Once Upon A Wish : Book One by Richard Poche Page B

Area. You are involved with Hernan. He’s obsessed with
you. Our employer seems to think that you will affect his work. He
ordered us to kill you.”
“So don’t kill me,” Ana walked away and
this time Nestor grabbed her arm hard. Ana didn’t pull away. She
just looked at his hand and then directly into his eyes.
“This is not the kind of man that can be
reasoned with. He makes up his mind. His decision is final with no
going back. If it isn’t us, it’s someone else.”
Ana wrenched her arm away from Nestor’s
grip but her face had a look of surrender. “I have to think about
it,” she said.
“Ana!” An older woman’s voice called out from the second
floor.
Ana stepped out from the alcove. Nestor did
not follow.
“I’ll be right up.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Mommy!” Antonio came down the steps. He
licked the juices of the melting snow cone of his hand.
“Antonio! You’re making a mess. Come
on.”
Ana took Antonio by his wrist and led him
back up the steps. The boy looked behind himself and watched Nestor
disappear into the shadows.
     
Nestor opened the door and saw Hernan
standing in front of the couch.
“We have a hit to do, right?”
“I took care of it.” Nestor said eyeing
Hernan from the side.
“You took care of it?”
“Yeah.”
“I thought I did the killing.” Hernan stood
firm, but his hands fumbled in front of him.
“This one was special.”
Hernan stared at Nestor with unblinking
eyes.
“What’s your problem?” Nestor asked.
Hernan reached down on the couch and picked
up the manila envelope. He reached inside and took out Ana’s
picture, turning it over to show it to Nestor.
Hernan stared at Nestor with an intensity
that he had never seen before. Nestor licked his lips and started
to speak. Then he averted Hernan’s glare by staring at the
picture.
“You kill her?”
“No.”
“I want to see her.”
Nestor shook his head no.
“I want to see her now!”

They drove to her place in silence. They
passed all of the abandoned storefronts and broken trees that
looked like brown skeletons reaching out for them. Nestor parked
outside the apartment complex and the two waited.
“You can’t go in,” he said. “She doesn’t
see clients in her house.”
“I know,” Hernan said. “I know the
rules.”
“I’m not a killer, Hernan. I know what she
means to you.”
The apartment door opened. Ana stepped
outside holding Antonio’s hand as her grandmother trailed behind
and closed the door.
They watched as the grandmother took the
young boy’s hand from Ana. Dressed in a suit and tie, Antonio waved
good-bye to his mother as they headed off to church.
“Why would Cisneros do this?”
“I don’t know. A power play maybe. Maybe he
thinks she’s a distraction. Maybe he’s testing you. Or me. Or both
of us.”
Hernan just shook his head in
disbelief.
“Maybe he’s right,” Nestor said. “Maybe she
is a distraction. I’ll talk to him. Tell him that we’ll put her up
some place. Some place far away. She won’t be a problem.”
Hernan shook his head again.
“I know a guy,” Nestor continued. “Chuy. He
set up my people when I helped them across the border. I can have
him set up Ana in Los Angeles. Or San Diego. He doesn’t have to
know. We can say we made the hit and just hide her.”
“I want nothing bad to happen to her.”
Hernan watched as Ana stepped back into the
house. He took out his cell phone and texted her.
He waited a few moments.
“I don’t think she’ll call you,” Nestor
said. “I came and had a talk with her. It didn’t go well.”
Hernan’s cell phone rang.
“She calls me back. She always does.”
     
Ana looked behind herself and in both
directions as they walked to the duck pond. She clutched her purse
tightly.
Hernan pulled out his bag of bread and
began throwing it at the ducks.
“You have to go,” he said. He caressed her
arm, noting the contrast in his adobe brick skin color and her pale
complexion.
“I want to know what is