Just a Kiss

by Bonnie S. Mata

  Pancho sat back in the chair and knew that his cousin was serious. Dead serious. Every move always had a purpose, and this was serious business in the drug world. This was the spookier side of life. Even though these people didn't have a college education, they still made do with their dropout one, and they did very well.

  He rose to his feet and said, “I'll be here tomorrow. So have my money ready and my plane ticket too.” His face was flushed, fury pulsing and raging through him.

  “Good. I'm happy you agree,” he extended his hand to shake Pancho's.

  Instead Pancho walked away to the door and turned around. “You know, I'm not happy about this,” he stood with his hand on the doorknob.

  “I know Mr. War hero, but there will be some money in it for you too.” He ran a hand over his face before staring back at Pancho. “But if you don't want it, hell, I'll take it.”

  “Fuck you, Rafael.” Pure fury was burning in his brain, staring back at him.

  Chapter 21

  Reported missing

  By the following morning, Xavier had managed to get copies of the mall's surveillance tapes and had his sister drive down to his office. He had worked all through the day and into the night and was still at it the following day.

  Dressed casually in warm-ups, Valeria walked into his office, and placed her oversized purse on his desk. “What have you found out, Xavier? I see you are still wearing the same clothes from yesterday.” Her eyes were swollen from crying.

  He looked up to see her, and rubbed the back of his neck.

  “Is it Homer? That son of a bitch.” Her tone and her look were somber.

  He didn’t acknowledge her comment. Instead he glanced back at her and said, “Come around here so you can see the monitor. Okay, now let me hit this replay button.”

  She pulled a chair out and sat down. Valeria looked closer at the monitor, and she gasped. “I saw those guys.”

  Xavier looked up at her. “Where did you see them?” he asked, tersely.

  She shook her head, then froze.

  Frustration set in. “Valeria, please, every second counts,” he insisted, and stood up, clinching his fists at his side.

  “I'm so sorry. I just can't believe that this is happening.” She wiped her nose with a tissue.

  “Again, where did you see these guys?” he snapped impatiently.

  Her eyes were glued to the monitor. “I saw them at Danny's Restaurant, the same day that we saw you, the same day she disappeared. Rebecca was the one that noticed them first.”

  “Keep going, please remember.” He forced himself away from the desk, paced to the other side of the room, then turned back to her.

  She didn’t move, but her gaze followed him. “He was wearing a black shirt, and gold necklace, and he wouldn't stop staring at Celina, until I looked up and gave him a mean stare. Then when Celina left the restaurant, he walked up to her out in the parking lot, and they talked, but I don't know what about.”

  “Where were they talking again?” his jaw clenched.

  “Out in the parking lot, at Danny’s, when she went to open the car door, he approached her. I was waiting for her to get to the salon, so I could ask her, but I'll never know now.”

  “Is this the same guy?” he pointed to the monitor.

  She nodded her head, with tears rolling down her cheeks. She tried to swallow and felt as though she would choke from the tightness in her throat.

  “Please don't cry. You know I'm going to do all I can to find her. She's top priority right now, and everyone here knows it.” He reassured her. And Celina was, especially after the moment they shared at the barn. He had hoped that he could win her over and claim her as his girl.

  “Were you able to get any information, on the license plates to the vehicle they were driving?” She asked, with optimism in her voice.

  “Just that those plates are stolen ones, so more than likely, in looking at the vehicle, because its style… a black Escalade, tinted windows and stolen plates, points to drug cartel. That’s what my gut is telling me.” He frowned at her with concern, his eyes dark.

  “What?” she sat up straight in the chair. There was wetness under her eyes and on her cheeks. “Drug cartel?” Goose bumps covered her body. “Shit Xavier, people fear the drug cartels, for their merciless kidnappings and killings. Very inhumane shit what they do. They have no mercy for their victims, children or elderly. They beat, rape and kill you like an animal to build their reputation as tough guys.” She began to weep again. “Oh dear God, poor Celina.”

  His eyes were wide and cautious. “Val, has anyone asked you girls to launder money through the salon?” he stood next to her and fished the keys out of his pocket.

  “Of course not. Do you think that's what this is about?”

  He remained quiet for a second, and then looked at her, “Can you think of anything else. Maybe one of these guys got a bad haircut from her.” He rubbed his hands over his face in frustration then over his unruly hair.

  Valeria let out a loud chuckle, “Please Xavier, are you serious?”

  He jerked his head back to look at his sister then shrugged his shoulders. “At this point we need to consider anything, so yeah, I am serious. Maybe one of these guys got turned down from a date.” He snorted.

  “No,” she shook her head hard. “Celina and I share lots of secrets, and she would have told me. But when I go back to the salon, I'll ask the girls to see if one of them might have seen or heard something. Just in case I missed something, been too busy, too self-involved to see something.”

  “You call me the moment you hear anything, Valeria.” His lips quivered.

  “Yes, of course,” she promised him. “So what's next?” She looked at her brother for a hopeful answer.

  “I'm going to drive down to the bridges and see if I can review their surveillance tapes, to see if I can spot this vehicle crossing into Nuevo Laredo.” He jerked his cowboy hat from his desk where he’d tossed it and clenched it in his fingers.

  “Do you think this has something to do with Homer, too?”

  He stopped in his stride and turned to face his sister. “I don't think so, because they found him dead… swinging naked from a bridge in Juarez last night.”

  Chapter 22

  Consequences

  Early in the morning, the bedroom door swung open, waking Celina up. A deep, demanding voice said, “Get up. The boss wants to see you.”

  She tried to clear her vision, blinking her eyes constantly to see who was in the room. She recognized the big guy she scratched up, when they injected her to cross into Reynosa, Mexico.

  “Let me tell you something.” He gave an intimidating stare. “You scratch me again, and I'll beat the shit out of you, or fuck you here on this bed, maybe both, so behave yourself.” He pointed with his finger and then wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead.

  Celina said nothing. She stared back at him, silently slid down the high poster bed, and followed him.

  The office where he took her was a few feet away, and when they walked in, Celina's eyes immediately glanced over to a tall, black statue of La Santa Muerte. It was an intimidating sight to see, a scary statue of death. A skull face smiling right at you, dressed in a long, black robe, and holding a long, wooden handle with a curved, single-edged blade. The statue was centered and surrounded by tall, beautiful red roses. In the middle of the altar, was a bowl of fruit, and a bottle of tequila to one side.

  “Good morning, please take a seat,” said Rafael, motioning to the chairs in front of his desk.

  “No, thank you. I prefer to stand.” She stared coldly and remained standing.

  The big guy who had escorted her gripped her shoulder with his heavy hand, and pushed her into the chair.

  “Okay, Chuy. Calmala,” smiled the boss man. “So you got a little mustang in you. Well, just to let you know, I'm an expert at breaking mustangs, so I suggest you start following orders.” He sat back in his chair and stared with a hard look.

  Celi
na sat in the chair, giving Chuy a mean stare, with narrowing eyes. I can't stand that fat bastard. She then turned to look at the man sitting in front of her. If she had seen this man at a restaurant or at the mall, she would never have guessed he was a drug cartel boss. There sat a handsome man in his late twenties, possibly early thirties, dressed in well-pressed jeans and a white shirt, boots on his feet. So this is the so-called boss man. He looks like nobody. He looks harmless. I know he’s trying to intimidate me with that look he’s giving me.

  He looked at her with his dark eyes. “I wanted to let you know where you and I stand.” He motioned his hand in the air, pointing to her then to him. “Pancho, you know the guy you talked to last night? Well, he will be doing some work for me, and when he's done, you're free to leave. But if he doesn't come through...” He took a deep breath, “You will stay here until I decide you can leave.”

  “Why would you want me here?” She stared back at him heavily.

  “Oh, my sweet girl, do you want for me to tell you what you can do for me?” A big smile came across his face and a sharp laugh left his throat. “Please, you are a grown woman to know, how useful you can be around here. For starters, you will be my very own personal sex slave. At any moment, when I want it, and need it. You will fulfill and satisfy my every desire. AND let me tell you, I like fucking every day and more than four times or so, when I am here, so be prepared for long exhausting days. If you give me resistance, I will put you out to market, where you will be fucked by anyone willing to pay the price I set.” His muscular arms rested on his chair.

  Celina swallowed hard, while her heart picked up speed, watching his cleft chin as he spoke. She turned her head when someone knocked on the door.

  Chuy walked over, opened the door, and in came two women.

  “You see, my morning fuck is here already.” He looked at her, gloating. Looking at Chuy he said, “Take her to my back room.”

  The woman walked by, wearing a pair of white short-shorts, and a hot pink tank top flashing her midriff, looking Celina over.

  Standing next to Celina was a woman in her mid-forties, with a bad haircut, wearing a red, faded sundress. Her eyes were dead. They were lifeless. There was no emotion in them. It’s as if the woman was dead inside.

  “This here is Carmela. She is in charge of the girls and will give you a tour, and explain how things are done here, just in case Pancho doesn't come through.” He winked with a smirk at the thought and left his office.

  Chapter 23

  Tour and food privileges

  Celina followed Carmela out of the office, and into a long hallway. They passed the room in which she had stayed, and the further they went, the noisier it became. It was still mid-morning, and yet the music was playing loud.

  Carmela noticed Celina’s expression. “Yes, in this business, there is never a closed sign on our doors. It’s a twenty-four hour operation. So what's your name?” asked Carmela, in well-spoken English, leading the way to the area, where the working girls called home.

  “Celina,” she replied. “Where are you from?” she asked, with curiosity. It was obvious that she wasn't from Mexico.

  “I’m from Brownsville,” she said, with no feeling.

  “How long have you been here?” Celina's heart rate picked up again. She was looking for answers, looking for hope.

  “Oh, this is my seventh year.”

  Celina sighed and looked at Carmela's eyes when she spoke. There was still no expression on her face. She was dead inside, so it looked.

  “Oh, my gosh. Please tell me how you got here?” Celina had many questions swarming in her head. Finally-- someone who could relate to her situation.

  “I was kidnapped by, El Cartel del Golfo. All of this area, down to Brownsville, and up to Laredo is their territory. My family paid the ransom, but they, the cartel, decided to keep me, to work me here. At the time, they were short on women for the men that worked here, and for the paying customers,” she said dryly.

  Celina's eyes rounded. “I don't get it? You mean the men who work here get a free fuck?” Her head cocked to the side, and her eyebrow lifted.

  “Yes, the top ones do, and the ones just joining and the lower rank ones, have to pay.” There was frustration in her voice.

  Celina lowered her head, as they continued to walk down the hall, with dirty, smudge-stained walls painted a lime green color. I can't go through this again. There's no way that I will be subject to this cruelty, again, she thought, as she glanced up to see pictures of nude women hanging along the walls.

  “I don't work as much as I used to, only if I'm requested.” She exchanged a quick look at Celina's six-inch high heels.

  Celina felt Carmela's eyes scanning over her shoes, and looking at her fresh pedicure with flower decals. “So what do you do?”

  Carmela's eyes shifted to meet Celina's. “I oversee that the girls get what they need, like Kotex pads, clothes, direct them with the customers, and monitor their work.”

  “What do you mean monitor?” she asked, with a frantic look in her eyes.

  “Peek in on the sex rooms, to make sure the men don't get too rough,” she explained.

  “You mean, you actually watch? How embarrassing! It’s bad enough that you are doing it with someone you don’t want to be with, then for everyone to watch.” The words slipped past her lips without control. Her cheeks flushed with color afterwards.

  She ignored her remark. “The boss told me to show you around and explain to you what is to be expected, when your time comes. I’m sorry Celina, but we are all in the same boat. We are all unhappy and so miserable here, but what can we do?” She lifted her shoulders.

  Celina sighed as they came to a door. Carmela opened it and motioned Celina to follow her. “These are the sex rooms, and they are also where the girls sleep, too.”

  Talk about invasion of privacy. They fuck you forcibly and in your own little space. Celina released a sigh.

  A long corridor extended, with windows looking into each tiny room. There was a girl in every room, of all shapes and ages, and not one room was empty.

  Celina swallowed hard, and her eyes opened wide. She couldn't believe what she was seeing, sex slavery in living color. “Good God! Can they see us?” She pulled away from the glass.

  “Oh, no, it’s a two-way mirror.”

  “How many rooms are there here?”

  “Fifty. Twenty-five on each side to be exact.”

  They continued walking, and up ahead in the corridor, they stopped to peek. In one room there was one girl with three men. She was straddled over a guy, lowering herself onto his cock, while another guy stood behind her. It seemed that he was waiting for her to finish positioning her knees on the bed.

  “Carmela, what is that guy going to do? Three men?” Celina got closer to the window.

  “He's waiting to fuck her.” Carmela turned and gave her a serious look.

  “Uh, where? Isn't she already fucking one guy, the one underneath her?” She shook her head and said, “Oh, I get it… he's waiting his turn.”

  “Yes and no. Actually, this guy here,” she pointed, “is going to fuck her in the ass, while she is getting fucked in the pussy by the guy under her.”

  “Oh my God, is that possible? You're joking?” Her mouth dropped open.

  “Of course, and no, I'm not joking. We don't joke about anything around here. In this world it’s all about staying alive,” she replied dryly as they stood watching.

  When the girl was ready, the big guy stopped masturbating his large penis, and placed his hands on her butt cheeks. He pulled her butt checks apart, placed his penis at the entrance of her butthole and pushed in.

  Celina's eyes widened and her eyes shifted to see the girls face. The girl then released a loud scream, opening her mouth wide, and then shut her eyes closed. She gritted her teeth for a while, and then let out another scream, when he gave her another hard thrust from behind. The third guy who was standing, and watching, then placed his erect penis in the
girl’s mouth, for her to suck on it. He didn't even give her a chance to catch her breath.

  “Oh my God, I can't believe what I'm seeing. Shit, I've heard of ass fucking and that some women enjoy it, but not being fucked at the same time in different holes. It looks like it hurts.” She shook her head, revealing her agony.

  “Yes, at first it does, but then after awhile, it doesn't anymore, only when you get a big guy like that one. We have been through so much here,” she took a deep breath, pausing for a moment,” but if you see on the little table there, you should see a jar of Vaseline. This guy here, fucking her in the ass, should have put some on--they must. That is the rule, especially guys with big dicks like this one here.” She pointed to him. “He fucked me once, a long time ago, but in the pussy, and man, he likes it rough. He fucked me two times that night,” she held two fingers in the air. “Yes, he did me. He came, and did me again, and he took forever the second time. And the second time is the one that killed me, because he couldn't come, so he kept pumping me hard every which way. He refused to stop until he did. I mean hard, until he finally came. This guy likes rough sex.”

  Silence descended as the girls stood watching the big guy thrusting hard, in and out of the girl’s ass. They watched her face turn red, as she sucked the other guy’s penis relentlessly. The guy’s butt cheeks contracted, every time he slammed deep inside of the girl that he was fucking in the ass. He rotated his hips every now and then, while he held her from her waist. From where they stood, they could see the entire picture, and it was an unusual sight to see, three penises inside of a woman. The guy showed no mercy the moment he entered her. There were no baby steps. He went all the way in and out, hard and fast, pleasing only himself. The other guy, getting a blow job, seemed to have a look of great expectations to be sucked hard. He kept his hands on her head, and yanked her hair when she would slow down.

  “This girl's name is Cari, and she will eat a good meal tonight.” She said, with a smile.