The Revenge
Selestina gets a secret message from her father to meet him, but is tricked to believe that it's to clear their name. In a cliffhanger, they argue in a struggle and she stands in front of a gunshot meant for Alejandro who has come to save her, but no one knows what has happened.
Chapter 5 - The End
The echo of the gunshot through the canyon warned Alejandro where Mateo Garcia was. He exchanged tense glances with Miguel and Captain Morales, their expressions a mix of alarm and determination. The air was thick with dust and tension, the silence only broken by the occasional cry of a hawk circling above.
Alejandro reined in his stallion with a quick pull, his dark eyes narrowing as he searched for the source. A moment later, another shot cracked the air, sending a flock of birds from the nearby brush into the sky. Miguel, beside him, ducked instinctively, cursing under his breath. Captain Morales and his men, already on alert, spread out, hands on their weapons.
"Take cover!" Captain Morales barked, his voice sharp and commanding. Instinctively, the group of men ducked behind the rocky outcrops that offered scant protection from unseen assailants.
Alejandro's mind raced, each heartbeat a reminder of Selestina's peril. She was somewhere just around those mountains, a mere few hundred yards away. His heart pummeled against his chest. Was she safe?
"There!" One of the soldiers pointed.
Alejandro turned in time to see two figures on horseback and one by foot disappearing into the distance, dust trailing behind them like a ribbon in the wind. Mateo and Diego.
Captain Morales squinted into the distance, assessing the situation with a soldier's keen eye. "We cannot let them escape," he declared. "They're heading towards the old mission trail."
With a quick nod of agreement, Morales signaled to his men, and they mounted their horses, ready to give chase. "We'll cover more ground if we split up," he suggested. "Alejandro, you and Miguel find Señorita Garcia and head back to ensure everyone's safe."
Alejandro agreed, knowing that his place was not in pursuit but with Selestina. As the Captain and his men disappeared into the dust cloud trailing behind them, Alejandro and Miguel turned their horses, their urgency spurred by fear for Selestina's safety.
He spurred his horse forward, his mind racing.
When he finally found her, she was behind the mountains, standing alone leaning against the boulders behind the shrubs. Her dress was dusty and dirty, slightly torn at the hem, her dark hair loose around her shoulders. There was a tenseness in her stance, as if she were bracing herself.
"What the hell were you thinking?" he demanded as he dismounted, his boots hitting the ground hard. "Do you have any idea what could have happened to you?"
Selestina lifted her chin, her dark eyes unreadable. "I am alright, Alejandro."
"Alright?" His voice was sharp, cutting through the silence. "Gunshots, Stina? Mateo and Diego. They are not petty thieves - they are killers. And you were out here alone to meet them!"
"I had to..."
"I don't want to hear it!" He took a step closer, his chin inclined, his jaw tightening. "If my informants hadn't seen you come out here we wouldn't have found you!" He gritted.
"Let's go," he said finally, his voice tight. "Miguel is waiting."
It was against his nature to be this angry with a woman! This woman was infuriating. Did she have any idea what risk she had put them through? From now on, she would be kept under a close watch. Never again, would she put herself in danger.
As they rode in silence back to the hacienda, he refused to acknowledge her.
As they finally reached the hacienda, Alejandro barely made it inside when Isabella rushed to greet them, her skirts swishing as she hurried forward.
"Selestina!" Isabella threw her arms out, ready to embrace her, but Selestina pulled back, hugging her black scarf around herself.
Isabella frowned. "You look pale. Are you alright?"
Alejandro, still fuming, didn't notice at first. "She's fine," he said, turning to face Selestina. "Just out risking her damn life for no good reason."
Isabella looked between them, her worry deepening. Selestina's face was pale, her lips slightly parted as if she were struggling to catch her breath.
Alejandro turned to her, his voice cutting through the tension. "What were you thinking? You could have been killed! Lying, refusing the guards to go with you!" He exclaimed, his voice a mix of anger and overwhelming relief.
Selestina blindly looked at the ground. "I needed to know..."
"To know?" he interrupted, his temper slipping its leash. "To know what? To know how dangerous this was?" What if I hadn't found out where you were? If we hadn't reached you in time?"
She didn't answer, just stood there, her face unreadable. Something about her silence sent a warning through him, but he was too angry to decipher it yet.
"Damn it, Stina!" He ran a hand through his hair, trying to steady his temper. "You are reckless. Stubborn. Impossible. You put yourself in danger and everyone else..." He exhaled sharply. "Do you know what could have happened?"
She lowered her gaze, but still said nothing.
"Say something!" he demanded.
Selestina wavered on her feet, her eyes closing, struggling to keep alert. She opened her mouth, but no words came. Instead, she swayed, her knees buckling beneath her.
"Stina?" Alejandro's voice lost its anger, replaced with sharp concern as he noticed the agony in her face and the increasing frailty in her stance.
Before he could ask what was wrong, she swayed, her eyes rolling back in her head, and she collapsed, her body hitting the ground with a sickening thud. A dark stain of blood revealed on her dress, blossoming across the stone floor.
"Dios mio," Isabella breathed.
"Stina, why didn't you say anything?" Alejandro's heart slamming against his ribs.
He let out a rough curse, lifting her gently in his arms. "Someone get a doctor! Now!"
Miguel shouted orders and Isabella followed upstairs, but all Alejandro could focus on was the woman in his arms, pale and limp, and the realization of tonight's events.
And that, despite everything, she had tried to bear it alone.
~
Alejandro had no idea what time it was. After the doctor left, he hadn't left her side.
He heard the bedroom door open.
"Alejandro," Miguel started. "Our men found the stablehand. He told me everything."
Alejandro rose from the edge of the bed.
"Tell me every detail, Miguel." Alejandro said and inclined his chin.
"Mateo Garcia forced her to give up your secrets, but she refused. He threatened her, held a knife to her throat."
Alejandro turned to face him, dwelled by the horror he heard.
"And when she didn't... He wanted to take her with them. To extort you for money."
"But when we showed up, he pulled the gun to shoot you. Selestina... she stepped in front... The gun went off."
Alejandro felt defeated, weak and crippled. How could he not have protected her? Miguel's hand held his shoulder.
"And where is Mateo and Diego Garcia?" he whispered.
"No news yet."
"And the stablehand?"
"Held by my men in the staples."
Alejandro fumed. Turning, he wasn't yet sure what to do with the traitor yet.
~~~~~
Selestina drifted in and out of consciousness for what felt like days. Sometimes, she surfaced long enough to feel cool cloth pressed to her forehead, hear hushed voices arguing beyond her reach. Other times, all she felt was pain.
But when she finally woke fully, it was to the dim glow of a single candle and the soft scrape of a chair against the floor.
Alejandro sat beside her.
His face was shadowed, his dark hair disheveled, his eyes heavy with exhaustion. He was watching her with an expression she couldn't quite place, relief, perhaps, but guarded.
"How long?" she croaked, her throat dry.
Alejandro exhaled, rubbing a hand down his face. "Four days."
She tried to sit up, but pain lanced through her ribs, and she gasped. Immediately, Alejandro was at her side, pushing her back down with surprising gentleness.
"Stay still." His voice was firm, but not unkind.
Alejandro frowned, glancing at the room. Miguel's hacienda. Not Alejandro's. She looked back at him. "Why are you here?"
He scoffed, leaning back in his chair. "Where else would I be? You have a talent for getting into trouble."
She swallowed, hesitating. "Did you..."
"I know everything," he interrupted. His tone was flat. "The stablehand confessed. We know what your father did."
Selestina looked away.
Alejandro sighed, scrubbing a hand through his hair. "You should have told me."
"I wanted to..."
"I don't care what you wanted," he rasped. Then he stopped, inhaled sharply. When he spoke again, his voice was quieter. "You almost died."
Silence stretched between them.
Finally, Selestina whispered, "But I didn't."
Alejandro let out a rough chuckle, shaking his head. "No. You didn't." He stood, reaching for the pitcher of water on the bedside table. "Drink."
She took the cup he offered, her hands still weak.
As she sipped, she studied him. He looked... tired. More tired than she had ever seen him.
"Did you stay?" she asked softly.
Alejandro hesitated. Then, with a half smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, he said, "I had to make sure you didn't do anything reckless."
She let out a breath of a laugh, shaking her head. "Maybe you left me to my fate."
Alejandro's smirk faded. He looked at her for a long moment, his gaze unreadable. Then he exhaled, shaking his head.
"You're mine, Stina."
She wasn't sure what to say.
The days passed in slow, measured hours. Selestina remained confined to the large, sunlit room in Miguel's hacienda, her body weakened from blood loss but her mind sharp and restless. Every morning, the mayordomo would bring trays of broth and medicinal teas. Every afternoon, a physician would arrive to change her bandages, muttering about how miraculous it was that she had survived.
But every night, it was Alejandro who sat by her bedside, reading to her or telling her of the day's events. Isabella would join her late at night with stories from that dreadful night.
He never acknowledged why he stayed. Never spoke of concern or fear. He was simply there, with his quiet presence, his rough hands occasionally brushing hers when he adjusted the blankets or handed her a cup of water.
At first, Selestina thought he was waiting for something, perhaps for her to break, to confess some hidden truth. But as the days stretched on, she realized the truth was simpler.
He could not bring himself to leave.
One evening, Selestina awoke to the sound of distant thunder.
Her room was dim, the candle on the bedside table flickering in the warm draft from the open balcony doors. Alejandro sat where he always did, leaning back in the chair, his arms crossed, his gaze fixed on the floor as if lost in thought.
For the first time, he looked... vulnerable.
