Cordero and Alexandra met 24 days ago.

ENDING OF PREVIOUS POST:

As she opened the door, a man grabbed her from behind. His left hand pointed a bowie knife at her side and his right arm went around her shoulders.

She stiffened when she felt the knife's tip prick just above her waist.

"Shut up and walk," he sneered.

TODAY'S POST:

"Who are you? What do you want?" Alexandra struggled.

"We've already met." He moved slightly to the front, so she saw his face.

"Luke? Why are you doing this?"

"You're a troublemaker. You need to be stopped."

"I haven't done anything to you."

"After our last meeting, I spent the night in jail." He shoved her. "Walk faster." At his pick-up, he opened the passenger door.

Alexandra struggled. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

He yanked her hair, forcing her head back, and then attempted to shove her inside.

She stomped on his toe.

He poked her side with the knife.  "Do that again and the knife goes deeper."

From behind Luke, a knife grazed his throat. "Release the lady or I'll cut your jugular."

Luke backed away from Alexandra.

She grabbed her side. "Help!"

People ran to them and helped contain Luke.

Rico faced Alexandra. "How bad is it?"

"I'm okay."

"You need to see a doctor."

Sam arrived and handcuffed Luke. He glanced at Alexandra and Rico. "Get her to the doc. I'll take care of this one and meet you there."

Rico took his bandana and pressed it against Alexandra's wound. "Keep pressure on it. It doesn't look too deep but probably needs a few stitches."

"I'm fine. Let me go home." Her eyes met his. "Please don't tell Cord."

Chuckling, Rico scanned the crowd. "I'm sure he already knows. Nothing's private in this town."

Alexandra sighed as she studied the crowd. "I told him I wouldn't cause any trouble today."

"The doc's office is across the street."

They headed in that direction.

"I have groceries. They'll spoil in this heat. Can you take them to the ranch?" She hesitated. "And can you downplay what happened?"

Shaking his head, Rico grinned. "Which part? The part about the attempted kidnapping or the part about being stabbed?"

"Maybe both."

He opened the clinic door for her. "Cord has his hands full with you."

The middle-aged receptionist stood. "What happened?" As she ushered Alexandra into an examination room, Rico explained the situation. Before she left, she added, "I'll notify Doctor Barnes. He'll be in shortly."

Alexandra's eyes met Rico's. "Thank you for everything. I don't want to hold you up any longer. I know you have work that needs to be completed before the lunch crowd arrives."

Rico touched her arm. "Cord and I are close friends. A friend of his is a friend of mine. The staff knows what needs to be done. I'll stay until the doctor comes in and then I'll deliver the groceries. How you feeling?"

"Okay." She studied the blood doused cloth. "I don't think the pressure's working."

He moved closer. "Do you mind if I try?" When she shook her head, he took over applying pressure.

A few moments later, the doctor walked in. "Hello, Rico. Who do we have here? I don't recognize you as one of my regulars."

Rico shook the doctor's hand. "This young lady's visiting the Ortiz family. To be honest I don't know her full name. Cord introduced her as Ali." After a short pause, he said, "Ali, this is Dr. Bart Barnes."

Dr. Barnes offered his hand. Alexandra accepted it. "I'm glad to meet you. I'm Alexandra Black." She searched around her. "I guess my purse is in the SUV. It has my insurance information."

Rico opened the door. "While you two get acquainted, I'll get it." He left.

Bart pointed to the examination table. "I'll help you up and get a look at this injury."

Alexandra was lying on the table, when Rico returned. He set the purse on the floor, just inside the door. "Here. I'll take care of the groceries." He chuckled. "I won't say more than necessary."

"Thank you, again."

*****
As the doctor completed the final stitches, Cordero opened the room's door. "Ali?"

She tried to grab something to cover herself. "Cord!"

Cordero shut the door. "Sorry." He opened it again. "I need to know you're all right."

"Cordero Emanuel Ortiz."

He slammed the door, but said, "Just pretend you're wearing a bikini. Are you all right?"

Dr. Barnes chuckled, "She's fine. I'm almost finished, and then you can see her." When finished, he handed Alexandra her blouse. "Your gentleman friend's worried."

After she had on her top, Bart opened the door. "She's ready to receive a visitor."

Cordero shook the doctor's hand. "Thank you, Bart. How bad is it?"

"It bled a lot but wasn't that bad. She's lucky. She'll need to come back in two weeks. I want to check it and see if I can remove the stitches."

Walking up to Alexandra, he hugged her. "You're never coming to town by yourself again."

"But?"

He squeezed tighter. "But nothing! I'm just glad Rico happened by. If he didn't, who knows what would've happened." He stepped back. "Has Sam been by? Did you give him your statement?"

Alexandra nodded. "He did. I'm pressing charges this time."

"Good." He offered his hand. "Ready to go?"

"I am." She faced Dr. Barnes. "Thank you, again."

"Don't worry about it. I'm glad I could help."

As they walked to the waiting room, the receptionist handed Alexandra a card and a medicine bottle. "Here's your follow-up appointment and some pain medication. Once the local anesthesia wears off, you'll need it."

Accepting them, Alexandra said, "Thank you. How much do I owe?"

"Nothing, right now. I'll file the insurance papers and let you know of any balance."

Thank you, again."

Cordero cupped her elbow in his hand and led her to the SUV. "I'm driving home. The keys?"

"It's unlocked."

"What about needing a key to start it?"

She searched her purse and then handed them to him. "Sorry."

He opened the passenger door and helped her inside. "Under today's circumstances, I understand." He leaned inside and hugged her. "When Sam called, I was scared."

"Rico didn't tell you?"

"Sam's call came first, and then Rico filled in the details as he brought me to town." He closed the door, walked around, and then sat behind the steering wheel.

Silence continued for a few moments before Alexandra said, "Pretend it's a bikini? Cordero?"

"In my defense, I was worried and needed to know you were okay, besides I've seen bikini tops that covered less."

"You'd better stop before you bury yourself deeper," interrupted Alexandra.

"Good point." He reached over and touched her arm. "I'm sorry I wasn't there."

"I'm glad you weren't."

His eyes widened. "Why? I could've prevented it."

"Maybe if you were there, Luke wouldn't have tried anything. But if he did anyway, you probably would've fought and got hurt or did something to get into legal trouble."

Cordero grinned. "I happen to know a really good lawyer."

"That you do. I'm pretty sure she'd do it pro bono."

"Really?" Cordero parked in his usual spot at the ranch. "Let's get inside. I'm sure you need to rest."

~~~~~
I was supposed to spend this week on the Gulf Coast beach with my third son, Andrew and his family. I expected to enjoy playing in the water and sand with my four-year-old and two-year-old granddaughters. We were going to leave, Sunday morning. Saturday, mid-night our youngest son, Steven called. He was in ER in Victoria, TX where he lives. Our plans changes, but only slightly. At 5:27 AM I got a call Steven was being transferred to a hospital in Austin, Texas. Our plans now completely changed. No playing in the sand with granddaughters. We spent the better part of the week traveling daily through the Austin traffic to visit with Steven. He was released Wednesday. We took him home and stayed until Friday. Guess what? He'll now have surgery on Tuesday. I'm leaving Monday to stay with him. My husband is staying home this time. Our pets and garden need attention. We've had about 15 days of over 100 degrees temperatures and no rain. The humidity has been the teens. I'm planning on being back next weekend, if things go as planned. I will have my laptop so some reviewing possible.  I should  say it's not extremely serious.  They doctor's are taking out his gallbladder.  He has gallstones and they've damaged his pancreas.
~~~~~





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Spanish accents have been removed so I don't get weird characters in my posts.

Mi hijo & Mijo are Spanish for son. Jorge will use them often.

Bendecido is Spanish for blessed.

Elote (eh-LOH-teh), also known as Mexican street corn, is salty, sweet, crunchy, and creamy in every bite. It hits all the right flavor notes, especially hot off the grill in the summer months when fresh corn is at its peak and abundantly available at every market. It's a popular street food in Mexico and can be served as a snack or side dish.
~~~~~


CHARACTER LIST:

Cordero Ortiz: 'Cord' runs his parents Texas ranch

Alexandra Black: 'Ali' is a New York City corporate lawyer, is a junior partner in huge family law firm

Jorge and Rosa Ortiz: Cordero's parents who own a large West Texas Ranch

Jim: One of the ranch foremen's and good friend of Cordero. He takes care of the main house and surrounding ranch area.

Bob: One of the ranch foremen and good friend of Cordero. He works the entire ranch.

Pat Rogers: Bank owner, not a good person

Sam Bailey: Lobo's Sheriff.

Tonia and Brent Black: Alexandra's parents

Gary Hart: A young ranch hand

Rico: Cord's best friend since kindergarten

Luke: All around bad guy