Chapter 3:The First Betrayal

Sofia opened her eyes once again, a sharpness in them that sliced through the lethargy. Her lips hardly opened as she said, "You saved me." Her delicate skin hardly moved. 

Rafael answered nevertheless even though it was not a question. "I done what was required." 

Though small, her lips quitched into a smile that would have reminded him that she was still a woman who knew how to survive under the cold, merciless surface. "How... long was I out?" 

"A few days," he said with under control voice. Though you were in critical state, you recovered. 

Sofia's eyelids closed, as though she were testing him for dishonesty. The air surrounding them tightened, the unspoken tension gathering like a storm just on approach. She was strong, impenetrable by most, yet here she was, exposed and in need of someone to support her. She felt awkward in the role. Vulnerability was not something she welcomed. 

Rafael saw her fixating on him, a glare that seemed to cut right through him. She examined him as though deciding how much of him she could believe. 

Her voice was quiet but exact. Are you not like the rest? 

Her words weighty to him, like a test he was not ready for. "I'm just a doctor," he murmured, his hands adjusting the IV drip while avoiding hers. 

"Just a doctor," she said repeatedly. But you still find yourself here. You realize the risk you have entered? 

Not responding immediately, he felt uneasiness growing inside him. Though his whole life had been focused on rescuing lives, this was different. Sofia Alvarez shown more than simply patience. She was a force, a lady in charge of all element of the criminal empire across the city. And here he was, enmeshed in her web. 

"I know," he whispered, his voice low and his hands still for a brief instant. But Sofia, I am not here for your kingdom. I am here to see that you survive. 

The room sank into an awkward quiet. His comments remained in the air between them, and for a while he worried whether she would throw him out as she did everyone else. She didn't, however. Rather, she slanted back against the cushion, peering at him with an inquisitive yet analytical eye. 

"You think I'll just let you walk away once I'm better?" Her comments were not harsh, but they did have a sharpness. A difficulty. 

Rafael gulped; his throat went dry. More to himself than to her, he added gently, "I never intended to be part of your world." 

Sofia grinned, a little but lethal curl of her lips. "Dr. Escobar, it is not your choice anymore." 

A part of him wanted to dispute and leave the whole matter. But he could not. not right now. Not when she had begun to undermine the wallshe had painstakingly erected around himself. 

The door to the room opened before he could answer, and Michael Richards entered. His keen eye turned right away to Rafael, absorbing his presence with a calm, almost contemptuous look. 

"how's she doing?" Michael's voice was like gravel, coarse, but it had an edge of power that begged respect. 

Sofia gave no response right away. Rather, she turned her head toward Michael, her look insumutable. Rafael felt their conversation weight him, the tension building as the seconds passed. 

Michael's eyes stayed on Rafael, then he spoke with a sharpness that sliced across the room. He said, "Dr. Escobar," approaching closely. "I suggest it's time you decided." 

Rafael felt his chest becoming constricted. The mood had changed, and he instantly understood just how far he already descended. 

Michael responded, "You're here to help us," his tone emphasizing that this was no more a question. "But you could as well leave now if you are not ready to follow our guidelines." 

Standing with Sofia's closest friend, Gabriela Torres, Michael was. Their exchange was sharp, the words clipped and limited. Rafael bent to hear. 

"I don't trust him," Gabriela's voice was hardly a whisper, yet it carried. "He could destroy everything we have worked for if he gets too close to her." 

Michael answered quite sharply. "He won't approach too closely. Still, should he do, we will handle it. The doctor has no idea what he is signing for. 

The words sliced through the air like a dagger, but Rafael's blood went cold only in Michael's following line. 

"You know what our responsibilities are should things spiral out of control. Now, particularly with him, she cannot afford to trust anyone. 

Later that evening, Rafael was sitting in his office attempting to get rid of the uncomfortable sensation that had crept deep inside him. The tension in the air was stifling. His cell buzzed. One he couldn identify, it was an unknown number. Although the accompanying message was brief, the effect was instantaneous: Michael Richards is not only playing you. He has far more in mind. 

Rafael's brain whirled. He had listened in on the call. He had picked up the whispers. And now here is this. 

He moved to the window, standing suddenly and the chair scratching across the floor. Cold and far-off, the lights of the city opened out before him, a world he no longer felt linked to. A black automobile slowed down far away, its headlights like a warning piercing the night. 

Rafael turned to go and caught a sight on his desk, a manila packet bearing Sofia's name scribbled across it. He forgot having seen it earlier. Though something about it seemed improper, curiosity prompted him to open it. 

Inside were records, files on Sofia's empire, on Michael, on subjects Rafael had never even considered. One item that caught attention, though, were a collection of pictures showing Sofia seeing just Lucia Vargas, the rival mafia boss. 

Right there, glaring him in the face, was the evidence. Michael was undercutting Sofia's empire with Lucia. 

Sofia turned to face him, her face austere but a flutter of something darker lingered under. Her voice low, "Rafael," she said, "I need you to understand something." 

Rafael bent straight. He had learnt not to question her, but today was different. "What is it"? 

Her eyes darkening, she added, "There's a storm coming and it's not just outside these walls." "My adversaries are nearer than they have ever been. One of the insiders is turning on me. 

The remarks have more impact than he anticipated. He had heard murmurs of betrayals, of politics performed under the shadow of her dominion, but to hear her speak of it so simply left him with a tight knot in his stomach. 

"I've already started to get rid of them," Sofia said, her eyes straying to the glass as though it would provide the solutions she was looking for. But you have to be on constant awareness. More is involved here than only me. 

Rafael nodded, trying to maintain his professional composure, but the weight of her remarks knocked him flat. He was not only a physician now. He was a part of something frightening, something he couldn't entirely fathom. His mind sped, the opposing ideas dragging him in every way. He had a mission, but this world, her world, was something he had never been prepared for. 

Sofia stopped to give him close inspection. "I know you belong nowhere here. But right nowyou are here, and I am depending on you to do more than simply keep me alive. 

Rafael opened his lips to talk, but before he could complete the words the door flung open and Antonio Fuentes, a familiar man entered the room. The air changed, Rafael felt the room go colder, and their clear conflict was evident. 

Antonio's gaze flicked across Rafael then fixed on Sofia. "Everything is under control." The attack will go as scheduled, he said, his voice like the sound of shifting stones, gentlly. 

Sofia whirled sharply to meet him. And what of the traitor? she questioned, her voice a knife. 

Antonio's mouth tightened just a little. "After we have a solid place, we will handle them. We hit hard now for now. 

Rafael sensed the weight of the room settle on his chest as Antonio spoke. He no longer merely watched. He was in the center of something considerably more frightening than he had ever considered. 

Antonio's gaze focused upon Rafael before he could respond. Something about that look suggested a threat or warning. Antonio seemed to know that Rafael was ready to burn from too close proximity to the flames. 

Sofia glanced back toward Rafael, her expression softening instantly. Though I need you here, I am not asking you to come along. You won't walk away from this, not now. Her voice was quiet, yet it carried an underlying directive force. 

Rafael's heart rate slightly accelerated. Though he wasn't sure whether he wanted to listen, the words came out anyhow. "And if I refuse?" 

Her lips curved slightly in a smile that missed her eyes, and her eyes stayed fixed on him. You not object. Not unless you are ready to part from all. 

He turned at a gentle click behind him. From the shadows sprang Michael Richards, Sofia's right-hand man; his tall bulk stretched between them. As always, his look was cool, analytical. 

Michael remarked, his voice low but definitely firm: "You've made your choice." 

Rafael answered slowly, his mind whirling. Michael was questioning something deeper, something unstated, not only about his professional responsibility. 

Michael moved in front of Rafael, his eyes fixed on his. Though you might believe you are supporting her, you are not. You are involved in something far more than you could possibleconceive. His voice sank to lower pitch. "We defend our own, regardless of the expenses." 

Rafael started to go cold down his spine. Michael's remarks were filled with significance, every syllable tinged with danger. 

Then Michael reached into his jacket pocket and took out a thin envelope in a motion so faint it was nearly invisible. He held it out to Rafael, who looked at it uncertain about what to do. 

Michael said, his voice tight, "Take it." "This is the cost of allegiance. You have chosen this. Are you going to leave? Great. But keep in mind: staying here means in. You are not walking off of this planet without damage either.