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Sofia: Part 5

Silk and Leather Series

By Sharlene AlbaPublished 6 years ago 13 min read
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Photo by Allie Smith on Unsplash

Sofia woke up with a massive headache pounding through her skull. She wondered where it had originated because she hadn't been drinking last night with Daviel. In fact, the last thing she remembered was him passing out on top of her before her mind went dark.

This wasn't good. Her gut was telling her something was wrong. As soon as she opened her eyes, she realized she was right. As her vision focused, she saw a group of men surrounding her, different tribal tattoos on their forearms, their guns tucked into their waistbands. The tattoos looked familiar to her, but her headache wasn't allowing her to think past the pain she was in. Her hands were also tied behind her back, with rope no less.

Amateurs. She learned how to escape this kind of bondage when she was 13. Her father had taught her and her sister just in case their enemies got any ideas, along with five different ways to make them wish they never messed with a Guerrera ever again.

Sofia was more than happy to implement any of those gory ways, but she needed to know where she was first. And why someone had kidnapped her to begin with.

"She's awake," one of the drones claimed, as he took a puff out of his cigarette and walked towards her, lifting her chin up. She snatched her face away, and wiggled out of her rope, immediately reaching for the man's gun. She aimed it at his forehead, and felt the impulse to show these idiots just how terrified of her they should be. But she kept her cool and pushed him towards the rest of his buddies, still aiming the gun at him.

"Where the fuck am I and why am I here?" she demanded, and silence filled the room before they all started to laugh at her. The tallest of them stepped forward, his hands raised as if that would stop her from shooting. It wouldn't. She'd kill them all right now if no one gave her the answers she was asking for.

"We've got orders not to hurt you. Now put the gun down and behave, sweetheart," he suggested and his words only made her that much more irritated. So she aimed the gun towards his thigh and pulled the trigger.

"I'm not going to ask again," she reminded them, as their tall friend collapsed onto the floor in pain, and she aimed the gun towards anyone who tried to help him. None of them moved, and all of them stared at her, watching her carefully, waiting for her next move.

"You might want to put the gun down. Your boyfriend over there isn't looking too well," the pudgy one on her right side claimed, gesturing towards the left side of the warehouse, where Daviel was chained up by his arms, hanging in agony as blood oozed from all corners of his face. Her first instinct was to run towards him and get him out of those chains. But she needed to be smart. Once she turned her back, they'd no doubt tie her up again and she'd be no help to anyone.

"The boss wanted to speak to you," the pudgy one spoke again and she slowly placed the gun down, but kept it close to her just in case any of them got out of line again.

"Why isn't he here? And why did you think it was a good idea to kidnap two gang leaders?" Sofia asked the men before her, and none of them answered her question. They stood quiet as footsteps emerged from an opened door in the middle of the old warehouse.

As soon as she saw his face, she rolled her eyes. Jason Colon, the biggest drug cartel leader in Colombia, joined the rest of them, and stood in the middle of his men as he studied her carefully, and smirked when he saw one of his men on the floor, bleeding out through the side of his thigh.

"I wanted to make sure you were still worth doing business with. Sorry for the theatrics. Get him out of those chains and get him some medical attention," Jason ordered his men and she watched as they took Daviel down from the chains and hauled him off into one of their cars. She looked up at the handsome asshole who kidnapped her and wondered what exactly he wished to accomplish by this entire ordeal.

"If your plan was to scare me into making a deal, you've wasted your time," Sofia claimed, as she crossed her arms and observed her surroundings. They were still on the island. The Puerto Rican flag spray painted on the warehouse ceiling was a dead giveaway. She sighed when she realized her home wasn't as guarded as it should've been considering she had some of the best on her team, which only made her fear the worst. There was someone on the island who was giving out information that they shouldn't, and she needed to put a plug on it soon before things got worse.

"Scare Sofia Guerrera? I didn't know that was possible," Jason teased as he leaned against one of the hood of the cars and waved towards the rest of his men, dismissing them. Brave man, considering who he'd be left behind with.

"It's not. You mentioned something about a deal? I'm listening," she added as she glanced over at the car which held Daviel prisoner, and she wondered how badly he'd been hurt by these fucking morons if they were taking this long to clean him up.

"I've developed some new candy for your people to try out," he explained, as he brought out a small baggie full of an iridescent liquid in a tube from his back pocket and handed it over to her. She held it up in the natural light coming from the windows near the ceiling, then held it underneath her nose to smell it. It did smell sweet. And she could see a lot of people interested in this kind of drug, but she knew better than to trust a man willing to let you in on his success.

"Any side effects?" she asked, as she opened the tube and began to sniff at the liquid once more. Her mouth watered immediately for a taste but she held back, and closed the tube, handing it back over to him. She had no business in getting high at the moment. She'd save that for her down time.

"None that we haven't seen before. Plus, it's cheaper to make and easier to hide. I'll..." Jason began but Daviel spilled out of the car he was kept in, capturing her attention as he walked towards them. He was no longer bleeding, and they'd given him a new shirt to wear. Still, looking at his scarred face made her want to raise the body count in this warehouse.

"Don't do it, Sofia. You don't even know what this shit does to people," Daviel warned, and although he was right, Jason did mention the side effects were just as predictable as all the other drugs circulating within their perspective communities. All drugs had side effects, from cocaine, to love. The end result was still the same whether we wanted to accept it or not.

"Tell you what. I'll take this sample home, try it out, then get back to you. Sound good?" Sofia offered, looking up at the tall and rugged man before her, contemplating her request.

"Deal. Don't take too long though. I do have another buyer interested," Jason made clear as he took her hand and brought it up to his lips to kiss. His grey smoldering eyes made her spine shiver as he smiled and pulled away from her.

"Until next time," he responded, smirking towards a very skeptical Daviel standing beside her, before he walked towards one of his cars and drove away with the rest of them.

***

The walk back towards Daviel's hotel took them hours and by the time Sofia had convinced him she could make it home alone, it was dawn. She made sure the drug Jason had given her was locked up securely in her safe in her office before she entered her master suite bathroom and washed away the night's dirt.

Exhaustion filled her once she entered her room in her robe after her shower, and she began to comb through her damp hair. The smell of someone's perfume caught her attention and she quickly turned around to see Natalie sitting on the edge of her bed. The woman was sneaky, she'd give her that.

"Nat? You're up early," Sofia observed as she reached for her citrus scented lotion and began to massage her legs.

"Where were you last night? We were worried."

"I was handling some business."

"With Daviel? Fuck, Sofia. I thought you were done with him." Natalie began her sermon, as Sofia sighed and rolled her eyes, tuning her out.

"Are you even listening? Your sister is causing a lot of concern and you need to deal with that instead of fucking around with a guy you claim you don't give a shit about," Natalie continued and Sofia shrugged off her robe and reached for a pair of shorts and a tank top. She wasn't going to get any rest. That much was clear according to Natalie's angry tone of voice.

"First of all, remember who you're talking to like that before you barge in here like you fucking own the place," Sofia countered in a sharp tone, causing Natalie to stand up and approach her.

"If I recall correctly, you're the one who came to me for help. Not the other way around. So I'd watch your tone next time," her ally warned, fury burning her eyes as she stared her down. Sofia's hands were shaking with rage but she bit her tongue and swallowed the words she so desperately wanted to say. Whether she liked it or not, she needed Natalie at her side. She owed it to her and to the rest of their crew to focus on the tasks at hand.

"Where is Clarita?" Sofia asked as she put on her boots and placed her phone in her back pocket and her handgun underneath the fabric of her shirt.

"She's on her way here."

Sofia fumed in silence. Getting riled up now wouldn't do her any good so she focused on something else. Something that had been bugging her since she came back to the island.

"Can you do me a favor and find out what you can about Jade's new boy toy? I don't trust that pendejo for a second," Sofia ordered, recalling the conversation she had with him during Julian's funeral. Whoever he was, he didn't give her any inclination that he was loyal to the Netas. That alone could get him killed if anyone found out. Not that she cared. But Jade would.

"Andy? He's harmless. Jade picked him up in a bar in New York. No direct ties that would link him to any threats," Natalie informed her as they made their way out of her bedroom, and Sofia locked her room with a special key she had made recently. She was completely paranoid now that someone's been letting outsiders enter the island without her knowledge and she'd be damned if she'd give away any free information they could gather from her room.

"He said his last name was Lujan. Why does that name sound familiar?" Sofia wondered out loud and heard Natalie chuckle at her side as they walked downstairs and into the courtyard.

"You really have it out for this guy, huh?"

"I don't care about him. I care about what he might be whispering to others."

"You think he's a snitch?" her friend asked as they crossed the courtyard and stood in the doorway of the estate, waiting for her sister to arrive at the gates.

"I don't know yet. That's what I want you to find out for me."

"I'm on it. And try and take it easy on Clarita. She just lost her baby daddy," Natalie reminded her, tapping her shoulder with her hand before she sprinted away.

Sofia wasn't looking forward to the dreaded conversation she was about to have with her younger sister. She hated her more than necessary and that alone should've kept Clarita away. But she had their mother's stubborn personality as well, and she knew it wasn't going to be easy to get her to leave for good.

***

"I'm surprised you don't have fifty Netas ready to shoot on sight," Clarita commented sarcastically as soon as she stepped up to the front door. She looked different. Her dark brown hair had gotten shorter, perfectly cut at shoulder length, while her eyes still burned a bright sea-green color against her light complexion. Her gaze held sadness in them despite the brave front she was trying to hide. But Sofia knew her better than anyone. Or at least, she thought she did. She could've never predicted her baby sister would betray her in such a way, not only by deciding to desert their family's legacy by going against the rules and falling for a member of the Mexican Mafia, but by helping the cops plant false evidence that put her away.

She could never forgive her. She was certain Clarita knew that, which made this unexpected and careless visit to the island all the more peculiar.

"They're on standby. What do you want, Clarita?" Sofia asked as she gestured towards the side entrance to the courtyard, but Clarita didn't move. She merely observed their surroundings and closed her eyes, sighing briefly before she spoke.

"Whatever happens between us, just make sure Matthew doesn't know about any of this, okay? I don't want him growing up like we did."

"You make is sound like we had it bad. We lived like fucking royalty, Clarita. Ma and Papi worked their asses off for us," Sofia clarified, making sure she remembered the hard work that had provided their family a home and food on the table every night.

"You mean to say they sold drugs and killed whoever tried to get out of this fucking lifestyle."

"You ungrateful little shit." Sofia walked up to her sister and Clarita took another deep breath before she continued.

"I didn't come here to fight. I came to make sure my son would be left in good hands. But I guess I was wrong," Clarita corrected as she looked away, and wiped off a tear streaming down her cheek.

"You dying or something? Why are you handing your kid off to me of all people?" Sofia asked her sister and watched as she laughed.

"You hate me and it doesn't make you any less dangerous than the people who are after me. I understand now. But if you have any love left at all, I need you to give it to your nephew when I'm gone," her sister claimed and before Sofia could even muster up a response to the ridiculous request her sister just made, shots began to fire towards them. Sofia stepped in front of her sister to shield her as she dragged her into the house and locked the doors behind them.

"Sofia! You're bleeding!" she heard her sister say, but her heart was pounding too loudly for her to react to the excruciating pain coming from her abdomen and her chest area.

"We got it." Jade entered the room, with an automatic, right along side Natalie and a few other members of the Netas as they opened the front doors and started shooting. She felt her sister trying to keep her from joining the others in this fight, but she wasn't going to take the cowards way out. If they wanted to fucking shoot at her, she'd show them just how bad of an idea it was.

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About the Creator

Sharlene Alba

Full of raw and unfiltered fluid poems, short stories and prompts on love, sex, relationships and life. I also review haircare, skincare and other beauty products. Instagram: grungefirepoetry MissBeautyBargain Facebook: grungefirepoetry

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