A distant voice echoed through the forest. “Lalo. Come back to me.”
Lalo’s pulse thumped hard against his chest. He pressed his hand over his ribs.
“Come back, do you hear me? Come back, or I will never forgive you. I will wreak havoc on you in the afterlife. If you don’t wake up, so help me, I will spit on your prized books.”
He laughed and faced Alma and Vidal. “I think I know the answer.”
The lovers smiled in unison.
“What will happen to you when Tecuani finds you?” Lalo asked. He had to know if their souls would find peace even after what they had done.
“I have been here for a long while now, waiting in the silentforest with my kin, doing whatever Tecuani asked, until someone was able to set us free,” Alma said. “There are countless sins to be atoned for. Terrible hurts I caused. But the death curse has been broken. Thanks to you and my great-great-great-granddaughter, the souls of my descendants and all they’ve turned can finally move on.”
Vidal looked down at his wife, at the woman who tore worlds apart just to be with him. “We are together now. We’ll face whatever comes as one.”
Alma smiled sadly, pressing deeper into her lover’s body.
“Now go,” Vidal said. “Live a full life for us.”
Lalo nodded.
“Wait!” A large man with gray hair and a thick mustache jogged toward Lalo. He resembled Señor Fuentes so much so that Lalo knew this could only be one person.
“Abuelo?” he asked, almost feeling shy about using such a title.
The man smiled. “Sí. And you are the boy who captured mi nieta’s heart.”
Lalo chuckled. “I suppose I am. Though, I don’t think she’d let anyone capture it. More like, I was offered it and threatened bodily harm if I let it go.”
Abuelo laughed heartily. “That is my Lina.” He wiped a single tear from his eye. “You tell Lina her abuelito is fine. Tell her I will be with her abuelita soon. Thanks to her stubbornness, and yours too, of course, I can now enter the gates to el Cielo. Tell her that she was always my special girl and to continue giving the world hell.”
Lalo smirked. “I will, señor.”
“Best hurry before she gets angrier.”
“I will, señor.”
Lalo dropped to his knees and began to claw at the dirt. He would get to her. He would find the girl he loved.
Brilliant light exploded behind the hoods of Lalo’s eyes. He let out a groan and moved his arm to shield himself from the intense rays.
Something squeaked and tumbled to a hard floor. Hands grabbed him.
“Lalo?”
He tried to pry his lashes apart, but they were heavy, and everything was so damn bright.
“Lalo!”
A hand slapped across his cheek. It hurt. It hurt like the devil, really.
“Wake up, you damn fool!”
This had Lalo’s eyes finally working. He blinked rapidly.
“The sun,” he croaked. “Shut the curtains, Fernanda, or it will kill me.”
“No, it won’t, but I sure as hell feel like murdering you.”
