HANK FALAVA NO TELEFONE. He was not in the habit of staying late in the office. But since he lived within the complex, he decided to get a few things done. Irina and Ruy would be returning to Brazil in a few days.
"I need you to help me with that case" he maintained no expression. "Yes, my people will make connections again. If someone outside our circle decides to sniff around, you take the lead and clear our names" he paused, furrowing his brow upon hearing the voice on the other end of the line. "Agreed. Wait for my gentlemen at the usual place. The briefcase is entirely yours."
He ended the call with a half-smile. Nothing like greasing a few important palms to stay above suspicion. Hank was good at this. His goal was to remain off the Interpol radar. He felt he was succeeding.
"You called, boss?" Ruy entered the room.
"I did. I want to inform you that you and Irina will be going back to Brazil."
"I figured as much. Same place as always?"
"No. Disperse the Rio-Sao Paulo axis."
"So you got Irina's idea…"
"She suggested we stay off the radar" Hank shrugged. "What did you want me to do? Choose between the right and the questionable?"
"Questionable?" Ruy frowned.
"Questionable."
"Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo still have a lot of desperate people wanting a change in life" Ruy protested, xenophobic.
"I agree with you" Hank leaned back in his chair. "Especially since people from the Northeast come seeking a life in those metropolises. You're focusing too much on the suburbs or the countryside…" His tone became incisive: "How many suburban Brazilian girls have you brought here? Country girls? It's starting to draw attention, you understand? If you had been more careful bringing the last batch here, I wouldn’t have had to go to the trouble of creating a solution to keep the Federal Police back in Brazil off our backs."
The man fell silent.
"My bad" he limited himself to saying. He began pacing the room. "My bad… You’re right. I may have let my guard down, but nothing like a clean-up operation to resolve it."
"And you think that killing people is going to keep us out of trouble for the rest of our lives, you fool?" Hank’s voice was cutting. "Stop being stupid, man."
The boss lit a cigar, taking a deep drag. He released the thick smoke through his slightly tilted nose and said:
"You’re going to the Northeast, but first you’ll stop in Rio to see if there’s any buzz. After that, head to Sao Paulo. From there, go to any state in the Northeast and bring me at least five desperate girls wanting to give their families a better future" he spoke the last part with disdain.
"Sure thing" Ruy signaled with his hand to his forehead, as if saluting.
"Get out of here" Hank gestured with his hand. He added: "Tomorrow you will accompany one of my men on a job. Talk to one of them."
"Alright." With that, Ruy left.
...****************...
ARON WAS LEANING back in the car seat when he spotted Hugo approaching the condominium entrance. He straightened up, watching the young man closely. Hugo waited for the gate to open. In less than half a minute, the young man disappeared from sight.
He opened the glove compartment and found his gun. He sat there, holding it, contemplating…
...****************...
"I’M WORRIED about this trip" Carmem was having dinner with Osvaldo. The two were alone at the table. "I know it’s part of the job, but still… Especially in a case of disappearance like this."
"You’re thinking about what happened to his mother" Osvaldo said, bringing a forkful of pasta to his mouth.
Carmem is the mother Pedro Henrique never had the chance to know. Before Carmem, Osvaldo was married to Heloisa, and they had two children — Ana Carolina is the eldest daughter, who is now married and lives in Campinas with her husband and two children. Heloisa was a Police Chief, and her last case was to dismantle a drug trafficking ring in the year Pedro Henrique was born. She was shot dead near their home when the boy was just 7 months old.
The one who felt the absence of their mother was Carolina, who was 5 years old at the time and still remembers the maternal figure who was a part of her life. Pedro Henrique, of course, does not remember his mother. After six years, Osvaldo managed to marry again, this time to Carmem — a woman so good and devoted to her children that even Heloisa had never been. From then on, Pedro Henrique began to call her mother. So did Carolina. This part of Osvaldo's life, and that of his children, is quite delicate and sad, but they manage to move forward even though the tragedy occurred 28 years ago.
"Maybe" Carmem said. "Every day I pray countless Hail Marys to protect this boy, although I try not to show so much worry. Pedro doesn't like seeing me like this. Well… It must be because a mother is a mother, right?"
"Yes" Osvaldo gave a half-smile. "I would be lying if I said I don’t worry, but I manage. It must be because I was married for years to a Police Chief, and now my son has been a Federal Investigator for almost a decade…"
"The hazards of the job, my dear" Carmem chuckled softly.
"That's it. The hazards of the job. There's the right definition…"
There was a brief moment of silence.
"I think you can manage better, my dear" Osvaldo advised. "Don't dwell too much on these things. We are in danger all the time…"
"You're right, dear. I’ll try not to think about it. Keep my mind occupied with other things and drive away this worry."
"That’s good" he took her hand. "I was just thinking… We haven’t traveled together in a long time, have we?"
"True…" Carmem frowned. "I can't remember the last time."
"Shall we plan for it?"
"Let’s do it" she smiled.
...****************...
HUGO WENT TO THE WINDOW to close the curtains, preparing to sleep in what little was left of his room — just an air mattress, though comfortable — and saw the same black car parked since he arrived at his apartment. He lived on the third floor. He stood there for a few minutes, noticing that the vehicle had been started, slowly pulling away shortly after. He found that quite strange. People don't stay in their cars for that long before starting them. Hugo began to feel suspicious.
...****************...
JANINE REALIZED THAT there would be nothing more to hear inside that duct. She was horrified by the conversation between Hank and Ruy and no longer had any doubt that she had fallen into an ambush that had landed her in a complex for forced labor. Deciding to return to her room, she started making the movements in reverse — left, right, and back; left, right, and back…
Until she lightly bumped her head on the ceiling of the duct. — What was that noise…
She froze upon hearing Hank's voice.
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