I am no one, I'm nothing

Capitulo Tres

"I mean, it's not even fair." A high-pitched whine filled the humid, nighttime air. Aldonza piled the last of the plates in the sink and began to scrub at the crusted food and sticky mugs with her filthy rag, dunking it into the dirtied water and forcing her nails against the rough metal, the softening wood. "He thinks he can just take her from me because he's stronger, bigger? No way in God's name does he have a bigger dick than me, that nasty son of a bitch." The voice wailed and severely cut off, like a goose who had been struck by a fatal bullet and was nose-diving to its death.

"Here, drink more of this, mi amigo." A voice replied, and loud slurps were heard in the courtyard, where a mighty fire was roaring. A few muleteers sat around it, drinking and trading stories, whispering gossip and planning the new days' adventures. "Hey, Aldonza, you kitchen slut you. Get your firm little ass out here and gimme s'more beer." Juan yelled, throwing his empty mug to the ground. It rolled dangerously close to the fire. "Ahh, shit." He muttered, leaning down to grab it. He stumbled and tipped over, the end of his long, black locks sitting in the open flame like a pig for roasting.

"Juan, levántate!" Paco called out when he noticed his friend was on fire. Aldonza, who was emerging from the kitchen with mugs and a container of ale, noticed the commotion and ran to the scene, pouring the ale roughly over Juan as she gripped his arms underneath his armpits, toppling back from the weight so that his adrenaline-filled body was laid against hers.

Juan, still under the drunken impression that he was on fire, squirmed around the ground, shouting curses and rolling on the ground, trying to physically rid himself of the flame and terror. Aldonza crawled out from underneath his figure and promptly kicked him in the side. "Shut up, you vile poxy goat!" She spat. "You'll wake the entire inn. You're not on fire, you drunken idiot." Juan stopped convulsing and looked up at her innocently, as if she was Jesus Christ himself and had just rid him of his many sins.

"Angel?" he whispered, gathering to his knees as he approached her, hands clasped together in prayer. "You have saved me from this hell." He stopped in front of her and placed meaty hands around her hips. "It's not looking good for you," he murmured, gazing up at her with wide eyes. His eyebrows angled and suddenly he pushed hard on her lower back, forcing her to nearly snap in half as she toppled to the ground. "Prepare to feel my internal flame inside of you, bitch!" He yelled into the night, and he clambered on top of her, yanking at her shirt and tripping out his trousers as the small heard of muleteers whistled and cheered and gathered around the forceful man and unconsulting woman.

Aldonza pierced the sky with a terrified scream and attempted to claw at his eyes, his abdomen, his back; Juan was too much, too heavy, too consumed by the deadly power of alcohol to be tamed, stopped. With cringed eyes, she laid her neck back and waited for it to be over, deciding that it would be easier to remain still so that he could finish sooner than if she was squirming. Juan removed a single hand from her body to lower his trousers, angled eyebrows framing menacing eyes as he stared with a drunken glaze at her. "He thinks that you're his little f-flower!" Juan spat, fumbling with the buttons on his pants. "He thinks he's the only one who can get action. Well I'll show him who can g-get action! I'll show you lots of actions, you filthy whore-AIEEEE!" Juan screamed a loud, powerful scream. It echoed through the courtyard with the intensity of a stampede as Pedro slammed him, back first, into the ground. Aldonza scrambled to her feet and covered her exposed body, eyes glued to the action before her.

"Getting a little cocky, are we?" Pedro growled in a ghastly tone. He loomed over Juan's shrunken, pitiful form, which was cowering below the powerful leader.

"I do what I want, who I want, when I want, and you can't stop me!" He called out bravely, though his voice broke into his higher octave.