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“Thanks.” Carlton dipped inside while I took the chair about two feet from Mr. Garcia.
“So, why is it that you have so much concern for the common man, Mr. Garcia?”
His smile came slowly. “I am the common man, and I was raised by a common man. What I learned in the upper echelons, if you will, is that the system has been rigged for the rich to stay rich, for the successful to become more successful.”
“And you used that rigged system to get ahead?”
Garcia nodded vigorously and smiled at the camera over my shoulder. “Why should I not? But my plan is to get rid of those corrupt practices so that those who don’t come from money and power can achieve it if they want.” Garcia shook his head. “We deserve a better choice than the lesser of two evils.”
The man was charismatic, and I could see clearly why the powers that be were concerned. A startled gasp escaped at the sound of machine gunfire in the distance.
Garcia smiled again. “It is disturbing, isn’t it? That the government can just shoot at will against those who merely disagree with them? You see, they own the resources, they own the enforcers, and we are not allowed to get upset about the fact that we as a nation are not thriving. What sense does that make?”
“None,” I agreed easily, still on edge about the gunfire that seemed to grow closer every few minutes. “But surely you have a plan beyond changing the laws? You still have a National Assembly to contend with.”
“Free and fair elections are key, but there’s another ‘F’ people leave out. Frequent. Let the people decide who they want to lead them. Government is service, not a job program for rich people to keep the system rigged in their favor.”
“So, your plan is to oust the entire government?”
“My plan was to convince these scoundrels to do the right thing. The current president didn’t win the election, so how can we expect anything but corruption? This may not be palatable to your American sensibilities, but for us, this is the only way.”
The gun fire was closer now, so close I could hear cries of agony as bullets hit flesh and blood people. “What’s going on?”
Umberto glared at me and then Carlton. “You’ve led the opposition right to me?”
“Impossible,” Carlton insisted. “We used the directions provided by your men that took us an extra hour to get here.”
Umberto was terrified, and despite my own fear, I was happy to see that he was more than just a stuffed shirt. He knew the risks of his political speech, of his opposition, and still he persisted. “Grab them,” he ordered his men and four more armed men appeared, grabbing me and Carlton and hurrying us towards a van that idled on the small service road between the compound and the national park.
I risked a look out the back window to see if it was police or military or a combination of both that had breached Umberto’s property and aimed automatic weapons our way. “Who is that?” I turned over my shoulder to see Carlton beside me, camera lens aimed out the small window on the van’s back doors.
“Those are our enemies, Ms. Gregory. See how they are dressed in all black with face coverings? No official insignia on the uniforms or vehicles? That’s how the government works these days, and that is what I am trying to change.”
I shook my head and sank to the floor of the utility van, body shaking with fear as the gunfire went on and on behind us. We drove over rough terrain, and I had no idea how long or how far we had driven. “They mean to kill you?”
“Most efficient way to get rid of me, but what they fail to understand is that my death will change nothing. There are thousands, possibly millions of Umberto Garcias who oppose them. They are just too set in their ways to see it.”
I looked across the van at Carlton who had his camera aimed at Umberto’s profile as he motioned for me to keep talking. “We’re rolling,” he mouthed. “It’ll be saved to the cloud,” he assured me.
I sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly with my eyes closed in an effort to block out the nonstop gunfire. When I was sure my voice wouldn’t shake, I turned to face Umberto and continued my interview.
Like a professional.
A terrified, out of her depths, professional.
Chapter 24
Levi
The sound of the phone vibrating on my nightstand woke me up right away. I wasn’t alarmed, it was just a habit from a lifetime of middle of the night phone calls that some part of the world was on fire, literally or figuratively. I reached for the phone without looking at the screen.
