📸 Photo

MARCHING POWDER

of cocaine spread over everything and everyone in the room. Hardly anything had escaped the impact.

‘Limpien todo!’ the colonel shouted angrily at his men, pointing around at the mess I’d made. I was expecting to be beaten for what I’d done, but the police didn’t harm me. They handcuffed me and lifted me back onto the chair with two guards watching me closely.

Then they brought in dustpans and brooms to begin the cleanup operation.

I had succeeded in reducing the amount of cocaine significantly. There was a lot embedded in the carpet and in the guards’ clothes. None of the police had the courage to tell Colonel Lanza that his hair was completely white. He sat back down behind his desk and glared at me. I glared back at him.

‘Señor McFadden, I thought you were intelligent. You now make things more worse for yourself.’

From then on, my file listed me as peligroso – a ‘dangerous’ prisoner, who was to be considered violent and an escape risk. I was to be handcuffed at all times. And, according to Colonel Lanza, the judges would take my attempted escape into account when sentencing me.

I continued staring at him long after he had gone back to writing his report. I was no longer in shock about what had happened. I was past shock. I was shaking with anger. This man had invited me to his house. I had played with his children. I had eaten lunch with his wife. He had accepted my money. And then he had betrayed me. I wanted to kill him.

When he finished writing his report, the colonel stood up and ordered his men to take me away. As they lifted me out of my seat, I felt a sudden surge of anger come over me. ‘Look me in the eyes, you bastard!’ I hissed angrily, ‘Look me in the fucking eyes!’

The guards were holding me very tightly, so Colonel Lanza felt safe enough to come out from behind his desk. He came up quite close and raised his eyebrows.

‘Yes. I’m looking you in the eyes, Señor McFadden,’ he said sarcastically.

I lowered my voice and spoke very calmly this time. ‘I’m going to kill you. It is now my mission in life to kill you. Do you understand? You are going to die.’

Then I tried to head-butt him, but the gap between us was too great

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