Capítulo 38: (The Tortured Hearts)
Calum parked his car near a cafe, waiting for Trae to arrive. He was grateful his father had cleared his name and removed the hefty bounty on his head. But he still considered his father a useless man, a sentiment that wouldn't change.
He could now move freely around the city, but that didn't mean he was safe from Crow. He was sure Crow's men were already on his trail. Especially since the FBI already knew who Crow was, who Philip Harden is. The FBI was already on the move to dismantle Crow's illegal operations since they had already handled Eagle's business. Calum still had to be cautious because at any moment, someone could try to take him out. He had agreed to his father's proposal because it offered a glimmer of hope. Mariana was alive, and he would do everything to be with her again.
He was wearing a faded graphic tee, distressed denim, and worn-in canvas sneakers—a testament to his individuality and laid-back attitude. He looked cool, in fact, many teenage girls entering the cafe would check him out first. He attracted a lot of attention from the women around. He hadn't worn this style before, but he didn't have much choice. He didn't have many clothes since he'd left them at his safe house. He was casually scrolling through his phone, his usually nonchalant face focused on the screen as he leaned back against his black car door. The weather in Los Angeles seemed friendly. It was 2 PM, but the sun was hidden behind clouds. It was cloudy, which is why he hadn't bothered himself to wear sunglasses. He kept glancing at his wristwatch to see how long he had been waiting for Trae. He was getting impatient, but he had no choice but to wait.
As he was checking his iPhone, he noticed a suspicious sound coming from the nearby alley. He didn't hesitate to investigate. As he entered the alley, he was shocked to find someone pointing a gun at his head. It was a man, built similarly to him, but slightly taller, with slightly curly black hair and piercing green eyes that stared at him with a deadly determination. The man would shoot if Calum made any sudden movements. He was wearing a black t-shirt stained with blood, and what shocked Calum most was the woman he was holding. The woman was barefoot, wrapped only in a black leather jacket. Her face was pale, and she seemed lifeless.
"Do you have a car?" the man asked, his voice firm. He seemed nervous and worried. He wasn't worried about anything else, Calum was sure about that. He was worried about the woman he was carrying; he was nervous about what would happen to her.
"Why do you need it?" Calum asked.
"I said, do you have a goddamn car?!" the man shouted before Calum could finish his sentence. "I need you to take us to the nearest hospital." He almost pleaded.
Calum understood. He recognized the worry in the man's eyes, the worry he had felt when holding Mariana's lifeless body in his arms. He remembered the emotions that had slowly consumed him, and he saw those same emotions in this man's eyes.
"Follow me," Calum said, walking quickly. The man followed his pace. He let the man into his car and drove towards the nearest hospital.
Calum examined the man's face, strangely familiar.
"Brianne... Hey, wake up, please, wake up," the man whispered, holding the woman tightly and touching her face. He was pleading with her to open her eyes.
"Leo, Leo, don't leave me..." a faint voice came from the woman's lips.
"No, I'm not going to leave you, I'm not going to leave you anymore, I promise," the man said, his voice choked with emotion. His nervousness and worry were evident in his words. Calum could hear their conversation clearly even though he was speeding.
He parked in front of the hospital, and Leo didn't waste a second getting out of the car.
"She'll be alright, just be by her side." Calum said, his voice heavy with sympathy for him. They are both the same, they shared same tortured hearts.
The man paused for a moment but didn't look back. He walked towards the hospital entrance, still holding the woman Calum thought was the love of his life.
Calum remained standing for a moment, watching them enter the hospital. Then, his phone rang.
"Where are you?" Trae asked as soon as Calum answered.
"I'll be there in a minute," Calum said, ending the call. He drove back to the cafe, his mind still occupied by the man he had encountered.
"The hell, bud, I've been waiting for five minutes now," Trae complained as soon as Calum got out of his car.
"Are you kidding me? I've been waiting for almost an hour right here. Where the hell have you been?" Calum asked, annoyance evident on his face.
"You really wanna know? You don't know how tragic my experience was. I took a shit, and I was out of tissue, so I had to walk out of the toilet and grab some napkins to wipe myself," Trae said, his explanation unnecessarily graphic.
"You're fucking disgusting," Calum said, his face twisting in disgust.
"What are you gonna do in that situation, huh?" Trae asked, laughing maniacally.
"How about you, where have you been?" Trae asked.
"Leo, the Lion," Calum replied.
"What about him?" Trae asked, confused.
"I drove him to the hospital. He was carrying a woman, she seemed ill," Calum explained.
Trae's eyes widened. "Holy shit! You mean the famous assassin in the Black Serpent Mafia? Carrying a woman? That sounds like you, bud! What the hell is going on in the world, everyone seems to be falling in love." He chuckled, and his laughter, which Calum hated, began to fill the air. He was choking on his own saliva, his esophagus almost showing up.
"That's so funny. Do you see yourself?" Trae continued laughing, while Calum just watched him struggle to breathe normally.
Calum's face remained blank. It wasn't funny at all. He knew exactly what it felt like. The worry and nervousness that sank deep into your bones, he'd felt it, and it was the worst feeling he never wanted to experience again. He'd rather be shot dead than suffer like that again.
***
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