Code Name Tequila Ch. 09

Ayrton started to slowly bend down, holding out his hands like he was going to drop his weapon. Once he had bent about halfway down, though, he reached out and grabbed one of the children, pulling him close against his body and sticking the gun to his head. The child's mother grabbed at Ayrton, but he punched her in the head, causing her to fall to the ground, sobbing.

Ayrton looked at Orgo and Borda, and told them to drop their weapons. They looked over at Olivera, who nodded for them to compile. Orgo and Borda dropped their guns, and kicked them towards Ayrton as he ordered.

Ayrton looked at April and May, who still had their pistols in their hands, but hadn't raised them. "Now, you girls drop your guns too, or the little punk will get a bullet in his head," Ayrton said in English. The girls complied, kicking the guns across the smooth, concrete floor of the warehouse towards Ayrton.

April sneered. "You won't get away with this. Illegally testing of drugs is a very serious offence."

Ayrton laughed, slowly backing his way towards the door. "What are you going to do? Sue me? Try and get the Americans to arrest me? You can't. There is no extradition from Brazil to the USA, and here in Brazil, I can always buy my way out of any legal trouble. All you have done is mess up our one trial, and made sure that 300 children won't get any more treatment for their meningitis. I'll be free, and these 300 children will be dead."

Olivera shook his head, saying in English to Ayrton, "I'll make sure that these children get treatment. And you won't get away with this. I'll find a way to make sure of that."

Ayrton laughed. "I doubt that very much you have the resources to touch me." Ayrton was almost at the door now, slowly walking backwards as he pulled the frightened child with him, the revolver's barrel pressed into the flesh of the child's temple.

"You may be able to get away today," Olivera said, "but I promise you that you won't get away for ever. Justice will be served."

Ayrton shrugged, reaching the door. "I've never been a fan of justice. Personally, I like things to always go my way." Ayrton looked at April and May. "Oh, and girls, I'll see you again, most likely when I am piling dirt on your graves. I'll find you, and make sure you pay for this."

Ayrton had been paying so much attention to April, Olivera and May that he hadn't noticed the mother of the child he was threatening as she slowly reached over and picked up the pistol that Orgo had kicked towards Ayrton. The mother picked the gun up and pointed it at Ayrton. She pulled the trigger.

The blast of the pistol echoed off the hard walls of the large warehouse. Ayrton grabbed the side of his head and fell to the ground, releasing the child, who ran towards his mother.

Ayrton pulled his hand away from his head. There was blood on it, but he was still alive with a stinging pain on the side of his head. The bullet had just grazed his head. He laughed and raised the gun, pointing it at Olivera.

Before he could pull the trigger, Orgo, who had started running towards Ayrton as soon as he heard the shot, reached him and smashed his massive fist into the side of Ayrton's head. Ayrton screamed in pain, dropping the revolver. Orgo kicked the revolver away from Ayrton, and picked him up, immobilizing Ayrton's arms.

Olivera ran over to make sure the child and mother were okay. April and May ran over to Orgo, and grabbing a couple of the zip-tie handcuffs from Orgo's backpack, secured Ayrton's arms and legs.

Olivera walked over to Ayrton. Ayrton looked up and laughed. "So, what now? You going to call the police? They don't care. Let me go, and I will make sure you are well rewarded for it."

Olivera looked down, and shook his head. He stood up on one of the beds and addressed the crowd of parents and children assembled in the warehouse.

"My name is Doctor Hector Olivera, and I live in Jacarezinho, like all of you. Some of you may know me, and have come to get treatment from me before. I know that some of you came to see me for treatment of your children's meningitis, and I also know sadly that I wasn't able to offer treatment to all your children because I didn't have enough drugs. I apologise for that, and am very sorry that I have again stopped the treatment your children are receiving here. I promise you that I will work tirelessly to get proper, decent treatment for your children to make sure they have the best chance to live."

"But the treatment that your children were receiving here, it was not good."

"I know that things are tough, and we all struggle to try and get by sometimes. Especially when your children are sick, it is tough. You have to stay home from work to care for your children, which means less wages, and you have the extra costs of medicine for your children. The doctors who have been treating your children have taken advantage of your situation, and have been treating your children with experimental and dangerous medicine. They have known for the past month that the deaths that have happened are due to the drugs, and not the disease, but they have kept this to themselves. They have been killing our children, and have done nothing about it. This man is a murderer," Olivera concluded, pointing at Ayrton.

Olivera climbed down off the bed. "Orgo, Borda, take the two guards outside. We'll take them back to the office and see what information we can get out of them." Orga and Borda nodded, and picked up the guards and carried them outside.

Olivera turned to the six nurses. "Leave now. Run away, and never, ever come back to Jacarezinho. And remember, you are meant to be healers. Heal people, don't make them sicker." The nurses, red-faced, left quickly.

Olivera walked over to April and May. "He is right," Olivera said, switching to English as he pointed at Ayrton. "You can't do anything as Americans, and the Brazilian police won't care. We could try suing, but Patterson and his drug company can afford armies of lawyers and we can afford nothing. There is no legitimate, legal way to touch him. Legal justice fails us in this case."

Olivera put his arms around April and May, and directed them towards the front of the warehouse. April looked back and Ayrton, hog tied and lying on the floor of the warehouse. "So, what happens to him, then?" she asked.

Olivera paused in the front door of the clinic and looked back. The mothers were ushering their children out the back door of the clinic while the fathers surrounded Ayrton, fists clenched and angry looks on their faces.

"Street justice," Olivera said, closing the door of the clinic behind him.