After two hectic weeks in the office, Inés Martínez’s father managed to spare an entire weekend to spend time with her. Four months passed since he even considered stepping away from Clover Health insurance company. Their quality would have to wait more as her father waited in traffic. Most children waved their classmates and teachers goodbye, now heading back home. Inés had been one of the exceptions. Once classes ended for the day, she walked over to the after-school child-care program. Her father escaped the traffic an hour later.
When Inés entered the car, no usual warm greetings or school related question welcomed her. He stared off into the distance, completely glossing over her presence. Following her father’s gaze, Inés stared at the old couple sitting on the front porch.
The wife gently patted the back of her coughing husband. Exiting the home, their daughter rolled over an oxygen tank, wrapping the mask around his mouth. Unbeknownst to Inés, he quite literally held onto his last breath. Her father knew of this as he’d been the one to make it happen. Sentenced him to death like he’d done with other clients. Other innocent people.
Inés repeatedly waved her small hands in front of her father, breaking him free of his trance. “Podemos ir al videoclub?” Can we go to the video rental store?
Her father nodded in response, twisting the key in the ignition. A radio station blasted the recent Clover Health insurance company embezzlement. He quickly silenced the radio, but he couldn’t escape his actions.
On the long freeway ride, Inés’ gaze remained outside the car window. The billboards promoting Clover Health were covered in graffiti. Some words replaced with other ones. None of which she understood at the time. It wasn’t until she was older that she understood what happened.
Her father eventually pulled into the parking lot of the video rental store. She firmly grasped his hand like asked only for him to let go. He pulled out his ringing Nokia mobile phone from a pocket of his black pleated trousers.
The head of Clover Health kept calling him. Clearly, the conversation wouldn’t end well in the slightest. A series of comments or questions awaited him. Deep, heavy sighs were to be expected from both parties involved. But how could either one mend what they did?
“Necesito regresa una llamada primero. Quédate adentro y no hablas con extraños.” I need to return a call first. Stay inside and don’t talk to strangers. Her father lowered down to lightly pat the top of her head. He gave her a decent of money before he returned inside the car.
Inés was left alone to roam the nearly empty aisles. None of the films on display at the counter appealed to her. As she continued to walk the aisle, she tugged her soft off-white lamb stuffed animal behind her. The most important factor about choosing the film hadn’t been anything other than its emotional impact.
She wanted to see her father cry again.
Prior to the incident, the father-daughter duo watched Howard Zieff’s My Girl. The pile of tissues only grew next to him. She found this weird comfort witnessing him letting go of this cold, distant demeanor. That unguarded version of him was safer, tougher to her. He didn’t even apologize for crying rather permitted himself to do so.
Gus Van Sant’s Good Will Hunting caught Inés’s brown doe eyes, her small lips twisted upwards into a smile. Her father’s employees droned on and on about it during its initial release. She promptly jumped as high as possible to retrieve it.
A nearby worker stopped arranging the new orders to assist the young girl. Before Inés continued to roam the aisles, she quietly thanked him. She restrained herself from grabbing more DVDs that ended up falling off from her small hands. Instead, she quietly sat down near the corner of the room, awaiting her father’s return.
The front of the store at first wasn’t left unattended. One of the employees sat behind the register, unboxing the new order of DVDs. Alexis quietly sang the lyrics of the soft Mexican rock music playing from his Sony Walkman. Hien, his co-worker, called him over a million times. She released a deep sigh before walking over to pull the headphones out from his ears.
“What the hell, Hien? That was the best part!”
“Zero distractions, remember?”
“Yeah, I know. I’m a dead man if this happens again.”
“Smart boy, now help me carry these last boxes.”
Alexis promptly followed behind Hien, momentarily leaving the front counter.
The golden doorbell rang for the fourth time within the past ten minutes. It wasn’t her father, rather it was a tall slim man with a duffle bag in hand. There were two customers and three workers in his line of vision, not including the young girl. Alexis and Hien walked right back inside at the worst time.
“Put the money in the bag! Now!” The robber directed at the cashier after he pulled a gun from his oversized hoodie’s pocket. “I don’t want to hurt anybody, just give me the money!”
Hien lifted her trembling hands up high in the air. No one attempted to make a single move, standing in their designated aisles. The robber’s aim remained at the center of her forehead. Her dark black wispy bangs served as her only form of protection.
The golden doorbell rang for the fifth time. Inés’ father dismissed goodbye over the phone before he entered the video rental store. Alexis took advantage of the eyes off the workers. He quickly pushed the red alarm button then he fell onto the concrete ground in an instant. Alexis’ dark red blood splattered on Hien’s dark navy-blue uniform. She couldn’t help but let out a scream in terror.
“T-This is all your fault!” The robber directed the gun towards Inés’ father.
“Gabriel Moreau?” Inés’ father muttered under his breath, noticing his green plaid long-sleeve tucked under the black hoodie. He’d seen it many times as if Gabriel owned nothing else.
Inés quietly stood up from the comfort of her spot, sneaking behind Gabriel. Hien briefly gazed down at Inés which exposed her presence next to him. He promptly turned around to face her. She bit down on his dry rough hand, releasing the gun from his grasp.
Inés crashed against the wall of the countertop register. She released a small wince from the impact of hitting the back of her small head. The gun swung near the countertop register. Both raced each other to obtain it. He grabbed the end of her leg, holding her back from reaching the gun. She kicked him in the face and quickly grabbed the gun over her lamb stuffed animal.
Bang.
Amid the death fight for the loaded gun, one bullet fired directly into Gabriel’s stomach. He attempted to use his large hands to stop the bleeding. It was pointless. His pain altered into anger directed towards the young girl.
Another shot was fired at Gabriel’s chest as he launched himself towards her. His entire body fell back against the ground. The lamb stuffed animal softened the landing of his head. Inés attempted to stabilize the pacing of her deep breathing. The eerie silence broke out when a customer screamed at the view in front of her.
Dark red blood smeared Inés’ black ribbed turtleneck to her worn out black combat boots. Her father’s thick black eyebrows furrowed as she maintained a firm grip on the gun. Not sure what to do. She promptly dropped the gun in the large pool of blood that surrounded her.
She killed a man, a human being.
Her father’s trembling hand picked up his cell phone off the ground. After wiping off the blood, he quickly pushed the dial buttons to call 911.
“911, what’s your emergency?”
Before going any further, her father gazed down at the lifeless body. He ended the call and walked out the door. Not even bothering to look at her. That was the last time she ever saw her father. In person anyway. Three months later, many newspapers published his resisted arrest and eventual charges. He begged to be let go to care for his daughter, to be there for her. It was too late for that.
Sofía Amorós is a Mexican-American who aims to write stories reflecting the world. She’s currently writing her debut novel nicknamed Project Sacred Morals, a dystopian mystery novel. You can find her on https://linktr.ee/sofiasamoros.
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