispanic frowned, knowing he was still very troubled in his own mind.
"Hey, it could be be worse: You could've tried to drown yourself in the bath tub."
The Brazilian looked at her, incredibly confused. "What's that supposed to mean?"
She bit her lip, not sure how he would hear the news she was about to break. Should I really tell him?
"L-Let's just forget I said that."
"No, Kyanna." he replied. "What did you mean?"
Kyanna sighed, grabbing her phone out from her pocket. She then opened her messages, the most recent being from a contact labeled Tiffany.
"What I said had to do with your best man, okay?" she added, holding the phone to Vinnie's face so he could read what they said.
He looked at the most recent messages Kyanna received from her blonde friend. His eyes widened at what he was reading, seeming very shocked.
"What the hell?" he exclaimed, not believing what he was reading.
She silently nodded her head. Vinnie scratched his, leaving him with many questions.
"Did I screw up making him the best man?" he asked.
Kyanna looked at him with uncertainty.
"I honestly don't know, Vin. All I know is that he's not mentally stable right now. I suggest you keep an eye on him if you plan on inviting him over again."
He nodded, agreeing with his fiancé. Shit, I didn't think JD had it THAT bad. What the fuck is wrong with him?
The day ended on a pretty sour note. Although the feeling of tension had deteriorated back into uncertainty, there was still so much confusion in the air. Nonetheless, he was at least happy he purchased another gun for his collection, just in in case the Mendez Cartel actually tried anything.