The Other Mendoza

From Good To Bad To Good Again

It was just another normal day in Dallas, Texas. I had woke up in my motel room that I shared with my boyfriend just like normal except that there was pounding at my door this morning, I sighed and got up and went straight to the door, I looked out of the peep hole, it was my partner and very good friend James. I opened the door "what are you doing here at ten in the morning, you know I don't come in until twelve" I said to him, James looked around before speaking then my face had caught his eye, my face had a bruise on the left side"what happened?, that wasn't like that when you left yesterday" he asked me "It's nothing, I'm just was clumsy" I said though I could tell that he wasn't buying it. I guess you could say that James is overprotective of me because of us being so close and how many times we saved each other's lives. James Glared at me with suspicion in his eyes and nodded slowly "anyway, Camila needs us to attempt to make a deal with one of our buyers" he said changing the subject which I was thankful that he did," I nodded my head and grabbed my phone off the nightstand slipping it into my back pocket "Let's go then" I replied. You could say I'm fearless and tough as nails, that was truly the case until it came to my boyfriend Nick, He said if I leave him he'll find me and kill me. I couldn't tell anyone that I was afraid of a man, that would show weakness so I deal with the beatings he gives me daily and suck it up. I got into James's car and put on my seatbelt as usual. James got into the driver's side and started the car.

"Who are we meeting with?" I asked him, "José Santos" he said while beginning to drive "didn't Camila cut him off after he tried to screw us over last time?" I asked, he nodded "exactly, what did you think I meant when I said we were making a deal", I nodded slightly. We went to José's house and parked in to the driveway, we both got out of the car and knocked on the door, once José had answered James pushed him inside and went in, I followed behind him slamming the door shut when I got inside.

The hours went by quickly.

I hadn't realized how late it had gotten until I checked my watch and it was past one in the morning, luckily James had driven me back to my motel room "thanks for the ride home, I'll see you bright and early" I said with a slight smile as he gave me a sharp nod. I had gotten out of the car and grabbed my keys then proceeded to open the door to my room where Nick stood waiting for me. "where have you been?" he asked "Are you screwing around with someone else?!" he started to shout. I looked at him with fear knowing what he was capable of "no, I would nev-" I hadn't gotten the chance to finish before he raised his hand to me hitting me one time after another during that Nick knocked over a vase which shattered into pieces, I had lost my balance and fell to the floor not realizing that I had cut myself on the broken glass. Nick turned around and I used that opportunity to quickly get up and run toward the bathroom locking the door as I heard him load his pistol. I got a quick look at myself in the mirror, I had multiple cuts due to the broken glass from the vase. I was bleeding pretty badly but that wasn't important to me that very second. I backed myself into the corner of the room and slid down the wall "Come out Puta" Nick shouted from the other side of the door, I panicked as I didn't have my gun on me, while cursing myself for not gabbing my gun I realized I still had my phone reached into my back pocket pulling out my phone, I couldn't call the police so I made the quick decision to call James which answered almost immediately as he heard my heavy breathing over the phone "What's going on Julia?" he asked with a bit of worry in his tone, "please help me, I'm locked in the bathroom at my motel, Nick has a gun and I-" James interrupted me before I could finish "say no more, I'll be there in less than five minutes" he said then hung up, he made a quick u-turn driving at a faster pace, in the meantime I kept telling myself that I had to hold on just a little bit longer. Three minutes had past and by that time I had been sitting in the corner of the bathroom with my knees to my chest hiding my face, I felt lightheaded as blood came from everywhere. Nick jad finally had enough and decided to kick down the door, in the corner of my eye I had seen his gun raised to my head, I closed my eyes knowing this was the end of the line for me. But then I heard a crash then a gunshot, Nick's body fell to the floor as James rushed over to me "he's gone, you're safe" he said then looked at my wounds "you're pale" he added I had lost a lot of blood due to the size of the cuts, I looked at James with a look in my eyes that pleaded for help. "come on, I'm not letting you stay here" he stated then picked me up taking me out of the motel laying me down in the back seat of his car and quickly started it. I had blacked for god knows how long as a house came into view, just then the car stopped and he got out then carried me inside my consciousness going in and out as it happened so I only remembered bits and pieces.

I woke up in a bed all bandaged up with James sitting not far along with Richard and Charger which I had assumed he had called. James looked as he seen me waking up and quickly walked over "how are you feeling?" he asked "sore but I'll be alright" I said, James gave me a slight nod sat into the empty spot next to me on the bed I was in "you could have told me, I could have gotten you out of there sooner" he added. I look at him, I still felt the shock of what happened "I couldn't have made that you're responsibility" I said in soft tone my words breaking as I spoke, James sighed "I'm here for you, whatever you need, we're better than that, we've worked together for five years" he said, I broke down into tears, James and I both knew that the shock hit me too hard. He wrapped his arms around me for comfort "it's ok, I'm here now, I've got you" he said as I leaned my head onto his shoulder letting whatever I needed to out. A little while after James told Charger it was ok to go home for the night and Richard said he would get rid of Nick's body. James then had went to sit with me "so first of all, you are not staying in that shitty motel anymore, you're moving in with me and we'll go by and get your things tomorrow, second of all I talked to Camila and she said you and I could take a few days off because I'm going to be keeping an eye on you" he said, I nodded "thank you" I said softly and looked at him, he nodded and then turned off the lamp that was on in the room "Try to get some sleep, he said then gently laid his head on the pillow next to mine, of course he stayed to make sure I was ok throughout the night which I very much appreciated. I closed my eyes hoping to fall asleep and after a while I did, which was surprisingly easy for me to do after what had happened today.