A week has gone by and we’re having dinner, when we hear a commotion outside. The men hurry towards the action, while I saunter outside, curious to see what is going on.
They’ve captured another man. His face is bloodied and he’s on his knees while Christa interrogates him.
Diablo observes quietly but keeps glancing at me.
I feel sorry for the man as I know how it’s gonna end tonight – Diablo will probably cut his throat under Christa’s goading.
Christa cracks her whip on the cobblestones of the courtyard and I flinch.
I’m wondering if I can do anything to save the man, when I hear him say my name. Surprised, I look carefully – it’s Austin!
‘Ohmigod!’ I shout and race towards him.
But Christa cracks her whip in my path, forcing me back.
I love Austin and to see him like this - at Christa’s mercy, infuriates me and my rage takes over. I slam into Christa, knock her over and grab her whip. ‘Leave him alone!’ I snarl.
She lies stunned on the ground. I don’t think she ever believed I would do something like this. I regret it immediately of course, but I’m not going to let her know that so I glare at her or at least fake it.
There’s a hush all around I never thought possible with these drunken men.
Christa, with the aid of Digger, slowly gets to her feet and smiles at me. A cold, granite smile which tells me I’m fucked.
Suddenly, she lunges at me, screaming like a banshee. But the skill of two self-defense classes, coupled with the experience I had playing football with Austin in the past, comes in handy – I sidestep her and follow it with a bitch of a backhand.
That stuns her even more. That’s right bitch, I’m full of surprises. (Just ask Paris. I knocked her out once when we were teenagers. Got fed up with her bullying and socked her in the eye. Gave her a real shiner.)
The men are roaring with excitement. Two women circling each other, wanting to scratch each other’s eyes out – it’s soft porn to them.
‘Fight! Fight! Fight!’ they holler. Some send for more whisky, while others fish out their wallets to wager. A dream come true for some.
Actually, I’m nervous. Christa has so many people on her side. I glance at Diablo. He’s leaning back on a wall watching us. He too seems amused and does nothing to stop the fight.
Christa swings at me. I duck and slam into her. She falls and I hover over her but I don’t hit her again because I’m scared one of her sons might intervene and kick the crap out of me. Luckily, Troy steps in and holds me back, shielding me in the process.
Christa curses at me, vowing all sorts of things. ‘I will cut you. I will feed you to the dogs. I will shoot you.’
Knowing Troy has everything under control, I kneel before Austin. ‘What the hell are you doing here, Austin?’ I whisper, horrified at the sight of his battered face.
‘Payton,’ he rasps, ‘I came to check up on you – see if you’re okay.’
‘What? Why?’
‘You looked so upset the other day, I was worried, okay?’
I’m so touched. Such valour, such gallantry, such bravery, such ... a dumb idea. Was he out of his friggin’ mind? He’s unarmed and outnumbered and as for his ability to fight – Christa can probably topple him. But it’s the thought that really counts and my heart soars at his foolishness.
‘Austin, I …’ I stop and glance at Diablo dragging on his cigarette, watching us through slanted eyes. ‘Eh, come with me.’ As I help him to his feet, I curse myself for crying in front of him the other day. My misery may cause his death. I try to untie his hands but the knots are too tight.
‘Payton, what kind of a man would I be if I did nothing, huh? I wanna talk to him, tell him to take me instead.’
Wow! Even my own father didn’t care enough to do something like this. I thought about the things I wrote about him in my diary – He’d better not read them. I only wrote that stuff expecting to die.
‘Austin, honey,’ I whisper, squeezing his hand, ‘that’s so brave and I’m like, so grateful for you risking your life for me, but ... I’m okay. Really.’
‘Bullshit!’
‘I am,’ I insist, even though I sound unconvincing even to myself. I glance at Troy. He meets my gaze, his face inscrutable. After what happened on the cliff the other day, I’m sure he will not vouch for me. He probably thinks I’m one helluva fruitcake.
I glance at Diablo - he’s pacing and his drags on his cigarette are growing longer.
Crap! I need to get Austin out of there. Christa is cracking her whip on the ground.
She turns to Diablo and says, ‘This man, he not respect you or your home, Diablo. All the other men ’round you, they see and they too will not respect you. You must punish the gringo for daring to come here. You must make him pay for the dishonour he bring to Diablo name, Diablo’s home, Diablo country, eh?’
Riled by Christa’s poignant words, Diablo bristles.
‘Take this,’ she says handing him the whip.
To my horror, Diablo accepts the whip and the crowd frissons.
Christa smiles. ‘At least three lashes, eh?’
Diablo nods.
Three lashes. Fuck! I need to act quickly.
‘Stay here,’ I say to Austin and stride up to Diablo. ‘Don’t do it, Diablo,’ I say. ‘Don’t!’
Diablo shakes his head and thumps his chest with his fist. ‘He come here, he challenge me …’
‘No he doesn’t. He’s just ... he’s like, worried about …?’
‘Diablo, there is something going on between Gringa and this man,’ Christa interrupts, her voice filled with excitement. ‘There is. I see it.’
Diablo’s head snap to look at me. ‘Who is he to you, eh? Your man? Your boyfriend? Eh? Who is he?’ He throws down the whip and draws out a gun.
‘No! He’s ... he’s family. They all care, okay? But they don’t know how to handle this. He’s doing what any brother will do for his sister.’
A load of crap, but I’m desperate to save Austin. No other man has done something like this for me before and I’m touched. I mean, I’ve never believed I was important enough or beautiful enough or worthy enough to be rescued by a man, let alone a man as handsome as Austin. If I wasn’t so afraid, I’d probably feel a little like Helen of Troy.
‘You shouldn’t be upset, Diablo,’ I say, looking directly at him. ‘I’m here. ‘You wanted me here and here I am. So just let him go. Call off Christa and our12 dogs right now. I don’t want him hurt.’
‘No !’Christa say. ‘Diablo, there is something between Gringa and this man. I tell you there is. I am a woman, I know it.’
‘You’re fucking crazy,’ I say.
Diablo’s piercing stare and silence unnerves me even more and I feel a wave of panic.
‘Diablo, it hasn’t been easy for me. Like, you’ve seen for yourself, huh? My family has seen it too. Austin’s not challenging you – he’s here to ... negotiate with you.’
‘Negotiate?’
‘Yeah. He wants to ... to ask that you ... you like, take him ... and ... you know - let me go.’
He cocks his head to one side and looks at me mouth agape. ‘Take him? I not gay!’
‘No, no, no, he didn’t say ... ’
He snorts and I see a twinkle in his eye.
Thank God he’s amused, not angry.
‘Cut him loose, Diablo.’
He shakes his head. ‘No.’
Christa is thrilled with Diablo’s answer and claps her hands, her eyes glazing over. ‘Kill him, Diablo! Don’t whip him, just kill the Gringo who challenge you. Kill him!’
Diablo takes a step towards Austin.
‘Diablo! Diablo! Diablo!’ she chants.
I grab his sleeve. He spins around and glares at me.
I stare right back, sucking in my panic for Austin’s sake. ‘You touch him, I walk. Okay? Then you can shoot me, throw me off a cliff – whatever – I give a fuck after that. You’ll be doing me a favour. Hurt him, and you’ll have to say adios to me. I mean it. I really do.’
I’m taking a huge gamble here, talking real big. He could call my bluff and kill both of us right now. I have no choice but to gamble. I resist the urge to wipe off the beads of sweat on my forehead.
‘Kill him Diablo,’ Christa urges as she circles Austin like a lion eyeing a deer.
Diablo looks at me and we enter into a staring contest.
In desperation, I do something I never thought I would ever do - I reach out and touch Diablo’s hand. ‘You don’t always have to do what your mother tells you to do,’ I say in my softest voice. ‘How can I respect you if you don’t think for yourself, mmm? If you’re gonna be my man, you have to think for yourself, cos that’s what I like.’
He stares at my hand on his for a moment, then says, ‘Corte le suelta!’
‘Diablo no!’ Christa snarls.
Troy is already hacking at Austin’s ropes.
Weak with relief I give Diablo a genuine smile. Why does he want me so badly? Okay, so he’s a thug and a killer and a bastard and he fucks his sister – but he still wants me. Me. Superfluous, discarded Payton, whose own father couldn’t love her enough to care. It’s confusing but I have to admit, it’s salve for my ego. I’m feeling … powerful. I challenge any women in my position not to.
‘Thank you,’ I finally say and walk back to my bloodied knight whose heroics almost got us both killed. My handsome knight with no armor. Tall, broad shoulders, beautiful smile, beautiful eyes, kind and gentle. Perfect. All my girlfriends thought he was gorgeous. Compared to Austin, Diablo looks like a grizzly bear.
‘What’s he saying?’ Austin asks, jerking his head in Diablo’s direction.
‘Forget it Austin. He’s not going for that. We need to get you home.’
I mutter my thanks at Troy and lead Austin to my villa, but Diablo grabs my arm and jerks me back.
‘What?’ I ask. Please don’t tell me he’s changed his mind.
He says nothing but the look in his eyes – well, I get the message. ‘Fine, I won’t take him to my room.’ I look at Austin. ‘Come Austin,’ I say and lead him aside to sit on a chair. ‘Austin, look, what you did today – it’s like, awesome. I mean, it makes me feel good to know you care so much. But ...’ I shake my head.
He lifts and drops his shoulders and my heart gushes with love for him.
Finally, under the vigilant eye of Diablo, we hug briefly and Austin leaves Tana-Mera.
Only when Austin drives off does Diablo leave the courtyard.
As I watch his car’s taillights disappear, I promise myself that I will never cry in front of my family again or let them know how bad things are in my life. I have to suffer in silence. And oh, I make a mental note to destroy the letter I wrote to Austin.