"Val, put down the gun." With exposed palms, he looked at me. Sadness poured from his eyes, his dipped voice. He never imagined I would be the one to betray him. "Por favor no dispares." *Please don't shoot*

The bullet left my gun, roaring through the air. It only took a second before being embedded in the target. My heart lurched, watching him bleed through his chest.

I shot my husband.

~

One year ago

My instructions were very clear. I was bred for this moment since seven. Although my nerves flared, I knew how to curb them. After all, this wasn't the first time, I was putting up a show to entice someone. Unlike other cartel women, I knew what I was being prepared for. I wasn't the scapegoat sent to the Los Zetas syndicate, I was the trump card.

Daddy's trump card.

"Are you ready?" Dad walked into my room, a smile appeared on his crumpled face.

Over the past fifty years, he had suffered in silence, endured the betrayal of enemies and imbibed it in every wrinkled line of his skin. Every step he took hurt him, the trembling walking stick and the pain dancing on his face confirmed it. He engulfed it with a confident sneer.

"You look good." Moving closer, he lent his shaky hand. "Vamonos."

Dad's cartel days were numbered with him unable to help much since the incident. The consequence of not having a male heir was quite evident. Our business would be taken over by the Moralez - the leading cartel family.

Before we entered dad's chambers, I squeezed his hand. He may have grown old and weary, yet there was determination lurking behind those milky eyes. Looking at me, his lips parted. A smile emerged. Although he wanted to assure everything would turn out fine, his eyes conveyed the truth.

Dad was as terrified as I was.

Still, we Ramirez' wouldn't go down without a fight.

Facing the golden ornate double door, I felt my mouth turning sour. Having been prepared for this day, the turmoil from facing the reality felt different, sickening. Every option from running away to jumping off a cliff looped in my mind.

Dad's gentle hand squeeze pulled me back to reality. This was happening.

The help pushed opened the doors. Draft blew my perfectly placed hair. Pulling them affront, I walked in, resting my hand over dad. It didn't take long for us to spot them - the Moralez heirs.

Sitting in the middle of his family seating, I saw him. El Demonio.

His stoic gaze travelled up and down, evaluating his prey - me. The man didn't have a hint of an expression, yet intriguing enough to catch my attention. Neatly placed hair and hooded eyes reminded me of the last time I saw him. With raised eyebrows, the predator slid back on his chair, crossing his legs. Confidence and arrogance went hand in hand with this man whose crimson touched face and bloodshot gaze shifted momentarily to his brothers.

The other two men who sat on adjacent sides of his had striking resemblance to their father, Carlos, the head of the syndicate.

Dad dragged a chair. The room echoed with a screech, souring the tips of my teeth. The demon and I were locked in a staring match. His glance didn't waver, neither did mine.

Never show your back to the predator. I didn't.

The help closed the doors behind. Thud.

"We all know the takeover is impending." Dad broke the silent treaty. "With my position in the cartel gone, I would...I mean..." His voice wavered and the smile on his face was wiped clean with what he said. "I won't be able to fend for my daughter. She is my everything and..."

A long, deep silence filled the room. I pursed my lips, giving him a tight nod. Holding his trembling hands, I could feel the pain in his heart. He was parting with our business and his dignity. Staying silent, we let the Moralez take over.

Carlos Moralez was the first one to stand. Being the current head of Los Zetas - one of the biggest Mexican cartels, he portrayed the demeanors of a leader. Tall and slender as a grapevine, Carlos oozed charisma. Walking across the room, he smiled at his family as if taking their permission. His wife, Maria, gave him her nodded affirmation.

"We know what it is like to maintain business, Ramon." Pulling a chair closer to us, Carlos sat. "Although I don't have a daughter, I know your sentiments in protecting her." His eyes travelled towards me. Maria walked close to him, facing dad.

The woman was an epitome of a walking angel. Her dewy face and kind, greyish-green eyes reminded me of my mamá.

"We are glad that soon Valentina would become a part of our family." She smiled at me and then dad. I simpered, playing along. "From today, she is as much our daughter as she is yours."

Walking back to her sons, all of whom sat in a perfect semicircle, she lent her hand to the eldest. Antonio Moralez didn't spare a second, intertwining her hand with his and walking back. Such a sweet mama's boy. Nobody would ever know his dark side had he not revealed it - the dark, demented demon that he was.

And look at him now, hiding away behind his mother's trail.

Maria closed our distance. I look away, portraying the blushing girl. Act and impress. She took my hand and placed it over his, pulling my attention back to his emotionless eyes.

The specks of green remained frigid as he stared at me for a second before pulling his hand away. Both Maria and I felt the jerk reaction. El Demonio murmured an insincere apology, rubbed his palm over his pant and walked back to be seated with his brothers.

I wasn't offended by his reaction. What caught my attention was the cringe on his face as if my touch burnt him. After that, he didn't bother me with his unfazed stare. My heartbeats eased, the sizzle over my skin calmed.

As dad talked to Maria and Carlos, I sat beside them, unravelling the loose thread from my sleeves. Maria gestured to her boys, one of whom walked up. In contrast to the demon's expressions and demeanor, his was much better.

With a smiling face and a hand projected out, he introduced himself. "Hi, I am Agustin Moralez."

Shaking his hand, I continued. "Valentina Ramirez."

His smile widened. The grey specks of his eyes too. "Can we talk outside?"

I nodded, letting him walk ahead of me. Before the doors opened, I heard Maria's faint comment. "Accompany them, Antonio."

I turned around to see if he was coming. With a hand waved in the air and dismissing her words, he continued talking to his second brother. The ball of fire simmering inside my gut raged up. Antonio acted as if he was purchasing a mule for trafficking drugs, uncaring of anything.

Calm down. Remember what we want.

Agustin and I crossed the foyer and walked into the garden.

"I know you must be nervous," Agustin said, plucking dead leaves from withered plants. I nodded, pretending to listen while my mind focused on the discussions happening inside. "Don't worry. Mama had instructed us all to behave, once you are married. We won't be running around the house like madmen if that's what you are worried about."

When his gaze lingered over mine, I snapped back to reality. "Sorry, my mind was somewhere else," I stated the truth. Well, half the truth.

"Don't worry," His hold engulfed my palm, intertwined our fingers. "I know Antonio looks angry or mad most of the time but deep down, he is a sweetheart."

I played along, smiling. "Thank you for letting me know. I feel much better now."

Agustin continued his rant without catching a breath. "It takes time to get used to him but once it happens, you would love him too. Even Elena had the same reaction at first but..." Abruptly ending the statement, he scanned my face.

"Who is Elena?" I asked, sensing it was someone important in their lives. He nodded sideways, hanging his head low. Feeling sorry for him, I continued, "If you don't want to tell me, its fine."

He looked up, a soft smile spreading across his sun-kissed face. Agustin Moralez smiled a lot. "Antonio's late wife."

Only privileged cartel members had heard of Elena's death. We weren't one among them.

The Moralez family controlled both the government and the press. So it was no surprise that they held back the news of their daughter-in-law's death from spreading like wildfire. All we unprivileged members knew was she disappeared.

All the power in the world, yet they couldn't save their own. I felt a wave of joy spread inside me, knowing the hurt it must have caused the Moralez to lose their own. Their pain and suffering gave me a sense of relief. It balmed the ache I felt since childhood.

"We should go back. Dad must be missing me," I gestured at the door and Agustin happily walked alongside. On our return, he talked more about the emotionless Antonio, the levelheaded middle born - Alejandro, and being his talkative self, about him - the last-born Moralez.

Once the doors reopened, dad's gaze landed on me. He leaned over and whispered words for my privileged. "I am signing the contract." I gave him a tight nod, blessing the business takeover. In a way, I was signing away my life too.

The Moralez were very persuasive. They knew that dad didn't have a foothold, thanks to the absence of a male heir. They ensured that he was pushed to an extent where he had no other option but to accept their demands and let go of everything. If only, I was a boy to take over the Ramirez business.

As always, the tyrant family won. The weak were crushed beneath their power-driven force.

After the signing formalities, flutes of champagne were circulated. Maria closed our distance, tugging a rogue hair behind my ear. "Bienvenida a la familia." *Welcome to the family*

Smiling to show I was glad about everything, including being signed up as collateral to a business deal, I dug into my lips as she kissed my forehead. Maria beamed with joy, cupping my face. "Although we'll make everything official soon, I want to tell you that from now on you are my daughter."

Not knowing how to display the required reaction, I continued fidgeting with the flute stem. Dad rescued me from the torture. "Maria," he stooped low, both in voice and stand. "Valentina is a stubborn girl. I hope you would forgive her if she-"

Holding dad's hands, Maria stopped him from speaking further. "She is my daughter now, Ramon. Valentina will be treated like any other Moralez."

I wanted the façade to end as much as the next person but the torture of enduring their sugary gestures were merely beginning. They stayed back for lunch, talking and laughing, extending the torture duration. My jaws hurt with the smile I donned.

Blushing brides win hearts, I reminded myself.

The talks eventually died down and the elitist family bid adieu, leaving us behind.

Dad turned to me, holding my hands and tugging me closer. I wiped a rogue tear from the corner of his eye and fell into his warm embrace. "Don't worry. It'll all work out as we planned."

He nodded over my shoulders, letting off an unsatisfactory chuckle. "I know, I know." Sighing, he pulled my face up. Kindness danced over him, helplessness hid behind the walls of his heart. "I am sad that you have to bear the burden of this. No father wishes to see his daughter be a widow."

Looking at him, my back straightened. Courage to endure everything washed over. "I wouldn't be just a widow, dad. I'd be a Cartel head too."

*

Dearies

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And why do you think Valentina wants to destroy the family?

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First time writing a Cartel series on Wattpad.

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