The Forbidden Promise

by Helena Rose

  Really nothing actually happened between them? I doubt that, she is so attractive and he is a man, and more importantly a man with a reputation for not being able to resist beautiful women she thought bitterly.

  "In any case it’s not wise for you to live with a man alone," said Doña Viviana. "You can’t deny this."

  " But we're related ... He’s Aurora’s husband," exclaimed Marisol, apparently without any malice.

  "It isn’t right and you know it, Marisol!" Interrupted Aurora red in the face.

  "You can stay here with us until the situation with Federico is settled," replied Doña Viviana sternly. The invitation was actually more an order that brooked no argument.

  "Thank you, I’m grateful," Marisol stammered. Then she turned to Aurora, wiping away her tears.

  "Aurora believe me, Lucas really loves you, it’s only you that he wants at his side," she said sincerely.

  Aurora made a grimace of annoyance. Certainly, and while he was waiting for my return he kept in training with you! She thought bitterly. She stood up unable to endure the embarrassing situation anymore.

  "I’m sorry, I’ve a headache, today has been a tough day, I’ll go and rest. If you’ll if excuse me," she said going to her room.

  Doña Viviana invited Cristobal and Marisol to stay for dinner, the two willingly accepted but first Marisol sent a note to Lucas explaining briefly what had happened and told him that she would be staying with Doña Viviana for some time. She informed him that she would be by the next day to collect her things and to thank him personally for all he had done for her.

  The dinner was very pleasant. Aurora, however, did not feel like joining the others. She stayed in her room all night, jealous and angry, brooding on the events of the day. She felt great pity for Marisol, but it infuriated her that Marisol had lived under the same roof as Lucas, first in Zacatecas and then in Tampico.

  Marisol, conversely, cheered up and chatted with Cristobal until late evening. She laughed at all Cristobal’s jokes and for a while she forgot all her troubles. Doña Viviana looked at them pleased, despite her recent doubts about Cristobal, she could not help admiring his elegant, friendly, gallant and kind manners. If something grows between the two of them, it would be the best solution, she found herself thinking, Aurora would be free of Cristobal’s unwanted advances. Yes, but what would happen in that case? She would reunite with Lucas, there was no doubt about it. However Viviana's disapproval was waning now. Who am I to oppose their marriage, with all the mistakes I’ve made in my life? I made Costantino unhappy and now he's dead and I'm all alone ... Viviana stirred and laughed at Cristobal’s funny anecdote. Shortly after, Cristobal left and the two women retired to sleep.

  The next morning after breakfast Cristobal decided it was time to pay Doña Raquel a visit. Federico’s excessively bad behavior was becoming more frequent and unacceptable. First with Aurora in Mexico City, then with sweet Marisol whom he had even slapped ... Even the memory of the events of the previous evening, made him tremble with rage.

  He went to the Navarra hacienda and the maid invited him to make himself comfortable in the large living room.

  "What a pleasure to see you Don Cristobal," said Doña Raquel, holding out her hand, that he kissed.

  "The pleasure is mine Doña Raquel."

  " Sit down, please," invited Doña Raquel as she pointed to the expensive brocade sofa.

  Cristobal sat down, but his face showed the anger and annoyance that tormented him.

  "What news do you bring me of Lucas?" Asked Doña Raquel.

  "I’ve learned that he’s been released," Cristobal said coldly. "It seems that his alibi has been confirmed."

  Raquel pursed her lips, still quivering with anger at Lucas’ newfound freedom. He always manages to come through, that damn man! She decided to pretend that she did not care, as she did not want to give Cristobal the satisfaction of seeing her upset.

  "Would you like something to drink?" She asked with feigned tranquility.

  " In reality ma’am this isn’t a courtesy visit, Federico and I have had two unpleasant confrontations in recent weeks, and in both cases it was because Federico attacked a woman."

  Doña Raquel opened her fan and began to wave it nervously.

  "I'm already aware of everything," She said cutting him short. "And I’ve reprimanded Federico appropriately."

  "Well, then you’ll understand that this behavior isn’t acceptable especially for a gentleman who belongs to one of the most prominent families in Mexico."

  Raquel grew angry. She had never allowed anyone to criticize her in that way, and she certainly was not going to accept such a rebuke from Cristobal who was blackmailing her.

  " We certainly don’t need your moral lessons," replied Raquel acidly.

  " So you’ll keep an eye on Federico!"

  " Federico only attempted to defend his honor tainted by a cheap whore!" Exclaimed Raquel, her eyes wide with anger.

  "Watch how you talk! Marisol is a lady and for this reason she won’t accept the ill-treatment inflicted by Federico anymore," said Cristobal springing to his feet.

  Doña Raquel, startled by the vehemence of his reaction, looked at Cristobal surly.

  "I don’t understand your attitude. Up until now I’ve respected our pact, I’ve separated Aurora from Lucas, wasn’t this what you wanted? Why are you now getting so heated trying to protect Marisol’s honor? Could it be that now you’ve set your sights on Marisol? "

  A wicked smile appeared on Raquel’s face.

  Cristobal stared at Raquel, he was also surprised by his reaction. What binds me to Marisol? He immediately decided to cancel that thought, justifying the anger he felt only as the duty of a gentleman protecting a woman in danger.

  "What are you saying? The only woman that interests me is Aurora. It’s true that thanks to you she’s left Lucas and the annulment of her marriage is getting closer, but I won’t tolerate that Federico mistreats a woman in my presence, no woman. All the more so if it is my future wife’s cousin." He said with less vehemence, not believing his words himself.

  Why am I so annoyed that they offend Marisol? Maybe I'm really starting to feel something for her? Her beauty is undoubtedly incomparable ... he thought to himself.

  "Well Don Cristobal, if that is all, thank you for your visit, but now I must ask you to leave," said Doña Raquel, not even pretending to use a courteous tone and dismissing Cristobal curtly.

  "Goodbye," said Cristobal heading for the door. "Don’t bother to accompany me, I know the way!" He said, annoyed by Raquel’s harsh tone.

  He left, slamming the door behind him.

  Doña Raquel lit the candles in the candelabra on the table and stared at it thoughtfully.

  That Don Cristobal is becoming a danger ... Maybe it's time to get rid of him too! My secret is no longer safe and I can’t allow a stupid lawyer to threaten me this way.

  She smiled, with that evil smile that distinguished her, as she passed the palm of her hand through the candle flame, drawing small circles until the heat became unbearable, then she gave a little cry of pleasure and put her hand on her heart.

  I was able to separate you, damn Lucas, from your beloved, she thought, and this is just the beginning of your destruction!

  She rang the bell to call the maid who promptly came to the door. She ordered the maid to send a messenger to the brothel to find Penelope and to tell her to come to the hacienda at once.

  Penelope did not take long to arrive, wrapped in her black shawl, she entered through the servant’s door warily. She had come through Tampico with a certain amount fear of meeting Lucas or one of his henchmen, in that case it would have meant trouble for her.

  She went to the study where Doña Raquel was waiting for her.

  "You sent for me, ma'am?" She asked in her usual smarmy way.

  "Yes," she said, "I’ve learned that Lucas and Aurora are close to annulling their marriage."

  " Yes Ma'am, I’ve heard that too."

&n
bsp; " Well, I have to admit that you carried out your plans in Zacatecas perfectly. Now I need you to do something else for me. Our good banker, Don Guadalupe, has informed me that Lucas has managed to pay the first installment of the loan despite being in jail. Your nephew Santos has been working like crazy to continue the silver extraction and save Lucas from bankruptcy. As you well understand, now that the bastard is out of jail, we can’t allow him, with further silver extraction, to pay off his debts! We won’t be able to foreclose on his hacienda and take away his claim on the mine!"

  Penelope listened to her in silence, Raquel’s treachery always had the power to fascinate her. She walked over and caressed her shoulder.

  " No, of course we can’t allow it ..." She whispered calmly.

  " You'll have to arrange an accident at the mine," Raquel ordered.

  "With dead and wounded?" Penelope asked.

  "It’s a detail that I’m not interested in. The important thing is that the mine won’t be able to function for a long time, if not forever!" She exclaimed, turning to admire the garden from the large window behind her.

  " It’ll take a lot of money to organize such a thing ..."

  In silence Doña Raquel opened one of the desk drawers, pulled out a massive wad of notes and put it on the table.

  "This is an advance ... the rest when the work is finished. If you can satisfy me this time too, I’ll be very generous with you."

  With a wave of her hand, she pointed to the door and turned back to the large window.

  Penelope eagerly seized the money and hid it in the pocket of her large skirt.

  "You’ll have news from me soon, ma’am," she said leaving.

  Her mind began to work feverishly on how to fulfill this new evil task. The fact that she could ruin people’s lives did not disturb her, she was accustomed to thinking of people as an indistinct mass of puppets with no soul or will. The only thing that mattered was her own well-being and satisfaction, the rest was not important.

  In Zacatecas she did not have sufficient support, but certainly the laborer that she had already contacted to simulate the miners’ revolt would be of assistance. But it was still not enough.

  Back at the brothel, she confided in Don Gonzalo and together they enlisted a small group of criminals and drifters, willing to do anything for money.

  They then organized the purchase of a large quantity of explosive. Don Gonzalo turned to a trusted customer of his venta who knew some weapons smugglers. It was only a matter of time and the dynamite was soon in the hands of the two.

  The advance that Doña Raquel had given to Penelope was more than enough, Penelope paid the bandits and for the dynamite, and even managed to retain a good amount of money for herself.

  At the end of the preliminary tasks, Penelope arranged the departure to Zacatecas, carefully explaining every detail that could help the bandits.

  They arrived at the hacienda at night, as planned, helped by the corrupt laborer. They passed one of the access avenues to the estate and went silently to the mine. Then, being very careful and avoiding making any noise, they placed the dynamite in the mine, taking care to conceal the wires very carefully with sand and earth. Two sticks of dynamite were cleverly placed beside the underground mill, the river would burst its banks and flood the entire excavation.

  Penelope had given the order to blow up the dynamite the following morning, shortly before the workers began the day’s extraction, in order to cause as much damage as possible.

  Safely in Tampico Penelope was looking forward to the destruction and the suffering that would soon be unleashed.

  This time Lucas won’t be able to recover, despite his cursed good luck. The blow will be too strong. The disaster would fall on his head as the mine would fall on his men ... A smile pursed Penelope’s thin lips. The tragedy will be so severe that there’ll be no escape ...

  The uproar caused by the explosion was heard for miles around, the galleries collapsed in on themselves, pieces of rock and metal flew in every direction, and even the poor wooden barracks where the workers slept were wrecked.

  A cloud of thick smoke made the air unbreathable, and gave the desolate place an even more hellish look.

  In the hacienda everyone awoke startled, while from the peons’ village shrieks and groans of pain arose. A cloud of dust and debris began slowly to pour out from the mine’s entrance, so thick that it obscured the sun's rays.

  Pancho, one of the hacienda’s servants, seemed to fly in the saddle of his horse on his way to the post office to send a telegram to Tampico to advise Lucas of the collapse.

  Lucas received the communication only in the late evening. Shocked he decided not to wait for dawn and set off immediately with a few of his men towards Zacatecas. He ordered Pablo to notify Father Julian and ask him to join him at the hacienda as soon as possible, the size of the tragedy made him assume that both a doctor and a priest would certainly be needed.

  While he galloped on the roan steed through the starry night, his black hair blown by the wind, Lucas looked like a knight of old, ready to challenge fate to conquer his goal. But fate was raging against him, he was definitively losing Aurora, he was suspected of murder and now the destruction of the mine was the final blow which threatened to destroy him. I won’t bend, I'll make it through this time too ... But as he repeated these words in his mind, a single silent tear welled from his green eyes and ran down his tanned cheek. If only Aurora was with me ...

  Pablo, in the meantime, woke up Father Julian in the middle of the night and told him the terrible story.

  Father Julian promised that he would leave the next day with as many volunteers as he could gather. Many of the families of the miners employed at the mine, lived in Tampico, it would not therefore be hard to find hands willing to help.

  The news about the mine explosion arrived at the clinic quickly, even before Father Julian’s arrival. When he arrived Aurora ran to him alarmed.

  " Father, have you heard about the mine?"

  " Yes my child, calm down, I’ve come to ask Dr. Peron if he can accompany me and go with the volunteers to provide first aid."

  "What a tragedy! It seems that there are many wounded and some dead ..." Aurora said worried, wringing her hands. She could not help but think of the peones’ families and the pain and suffering that they were definitely feeling at that time.

  "I know, my child ..." Father Julian put his hand on her shoulder to calm her.

  " I'm coming with you!" Aurora offered on impulse.

  " No, it’s better if you stay here and take care of the patients, and also it’s not a place for a woman."

  " Father Julian, first of all I am a doctor and I have to go where my care is needed." She said staring at him decided. "Until my marriage is annulled the hacienda in Zacatecas is also my home ... and it’s my duty to be there!"

  "But what will your mother say..." Father Julian started to say.

  "My mother won’t say anything." Aurora replied annoyed. "With everything that has happened, she doesn’t object anymore when I have to come here, to the convent’s infirmary ... "

  Father Julian seemed to hesitate. The last thing he wanted in an already difficult situation, was to tend to Lucas and Aurora’s wounded souls.

  "I don’t know my child, but who will take care of the clinic?" Father Julian asked, as a last attempt to make her change her mind.

  "We could ask the nuns to look after the sick for a few days, we don’t have any particularly serious cases at the moment and Mother Agostina is perfectly able to deal with them. In case of an emergency she could always contact the doctor in Ciudad Madero..." Aurora said in a pleading voice, "if you don’t want me to come with you, I’ll go to Zacatecas alone! You well know, Father, that I would be capable of this! "

  In the end, Father Julian stopped hesitating.

  " Alright, alright, we leave in the afternoon. The journey will be long, a caravan of wagons and carriages crammed with men and equipment will be slow, even if we stop only
to change horses. We’ll sleep in turns and I hope to get there by tomorrow night, God permitting. See you at the church." said Father Julian.

  "Thank you, see you later," Aurora responded, rushing out of the door to go and warn her mother.

  In fact, as predicted by Father Julian, Doña Viviana was not very happy to learn Aurora’s decision.

  "Aurora, listen to me, your feelings of love for others is commendable, but it isn’t the place for you..."

  Aurora continued to prepare her clothes on the bed while Carmen folded them and packed them carefully into a suitcase.

  " Mother, I’m a doctor and I have to go."

  " But it could be dangerous!" Said Doña Viviana. "And it’s not good for you to go alone ..." The fact that Lucas would be at the hacienda continued to bother Viviana.

  "There will also be Father Julian and Dr. Peron ... Nothing will happen with Lucas, if that's what you fear! With all that there will be to do, I doubt that we’ll meet!"

  Doña Viviana sighed anxiously and sat on the bed next to the suitcase that Carmen was packing.

  "Since I won’t be able to make you change your mind, at least promise me you'll be careful," she murmured, taking her hand.

  Aurora smiled at her and gave her a kiss on her forehead.

  "I promise! I'll be back as soon as possible!"

  As soon as the luggage was ready, Aurora, escorted by Carmen, went to Father Julian’s church. The wagons filled with volunteers had assembled in the square, while a small crowd of onlookers had gathered to see them off. Father Julian gave a small community prayer and blessing, in order to ask for the intervention of the Divine Goodness on the mission.

  Aurora made a sign of the cross, then climbed into a carriage with Dr. Peron, followed by Father Julian.

  Slowly, the convoy moved and left Tampico, amidst the general concern.

  Chapter 23

  In the meantime at the Zacatecas hacienda the situation was desperate. Throughout the day the survivors dug furiously trying to free people still buried under the rubble. The Zacatecas doctor, a middle-aged man with thick glasses, could not keep up with the needs of the wounded. All the women, including Yolanda, had offered themselves as nurses and assistants, but it was extremely difficult to organize the work efficiently. Often unaware of the correct procedures, the volunteers hamper each other and created more problems than they solved.