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As I listen to Antonio and Alejandro discuss terms for the gun shipment Antonio will have hidden in the basement, I can’t help but wonder what he meant when he mentioned the name Nereza. That’s a name I haven’t heard since I removed my father as head of the family.
“You look bored, Hadley,” Antonio directs toward me, dissolving my daydream. “My business with Alejandro here is complete, so allow me to tell you more of Nereza.”
Before expanding, he turns to Alejandro. “Do you know the legend of Hadley Alexandria?” he asks.
It surprises me when Alejandro shakes his head, especially since he knows about my marriage to Sean.
“Ah, let me share for you,” Antonio joyfully begins.
“Her father, Jason Alexandria, was a callous man who gave no regard to the welfare of his children, and they were nothing more than bargaining chips that he pawned for his financial gain.”
Sitting in silence, Alejandro and I listen as Antonio shares my shame.
“There was a time, though, when I had three lieutenants,” he continues. “Once upon a time, Andres had two other brothers, but thanks to Hadley here, no more.”
As the story continues, he tells Alejandro of the night I killed Matias, relaying how my father owed him half a million US dollars and, at the time, had no means of repaying his debt. In a deal he made with Matias, not Antonio, my father whored me out as repayment, only it didn’t end the way any of them would have ever anticipated.
“Do you want to share what happened to Matias, Hadley?”
Turning to him, I confirm, “He brutally raped me, so I killed him.”
“And Sebastian?” he questions.
“He killed himself; I played no part in that one.”
“But you did, Hadley, you did, and your mere presence was all it took.” He grins. “And your father?” he goes on to ask.
“My father put a hit out on Gerrick and me, so I finished him before he could finish me.”
Laughing, Antonio tells Alejandro I’m just like my grandfather, who was a man not to be messed with. Talk of myabuelo … grandfathersaddens me as I miss him dearly. He may have been a cruel man, but never toward Gerrick or me.
“Speaking of your grandfather . . .” he suddenly changes the topic.
Sitting upright in his chair, he again tells me we are connected. When I ask how, all he says is through my grandfather. Telling him I don’t understand, he tells a story of a woman named Salome.
According to Antonio, Salome was his mother. She was a beautiful woman who worked the corn fields with her mother just as Emily used to with hers. Every time he calls EmilyLuciana,her face cringes. I squeeze her knee once more, and her face calms as we both listen to him go on.
Apparently, my grandfather used to visit Bojayá often, as this is where he conducted his dealings with the para-militants before Antonio took over. During one of his visits, he met Antonio’s mother and instantly fell in love with her if what he says is true.
When I ask how he knows all this, he informs me that one of the elders told him before his passing. It was a secret long held and one he promised Antonio’s grandmother he would never tell. The story had shocking truths that this elder believed Antonio should be aware of, which is why he shared it on his deathbed.
As the story goes, my grandfather promised his mother everything her heart desired, and she fell for his charms. His visits became more frequent; consequently, his mother fell pregnant …with him.
“That would make you my …”
“Uncle,” he finishes. “Yes, but please allow me to finish because this story has a twist.”
His admission has momentarily astounded me. I’d heard the stories of my grandfather’s infidelity, yet they were just that …stories.
The closer Antonio’s mother came to giving birth, the more my grandfather visited. As relayed by the elder, my grandfather had confided in his mother that he wanted to move both her and their child to the US, and there he could be a part of their lives without fearing his wife finding out.
Unfortunately, myabuelawas already aware of her husband’s mistress.
“I was a merebebe … babywhen my mother passed,” he tells us all. “My grandmother only told me that she drowned, but I now know the truth.”
Sadness reflects in his tone, replacing the harshness as he finishes his story, confirming that she indeed drowned, but not accidentally and the one who murdered his mother was my grandmother.
That woman was protective of her own, so I don’t doubt anything he just told me, and she was very possessive of her husband. My grandmother never allowed anything or anyone to come between them.
