*A few hours earlier*
"The festival will increase the volume," I said: "The crowd is the best cover."
Lorenzo leaned against the table and looked me over: "It's a risk."
"It's an opportunity." I corrected him and lit a cigarette.
"Rafael will figure it out, it's a lot of money."
"This time it's not just about money," I said quietly: "It's about the end."
Lorenzo didn't move. He didn't take his eyes off me. He understood. Not the plan. The consequence.
"You're crazy." he finally breathed.
The plan worked exactly as it should have. Our middlemen mingled with the guests. No packages under the lights. No stupid mistakes.
Movement. Contact. Agreement.
The money would be returned later. In another place. Clean. The system was solid. I helped build it.
The silence thickened. The door opened. Rafael. He looked calm. That made it worse. His eyes didn't leave mine for a second.
"Festival," he repeated slowly. "Noise. Crowds. Chaos."
He came closer.
"Chaos is interesting," he added: "It reveals who has a steady hand... and who gets carried away."
He didn't emphasize the word. He didn't have to, I froze.
"That requires greater discipline," I said. He smiled, gently. Without warmth.
"You're right," he adjusted his cuff and added: "And you lacked that last year."
He didn't say her name. He didn't have to. It was clear who he was referring to.
"Say what you want," I lost my temper: "You don't just show up."
Rafael sat down next to Lorenzo. He froze.
"Let's leave the festival aside," he said calmly: "I have something simpler for you."
Simple things are always the most expensive.
"There's a girl," he paused, unhurried: "I want you to keep an eye on her."
"Why?" Lorenzo blurted out. "We're not babysitters."
Rafael didn't even look at him. He focused on me even more.
"Because I want to," he said after a pause: "Is there a problem?"
That was the blow.
If I refuse, it's betrayal. If I accept without hesitation, it's confession.
"No."
He pulled out an envelope and placed it in front of me. "Address. Movements. Habits."
Opening it meant accepting. I opened it. A photo.
Young. Clean. Unaware. I lifted my gaze. Rafael hadn't moved.
"Can you handle it?" he asked. We both knew what he was really asking.
"Why him?" Lorenzo asked.
Rafael finally smiled.
"Because he knows what happens when someone starts acting alone. And some mistakes," he continued confidently: "Cannot be fixed. Only balanced."
When a man like him asks you for a favor, it's not about ability. It's about survival.
"Of course." I answered.
He nodded, stood up, and the door closed behind him with a muted click.
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The room felt smaller. I looked at the photo again. Not at her. At what she represented. This wasn't a task. It was weight. Rafael didn't give me a girl. He gave me a line and watched to see if I would cross it.
Lorenzo turned to me immediately.
"That's a warning," he said: "Not a task."
"I know."
"No, you don't," He pointed at the envelope: "He gave you something that can't be refused."
I picked up her photo again. "That's exactly the point."
"So what are you going to do?" he asked.
"What I would've done without her."
"That's stupid!" He ran a hand over his beard — his nervous habit.
I looked at him. "The festival is happening. It just won't look like it is."
He stepped closer. "No," he said quietly: "You're doing it again."
I froze. There was no anger in his voice. There was fear: "Doing what?"
"You think you have it under control."
I didn't answer. That angered him more. He stepped closer and grabbed my shirt by the collar. Not hard. Just enough to feel it.
"Last time you thought you had it under control too." he whispered.
The room felt smaller again. I slowly met his eyes.
"Let me go."
He hesitated. Then he released me and stepped back, as if only now realizing what he'd done. Lorenzo was silent for a moment.
Then he understood: "You want him to think you've submitted."
"I want him to think I'm not planning anything."
"And are you?" I didn't answer. The silence remained. I kept looking at her photo. The light in her eyes. Nothing from our world in them.
"It's not a test of whether you touch her." Lorenzo began slowly.
"No."
"Then what is it?"
I stood and walked to the window. The sound of a busy evening was rising from the street below: "Whether I let her fall."
"Matías," his voice softened. He lit a cigarette: "This isn't a game anymore."
"It never was." I stepped closer: "You'll go into the crowd. Like always."
I took the cigarette from his mouth without asking, inhaled, and exhaled the smoke. As he was leaving, he turned to me: "You're starting to sound like Rafael."
"Rafael punishes. I test."
"Who? Me?"
I looked at the door: "Myself, Enzo."
This time he didn't smile. Neither did I.
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I'm not a man who gets assignments without a reason. Rafael knows that. When he told me to watch the girl, it wasn't about her. It's never about what you see at first glance. He needs to know who stays standing when the ice starts breaking.
Me. Or no one.
I don't walk into alleys without a reason. And I definitely don't stand there by accident. The festival was just cover. Noise is useful. It hides conversations, exchanges, mistakes. I had a plan. I didn't go after her immediately. I gave it time. Some things have to look like coincidence. Otherwise they stop being one.
She was holding her phone to her ear, talking. I kept my distance. I didn't need to be within reach. It was enough to know where she would stop. Her pace slowed.
My phone started vibrating.
"I'm in position. You?" Lorenzo's voice came through. He was supposed to wait at the square.
"Soon everything will go according to plan." I said quietly.
In that second she lifted her gaze. Our eyes met. Not fully. Just for a moment. That was the first warning. She didn't know who I was. And that was the only thing protecting her for now. I held her gaze a second longer than was wise. Then I looked away. I couldn't let her get closer. Not yet.
I let my eyes trace her once more, memorized her walk, her pace, and disappeared into the dark.
I moved quickly through the city streets toward the quieter district where my car was parked. I got behind the wheel and waited for Lorenzo to call.
The phone vibrated.
"I hope you didn't lose her." I said before he could speak.
"No," Lorenzo replied: "But she's not alone."
I closed my eyes for a second and inhaled: "With who?"
"Another girl. They look like friends."
That complicated things.
"Where are you?"
"I think they're heading to our club. I heard them talking in a shop. I'm following them under the bridge."
"I'll meet you there."
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I entered through the back door. Only ours used it.
The VIP area was dim and calmer than downstairs. The music reached us muffled. I lit a cigarette and poured myself a whiskey. Lorenzo came up the stairs faster than he should have. He sat across from me and ordered a double.
"We have to wait," he said immediately: "If there are two of them, it's not safe." He was right. But the plan was already moving.
"Lorenzo," I said calmly: "They're college girls looking for fun tonight."
He looked at me in confusion. I continued : "You can't approach them like a man who's interested."
"Have you lost your mind? Am I supposed to pretend I'm a bartender?" he snapped. I ignored the comment.
"You have to approach them like someone who doesn't need them." He stared at me for a moment. Then it clicked.
"That I can do." he smirked.
"No," I shook my head: "You have to be safe."
He watched me. Then his expression changed. His shoulders relaxed. His smile softened. The sharpness left his eyes.
"Like this?" he asked more calmly.
"Don't win her. That's the only rule."
"And what if I like her?"
"Then you're a professional."
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The club was exactly what it needed to be tonight. Lights. Sweat. Music. The illusion of freedom. From above I could see the entire floor. I searched for my pawns in the crowd but didn't see any of them yet. That was a good sign. Plan two was moving without being seen.
"I see them," Lorenzo's voice came through: "They're coming in."
He turned and disappeared down the stairs. From above I watched him. He approached the second girl first — the one already dancing. Valentina pushed through the crowd and immediately pulled Lorenzo aside without hesitation.
Reflex.
Good.
She protects her.
Lorenzo didn't resist. He adjusted his sleeve and let them look him over. Valentina watched him suspiciously. She leaned toward him and said something. He laughed. He played it well.
"Serrano," one of my pawns interrupted my observation. I just looked at him.
"So far everything is going according to plan." I nodded once. He disappeared again.
Lorenzo kept his distance from her. He shifted his attention to the other girl. She reacted immediately. Laughter. Touching hands. Dancing. Valentina stood aside for a second. She drank quickly. That was enough for me. Lorenzo let her lead. He didn't take control. He only reacted.
I met Enzo a few minutes later near the back entrance. He handed me the keys.
"She didn't notice anything." he said quietly, lighting a cigarette.
"Good."
"And now?"
"We wait until she starts looking for it." I got into the car slowly.
"This is unnecessary." he added.
"No." I closed the door. And the plan moved one step closer
I went to check on plan two. All the drugs from the previous batch had been sold. The new one had reached the pawns.
"Thirty percent from each order goes to the location," I said: "You'll divide the rest tomorrow."
I closed the truck's tarp and added: "If anything goes wrong, I'll find you."
"Serrano, Rafael's men suspect something." I stopped.
"Talk."
"Someone followed us from the airport. They left the highway just before the city."
I was silent for a moment.
"Take my share on foot. Leave the car at the original meeting point. If they ask, you had technical problems and had to go through the city."
"And if they don't believe us?"
"Then they're not looking for a mistake. They're looking for me."
I got in the car and disappeared.
A message from Lorenzo came in. They had left the club. They were heading home. From across the street, I heard their laughter. She was drunk just enough to lose caution. Not control. She gave Lorenzo her number. Smart girl. She stopped in front of her house and began searching for her keys. She frowned. Reached again. Faster.
That was the moment.
I stepped out of the shadows.