I, the only superpower on earth.

Chapter 139 Navalli Evans The Man ([-]-character chapter)
The next morning, Estrella was awakened.

She didn't wake up naturally from a deep sleep, and what awaited her was not the cramped space between the barrels of the wine cellar and the mixture of mud and dust in the wine cellar after a long dream.

It's a hard touch, close to the skin of the forehead, with a hollow in the middle.

—It was a pistol.

At the moment of "awakening" - waking up and realizing it, Estrella's body tensed up, her mouth opened wide, and she stared blankly at the half-squatting in front of her in the dim wine cellar. The figure, the chest was completely tightened.

"Hey, kid."

The figure taught Estrella a lesson in a deep voice:
"——what are you hiding here... What did you steal?"

"I, no, sir... I was just too sleepy, so I sneaked, sneaked in and took a nap..."

Estrella said intermittently, because he had just gone through some sleep, his brain was not fully awake, and he was far less alert than last night.

The man squatting halfway in front of her hesitated for a moment, because he heard the tone of the "boy" covered in mud, although it was immature, but he could recognize the voice of a girl, so he shook the handle of the gun to the side Shake, motioned to Estrella:
"You, come out."

Estrella tremblingly crawled out from the side of the barrel shelf, and stood timidly in front of the man, because the man had already blocked the only step entrance that could go up to the ground, and Estrella had already cut off all escape With the idea that she could only wait for the judgment of fate, she prayed to God and Tezcatripoca at the same time in her heart-even though she didn't believe in either of the two.

Under the soft light of the wine cellar, Estrella could see the appearance of the man clearly—his eye sockets were sunken deeply, but the bridge of his nose stood up high again, and the outline of his face was like Long and thin as cut with a knife.The pure black eyes match his appearance, presenting a sense of danger and sharp edges. He looks about 40 to [-] years old, but he is stronger than ordinary people of the same age.

And the man's right hand, which has been holding the pistol, has not let go of the monitoring of Estrella. He examines Estrella with beast-like eyes, but his tone is a little calmer:
"Hey, little girl. Why are you here?"

Estrella didn't dare to hide a word, glanced at the man's pistol from the corner of his eye, and recounted the reason why he came here from the beginning.

At first Estrella stuttered, some words were not expressive.But soon, because the man didn't interrupt her and listened in silence, Estrella spoke more and more fluently and clearly, not only what happened from last night to now—— Even the year and a half she spent at her aunt's house, the thick ledger, the thousand pesos she saved, the little village in Catemaco, the mother's ceremony, the Aztec legacy legend……

For a moment, Estrella almost forgot where she was, and was immersed in the narration, confiding all her past experiences.I didn't realize what was going on until I finally finished speaking, and I was so frightened that I shivered.

The man stared at her silently, revealing thoughtful eyes.

He could tell that all the girls told were true stories, and there was no hidden secret about her.But even so, the man could shoot her dead at this time, and then throw the body under any cliff or into the sea at will.

At this time in Acapulco, the life of a homeless girl is not much more expensive than a mouse.

But—the man noticed that under the soft light of the wine cellar, the shivering Estrella, although her face was stained with a lot of dust, had already revealed a beautiful outline. Clean it up and put on a suitable set of clothes, I am afraid that the potential of a beauty embryo will be revealed immediately.

Thinking of this, the man changed his mind.

"Hey... your name is Estrella, right? You have nowhere to go now, do you?"

Estrella nodded slowly and timidly.

The man patted her on the head:

"In this case...do you want to work here—in my tavern? Five hundred pesos a month, and the future salary can increase with the increase in performance."

Looking at Estrella's unbelievably wide eyes and her head shaking up and down vigorously, the man smiled with satisfaction:

"Very good... My name is Patricio, and this tavern is called 'Zaparos'. From today onwards, this is where you will work and live."

……

Thus, from the day he met Patricio, Estrella's life entered a new stage.

"Zaparos" is a tavern with three floors.The first and second floors are the drinking area, and the third floor is Patricio's living area, but just in the basement of the tavern, there is also a wine cellar, which contains Patricio's collection Great variety of wines to come.

The tavern is located at the intersection of Ancha Cross Street in Acapulco, one of the busiest places in Acapulco.Patricio, who can own a three-story tavern here, is naturally extraordinary.During his working career in the tavern, Estrella gradually learned about the background of the boss from the chats of the drinkers and the rumors nearby.

It turns out that Patricio used to be a well-established and prestigious figure in the dark side of Acapulco.However, with the rise of a new generation of forces and the impact of outsiders, Patricio chose to wash his hands in the golden basin and opened a tavern to spend his days.But because of his past accumulation and precipitation, even until now, Patricio is a figure that can be counted in Acapulco. In addition to being a simple tavern, "Zaparos" also has other intricate forces. Provide a "reconciliation field". In the whole of Acapulco, only Patricio can do this. He wanders between various organizations and factions. He has ambiguous interests, but he can withdraw. extraneous person.

After understanding these things, Estrella felt more respect and fear in addition to gratitude to Patricio who could take her here, but Estrella could clearly understand These things, understanding the distribution of power and status in the adult world, have been five years since she entered "Zaparos".

As for Estrella when he first started working in "Zaparos", he was like any young and hard-working novice. It cannot be said that there are too many mistakes, but they do happen from time to time.

And "Zaparos", as mentioned above, is not the kind of casual leisure place, from time to time, there are big figures from the underground world of Acapulco, for these people, a tavern waiter can't help Let them treat it with a good temper.

So when Estrella makes mistakes like breaking glasses, skipping drinks, and playing tricks on other waiters in the tavern, these people tend to make Estrella feel angry, even if they don't get angry. Rhea felt very uncomfortable.

However, whenever this happens, Patricio always comes forward.

Although it is not strictly maintained, it can always be modified slightly to save Estrella from disaster and firmly remember this lesson.

Over time, Estrella has become more and more comfortable with the job of "tavern waiter", but other people are also more and more aware of Patricio's different attitude towards Estrella, So he became more and more kind to her appearance, which made Estrella's work feel more comfortable.

……

During the working period of "Zaparos", time passed year by year, and Estrella also grew up year by year.

As Patricio imagined, she became more and more beautiful-slim, tanned, and supermodel-like.With the passage of time, the reputation of "Zaparos's waitress girl" has become more and more widespread. There are even people who come to the tavern specially for Estrella and serve the wine glass in Estrella. When she came up, she secretly squeezed a tip of two hundred pesos in her palm.

In this regard, Estrella can never be said to be ignorant.

However, she, who has always been grateful to Patricio, will firmly reject the temptation from others, even if she accepts a high tip, she will not make deviant behavior, and even ask Patricio for instructions Theo—and Patricio often just laughed it off, letting her take it without hesitation.However, Estrella receives several salary increases from Patricio every year, and now his monthly salary has exceeded [-] pesos, which is already much higher than the income of a middle-level administrator in a company.

However, Estrella stays in the tavern regardless of food and lodging. She spends very little on her living expenses, and only occasionally wanders in the streets of Acapulco during work breaks. Over the past few years, she has accumulated a fortune More than thirty thousand pesos in money.

Although he has worked in "Zaparos" for the past few years, Estrella is not ignorant of the outside world.

She learned something about her aunt's family—their idea of ​​sending their children to the United States completely collapsed. The study abroad agency her aunt found was a liar, let alone sending Estrella's cousin to the top [-] in the United States. I can't get into even a community college, and all the expenses of my aunt's family are in vain.

Estrella also sent thousands of pesos of income and a letter to his mother in Catemaco, urging her to move to Acapulco to live with him, and now Estrella Treya's income can already buy a small house in Acapulco to provide a shelter for her mother.

But the mother didn't come, and what she sent back was another letter written by herself.

On the first half page of the letter, my mother talked about the life in the village. The plague has passed, and now the land near the lake has returned to its former prosperity. Even if Estrella goes back, there will be enough food and safety residence, but since Estrella now has her own life, she will not force Estrella to go home.But she herself will not come to Acapulco, she has already decided to stay in the village for the rest of her life, it is her world, her whole shelter.

And on the second half of the letter paper, my mother showed her familiar side from the past.She also preached her superstitious ideas to Estrella, "Every gain is bound to be lost", "There is no free gain, and there is no unconditional wealth", "The Aztec kingdom exchanged live sacrifices for Tezcat Ripoca’s asylum, you also need to try to give up some things in order to maintain such a beautiful life"...especially——"You must be prepared to give up."

Looking at the clichéd descriptions on the letter paper sent by her mother, Estrella's indifferent attitude towards Aztec mythology added a touch of disgust. She shook her head, put the letter paper in her cabinet, and decided to go on from now on. In the future, I will have less contact with my mother on letter paper.

……

In Estrella's year, six and a half years after she entered "Zaparos," she married Patricio as a matter of course.

Although Patricio is already a man over 46 years old, his appearance does not show aging at all, with plump muscles and firm skin.

That year was the era of the Mexican financial tsunami. A large amount of dollars returned to the United States. The peso depreciated many times but there was still no end in sight. The number of tourists in Acapulco fell by more than half in an instant. Evacuate completely.

Even so, Estrella didn't feel the shadow of fate hanging over her for a while. She and Patricio were photographed at the wedding scene - also in the tavern of "Zaparos". In the photo of the wedding moment, the girl has a sweet smile from her forehead to the corner of her mouth.

However, Patricio, who also looked at Estrella with a smile, showed a hint of confusion in the smile on his lips.

In the year of their marriage, Estrella became pregnant with Patricio's child.

During the October pregnancy, the atmosphere in Acapulco became more and more tense. Many anti-drug fighters fought openly on the streets of the city. Every day, fresh corpses were dumped on the side of the street, where flies gathered and feasted.

For the safety of yourself and your children.Estrella stopped going out and stayed on the third floor of "Zaparos" every day, lying on the bed bored, and the tavern also stopped operating during this period, and other waiters received a severance payment After being dismissed, in the entire tavern, apart from Estrella and Patricio and his wife, there was only one old servant who took care of Estrella.

Patricio loves her very much, but he leaves early and returns late, and is often away from home. He doesn’t know what he’s busy with. Even when he returns home, he still frowns and doesn’t speak, and Estrella doesn’t dare to take the initiative Go ask, the atmosphere in the house is getting tense.

The only thing she could talk to was the old servant, who was missing a tooth and always had a cheerful look. Even when Estrella lost his temper because of bipolar disorder during pregnancy, he would always smile and respond to it. Estrella looked after her like a father.

This kind of life lasted for several months, and Estrella finally endured it.

But on a rainy night, Estrella, who was used to Patricio not being at home, was suddenly awakened by a photograph in the middle of the night. After waking up, he saw Patricio standing at the head of his bed, looking a bit strange. Embarrassed, the suit he was wearing looked wrinkled.

"Get up, honey—come downstairs with me."

Patricio's serious tone made Estrella understand that this was not a joke. She got up after getting dressed, and followed Patricio to the downstairs, where a car was parked in the rain. Sitting in the driver's seat of the car was a man whose facial muscles were as hard as a rock.

"Estrella, I remember you talking about your hometown—it's in the little village of Catemaco, right? He's Gafonso, the man I can trust the most. He'll take you back. "

With that said, Patricio stuffed a small box into Estrella's hands:

"Now that the peso is almost worthless, this is a hundred thousand dollars, which will guarantee the future of you and your children."

Estrella took the box numbly, but subconsciously grabbed Patricio's hand and looked into Patricio's eyes in panic.

"... Pai, what about you?"

Patricio did not dodge, and quietly stared at Estrella. After a long time, a smile melted on his face.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine...I'll come and see you and the kids."

As he spoke, Patricio slowly pulled out his hand, and pressed a smoky kiss on Estrella's lips. Then, he opened the car door and pushed Estrella away. After entering, in the chaotic and chaotic rain, only a lonely figure was left for Estrella, and the last sentence——

"Estrella, my love... Please believe me, I will be back."

……

Estrella was sent all the way back to the small village of Catemaco by a man named Galfonso.

Despite asking many times along the way, the other party never said a word, did not give any answer, just like a stone, but faithfully performed his duties.

After she was sent to the hut where her mother was, Gaffonso turned around and returned to the car, driving the car away.

Seeing the pregnant Estrella returning home with a suitcase in her hand, there was no surprise on her mother's face. Her body was still the same as when she just left home in the past, with a strong sense of colic. The scent of Bazhi incense, but there are a few more wrinkles between the brows.

"Estrella, you're back."

Seeing her mother's face, for some reason, Estrella's mood, which was as rough as a stormy sea, became calmer. She suppressed sobbing and nodded to her mother.

……

For the next few months, Estrella was cared for by her mother.

In a place like a small village, the wizard usually also serves as a doctor, midwife, nurse, etc., so the mother is also handy in taking care of her.

Perhaps it was because the familiar environment from childhood relieved her tense nerves, or the scenery near Catemaco was suitable for recuperating her body. During this period, although she left the modern city, Estre However, Ya felt more comfortable than staying on the third floor of "Zaparos" and staying at home.

However, there was still one thing she was worried about, and that was Patricio.

On that rainy night, Patricio sent her to the car with an attitude that clearly showed the appearance of saying goodbye, so where is he now?Can his promise of "seeing himself and the children he will have in the future" come true?
Every night, Estrella would be troubled by such thoughts, often waking up from the dream.Although her mother would use the sleep aid method passed down from the Aztec era, mixing incense, pine resin, and coke together, plus sufficient plant burning, so that she could fall asleep more peacefully, but Estrella's heart The hidden anxiety can never be eliminated.

——Until one day after she entered labor, that anxiety finally turned into reality.

That was the news on the radio.

It was a radio bought at home. Although my mother was not interested in this kind of modern technological product, Estrella bought a special one after returning home in order to relieve the loneliness during pregnancy and the boredom of mobility issues.

That day, a familiar name appeared on the "Voice of Acapulco" radio station that she paid special attention to.

"Patricio", as soon as the name came to his ears, Estrella, who was leaning against the window and looking at the sky outside with boredom, immediately tensed up.

She turned her head and moved quickly to the radio.

Although I was worried about whether it was just an illusion at first, the news that continued to be broadcast on the radio soon proved that it was not Estrella's illusion-but Estrella would rather that it was an illusion, this article What the news said, I have never heard.

"...A few days ago, the police found the body of Patricio, the owner of the tavern, in the 'Zaparos' tavern at the intersection of Ancha Cross Street. At the same time, the bodies of an elderly man and a young man were found nearby... …The corpses of the three were cut into dozens of pieces, which brought great trouble to the identification work, and the faces of the three deceased had been peeled off… Finally, through the relevant people who knew Patricio, The owner of the tavern was only identified by an old scar on one of his arms...

"...According to the investigation, Patricio was a well-known underground 'mediator' in Acapulco during his lifetime, dealing with various forces, and even big lords from a few states away could have heard of his reputation to some extent... …But since the economic crisis, Patricio’s overseas investment has gone bankrupt, and the debts he signed are also unable to repay. Perhaps it is because of this that he offended some forces that led to such cruel revenge… In addition, after checking Patricio’s O had a new wife who disappeared shortly before her death..."

Hearing the news on the radio, Estrella leaned down.

The psychological blow turned into physical nausea, and Estrella vomited.She arched her abdomen and fell to the ground, as if she was about to spit out everything in her stomach.

But at this moment, there was a severe pain in the stomach, and the inside of the uterus suddenly shrank like a water-absorbing sponge, and the world in front of him became blurred, as if the TV signal was interfered by sunspots.

Estrella exclaimed subconsciously:

"Oh! Oh!!"

Suddenly there was the sound of hurried footsteps outside the house, a pair of strong arms hugged Estrella's body, and the mother's gentle voice came:

"Estrella...do you still have the strength?"

"I...I can't get up anymore..."

There was a heavy pain coming from inside the body, and there was also a stabbing pain that seemed to burst out of the abdomen.Estrella shook her head.

The mother forcibly picked her up, carried her to the bed, cut off her dress with scissors, and held her breath as she watched the large piece of blood dripping from her mouth:

"Estrella...the baby is coming."

The intense physical pain and the blow of falling mentally made Estrella shout in despair:
"...I don't want to be born anymore! Let this child die! I will die with him, and we will meet his father together! Reunite in hell!"

Facing Estrella who was on the verge of despair, the mother did not waver at all, put down the scissors, held Estrella's hand, and said coldly:

"We are descendants of the Aztecs, and it is impossible to go to the hell of Christianity - our destination after death is Mictlan."

Probably the mother's calm performance infected Estrella's heart through the skin-to-skin contact when the two palms were clasped. For a moment, Estrella didn't speak anymore, but closed her eyes and breathed hard. Then, the upper and lower teeth were clenched tightly, and the mother's calm voice continued to be heard:
"Estrella, arch your legs and spread them out... exhale, exhale... yes, that's it... imagine, imagine the child coming out of it... Chalcuit Likui will bless you...the river...the rain...the lake...the water of all things...everything gathers here..."

The intense pain greatly diluted Estrella's spirit, and the words from her mother were the only basis for her to persevere.

Dimly, she felt like a piece of soaked soil, constantly being stirred and smashed by the rain, and like being in the boundless space, alone suffering from the silent tinnitus and the huge emptiness.Because the strong internal voice has exceeded the limit, the violent convergence in the body has broken through the limit.

a long time.

Just when Estrella felt that the pain had broken through the threshold and was about to let her go into shock, her body suddenly tightened—and then loosened, an unprecedented sense of relaxation spread throughout her body, making her body feel heavy. Leaning back, her tightly arched legs also dangled down.

"Crack".

There was the sound of the mother cutting the umbilical cord with obsidian scissors, and then the shrill cry of the newborn child.

Hearing this cry, Estrella opened her eyes, which had gradually become blurred, and stretched out her hands to her mother.

"I want to see him."

The mother put the blood-stained child between her arms. As expected, it was a boy.

——The newborn child, with wrinkled skin, a distressed face, and blood and filth stained on his body, looked dirty and ugly, but the moment he hugged him with his hands and saw the face of his own child, Estre There was a surge of emotion like an electric shock in Ya's heart, as if a certain area deep in the brain was activated, it was driven by oxytocin, trying to make Estrella feel better from the material level. produce motherhood.

However, due to the impact of Patricio's death, this motherhood is still mixed with a lot of pain and hesitation, which makes Estrella unable to devote herself wholeheartedly to this maternal love.

Looking at the child, Estrella seemed to relieve a lot of the suppressed pain in her heart for a while.She smiled at the child, and the newborn child, as if drawn by her smile, opened its mouth.

The next moment, Estrella noticed what was in the child's mouth, and the smile on his face froze in astonishment.

"That is……"

"...he was born with teeth."

The mother's voice sounded beside her. She stood by Estrella's window, looking at the child thoughtfully, with a strange look in her eyes.

"Estrella, do you still remember the story of 'Tushcato' I told you? In the Aztec era, the kingdom would select a boy every year as the 'Tushcato' of that year. His death and sacrifice to bring Tezcatripoca back to the sky, and Tezcatripoca is the wind of the night, the god of the smoke mirror who holds life and death at the same time, where life and death meet each other... This child, who was born on the day he learned of his father's death, was born from death like an 'inverse Toshkato' ceremony, like the reverse of the 'Toshkato' ceremony, from the mirror And his teeth, baby teeth are a symbol of Hades... Ah, he is destined to become the incarnation of Tezcatripoca in the world, he is destined to bring death to this world Fog!"

Although her mother's voice tried her best to suppress her emotions, Estrella could still hear throbbing and prophecy-like declarations from her words.

This made Estrella's heart tighten.

She looked at the baby who fell into sleep not long after birth, but still opened his mouth slightly, revealing the white teeth in his lips. She was a little dizzy. The thin maternal love echoed in her heart by oxytocin just now, At this time, it has completely disappeared without a trace.His sleepy face, which he thought was a little cute just now, turned into a look that annoyed her again.

At the same time, the psychological shadow brought about by Patricio's death made Estrella's mood worse and worse. Thinking of the pain he had experienced in order to give birth to this child, Estrella suddenly felt The baby was thrown on the quilt, but luckily it was soft enough to not wake up the sleeping child.

"The fog of death? Pai's death... Could it be because of this child?"

She murmured, looking at her child with icy eyes, ignoring the same icy eyes from her mother who was shooting at her from the side.

……

Half a month later, Estrella, who had just recuperated a little, left the newborn child in the village of Catemaco, and left here with the small box.

Her goal is the city of Tijuana in northern Mexico. During her eight-plus years in Acapulco, she has also learned a lot about other aspects.There she plans to go to the United States through an intermediary channel—Estrella, who has had enough of the frightening life in Mexico, believes that the United States is the "life" that is the farthest from death.

Although she left without saying goodbye, her mother—or, the woman who has been upgraded to a grandmother now knew everything about her departure. After she quietly walked out of the house, she stood at the window and watched her slowly disappearing in the night. A distant figure.

"Navali."

She hugged the baby, called the baby with the name she had just given, and said softly to him who was still sleeping soundly in the swaddle:

"Everything has its own destiny, gain and loss always go hand in hand."

(End of this chapter)