Chapter 12

Zalli still held the CEO’s hand in hers. But she did not clench it like before. It grew into something soft as time wore on and she became stuck in her thoughts. Axolin cleared his throat, indicating to Zalli she should let go of the man’s hand.

“Yoltzin. I’m surprised to see you’re here.”

They disengaged and looked away from each other. It was like they got caught doing something bawdy.

Zalli scooted closer to Axolin and squeezed his arm for reassurance. She hoped to insinuate to the CEO that he was a disturbance, and thus, would leave them alone.

“Yes, I wanted to check out the local festivities. It seemed like it could be a blast.”

Yoltzin knew exactly what he had walked into when he came upon the two. Ever since Zalli arrived at the feria, he tailed her as she walked throughout the center of town. He did not originally intend to stalk her during her exploration, but when he was about to approach her, she had bumped into the gentleman now standing by her side. It only delayed him in a meager way, but seeing the two interact unsettled him to a high degree.

He only intervened at the moment he did because of what he overheard from their conversation. It seemed like it was steering towards something intimate and heartwarming, and he wouldn’t allow that to transpire between Zalli and any man other than himself.

Zalli glared at the CEO with her forest brown eyes. Her annoyance increased with each minute that Yoltzin used to meddle between her and Axolin.

Axolin felt the electricity build in the air between the two. He did not know what differences Zalli held for don Calip, but being a natural mediator, he broke whatever tension was present.

“Don Calip, are you having fun?”

His question was enough to redirect Yoltzin’s attention to him, but Zalli stay adamant in her aggrievement. He could not deter Zalli from turning her scowl away.

“Yes. I was playing some games when I saw Srta. Tlahuizcal from afar. There was some business about her farm that I was not sure to discuss with her tomorrow or not, but seeing her made me think it I should tell her now.”

Zalli brought one hand away from Axolin to gesture nonchalance.

“I’m sure we could speak tomorrow, Yoltzin. Today is my day off, and I was hoping to—”

“Oh, yes, of course. I only mean to steal you for a moment. Plus, I think you would really like to know what I have discovered.”

Her other arm came off Axolin as she took a step in Yoltzin’s direction. Passion beamed in her eyes; she prepared herself to argue with the CEO without taking notice of anyone around them, including Axolin.

“We can do this tomorrow.”

“That is true, but since we are here, we should talk now. It affects your farm directly, little thorn.”

Just as she was about to go off for Yoltzin using his pet name for her, the man behind her she could barely classify as a friend spoke.

“Zalli, it’s alright if you need to speak with don Calip. I was feeling tired and was going to head home soon, anyway. We can hang another time. Maybe.”

Zalli turned around with shame etched into her expression. She went up to Axolin and embraced him with arms around his waist. His height difference was not so difficult that she could not put her arms around his shoulders, but she still found herself placing them around his midsection.

“Okay, Axolin. Until next time.”

She gave him a kiss on the cheek, then pulled back.

“Sure.”

He spoke with little conviction.

They separated from each other’s grasps. With nothing else to say, Axolin turned around and walked away from the duo to disappear into the crowd.

“Your knack for interruption really irks me.”

Zalli made a sharp turn to grimace at Yoltzin.

“Whatever do you mean, little thorn?”

Yoltzin brought a hand up to inspect for any dirt underneath his immaculate nails; his other hand went to hide in the pocket of his green dress pants. The pattern was a dark plaid, and they fitted around his legs attractively.

“You know what I mean. And stop calling me that!” She crossed her arms and tapped her foot with fury. “You always interrupt what I say. And now you’re interrupting my time with others.”

“Do I ... really?”

Yoltzin dropped his hand and looked away as he processed what Zalli had said. He had thought she was only talking about him interrupting her right now. It was obvious he meant to separate her from Axolin. But as she explained herself, he realized she meant he always cut her off from speaking while they were together.

When he returned his attention to Zalli, his eyes were dilated and his head was tilted to the side. He looked like a lost puppy to Zalli. It was kind of endearing to her to see him not be so sure of himself for once.

She bit her lip at the cute sight, but then used her teeth a little harder to ground herself back to reality.

“Yes, you do, really.” She waved him over to continue their conversation at the water fountain. They walked together toward the aquatic statue, which depicted a maiden riding her horse, leading her invisible army to battle with her weapon held high. “How do you know Axolin, anyway?”

They approached the ledge of the fountain, and Zalli looked up to stare at the beautiful woman before her. She never understood why the water sprouted from the warrior’s head instead of her sword. She thought it looked awkward. For the water to gush out at the tip of the sword, it would mean the artist showcased that the maiden’s power was in her hands. It’s what she imagined would be a stronger interpretation.

“I know everyone in town. I have visited everyone at their homes and I’ve acquainted myself with them properly.”

“Ah, so you’re a nuisance to everyone, not just myself.”

They sat next to each other. They both gripped the edge of the fountain, with Zalli crossing her legs at her ankles, while Yoltzin spread his.

He chuckled, then leaned back to play with the water behind them while he gave his response to her.

“I wouldn’t say I was being a nuisance to them. I only wanted to understand the context of their lives. You’ve figured out that I am taking over your town with my business ambitions, but ... I also want to ensure I can fulfill the needs of the people with my presence.”

Yoltzin sat back up and splashed the side of Zalli’s face with the fountain’s water.

“I can only do that if I can get to know them.”

Zalli smiled as she wiped the water away. She attempted a joke to prevent the mood from becoming heavy.

“And here I was thinking I was special, and you were only bothering me.”

Yoltzin brought his hand back down, this time placing it closer to her own than where it was in its original location. He leaned in close to her and spoke in his lower range of voice.

“I can arrange that. Say the word, and you will have my full attention whenever you want it. Say it and I’m yours.”

Zalli’s heartbeat increased to a thumping pace. Her eyes were downcast, unable to make eye contact with the man next to her.

She froze, but then felt a comforting warmth on her pinky. Zalli turned her head and saw Yoltzin had wrapped his pinky around hers in a tiny embrace. She looked up and met his fiery gaze with her own. Something coiled in her lower abdomen as neither dared to be the first to turn their gaze away from each other.

The world around them was silent until two feminine voices interrupted their shared moment.

“Buenas tardes, don Calip, Aurozalli.”

They snapped their heads at a crackling pace and pulled their hands away at lightning speed from the sudden appearance of the older ladies. Zalli took in her surroundings while Yoltzin directed his attention to them, able to address them first.

“Buenas tardes, doña Mocel, doña Ilamaton.”

Zalli looked at them and provided them with a similar greeting.

The pair walked away, giggling with each other. It seemed like they purposefully heckled the farmer and CEO, wanting to disturb the intimate moment just for the joke of it.

No longer trapped under Yoltzin’s spell, Zalli scooted an inch away from the man. She wanted some breathing space so her brain would not feel so fuzzy again.

Yoltzin cleared his throat, which caused Zalli to turn her attention to him. He spoke in a serious tone, but it was a bit shaky in the delivery.

“I-uh ... I want to apologize. Again. I was not aware I was being rude to you like that.” His foot tapped in a consecutive beat of four as he moved his elbows to rest on his knees. “I mean, when I interrupt you. It’s a bad habit of mine. I don’t mean to do it, but I haven’t ... tried to stop. But I can try! I’ll-uh be more aware around you.”

The more he spoke, the faster he delivered his speech and turned it more into a rambling mess. Zalli raised her eyebrows with a small smile at how quick he was to lose his composure. Even though he was cool and collected in what he showed to the public eye, once a crack appeared in his presenting face, everything came crumbling down.

Zalli’s empathy appeared and nullified any self-conscious thoughts she could have in her next action. She brought her hand up to cover Yoltzin’s and gave him a comforting expression as she spoke.

“It’s okay, Cal.” The small smile she carried quickly disappeared along with her need to console as she realized her small slip-up. Zalli snatched her hand away and continued talking to distract the CEO. She didn’t need him to become aware she used his first name out loud for the first time, and, thus, gloat in her face about it. “So, what was the important update you had for me that couldn’t wait until tomorrow?”

Yoltzin was, in fact, distracted, but not because the maiden changed the topic so fast. He stared at his hand for a pleasant moment, revering in how she held his hand in a comforting way.

“Well, like I said. I could have told you later, but I feel you would have bitten my head off for not telling you soon enough.”

She rolled her eyes and hoped the blush on her cheeks had finally disappeared.

“So what is it?”

Yoltzin turned his body to face the farmer as much as he could, given their seating arrangement. It forced his knee to make contact with hers, but what he said made Zalli think very little about the touch.

“I think someone is poisoning your farm.”

She uncrossed her legs and brought one knee to rest over the other. Zalli turned her eyes downward as she compressed her lips and brought one corner up.

“Poisoning my farm ... why—why would anyone do that? How do you even know that?”

“While my team and I were digging yesterday, I figured to take some soil samples to begin researching the quality of your soil. So I would know what resources to provide you with.” Yoltzin brought a hand up to comb his hair back, but he carelessly ruffled it instead. He felt some provocation present in what he was about to disclose. “We took some samples from the perimeter and some from the inside, and I had them sent to my technicians—express mail, of course, I like fast results. About a couple of hours ago, I got the results.”

“What did the results say?”

Zalli brought her eyes back up. Her full attention was present and apprehension ran over her body, stiffening her muscles to stop all movement. Her eyes were wide as she waited patiently for Yoltzin to continue.

“We did all the usual tests, per standard maintenance. But when we tested the electrical conductivity of your soil, we found it to be extremely high.”

“Okay.”

“And after determining the ion composition, your soil has exorbitant amounts of salt present.”

Yoltzin shifted his position to rest a hand on his knee.

“Salt? Like. Someone has been adding salt to my fields?”

The CEO used his free hand to wave about in sync with his cadence and punctuation.

“Yes, excessively so. I’m surprised it hasn’t been noticed yet. Usually you would see—”

“Salt crusts, right? Typically, some white layers would have appeared on the topsoil.”

“Exactly! Which, I am assuming, you would have noticed and done something about it already.”

Zalli moved her hand to tuck her hair behind an ear again. No strands had become loose on either side, but she did it out of habit.

“Yeah. I’ve combed through my soil many times, checking its composition and looking for any indicators for the lack of growth this season. Yet, I couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary.”

Yoltzin stood at an abrupt speed and paced in front of Zalli. He enjoyed being a problem solver and was now analyzing the situation to deduce who could be the perpetrator.

“I’m thinking, whoever has been adding salt to your soil has been doing it for a long period. Something slow and steady to make it harder to detect.”

“Who would do that, though? There is no one in town I am enemies with.”

Zalli’s eyes followed the man as he stepped from one side of her to the other.

“Who has the most to gain for your downfall?”

“You.” Yoltzin stopped in his tracks. He narrowed his sapphire eyes at Zalli, his skepticism heavy in her direction. “Well ... is it not logical to think that? You are the one who wants to buy all the farmland here. Perhaps completely ruining me and eliminating all possibilities of recovery is the only way. Then you could finally convince me to sell you my land.”

He crossed his arms in defiance. He could not believe the reasoning Zalli was giving him.

“I thought we were beyond this. Have you forgotten what I was originally digging up your soil for?”

“No ... but you haven’t dropped your pestering to change my mind this entire time.”

Yoltzin shifted his body weight from one hip to the other.

“What?”

“Yeah, just yesterday you came over and asked me again! You were smoking a cigarette and you wouldn’t leave me alone.”

Zalli uncrossed her legs to squeeze her knees and ankles together. Her body leaned forward as turmoil filled her body.

“Smoking a ... how do you know I smoke? I do it seldomly and I’ve never done it around you.”

She stood up with fervor and took a step closer to Yoltzin.

“Well, you did! You were smoking yesterday, and then you followed me into the forest at the edge of my farm. And then—”

Zalli ceased all talking as the realization hit her. Her eyes grew wide and her pupils dilated. She, without proper consideration, had remembered the dream she had with him as a memory.

“Yesterday, we started digging ... I know I didn’t smoke yesterday … Zalli. And then, what?”

Heat expanded on her cheeks as her blush appeared without her consent. As she spoke, she tried to look at anything but Yoltzin.

“And then ... uh. And then-nothing! My brain must be scrambled from all this stress. AH-HAH ... hah! Sorry about that.”

Yoltzin brought his shoulders down to be at eye level with the maiden. When he addressed her, he was able to force Zalli to look at him.

“Zalli ... did you dream about me last night?”

She glanced away, then returned her attention to Yoltzin when she responded.

“No, of course not. I don’t think of you that way.”

A smirk grew on his face.

“You did, didn’t you? What did we do in your dream? Argue like always. Or ...” Yoltzin bit his lip before continuing his interrogation. “Did something else happen?” Zalli looked away again and her blush grew from a soft pink to an intense red. “Something else happened, didn’t it?! Zalli, what did you dream? Did we—?”

Zalli shoved a hand up to his mouth, pushing his jaw up, but covering it at the same time. With the amount of force she used, she pushed Yoltzin away to stand as much as the length that her arm gave.

The duo stood there, frozen. Sounds of laughter and dinging from nearby games could be heard around them. Incomprehensible chatter enclosed them in the personal bubble they had formed.

After a lengthy moment passed, Zalli finally spoke again after clearing her throat, hand still latched onto the CEO’s face.

“Alright, alright. So it’s not you. Who could it be then?”

She brought her hand down and let it fall idly to rest by her side. Yoltzin moved his head to crack his neck, then rolled his shoulders back to stand back at his full height.

“That will be the fun part. Finding out who.”

“Yeah, sure. Fun.” Zalli felt her shoulders droop down and her energy levels decrease. Her need to socialize was no longer present, and everything around her felt overwhelming. “Do you ... do you think you can drive me home?”

Yoltzin examined her body language. Seeing how crestfallen she had become, he understood her need to escape the loud environment.

“Of course, little thorn.”

They moved together, shoulder to shoulder, at an easy pace.

“Why do you call me that?”

“Ah, little thorn?”

Every once in a while their fingers would touch, but never moving further than just that.

“Yeah.”

“Because you’re a huge thorn in my side.”

Zalli threw a wayward glance in his direction.

“Why not call me a huge thorn, then?”

Yoltzin chuckled. He rubbed his jaw in mirth, then responded to Zalli.

“Because that doesn’t sound as cute as little thorn.”

She let out an exasperated groan and stopped her smile from appearing. But she couldn’t stop her eyes from smiling in amusement. The two continued their walk towards Yoltzin’s fancy car. They made amiable small talk the whole way there.