Lex talionis
Chapter 11. Moments of weakness

Although there was still some light in the sky, by the time they reached the metropolitan area of Monterrey, its gleaming skyscrapers were already silhouetted against the black mountain range. It was not New York, but it was still quite a sight. Very different from the clichéd image that used to be pictured as 'México' in movies and TV shows.

They stayed in a discreet motel on the outskirts, taking this time a room for each of them. After freshening up a bit from the trip, they went in search of a cantina where they could have some dinner.

Darío vetoed a couple of places for considering them too quiet and in the end they entered a place animated by music and a festive atmosphere.

·~·~·

After dinner, Darío immediately ordered a bottle of tequila and shot glasses; he wanted to serve all three. It was obvious that he had wanted to let off steam for a while. Turning his glass upside down, Jubal politely declined the invitation. Despite himself, because he wouldn't have minded helping Darío, and Isobel and himself for that matter, to regain their good spirits.

His refusal at first did not sit very well.

"Too uptight to drink?" asked Darío, caustic.

Far from being annoyed, Jubal smiled at him with benevolent resignation. "Too much of an ex-alcoholic, more like."

"Oh, sorry," Darío retracted immediately, making a slight grimace; he hesitated to continue serving.

"But please, knock yourself out," Jubal hastened to assure him. "If you want to drink, go ahead. It's no problem for me."

For her part, Isobel tried to refuse as well. She was not in the mood, still haunted by the same subject she had discussed with Jubal that morning. But to her, Darío would not allow it. He poured her a shot and insisted and insisted until absurdity, making her snort. She ended up accepting one drink; and then some more.

The music, an effervescent Latin beat, was getting the crowd going, and some couples even came out to dance. Darío watched them for a few moments and suddenly stood up, taking Isobel by the hand.

"[Dance with me]" he asked, looking seductively into her eyes.

Isobel shook her head.

"[No, I don't feel like it, Darío...]"

"I won't take no for an answer, baby," he replied, smiling and raising an eyebrow in a pretty good and funny George Clooney impersonation.

Somewhat puzzled, Jubal watched as Darío pulled and take her away, while Isobel made a patient face. Despite her reluctance, when he led her to the narrow space between the tables where other couples were dancing, the two began to move with obvious practice.

It wasn't a complete surprise to Jubal to discover that Isobel could move her whole body to the music like that, but it was a surprise how bewitching she was. She attracted attention in her wide-skirted summer dress. When she began to smile, Jubal was already totally unable to take his eyes off Isobel.

He didn't know why, but the memory of Rina came to his mind then, with that smile she gave him that cold morning, because he had put on the scarf she had given him...

Darío said something to Isobel and she let out a spontaneous laugh. Jubal felt a sudden joy at seeing her like that, in contrast to the shadows that had darkened her beautiful face most of the day. Suddenly, he found himself longing desperately to have been the one to make her laugh that way. A dull, unexpected ache welled up inside his chest.

In his thoughts, moreover, Rina's smile withered and her expression turned sour and spiteful.

·~·~·

Taking her by the waist, Darío pulled Isobel against him. "[Spend the night with me, Isobel]," he proposed, looking at her boldly.

She laughed without taking it seriously. But, after another while of dancing, Darío insisted:

"[Come on, Isobel]," he said, smiling wheedlingly. "[I can make you have a good time.]"

"[It's been a long time since you've really asked me...]" answered Isobel, a bit surprised.

"[I'm single now...]" he explained with a wink.

"[Darío... You just want to get Veronica out of your mind,]" she said flatly.

"[We'd both forget our troubles for one fine evening...]" commented Darío with a mischievous look.

"[Fighting fire with fire, uh?]" mocked Isobel wryly. "[Yes, exactly!]" he replied nonchalantly, bringing his face close to her neck.

Darío's proximity caused Isobel couldn't deny that, physically, he was tempting... but she stopped him. Ceasing the dancing, Isobel broke away without being rude; she looked at him with a rueful smile. "[No, Darío. Tomorrow you'll regret it. This is only a moment of weakness.]"

"[How can I regret finally taking you to bed? That's nonsense]," Darío replied, half laughing. "[I don't want you because I'm having a bad time. I always wanted you.]" It could be seen deep sorrow in his eyes, though.

"[Oh, I know your undying lust is true]," Isobel joked. "[But meanwhile, who do you think you'd be thinking about?]"

"[On you, of course!]" he exclaimed pretending to feel indignant.

At that, she tilted her head to one side, as if asking him for sincerity.

Darío exhaled loudly, with a theatrical air. "[Okay. Maybe you're right...]", he admitted, letting it go. But then he faced Isobel, smiling sarcastically again. "[And what about you? Are you saying that because you'd rather spend the night with Jubal?]"

"[Jubal has nothing to do with this]," Isobel replied -too much- at once. She couldn't stop her cheeks from heating up when the possibility even crossed her mind. Damn tequila.

Darío shot her a knowing glance. "Are you sure of that?" he asked tremendously amused.

"[Absolutely]," she stated categorically. But then she lowered her eyes. "[Besides, he- ]"

Unintentionally, she glanced sideways in the direction of the table... only to find that Jubal was no longer there.

·~·~·

After asking the waitress, who told them that Jubal had left the bill paid, and looking for him in the restroom, the two left the canteen.

Isobel was trying to appear less frantic than she felt; her heart was about to burst out of her mouth. "[He's not picking up the phone]." She managed to sound only very worried. "[Go to the hotel and look for him]" she ordered Darío, assertively. "[I'll look around here.]"

"[Are you kidding? I'm not leaving you alone!]"

"[Darío!]"

Her tone almost brought him to, unwillingly, stand at attention. "[Okay!]" He scowled at her pointing with his index finger. "[But if something happens to you, you're going to get an earful!]"

And he ran away.

With a growing sense of doom, Isobel searched the surrounding streets, asked passersby for him, looked inside bars, but all to no avail.

Darío called to say that Jubal was not at the hotel. Controlling the panic as best she could, Isobel decided they should regroup. Maybe look for him by car. She headed for the hotel.

Meanwhile, she could not prevent the most terrible scenarios from passing through her mind. Vargas's men had kidnapped him. Or the Juárez cartel. Or those who had killed Yáñez, if they were not Juárez's men. To get information out of him, to make him suffer, to kill him, all three... Her nightmares mingled with Kyle's crime scene.

Halfway to the hotel, she turned a corner and saw him there. He was coming from another street, but he was going in the same direction as she was. Jubal was walking slowly, his hands in his pockets. He looked thoughtful, but he was perfectly calm, safe and sound.

Heart pounding, Isobel called his name and he stopped, turning to her as he recognized her voice.

Feeling relief and irritation run over her like two cavalry regiments charging and clashing, one against the other, Isobel approached him at a brisk pace until she caught up with him.

"Hello," said Jubal simply; he was somewhat surprised to see her. "What are you doing here? I thought you were with Darío, that you…" His voice trailed off. That you were going to spend the night with him... he thought, unable to control the pain in his chest. Isobel looked at him blankly. "It doesn't matter." He looked down, ashamed of what he was feeling at that moment.

"What am I doing here? Really?" she then exclaimed, exasperated. "May you tell where you've been?" Isobel's tone rose in volume and scale. "You scared me to death."

Jubal raised his eyes and looked at her quizzically. "I sent you a text," he said, opening his hands. "That I was going back to the hotel. I've been taking a walk. I needed to think."

Isobel's frown could have split stones. "You sent me nothing."

"Yes, I sent it to you," insisted Jubal, serene; he took out Roberto's cell phone. "Look."

Indeed, the sent text appeared on his screen. Isobel checked hers. There was nothing on it. Jubal soon revealed the mystery.

"Oh, you haven't received it..." he said upon verifying that he had no confirmation that the message got through. "Are you without data service?" Then he saw Isobel's missed calls as well. "You called me too... I have it on vibrate and didn't notice." He grimaced, disgruntled with himself. "I'm sorry."

As he explained this, Isobel's head felt light and had to close her eyes. She was losing the adrenaline rush. On impulse, she lunged and hugged him.

Taken by surprise, Jubal took a while, but returned the hug with great pleasure.

"Aaam… Maybe I should get lost more often…" he murmured with a faint, sad smile.

"What-?" Isobel stepped back a little to look at him. "Don't even think about scaring me like this again, okay?"

The force of emotion in the blackness of her eyes, in the quiver of her voice, left Jubal speechless, breathless. He could not answer. Without even realizing it, he began to pull her close to him again.

The sensation of the contact of his body became manifest to Isobel in a surprising and overwhelming way. A warm wave ran through her from head to toe; it combined with what Darío had said and with the tequila into a dangerous cocktail. Her eyes were irresistibly drawn to Jubal's mouth. It was only an instant, but the temptation to go further nearly swept her away. She pulled away from him, terribly embarrassed.

Rina's displeased expression broke into Jubal's mind again, making him hesitate at that critical moment. Troubled, he let go of Isobel when she retreated. His confusion did not allow him to discern what had just happened in that infinite moment, and he thought he had probably imagined it.

As they regained their composure, she called Darío to let him know that she had found Jubal and he was all right.

"[Phew, thank goodness. OK, I'm going to bed, then. Shall I wait for you? Last chance.]"

"[You're incorrigible .No, don't wait for me,]" Isobel answered, half laughing. "[Have a good rest.] Then a somewhat worrisome thing occurred to her. "[Don't call Veronica.]"

There was an odd pause. She heard Darío exhale. "[You know me too well]," he said at last, rather more serious, almost sad. "[No, I won't call her.]"

Isobel then suspected that if Darío had asked her to spend the night with him, it was partly so that he would not be tempted to call her.

"[Are you sure? You've had a few drinks. Don't call her.]"

"[Suuuure.]"

"[Will you be all right?]" she added, still a little worried about him, and looked at Jubal out of the corner of her eye checking he was still there. For a moment Isobel felt like a hen chasing after stray chicks. Can't I leave you guys on your own?

"[Don't worry,]" he assured her in a warm tone. ["I'll be fine, Isobel. I will now. Thank you. See you tomorrow."]

"[All right. See you tomorrow.]"

"[He always comes back to her, huh?]" asked Jubal with a grimace of gloom when she hung up.

"[Yeah...]" Isobel sighed. "[I hope he doesn't do it anymore, actually. I think he'd be better off alone than with her. This time he really seems to mean it...]

As they walked back to the hotel together, a thick, uncomfortable silence enveloped them, words stuck in their throats.

Despite this, Jubal asked Isobel to accompany her to her room.

"There's... There's something I want to tell you about this morning…" he began when they were a few yards away.

·~·~·

Author's note: This chapter and the next were actually just one, but I split it up because it was too long. I will post the next one as soon it is translated.