The Underdogs: A novel of the Mexican Revolution

Demetrio’s men tell stories about the battle at tables in a restaurant. Demetrio accepts congratulations from the other officers as the stories grow more embellished and less believable. They brag about the men they have killed because “the theme is inexhaustible” (82). A woman named La Pintada, which translates to War Paint, flirts with Demetrio.

Pintada says that Demetrio and his men cannot sleep in hotels because “we’re the fancy ones now” (82). She takes them all to a large house where they break in and make themselves at home. Luis finds two diamonds and puts them in his pocket. However, when he looks at the mess the men are making as they ransack the house, he tells Demetrio that it dishonors their cause. A man named Güero Margarito offers to serve with Demetrio, who accepts and makes him a major. Pintada comes downstairs, having changed into a lace dress. Demetrio begins boasting about his achievements. He hears string and brass instruments just before Luis tells him that a banquet commemorating his victory at Zacatecas, and his promotion to general, is about to begin.