10 Days in Mexico

By N.C. East

When Rachel set out on a working vacation to Mexico she never imagined how a chance encounter with a bunch of so-called criminals would change her life. Her entire view of the world is thrown for a loop when she falls for bad-boy Diego, who is nothing more than a victim of corruption and power. Together they hatch a plan that, if it goes off without a hitch, can give them the happily ever after they have both dreamed of, but if they fail, Diego's life is at stake.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Torrid Books
• Release date: Aug 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781611607666

N.C. East

N.C. East is a young author from the Pittsburgh area who uses her studies in anthropology to craft stories that are not only entertaining but deep in cultural and societal themes that often shine a mirror on the modern world we live in today.

Book preview

Day One

Rachel Winters was enjoying her first day in southern Mexico. To this point, she was having a great time living up the perks of her job as a travel agent. The best part of it all was that the entire trip was on the house. In order to best sell the Sol del Sur Resort to her clients, Rachel was given an all-inclusive ten day stay at the tiny resort. The twenty-five-year-old travel agent planned to take full advantage of everything it had to offer. It was a well-deserved vacation, even if it was a working vacation.

Rachel’s room overlooked the pool. The entire resort was surrounded by lush plants and trees, secluding it from the rest of the region and giving the vibe of being in an untouched oasis. After she settled into her room, she was given a tour of the facility by the resort manager, a very attentive man who spoke almost perfect English from his mustachioed mouth. Rachel then spent the rest of her day lounging by the pool, giving her a chance to relax.

Early in the evening she ordered herself a mojito and took it to her room where she got busy checking e-mails. Even though she was technically working, she took the evening off and planned to let the work messages go until the next day. One of the ones she did open was a message from Bill, her fiancé. In it, Bill again voiced his concern for her being in Mexico. When she’d first found out about the trip, Rachel had done her best to reassure him. She reiterated the fact she would be in the southern parts of the country, far away from the violent border to the north. Bill still didn’t like it and that night, she didn’t even justify his needless worrying with a response. Instead, she focused on telling him about the region, filled with small farms and patches of jungle sprawled between tiny towns and small cities.

The region had many ancient ruins and the next day Rachel planned to venture out of the resort on a guided tour offered by Sol del Sur to visit some of the ancient temples and monoliths. She was excited about getting out and seeing the local history so she sent her e-mail detailing her excitements for the coming day and headed downstairs to the resort bar for one last drink before heading to bed. All in all, Rachel’s first day in Mexico could be chalked up as a relaxing, rum filled success–and she got paid to do it all.

Day Two

The van to the ruins was small and uncomfortably sat ten. It was white and well kept. The side was brightly decorated with the hotel’s setting sun logo and the driver was an older man, overweight and scruffy in the face. He didn’t seem to speak any English but the guide, on the other hand, was quiet fluent. He was a young man, shorter than Rachel and was well groomed. His black hair was slicked back with gel so that not a single strand was out of place, and he was so cleanly shaven that it was possible he didn’t even grow much facial hair to begin with. The perfectly tan-skinned guide wore a white golf shirt and khaki shorts. He was filled with knowledge and spouted out facts and made corny jokes as the van traversed the small town roads into the jungle. About twenty minutes from the resort, the tour group of seven made it to the first ruin. Rachel took pictures of the vine-covered stone blocks strewn around the foundations of an ancient temple while an elderly couple from the resort rested nearby and a honeymoon couple kissed near another set of tumbled blocks.

Another ten minutes away was another site to see, a large stone head that had been carved long before the Spanish arrived. It had a line of tourists waiting to pose next to it. A half hour from that was the so-called main attraction, a large temple complex that stretched high into the skies. It had twisted, rope-like vines and had howling monkeys jumping up and down the staircase-like stone facade. The entire complex spanned two acres and had long ago become one with the surrounding jungle. Paths ran through the complex and into the jungle. The farther Rachel ventured into the jungle, the thicker the overgrowth became on the trails.

Rachel set out to explore some of these trails in search of the perfect picture. As she snapped photos of the ruins in the distance and the colorful birds perched in the tree she became less and less aware of her surroundings. She continued farther down the paths, deeper into the jungle where she took picture after picture, examining them in her camera and stumbling down the hill. As she scrolled through the images in her camera, she made her way down a small hill, almost falling in her distracted state, but somehow managing to quickly regain her footing. In the distance she heard something. She paused and could hear a branch breaking followed by utter silence. After her short pause, Rachel continued her simultaneous photographing and walking. Then, suddenly, Rachel felt a sharp pain on the back of her head followed by a sudden throbbing that shot down her body, and then nothing but darkness.

* * * *

Rachel woke with an intense pain radiating from her head. Her vision started blurry but quickly returned to normal. She was on the ground, in what appeared to be a tent. It was small and canvas and filled with plastic totes and a small pile of clothes in the corner. Through the intense ringing in her ears she heard people outside, faintly speaking slang-filled Spanish. As she tried to move, she realized that she couldn’t. At first, she feared paralysis but soon realized that her ankles were tied and her wrists were tightly bound behind her back. Her mouth was covered with a large piece of duct tape that made it hard for her to breathe. She stayed confused and in pain for a few minutes before the voices grew closer. She could hear them; her Spanish was fluent, and she could tell that they were talking about her. At least she thought they were; they were talking about a her and as far as Rachel knew she was the only female around.

The first of four men to enter the tent was a muscular man with tattoos that covered his arms and hands and multiple earrings on each lobe. He wore jean shorts sagged over basketball shorts and a white tank top that accentuated his bulging arms. His hair was short and shaved so that the sides were shorter than the top. He was an attractive man, more so than the others. The next man who entered the tent had a bit of a gut and was equally tattooed. He wore his black hair in a long braid that hung down over his red, sleeveless shirt. The third man was short, thin and wore nothing but green shorts. His body was covered with tattoos that stretched up his neck. Most of the men’s tattoos were religious in nature, the largest of which were crucifixes and rosaries. The final man was also muscular and had his short, jet black hair slicked back. He was wearing a dirty white tee-shirt and old blue jeans.

The first man, the attractive one, knelt down in front of Rachel and made an effort to reassure her that she was safe. His voice was deep and gentle as he promised her that they wouldn’t hurt her. He also made it very clear that even if she did scream, she was so far away from anyone that she wouldn’t be heard. He started to take the tape off of her mouth but stopped to make it clear that if she screamed he would not hesitate to put it back. She complied and was silent as he pulled the tape from her mouth as gently as he possibly could.

I didn’t want to kidnap you, he began. But you came too close and I didn’t have a choice. Don’t worry, we won’t hurt you. In a couple of days when we are ready to leave we will let you go. So, until then just bear with me, okay?

Okay. Rachel responded in a quiet whisper.

What’s your name?

Rachel.

Nice to meet you, Rachel, my name is Diego. I’m going to go get us some food. We made rice and beans. Wait here and I will untie you when I come back.

All four men left and within a minute the one who called himself Diego returned alone carrying two plates piled high with rice and beans. He untied Rachel and helped her sit up as he apologized for any pain she was in. The two sat in silence and ate while Rachel wondered what she had stumbled upon, but was too frightened to ask.

* * * *

By the time they finished eating, it was already starting to get dark. Diego turned on a lantern and told her that he was going to take her outside to go to the bathroom. He helped her make her way out of the tent. His hand was warm and strong on her arm as he helped her keep balance. Outside, there was one other tent, a stack of containers and a pile of tarps. The other three men were sitting around the fire, drinking beer and laughing. As the two walked past these men they began cat calling