Fated to be a Mafian Queen

Unveiling The Mystery Man

The drive back to town was a very quiet one as it seemed that both Catalina and Manuel were lost in their thoughts. The only sound that filled the air was the steady hum of the engine. Catalina’s eyes were fixed on the scenery as they drove by, she leaned her head against the chair and held onto her arm in a bid to stop it from bleeding.

It hurt but she had to keep up appearances so that Manuel would not find out that she had been peeking through a window during his transaction with the unknown man. She had many questions swirling through her mind as she leaned against the window.

Who was the man at the meeting? Why was there so much mystery around him? Why did Manuel give him all those drugs and money without getting anything in return or had he paid upfront? Now she wanted to know more about the dealings of the cartel as the weight of these questions bore heavily on her mind and left her feeling very uneasy.

She felt like she knew the man at the meeting, but she could not explain how she knew him even without seeing his face or hearing his voice clearly. He felt awfully familiar, but she decided to sweep that thought under the carpet as it may have been in her head. She had not gotten much sleep and that feeling may have been a result of lack of sleep which hampered her concentration.

As they approached the headquarters office of the cartel, Catalina could see Manuel’s personal security guards waiting outside the building with their stoic expressions unwavering as they stood. Did they even get any rest? Catalina thought to herself seeing that they were waiting for him to arrive despite how early in the morning it was.

The moment Manuel pulled up his vehicle in the front of the building, they sprang into action. Opening the door for him and allowing him to step out of the car while another person took over the driver’s seat. Catalina quickly got out of the vehicle before the guard could get close to her door in a bid to prevent any of them from noticing the injury she had sustained.

She did not know that the blood had seeped through her clothes, leaving a trail of red on the door of the car. She was hurting but she feigned composure as she managed to step out of the care before anyone could offer their assistance. She discreetly tucked her injured arm close to her body, hoping that she had concealed the extent of her injury.

Manuel glanced at her briefly, his eyes searched hers in an instant with concern flickering in them before he turned to his security team.

“Thank you, Salvador. I’ll take care of some things here before heading home to rest,” he told his head of security. “Please ensure that Piedra gets home safe,” he told Salvador who nodded his head in consent.

“I’ll be fine, Manuel. I can find my own way,” she told Manuel who shook his head in disagreement and instructed one of his men to take her back to her house. Catalina watched as the security retreated with Manuel leading the way, their vigilant eyes still scanning the surroundings.

As she proceeded to the car which was waiting for her, Manuel calls out her name. “Piedra! Make sure you rest and take care of yourself,” he told her. “Go home, Piedra, not to the club. Understood?” he told her firmly. Catalina nodded in agreement.

She paused for a moment as they proceeded into the elevator. She entered the car which was waiting. Her thoughts were fixed on Manuel, the man of her dreams. Her thoughts were consumed by the events of the evening. She couldn't shake the feeling that there was something dangerous lurking beneath the surface.

As she stepped into the car, she knew there was more to the events of the night and this may be bigger than she initially thought. Was the man the head of the cartel? A. J. Aguilar? Did she just see the man that made her an orphan and left her for dead as a child? She wished she had seen his face so that she could finalize her plans of eliminating him.

“Which way Ma’am?” the driver of the vehicle interrupted her thoughts. “To the club please, I need to get some things from there,” she told him. He nodded and proceeded toward the direction of the nightclub. As Catalina came out of the vehicle, she thanked the driver and waited for him to drive off before taking the route that led to her home. She could not wait to get home and tend to her wound.

As she entered her house, she hurried to the bathroom where she cleaned and dressed her wound as best as she could. Thankfully the bleeding had stopped but she needed to disinfect the cut as it was quite deep. After taking care of it, she was satisfied with the effort she put into caring for it as it would do until she could buy some proper supplies from the pharmacy.

With the bandage securely in place, Catalina got some food from the fridge and settled into her bed to eat it as she reached for her phone. She needed to inform Javier of the events from earlier and ask for his help in finding out who the man was that Manuel met. She dialed Javier’s number and waited desperately for him to answer the phone.

“Hello? Catalina? Is that you?” Soledad asked with a mixture of excitement and concern in her voice.

“It’s me, Mama,” Catalina answered her. “I’m so glad to hear your voice, Mama,” Catalina told her with tears welling up in her eyes.

“Oh, Mija! How are you darling? I miss having you around here. Your father is not here right now, there was a small issue in Esteban’s ranch, and he and other ranch owners had to go help him out. I’ll inform him that you called,” Soledad told her.

Catalina agreed and continued to discuss other things with her mother. Soledad offered her some love advice and told her to be careful and stay safe. They spoke for long hours and ended the phone call with both feeling happy. Catalina proceeds to get some rest.

“Mama! Papa! Noooooo!!!” Catalina yelled as she jolted from her sleep to the ringing sound of her phone. She quickly rushed to the bathroom to splash some water on her face and came back to her bedroom to answer the call.

“Hello? Mija?” Javier’s voice offered her some comfort from her nightmare.

“Hello, Papa? How are you doing?” Catalina asked hearing her father’s voice. Her own voice was laden with exhaustion.

“What happened Mija, are you alright?” Javier’s voice crackled through the speaker, concern etched in his tone. “Soley told me you called, is everything fine over there?” he asked her.

“Yes, everything is fine. Something happened last night and I wanted to tell you about it to see if you can help or have any idea about it,” she told him. Catalina took a deep breath and proceeded to recount the events of the secret meeting, omitting no detail. She confided in him about the mysterious man and her burning curiosity to uncover his identity.

"I need you to find out anything you can about this man, he seemed so familiar" she implored. "I need to know who he is and what he was doing there with Manuel. I need to know if he is A. J. Aguilar," she said with a firm tone.

Javier paused for a moment, the silence stretching between them. "I'll do my best, Catalina. I can't promise immediate results, but I'll dig deep and see what I can find. Just be careful, alright?"

Catalina discussed other things with him as she had missed their early morning walks and discussions. She gave him details about Manuel and how her feelings for him were growing daily without her permission. He advised her to be calm and stay focused so that she could achieve her aim of moving to Tijuana and return back to them safe and sound.

She thanked Javier for his unwavering support before ending the call. Alone in her apartment, Catalina lay on her bed, staring up at the ceiling. Her mind buzzed with thoughts of Manuel and the man he had met. The mystery seemed to pull her more into finding out the details of the meeting. She had to find a way to get closer to Manuel, to truly understand him and the world he inhabited.

As exhaustion claimed her, Catalina's thoughts slowly melted into dreams. Visions of deceit and danger danced through her subconscious, intertwining with her yearning to connect with Manuel on a deeper level. In her sleep, she resolved to unravel the secrets that bound them, for better or worse.