Rio De Janeiro, Rio De Janeiro
The room was silent, a dim light illuminated the office space as a small T.V. occupied a fine dark wood coffee table. It had been the final moments Evelyn was waiting for, the moment when she would be announced as the loser or winner of the race to Presidency for her country, Brazil. Evelyn was attractive in all the right places and had this glow about her that could submit even the most stubborn of men. She had proportioned lips and a soft jaw line that was paired with a small nose. She dressed in a black knee length skirt that contoured to her frame and her long defined legs. Evelyn's hips were curvy as was the rest of her body but most of this would be hidden under a button down and black jacket. Brown eyes matched her long, thick, dark hair that had always been up in a bun or pony tail. It was the "professional" look and she had to adhere to this look for as long as she wanted to be seen as a leader and not just a baby maker.
Women in Brazil were now finding themselves on the rise when it came to careers, politics, and even military. Although still regarded as behind males within the industry, they were not far behind. The fact that she was running and running a close race for presidency showed how far Brazil had come from the rest of the world. BNNC reporter had popped on the screen as the votes were being revealed, a phone located next to the T.V. In this small dingy dim lit office began ringing and vibrating.
Without hesitation one of Evelyn's aids reached for the phone and answered it, eager, anxious, and exhausted from the waiting. The silence still floated and the tense atmosphere built even more as the head shook and nodded from the aid as he held the phone up to his ear. Slowly he placed the phone back down, "You won...we won!" The aid exploded and so did the rest of the room. Tears filled some of the faces who were in that office and a large grin slid from ear to ear on Evelyn's face. The BNNC quickly after the call reported, "We are proud to announce that President Evelyn Vera Alaverez will be the new face of our dear country Brazil!"
Some would be unhappy, while others would find this as a huge leap for Brazil in many aspects. She promised to continue the war on drugs and continue building foreign relations through trade and commerce. This would be beneficial to Brazils economy and ultimately grow its population and solidify her power within the first term. There were many things that Evelyn had planned, but not all of them were met with open arms when it came to some of those who were already in power, political or criminal.
Evelyn stood up and examined the room as everyone fell silent from the celebration of her victory.
"It is time...we only have four more weeks to prepare before the transfer of power, and then the public inauguration. Once I am officially President our plans must go into effect, immediately, even while I'm still being bombarded by the press. We need not waste anymore time...ladies, gentlemen...the administration before us was a good one, however, we must be great!"
Brasilia, Capital of Brazil four weeks after the unofficial tally
"How are you feeling?"
The sun light seemed to find its way through the cracked spaces between each blind, while a small box with a metal fan inside puttered away in a circle slowly shoving air in whatever way it could through the window and into the room. Brazil was humid, hot, and air conditioning in a lot of buildings were not as efficient as they should have been.
Evelyn had her legs crossed with her hands folded over the desk, she did not like the capital all that much, but understood that for the next 6 years, it was what she would now call home. Reality was slowly setting in as were the ideas of the mounting responsibilities she was about to gain once the transfer of power was finished. Her body upright and wrists ornamented with jewelry, but with no ring on her ring finger.
She gave herself whole to her job and the vision she has had for Brazil, letting nothing stop her to reach her goal. She once had a fiancé, who ultimately left due to her lack of accountability in the relationship. She was always traveling for work or in a meeting to rally for the next campaign. It was a life that her fiancé did not want, even if in the beginning he was understanding.
"I am fine, Carlos, shall we depart?"
"I believe so Ms. President."
A smile appeared on Carlos' face as he acknowledged her by her new title, a sense of accomplishment not only filled him as one of her advisors but also he knew it would raise Evelyn's spirits. To be reminded that she had reached the top of what this country had to offer and be the one to decide its future was worth all the sacrifices made and sacrifices that are to come.
The two exited the office building that she had been located in for about a week, her administration had already began laying down the ground work for the first year and as soon as she was placed into office, her plan would ignite almost instantly.
Brasilia, an hour after the ceremonies
It was so surreal to have a crowd of millions cheer you on while arriving to an event. Signs, banners, and more all paved with your name across them. Evelyn was the most famous female in all of Brazil and possibly her countries history and already she found herself escorted by Thiago Delgado, the commander of the BAF or Brazilian Armed Forces. He walked slightly behind her right shoulder and arms length distance away.
"Congratulations Ms. President, I apologize for the immediate summons but unfortunately time is critical and something we do not have enough of. You will be briefed upon reaching the office, there are several officials and military officers who will be up in salute upon your presence. Acknowledge them and dismiss their appropriate gesture, it will be then that I will begin the briefing and await your decision."
They had reached the double doors of a room that when opened by the Commander revealed a large conference room. It was a well decorated and neutral colored room with a very expensive wood table that had been the center piece of the entire room. At the end of the room was a projector and a wall of names with identification photos next to the names. Lines were drawn from one photo to another and a chair was left untouched for the President herself to approach and sit in.
When she entered the room, the men stood up and greeted her with respect and the salute she deserved. She was not use to the formal etiquette of being the President and had hesitated in dismissing them from their current status. Realizing once she made it to the chair that she had yet to dismiss their saltire, Evelyn nodded, dismissed them and then took to her chair.
"Commander Thiago the floor is yours, tell me why I am here." Evelyn spoke with a bit of authority in her voice, something that just kind of slid out without her realizing. It was noted and she liked the tone she used and thought it was received well. She did not sound menacing, but she sounded as though she was actually a leader of a country, her country, Brazil.
"Ms. President, these are the names of those who were identified to be at the top of one of Colombia's largest drug cartels, the Blanco Cartel. During the last administration an operation was conducted with the help of the SAC members and with approval of Colombia to find, and eliminate the drug lords stemming from Colombia. You know our history with drugs and fortunately for Brazil we had competent leaders who identified where the problems were coming from, it is the reason why Brazil is what it is today and not infested with cartels ourselves."
Evelyn cut the Commander off, not out of disrespect, but she already knew her history all too well and she just wanted to hear what all of it was leading to, "Commander, I am sorry to interrupt, but there is a reason why I am the President of Brazil, I know our countries history, I know our countries current events, and I listen to the people of Brazil. Spare me the history lesson and tell me why you brought me here, the real reason."
The commander took a second and was not prepared for such an interruption, he did not mean to offend her but he understood if the introduction was not needed.
"Yes ma'am, during this operation we removed several key figures in the cartel but never the big catch we were looking for, until now...sources have just revealed that a Felix Martinez and a Jaco Torres will be meeting in Yopal, Colombia...right outside of the city Bogota."
The commander stopped for a second and looked at his aid, quickly the aid changed the slide on the projector and up came Felix and Jaco's photo with a brief bio and location on a Colombian map.
"Felix Martinez is the weapons man that the Blanco cartel deals with, Felix moves a lot and has even been reported in Mexico from time to time. We think this is where he buys his stock, although a different investigation entirely this man has led us to Jaco Torres. Jaco is assumed to be the runner for Allen Ramos, the right hand man of Andres Blanco. We have a team ready and briefed, our plan is to observe the behaviors of both Felix and Jaco, follow Jaco back to where he is running the weapons too, and intercepting Felix before he makes it out of Yopal."
Evelyn nodded, "What of the Colombian government, do they know what's going on and what about the rest of the countries operating in Colombia apart of the SAC?"
The commander hesitated and gulped spit down his throat, he was parched and had not had water in what seemed like forever. He had been finding the new President a bit difficult to work with but was impressed with her at the same time.
"Ms. President, we have not revealed any of this, except to one man...Governor Cabrera , it is fragile and unfortunately I as many others in the Armed Forces do not feel we can trust the Colombian government in its entirety. Several leads from the first operation went missing and even some were false leads given to us by unknown sources that the Colombian government swore by. We feel that their government is nothing but a bunch of money hoarders who are paid by the cartels. Cabrera however has proved to be an asset to Brazil, he sees what Colombia can become if drugs can be contained and has helped Brazil through leading us to this very moment. As far as the other powers in the SAC, operations have decreased on all accounts and they are looking else where to spend their money."
Evelyn nodded once more and understood, she knew Colombia's history or at least enough of it to understand the struggles there when it came to politics.
"Commander, one last question before I decide, the Blanco Cartel...what makes them so different from the other large cartels operating in Colombia, I know there are several...why put so much at risk with this one? And how do we know we can truly trust Cabrera?"
Commander Thiago smiled, he would love to answer this question but instead handed it off to another official in the room who was now looking down at his notes and began spouting out information.
"Andres Blanco, leader of the Blanco Cartel has complete control over the roads and border lines that Brazil and Colombia share. If the Blanco Cartel falls, cocaine in Brazil will drop significantly, so much that small time and big time gangs in our country would have to literally alter their entire scheme for money. Blanco accounts for more than 80% of the cocaine in Brazil. If the Blanco Cartel is shut down, Cabrera will bring to light information that would end the careers of several politicians in line for Presidency. Ultimately, he has just as much as risk as we do."
The commander stepped in before another question could be asked by Evelyn, "We will be setting Cabrera up to become the next President of Colombia, if he wins, Colombia will be on the road to recovery and in our debt."
Evelyn did not know how to handle the overwhelming load of information, the last administration had so much going on and not enough time to truly finish its vision. Was it up to her to continue the vision? Was it a proper vision? Or was there a better way? She knew a lot of changes were coming to Brazil, but nothing could have prepared her for this. If everything that was mentioned happened, then Brazil would have crippled the Drug World, instead it would be dealt with at a local level. Access to the Gulf of Mexico, Pacific and Atlantic would be huge for the economy, and they would be the gate keepers of South America. If it went wrong, Evelyn surely knew she would be the first one to rise to the top of a hit list somewhere within the underground networks.
Suddenly Evelyn began to realize what power could do to someone, she came in to presidency with such naive ideas, she was now realizing that to bring Brazil to where she wanted it to be, she had to flex its muscles a bit to the world before her. Evelyn stood up from her chair and looked directly into the soul of Thiago.
"Commander Thiago, It has only been a few hours since my term began and yet you ask so much, if you fail me and you are wrong...it will end me, but I will make sure it ends you first...do not fail me, for your sake and mine."
Commander Thiago saw a change in Evelyn's demeanor and saw fire in her eyes, she had already begun to realize the responsibility of what being a President was all about. Thiago nodded and waved his hands to the officials and officers, they quickly dispersed and left the room to prepare for the upcoming events.
Yopal, Colombia
"Yes sir...yes sir...roger that commander."
The phone was placed gently back to its resting position, mounted on a machine attached to the wall of the apartment building. Six men were huddled in a small two bed room apartment that seemed to have a five degree higher temperature than the outdoor climate at all times. Poor air circulation, broken vents, and six large men did not help their case. Each room was filled with weapons, magazines, vests, and other sorts of gear that would be required for a special operations mission. Most of the time these men were dressed in civilian clothes and carried a concealed firearm rather than their standard issue rifles that typically rested in the vehicles they drove with or left back at the apartment with two officers staying behind.
Some of the men had a thick beard, one was clean shaven, and another sported the 5 o'clock shadow. These men were apart of a unit tagged 404, highly trained field operatives that reported under the Garra but worked mostly in Colombia and specifically tasked with hunting down and capturing high profile drug lords. These men had about 7 years of combat experience alone inside Colombia just in this unit.
"Alright men, bring it in."
Charlie was the senior officer and team leader in charge. The other men began walking over to Charlie and gathered around,
"I just got off the phone with Commander Thiago, he has a special assignment for our team and our team only. The other SAC countries will have no part in this which goes without saying whatever information is given and found is highly classified and confidential. Now to the fun stuff, there is a source within the Colombian government that is ready to exercise his power by giving up the politicians involved in aiding the drug rings within the country. He has also given the location of a meeting that will be taking place in Yopal, a Felix Martinez and Jaco Torres will be our persons of interest. A very detailed description has been given and I will present it to all of you at 0300. This will be the time we will be packing up and heading to the location, any questions?"
The men nodded acknowledging their senior officer and then waited for the dismissal. Once provided by Charlie, the men dispersed and began situating their gear to fit the mission. They would be convoying in a white, rusty, compact two door vehicle, and a four door sedan that looked to of been painted in the dark. Once they finished their preparations, the detailed description was then provided, packing up the cars and heading out followed quickly after.
They would head out and set up a day or so prior to the meeting. This would allow them to gather intelligence in the area and on the target building. Evelyn and the others would now have to wait in suspense until the show was finally over.
Yopal, Colombia: Moments before Felix's arrest
Felix Martinez had been feeling better about the day, from the time when he woke up in one of the hotels he stopped at along the way to the meeting his stomach was just not feeling quite right. It was a gut feeling that Felix knew to follow in all his years smuggling guns across international borders. His biggest money maker was the Blanco Cartel, hell they ran the country of Colombia. He never thought that anyone would have the balls to try and stop their number one flow of weapons.
It was only 9 blocks down when a four door car swung out in front of him and hit the breaks. Felix was angry at the shitty driving of the person in front of him and began yelling in Spanish. It was only when the first black hood was spotted that Felix knew it was over. Everything he had worked for was finished, his wife and kids would never know what happened, his last job...it would be this way, Felix thought. Pistols were being waved at him and the yelling of "Put your hands up, hands up!"
Time itself had slowed down, the movement of the hooded men seemed to have took hours before reaching his car door. One large hand gripped the lever and all Felix could do was watch, his legs could not move and his arms could not move. It was not that he had never been under gun point before, it was the fact that he knew these were not cops, they were professionals. There was no where for him to go. The door opened up and instantly time raced back into place for Felix as his head was jerked from the car and his body thrown to the ground with a knee smashing into his back. More yelling followed as a zip sound slipped through his ears while feeling a tight uncomfortable sensation around his wrists. He was zip tied, his body forced up and into a standing position. He could feel two hands gripping both biceps and walking him toward the vehicle. Felix was thrown head first into the back of the car, two men sat in the front seat and one man in the back with Felix.
The car doors all shut and the wheels spun for a second as momentum was gained and the car spun off. Felix could hear a second car spinning off and he looked in the back window, his car was following them and then a hand gripped his entire face and sent the side of his head into the plexiglas divider.
"Keep your eyes down." One of the hooded figures commanded and then a sting was felt in the back of his neck. Shortly after his eyes began to feel heavy and he drifted off into darkness.