When the door closed, Felix walked to his desk, opened a drawer and took out some documents. With trembling hands, he handed them to the man, who looked them over thoroughly.
—There seems to be good progress —he commented with apparent satisfaction—. However, the boss is not exactly patient, and the situation... is getting worse and worse.
He closed the folder with a sharp rap on the table and leaned slightly towards Felix.
—You know that the money we're going to make depends on this, right? So don't let us down.
Felix swallowed and nodded.
—You have nothing to worry about. I won't.
The man smiled, satisfied.
—Well, it's time for me to go. With the current situation, I have a lot of business to attend to.
Felix turned to walk him to the door, but the man stopped just before, and with a mocking tone, added:
— By the way... don't even think about dying yet. I won't let you go until you pay your debt.
—I'll keep that in mind —Felix replied, forcing a smile.
They walked to the living room, where the three men in black waited in silence. Felix reached for the doorknob, ready to see them off, when one of the thugs leaned over to the man in the suit and whispered something in his ear.
The man in the suit smiled sideways and suddenly turned around.
—Felix... tell me something —he asked in a casual—. Are you sure your wife and daughter are dead?
Felix's pulse quickened.
—Yes.
—Did you see their bodies?
Felix frowned.
—Of course. Why are you so insistent...?
Without letting Felix finish his sentence, the man grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him tightly, bringing him closer to his face.
—Do you think I'm that gullible?
Felix tried to keep his composure.
—I don't know what you mean.
He didn't like the answer. The man pushed him hard, and Felix fell backwards to the ground.
—You really don't know? Or did you expect me not to notice?
He crouched down beside him.
—We found bloody clothes in your daughter's room. The shower was still wet. Doesn't that look suspicious to you?
One of the thugs approached him and grabbed him by the hair, lifting his face up.
—You said they didn't come back. Then what are your daughter's bloodstained clothes doing in her room?
A knot formed in Felix's stomach.
—Did you search my house?
—That's the least of it—he man in the suit interjected, his tone cold—. The important thing is that you lied to me. And I don't like that.
He took a knife out of his pocket and, without hesitation, plunged it into Felix's stomach.
The pain was fulminating. Felix stifled a scream.
—This is so that you learn not to try to trick me.
The thugs released him, leaving him slumped on the ground.
—Search —the man ordered, rising to his feet—. The whole house, the office... every nook and cranny. He's hiding something, and I'm sure it's not just his family.
The men scattered without hesitation.
The man in the suit once again bent over Felix, who lay on the blood-stained floor.
—How long were you planning to hide them, eh?
Felix, panting, muttered with what little he had left:
—I won't let you find them…
—We'll see about that — he replied with a crooked smile.
At that moment, one of the thugs shouted from the second floor:
—Boss! You need to see this.
The man in the suit straightened up and started up the stairs.
—Don't go anywhere… though I doubt you can—he sneered.
As soon as he was out of sight, Felix mustered what little strength he had left.
Fighting through the pain, he stood up and walked over to a plant by the entrance. He reached into the pot and pulled out a small USB. He awkwardly tucked it into his pocket. Then he opened a nearby drawer and took out a gun.
Meanwhile, in the office, one of the men found a safe hidden among the books.
—It's locked with a fingerprint.
—What do we do, boss? —asked another.
The man in the suit looked at the device mischievously.
—Easy. We'll force him to open it.
—And if he refuses?
He took out the knife again, twirling it between his fingers.
—Then we'll cut off his finger. He'll still have the other nine to finish his work.
But just as they were about to go downstairs, they heard the front door open.
—He's getting away! —one of them shouted.
They ran downstairs, but it was too late. The door was open, and Felix was gone.
The man in the suit gritted his teeth.
—It looks like he still has strength left... but it won't be for long.
—What do we do, boss?
—Find him! Now!
Felix was running through the dark streets, pressing his wound with one hand and shooting with the other at the infected that crossed his path. The screams of his pursuers echoed behind.
— You won't get far!
A shot grazed his arm. He stumbled and fell, but struggled back to his feet, staggering. Then, in the distance, he made out a narrow alley between two buildings. Without thinking, he headed for it and disappeared into the gloom.
— There! —shouted one of the thugs from a distance—. He went into that alley!
The man in the suit stopped dead in his tracks and frowned.
—Are you sure?
—Yes, boss. I saw him go in.
A crooked smile came across the man in the suit's face.
—Then he's finished. There's no way out of that alley.
Around them, the infected were beginning to accumulate, drawn by the chaos. The man in the suit clicked his tongue in annoyance.
—Quick, get rid of those fuckers! I want Felix alive!
—Understood!
The thugs began to open fire on the infected, tearing their way through shrieks and torn flesh.
Meanwhile, Felix advanced down the narrow alley, staggering, shuffling... until he stopped dead in his tracks.
His eyes filled with tears. In front of him, his wife's body lay on the ground.His heart stopped for a second.
He ran to her in the hope that she was still alive, kneeling down beside her. He took her in his arms. He felt for her pulse. Nothing.
The fatal wound in her throat and the marks on her body told him the truth he did not want to accept.
—Until the end… you protected our daughter…—he whispered with a broken voice.
He brought his wife's hand to his forehead and began to cry.
A message on her cell phone caught his attention. He read it with difficulty, it was the last message his wife had sent him a few hours ago. Then after a moment of silence, he took out his own cell phone and dialed a number.
—Felix? —Delma asked on the other end of the line, sounding worried—. What's wrong? Is something wrong with the girl?
Felix swallowed hard.
—Delma… I couldn't go with her. She'll be waiting for you. Take care of her, please.
—What are you saying? What's wrong? Wait for me, I'm coming! Tell me where you are! — she said, alarmed.
Felix smiled sadly.
—Don't worry about me... just grant me one last wish. Take care of my daughter... and help me to correct my mistakes.
Delma was silent for a moment.
—All right... I'll do it.
Felix let out a sigh of relief.
—Thank you... it was an honor to be your friend, Delma.
—Same to you, Felix.
Delma looked at an old photo in her car, showing her, Felix and Evelin when they were young.
— Even now you can say that... you're an idiot — she murmured with tears in her eyes.
Felix cortó la llamada y sintió cómo el dolor lo iba consumiendo.
Felix cut the call and felt the pain consuming him.
In the distance, he heard the men's gunfire begin to die down. They were breaking through.
He pulled out the USB hidden in his jacket and smashed it against a rock. Then he pulled a small grenade from his pocket.
—Love...I will fulfill your last wish...and protect our daughter. Just like you did.
He embraced Evelin's body with tenderness.
— Wait for me... soon we will be together.
He pulled the safety catch.
The explosion lit up the night.
The men stopped dead in their tracks as they felt the impact.
The alley was on fire. Felix was gone.
The man in the suit frowned in frustration, clenching his fists.
—Damn you, Felix...!