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“There was a slight miscommunication with Mr. Marcano when I called him. I was asking him for a legitimate internship. He thought I was asking for him to let you into his inner circle like your father.”
“Why does everyone keep saying internship”—I air quote—“like that?”
My world turns on end as I listen to her tell me the truth about my father, and how he worked as a runner for Mr. Marcano in the early days of building what is now his empire.
His fucking cartel empire.
In the span of morning coffee, I learned that my father didn’t die in a workplace mishap. Instead, he died taking a bullet to save Mr. Marcano’s life. A debt he has been repaying to my mother ever since with my private school education and college tuition.
“You want me to spend my summer internship running drugs for the cartel?” The words blurt from my mouth.
“No, mijo. He knows I would never want you in the line of fire. That I couldn’t handle losing both the men in life.” She grips my arm when I attempt to stand from my seat. “But if this is what he wants for you, it’s because he sees something in you. Do not squander this opportunity.”
She left shortly after lunch, needing to catch her flight back to Mexico.
I can’t believe she flew all the way here to unload years of lies.
Mostly, I can’t believe that she is pushing me to take a job for a cartel boss.
What kind of fucked up reality is this?
Thanks in part to the guilt she left, I spend my afternoon cleaning my apartment. While my intention is to spend a few hours not thinking about everything she told me, it’s the only thing on my mind.
Lifting my suit jacket from the pile of clothes on the floor, I fish the business card from where I left it in the breast pocket. Alejandro Marcano, CEO. As I turn it over in my hand, I keep hearing the words he spoke as I left his office.
If you are half the man your father was.
Even with everything I learned about him today, he has always been the type of man I wanted to be.
A doting husband and father.
Loyal. Confident. Strong.
My fingers swipe across my phone, and I hit send before I have a moment to second-guess my decision.
I talked to my mother. I’d like to take the job.
ALEJANDRO MARCANO:
Looking forward to watching you walk in your father’s footsteps. We’ll see you on Monday.
five
SOFIA
“We never discussed having to mentor anyone when I took on this position, Alejandro,” I huff as he continues to try to convince me to take on this intern today.
“Consider it doing me a favor,” he counters. “I will owe you one.”
“It’s going to be a big one,” I emphasize my words with a wide gesture of my hands.
“Good.” A victorious smile spreads across his face. “Just give him the lay of the land. Show him the ropes. All that bullshit.”
A knock at my office door interrupts our discussion. We both turn to find Alejandro’s assistant standing in the doorway. “Ms. Guerrera? Mr. Marcano? Mr. Alvarez is here.”
She motions for him to enter, and I think my chin hits the floor when he presses past her. He’s young. Based on the little that Alejandro has told me, I’m assuming he can’t be more than twenty-two years old.
But he is fucking gorgeous.
