Juan Castro, at the age of seven, loses his entire family. The Cobra gang of Escuintla raises him up to be a top assassin and drug dealer. Over the course of three decades he escapes death 13 times. Eventually his activities in the gang life become so severe that El Gato Negro is forced to hide in America. Even his education with the wizard, and a myriad of jefes, cannot protect him from the inevitable.

Unlike so many fictional books about gangs, El Gato takes us into the heart of the South American underworld. Trafficking, rivalries, and betrayal become the norm in his biography. From his deep involvement in a number of Guatemalan mobs, our 'cat' details his participation in violence, death, and jealousy within the midst of love, humor, childlike innocence, and the desire for being needed. Eventually, after being a gang member for twenty-one years, Juan Castro experiences an incredible epiphany when coming face-to-face with death for the thirteenth time.