Episode 4

When Alonzo woke up, he tried to move, but his hands were tied behind his back, his feet were equally immobilized, his mouth gagged, and his eyes blindfolded. Panic began to take over him as he struggled unsuccessfully against his restraints. He tried to sit up again, and that's when he felt the movement: apparently, he was in a car. He stretched his legs and kicked the side of the vehicle, but the noise of the patrol sirens drowned out any other sound, making it impossible for anyone outside the van to hear him.

He tried to free himself, but his movements were in vain. On a sharp curve, his body was thrown against the back of the van, the pain ran through his entire back and forced him to clench his lips to avoid screaming.

"Hurry up, they're on my tail," he heard his captor's voice from the driver's seat.

Alonzo stopped struggling and curled up in a corner upon hearing the shots and bullets impacting against the vehicle's armor. Luckily, the van was protected from the tires to the roof.

"Shit!" the driver yelled, stepping on the accelerator. "I'm on the five, on the south side," he heard his captor say, with evident frustration.

"We're going there, boss," another voice responded through what Alonzo recognized as a communication radio, the altered tone of that man revealing the gravity of the situation.

The sound of the shots did not cease; in fact, it seemed to intensify. Alonzo clenched his hands tightly, wishing that nightmare would end. Suddenly, the sound of more weapons began to resonate, and the man who had kidnapped him let out a laugh while enthusiastically honking the horn. Time became blurred for Alonzo, but when the deadly chase finally ended, his fear did not disappear, it only increased.

"Interpol pig," he remembered Vega had said. But how the hell had they mistaken him for an Interpol agent? He was completely baffled. Could it be a mistake? Maybe so, but after being kidnapped, would they let him go alive? The questions spun in his mind, relentlessly.

He felt the car stop abruptly, and his heart began to beat frantically. He held his breath, not daring to move. He heard the driver's door open and close quickly. The silence that followed made him even more nervous. After a few minutes, he heard the sound of other vehicles approaching and parking.

The silence inside the van was unbearable. The uncertainty gnawed at him. Were they planning how to dispose of his body? Throwing him into a river or abandoning him in a forest for wild animals to devour? The thoughts shook him, and his body began to tremble with fear. Cold sweat covered his forehead, while his hands trembled uncontrollably.

A few minutes later, the sound of more cars driving away disturbed him even more. He was curled up in the back of the van when the sudden noise of the trunk opening startled him.

"This is the bastard," he heard Vega say with a voice that instilled terror in him.

"Do you want me to do the same as with the others?" asked another voice, as cold as the previous one.

Upon hearing that, Alonzo panicked, shaking his head frantically. He babbled unintelligible words due to the gag that prevented him from speaking. Desperate, he tried to remove it, but it was too tightly tied, making it difficult for him to even breathe.

"No," Vega responded, and for a brief moment, Alonzo felt relief. However, the following words made him shudder with terror. "I'll take care of him myself."

"Alright."

The trunk was slammed shut, and the van started up again. He didn't know how long he spent in that darkness, it could have been hours or just minutes. His sense of time escaped him, and the fatigue, along with hunger and thirst, began to become unbearable. Finally, the vehicle stopped, and he felt his feet being pulled roughly to drag him out.

"I'm going to remove the restraints from your feet. Don't try to run or my men will fill you with bullets before you take two steps," his captor warned him.

Alonzo nodded quickly. He knew he wasn't stupid enough to try to escape. As soon as they removed the ropes from his feet, he wanted to stretch, but he was immediately pulled, falling heavily against the cold pavement. Despite the pain, he did not complain, he simply endured it.

"Pick him up. You know where to take him."

Two men dragged him, holding him by the arms, and although he stumbled several times, he managed to keep up with them. After walking several meters, they sat him in a chair and tied his hands and legs. Finally, they removed the blindfold from his eyes. The light of a lamp directly above his head momentarily blinded him. He blinked several times before his vision adjusted, and then he recognized the face of the man in front of him: his supposed client.

"Alonzo, is that your name?" the man asked, raising a gun and caressing the cold metal with his fingers.

Alonzo swallowed hard upon seeing the weapon. The man's eyes were fixed on him, intimidating and full of deadly coldness. Alonzo nodded in fear.

"You're the second damn bastard the Americans send for me," the man said in a threatening voice.

Alonzo understood nothing. He wasn't even American, let alone a special agent. He was just a simple assistant, with love and health problems.

"Are you going to cooperate and tell me the truth or... are you going to die like the previous one?" the man threatened.

Alonzo shook his head quickly. When the man repeated his question, Alonzo nodded energetically. A gesture from the captor, and one of the henchmen removed the gag roughly.

The momentary relief of being able to move his mouth was quickly replaced by fear. His lips were dry and every muscle in his body ached.

"You are going to tell me everything you know, and you will do it now," the man ordered. The gun was placed on the table and dragged towards his right hand, the noise of the metal resonating in the room like a warning. Alonzo felt a chill run down his spine. "If you lie to me or try to hide information, every part of your body will taste my weapon. Understood?"

Alonzo, trembling, nodded without hesitation. He didn't know what he was going to say, or if the man would believe him, but he knew that his only chance of survival depended on what he said in the next few minutes.

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