Page 58 of Entangled With You

I start running toward the bleachers, where Mati and my family are sitting down. Tears run down my face; I’m in a trance. I probably just scored the championship goal. Mati is yelling like crazy, wearing my jersey, pride and love for me shining in his beautiful dark eyes. My team joins me, and we all hug and laugh.

“Okay team, let's go. A few more minutes before we can lift that cup,” Coach says as he motions for us to head back to the pitch. The final minutes go by in a blur. We try to defend by keeping the ball under our feet. The Alumnas try a hail Mary—making way more faults than necessary—but we withstand their attacks. When the ref blows the whistle for the last time, I lift my arms in the air and start clapping. I feel like we redeemed ourselves in the second half, and whatever happens next, no one can take away from us the fact that we fought hard. We earned this victory. I hug my teammates, Coach, and all the Golden Warriors staff. I shake hands with a few Alumnas de La Plata players, they’re understandably sad, but they’re good sports—great competitors. I feel a pair of strong arms lifting me from the ground and I start laughing uncontrollably, finally feeling light enough to bask in this moment.

“Mi ángel, what a fucking game. I’m remarkably stunned by your magnificence. You’re a warrior on the pitch and a goddess in my bed. I’ll never stop praising you,” Mati whispers in my ear, and the words go straight to my core, like everything he says with that Argentinian accent and sultry voice.

“Thank you, mi amor. I’m so damn happy,” I say as I turn and jump in his arms. He immediately catches me, and I hug him as hard as I can. I kiss him with the same strength I hugged him, almost with bruising force. And he moans in return, damn if this man isn’t my match. I hear someone clearing his throat behind us, and when Mati releases me and places me gently on the ground, Mom and Dad embrace me. Sofi joins in, and the next thing I know, Franco and Mati are part of the group hug as well. I feel so blessed to be able to experience this amazing moment with all of them. When I open my eyes and take in all my family surrounding me, I finally see my future. I want many more moments like this. I want to keep playing and winning more championships—this is my calling. Sofi takes out her phone and starts taking pictures: me and my parents, the entire family, me and Mati. But it isn’t until this moment that I see we’re surrounded by my family’s security detail. Damn, it’s like a bucket of cold water bringing me back to reality; we’re still in danger. Even more so now that we won the game.

After the medal and trophy ceremony, I’m heading toward the locker room to shower and change, ready to go out and celebrate with the team and all of our families. The adrenaline rush is wearing off, and I’m starting to feel tired and hungry. I’d eat twenty empanadas in one sitting if I could.

The police squad trailing us, despite nothing happening, suddenly parts making way for an entourage of men. The blood drains from my head, leaving me lightheaded. I grab Stefa’s arm since she’s the closest to me, and when she catches on to what’s happening, her face goes pale, too.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you all. I just wanted to personally congratulate you on an extraordinarily well-played game.” We all are stunned, no one makes a peep. My dad exudes power, but this guy has an aura about him. Without ever seeing him in my life, I can tell he's a mafia capo. He has about twelve guys guarding him, and all their faces are hard, trained on his every word. Coach takes us all out of our stupor when he extends his hand, and the mystery man shakes it.

“Coach, nice to meet you in person. You have a great team on your hands, you must be proud.”

Coach manages a nervous smile and says, “I am. These women are splendid.”

“Anyway, I don’t want to keep you from celebrating. I just wanted to let you know that you taught me and the entire country a big lesson about resilience, courage, and not letting anyone get in the way of achieving dreams. I can assure, you are safe and no harm will come to your families. Sometimes, money is not the only thing you can gain out of a bet. Sometimes, life lessons are worth more. You’re all safe now, you’ve earned it.”

My mouth forms a perfect “O,” and I hear a collective gasp around me. So this is the man behind the threats? Holy fucking shit. Who the fuck is he?

The man and his entourage leave as smugly as they appeared, and I notice the police spreading out, leaving their post since we’re no longer under threat. The Alumnas de La Plata look as stunned as we are, just like the families and staff nearby.

“So, who is that guy anyway?” I ask Stefa, quietly. Afraid to say it out loud, and have him and his people come back for me.

“Dude, he’s the Buenos Aires mafia capo. Emiliano Colucci. I don’t know what changed his heart, but I’ve never heard about that man not following through with a threat.” She opens her eyes, and I definitely get what she’s saying. It’s a fucking miracle we’re alive.

I’m about to start taking my cleats off when someone opens the locker room door, and I hear a loud noise.

Pop. Pop. Pop.

For a moment, I think it’s someone uncorking a bottle of champagne, but when Stefa collapses next to me, and a puddle of blood forms under her, I know she’s been shot. I reach for her, but a sharp pain spreads through my leg, and I join Stefa on the floor.

“You were all told not to win, this should have never happened,” I hear a male voice shout as there’s commotion by the door. More shots are fired, and I place my body on top of Stefa’s, trying to cover her.

“Policia Nacional, drop your gun right now.” I hear one more gunshot, and then a deafening silence invades the locker room.

“Is everyone okay?” someone shouts. I immediately try to stand up, but the pain in my leg keeps me grounded.

“Here, I need help. Stefa is losing a lot of blood,” I say in a breathy tone. I don’t understand why I’m so tired. The paramedics rush to help Stefa. One of them glances at me, quickly masks the shock on his face, and then starts fussing over my leg.

“I’m fine, Stefa’s the one who needs help,” I say, feeling more tired with every word I say.

“You have a gunshot wound in your leg. I need to stop the bleeding before it’s too late.” Wait, what? I got shot? I thought that my pain was because I hit the bench where I was about to sit down. An oxygen mask is placed on my face and the world turns black.

Chapter 28

Cattleya Cardona

My eyelids feel heavy, and it takes me a couple of tries to open them. It’s hard to focus on figuring out where I am, so I try to speak instead, but my mouth is so dry that it feels like I have a ton of cotton balls inside. With a lot of effort, my eyes adjust to the light in the room, finally focusing on who’s next to me.

“Bae,” I rasp, and his eyes immediately find mine.

“Oh thank fuck, Cattleya. I thought I’d lost you,” he says as he jumps from where he’s sitting, and comes to stand next to my bed.

“Water,” I say, and I try to smile at him but even my face hurts. What the fuck happened?

“Here, mi ángel.” Mati reaches for a cup of water and brings it to my lips with a straw. I take a few small sips, and the cold water feels so good going down my throat.

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