White Powder and Blood by GregoriusJ

Remembering her voice ached me more. 

She had the voice of an angel and the heart of a warrior. She was destined to do great things. Watching her choking her own blood brought me to tears. She was my everything, and he took that everything.

Now, standing behind an abandoned warehouse were two brave fools. We knew death awaited us inside, but still, hatred and anger drove us. They had to die.

He had to die.

"Alejandro," I called my partner next to me. His moustache waved with the shoreside wind. White sands were nesting inside his black hair. "If we do this, there is no turning back."

Alejandro didn't need to open his mouth. He cocked his pistol as a yes. "He killed our children. I'm not playing by the books anymore."

I nodded. With a single kick, the small, metal door burst open. I waited for nothing and immediately launched two bullets towards the first person I saw. The guy fell backwards with a scream.

Inside was dim, but we could smell him. The walls were not made out of concrete, but with rectangular packs of cocaine. They were scattered throughout the building. Over fifty tons should be stored here only to be later distributed to Miami and Vegas.

We searched the first room we encountered. I lunged frontwards to deflect any sudden bullet, but none was thrown. I was angry and sad, but being stupid wasn't an option. In order to avenge the death of my only daughter, I had to survive until the end. I had to see him myself, and I had to make his death slow and painful.

There was no vest to protect my body, nor enough ammos to supply us through. There was no backup to aid us, for the American and Colombian governments agreed a truce with the Cartagena Cartel.

We were sheeps attacking a fortress full of hunters. The only thing differentiating us from being preys was that we were armed and hateful.

"Isabel!" Alejandro's voice echoed from the next room. It was very small and capsulating, and the smell made my lungs churned all the air inside.

"Jesus Christ!"

I could only stand and look for three seconds. The sight was horrible, but under the lead of Giancarlo Manuel, the feared Cartagena Cartel became more violent than before.

Inside the small chamber was a butchered woman, unmoved and bloody all over. Alejandro was checking on her, but what was the use of that? She was barely dressed and the dozen cuts on her neck confirmed her death.

"Let's move out. They probably heard our shootout."

We decided to remove our shoes and navigate the hideout with as little noise as possible. I led us into the kitchen where a bald man with AK-47 slung to his back stood, toasting his slice of bread chillingly. He didn't hear anything. His ears were plugged by the white earphones.

Slowly, from the back, I grabbed the man and gagged his mouth. I brought him down and pointed my pistol to his head. He was shaking out of control, so I smacked him one time with the end of my gun.

"Where's Giancarlo? Where's that old bastard?" My voice reached the peak of my throat. The man was sweating.

"He's here! He's here! He's meeting with some smugglers in the garage. Please, have mercy! I have a daughter back home!"

I smiled and whispered lightly to his left ear. "So did I." And so, I whacked his head as hard as I could. He dropped down harmlessly.

"The garage is not far," Alejandro said. "Let's move out before he suspects anything."

I nodded and moved on. The maze of the warehouse was dizzying to explore. Everything looked dark and similar. All walls throughout the map were blanketed by layers of cocaine packs.

It was mad.

We patrolled each and every room, sweeping the confidential documents and burning them in trash bins. We even found an armoury with hundreds of crates full of guns that could be used to storm a military base.

We did a bit of an upgrade there. These criminals even had proper vests and RPGs. I snatched some grenades and swapped the Glock I brought with an AR.

After the shopping, we moved to the next part of the warehouse. Hallways upon hallways we passed, and once, when we were so close to the garage, a guard noticed us and managed to run. I pulled the trigger but missed, and we came to a hauling chase for the man.

When we turned on a corner, over a dozen cartel mercenaries had blocked our access with their heavy guns. The thunderstorm of leads stroked immediately, and we were forced to retreat back to the curving wall. I gasped desperately for air, and sweats were dropping from my temple. I slid down the wall on my back to wait for the outburst of gunshots being released towards us.

"Partner." Alejandro leaned back next to me with a pale face. He didn't look so healthy. "They got me."

The red gore oozing down his upper stomach was a bad sign. It was like a punch to my gut. Alejandro was pressing his wound desperately, but I knew it would end badly. I had seen so many deaths, and most of them were because of these punks.

"You have to go back. Call for help." I gave him my phone but realized that signal wouldn't reach the building. I smashed the phone in anger. "Let's get you out. I can drive you to the nearest hospital."

"And let Giancarlo escape again? That's not an option, Isabel, and you know it. You want his blood too."

"You're more important than his blood. Now, stop stalling and let me help you."

I stood and tried to give him a hand to stand. He strongly gripped my arm and stood with a yell. It looked really painful, but he managed to stand.

"He killed your daughter, Isabel. He killed my kid too. I can't let him get away again. You said there is no turning back."

"What?"

With all his might, Alejandro pushed me back. I stumbled backward in agony. I watched him smile as he strapped five grenades to his body.

"I'm going to see Rafi again, Isabel. I miss him."

"No, don't!"

The blood streaming down his body hadn't stopped. I realized that my cheeks had been drenched in tears, but there would be no point of stopping him.

"Put a bullet in Giancarlo's head for me, and make sure he knows what he'd done."

"No, wait!"

Alejandro unclipped all five of the grenades' pins.

"I surrender!" He called. Suddenly, the gunfire ceased, and I watched in terror and despair when he stepped backwards. "I give up."

"Come to us with your partner!" One of the mercenaries commanded.

"She's dead." Alejandro winked. I could do nothing but to shake my head. "I'm injured too."

"Fine. Come to us, slowly."

Alejandro didn't come slowly. He pushed hard. I forced myself to look, to peak, but I saw everything in slow motion even when it happened so fast. One more bullet was spurt towards him as he charged, but it stopped him not. I watched as the brightness swollen them whole. They were engulfed in fire and Alejandro's wrath, and towards hell they immediately were sent.

One came out of the explosion alive, though screaming intensely he did. He ran to me with his calved head. I ended him with one round of bullet.

Everything went silent almost in a sudden. I bared none of my wits to stay. My cheeks were drenched and my fists were clenched. I promised Alejandro that his death wouldn't be in vain.

So, I proceeded to the next room in which was supposed to be the garage. I opened the door with wrath and discovered five men standing with their Uzis and AKs. I saw the suited gentleman. I saw his burning eyes and his expensive tie. This man took everything from me.

Before they opened fire, my instincts worked. I was a trained soldier, and thus, being fast should be a mandatory trait. I jumped straight towards the stacks of crates four feet from the door and ducked. They hadn't stopped shooting even when I settled myself behind the spot.

I cocked my gun and took some desperate breaths. Sweeping the sweat off me, I thought of the best approach to handle his goons.

Talking should be the answer. Draw him in and kill him would be the best tactic. I didn't care about my fate as long as I got him. I never had an escape plan anyway.

"Mr. Manuel! May we talk?"

They stopped firing. A voice dripped suddenly. It sounded so hoarse but polite. It sounded like a demon. A ghoul ready to suck your soul into the abyss.

"And I'm speaking to?"

"Isabel Castillo."

"Ah, Ms. Castillo. The name sure rings a bell. Are you DEA?"

"Not really."

Giancarlo smirked. I didn't see him do it, but I could feel it. I could sense every movement he made without looking. I needed only to close my eyes and listened to the surroundings. He had a gold stick to prevent him from stumbling, for his left leg was weak. He clutched that stick with his right hand while his left was firm on a silver revolver.

"US military?"

I was. I was until Captain Lee suspended me for two weeks for mourning.

"Not really."

"Then enlighten me on your business here, my friend. Why would you storm into one of the biggest and most protected sanctuaries in Colombia alone?"

I smirked, but inside, no joy came out. "Because, Giancarlo, a mother would do anything to protect her child."

On that note, I came out of my cover and unleashed hell. I fired blankly to the unprepared punks and managed to kill two with one magazine round. I shot the first right on the chest and the second on the neck. I slugged back to the back of the crates to reload, and my enemies were now spreading out to cover themselves.

"I want her alive!"

Of course he wanted me alive. I would be a perfect hostage for his businesses in the future. I was his second chance of escaping extradition. I was basically his get-out-of-jail-free card.

But that didn't mean his goons stopped firing. They could still hurt me.

"You killed my daughter and my partner's son. They don't share a part in this silly war. You have brought miseries and pains throughout the continent."

"Ah yes. Escobar should be proud, no?" His laugh came shortly after. Without listening to him, I tried more to focus on where he hid.

Slowly, I slid leftwards to the next crate. One man found me and he was skinnier than a malnourished boy. He was surprised and his knife fell. I quickly seized his body and brought him down, and with a single blow to the face, I made him drowse in a quick manner. I probably even broke the poor kid's nose.

"Armies and federals couldn't catch you. You're pretty sneaky. But you never expected a loving mother."

"But you're mistaken, Ms. Castillo. You're not the first woman crazy enough to approach me."

He was very close. I knew it. His voice was not very far.

"Yeah, but I will be the first to actually succeed."

Another goon launched himself to me with a machete. I swerved and dodged his attack. I immediately elbowed him from the back and letting that skinny forehead of his crashed the crate. Next, I planted my knife to his back. The air escaped his lungs, and soon, he would die out of pain and loss of blood.

When I looked back, silver was the only thing I could see. It was the dangerous end of Giancarlo's revolver.

His smile was toxic.

"¿Que tal ahora?"

"How about now?"