Cartel Wives

by Mia Flores

  Four-plus years of time and distance, and I was still her baby. I guess some things never change.

  My plan was to go to their house while Olivia checked into a hotel. This would be the first time my family had met Bella, and I kept hoping that she’d take some of the pressure off. I needed it, desperately. With our lawyer’s assistance, Peter had finally gotten clearance to call me midway through our drive, and while I was so happy to hear from him, it had left me a complete wreck.

  “I can’t believe it took you so long to get over the border, baby,” he said. “I was worried sick about you the whole time. I’ve been so scared thinking something happened to you.”

  I didn’t want to dwell on it, so I changed the subject. “Are you okay? Where are you?”

  “They have us hiding in some random hotel in Mexico City. To get us here the feds covered our faces, locked the hotel down, and snuck us in.”

  “Mexico City?” Why the hell were they there? I thought. Mexico City was one of their main hubs.

  “We’re a block away from one of our stash houses. We can actually see it from our hotel window. They’ve still got us recording and working. And we’ve met with every single bureau you can think of: Homeland Security, US Customs, the DEA, and the FBI. We’ve been answering questions and getting debriefed, but no one’s been willing to tell me anything about you. All I’ve done is ask about my family, and no one’s told me a fucking thing.”

  So not only were they in as much danger as we’d been, but they were totally in the dark, flying blind just like we were.

  Olivia

  It was twenty-four hours from the border to Chicago, and we made it there the next day. Twenty-four freaking hours on the road, and we only stopped when we had to feed the babies, change a diaper, or use the bathroom. When we got to Chicago, I said goodbye to Mia, then checked into a hotel near the airport.

  Mia

  I thought about going to the hotel with Olivia, but I couldn’t stand the thought of not being with my family. I needed them just to feel safe.

  When I arrived at the house I grew up in, my parents, brother, and sister were standing in the doorway, already crying their eyes out. I parked the car, then carried Bella in her car seat up the steps. Mom looked at me for a split second, grabbed the car seat from me, and carried it in. Then she placed it on the kitchen table and unstrapped my daughter, her second granddaughter. As my dad held me around the waist with one arm and my sister grabbed my hand, I watched my mom—who’d been practically a baby herself when she’d had me—lift Bella up to her shoulder and hold her, rubbing her back.

  “It’s all okay. You’re home. You’re safe,” she whispered to her.

  I knew she was, but I wish I’d felt the same. As I watched each member of my family pass my daughter back and forth, kissing her sweetly, I thought to myself, This is not my home anymore. It’s my parents’. My home is with Peter, and I may not ever have that again.

  Olivia

  I called my parents as soon as I got Brandon and Benjamin situated in the hotel room I’d checked in to. I still hadn’t told them the full truth. I’d never wanted to hurt them, especially after I’d put them through so much already. I kept them in the dark so they could sleep better at night.

  When they came over, though, I broke down and told them everything. I couldn’t lie anymore. Still, the look on my dad’s face was pure disgust. I’d wanted so badly to protect him and Mom, and instead, I’d broken their hearts.

  When they left, I tried to collect myself. I felt so empty and alone, and as I stared at the ceiling, I wondered if Junior was doing the same.

  Then, I called Joe.

  “Olivia, you shouldn’t be in the city,” he said. “Your lives are in danger. Check into a hotel far out of the city.”

  “Where are Peter and Junior?”

  “They’re going through the process. They’ll go to the correctional facility downtown soon. They’ll be well guarded, and they’ll be together. But if anyone figures out you’re in town, you might not be. Go somewhere outside the city limits.”

  “I’ll go to my house, then.” I’d kept a house in the suburbs for years, so I gave him that address.

  “Someone will meet you there tomorrow to talk about next steps for you and Mia.”

  Next steps could have meant anything, so it wasn’t worth asking. Instead, I packed up what little I had and left with my sons. While I was on the road driving the few miles out to my house, I called Mia and told her that she should meet me there the next morning.

  Mia

  When Olivia called and said we weren’t safe in the city and had to leave, I was devastated. I didn’t want to endanger my family, but I hated the idea of being without them. I’d had Bella less than two weeks before, and I was still in pain from my C-section. I barely had anything but the clothes on my back, and I didn’t just need help, I needed love. I wanted my family, and I ached for Peter. I’m really on my own, I kept thinking. And this is what it’s going to feel like for years and years.

  My dad was crushed when I left with Bella. “Baby, just stay,” he said. “I can protect you.”

  I know he felt like he could; but let’s be honest, no one was really able to. Olivia and I were on our own, and that’s why we had to get away.

  Olivia

  My house was about forty-five minutes out of the city. I’d decorated it exactly like my home in Guadalajara: Decorative pillows covering big, plush couches, and huge rugs spanning wall to wall. But there were none of the little Mexican knickknacks and touches that I’d put everywhere in Guadalajara. It felt empty, not warm or full of love like my home with Junior. It was an American home, far, far away from Mexico. Hugging my babies, I just sat on the steps and bawled my eyes out, thinking, I don’t even have the strength or will to keep going.

  Mia

  When I looked around, I suddenly felt sad all over again. I’d never been happier in my life than in Mexico, I thought. I know it was a dangerous life to live, but we were all together. We were a family there.

  Olivia

  Joe had hired twenty-four-hour security for us, so when Mia arrived, there were armed guards waiting to greet her. A few hours later, they let in a woman named Carol Williams from the Witness Protection Program.

  Carol was friendly, with a warm, pleasant smile. She seemed nice enough, but honestly, I don’t think she knew what she was walking into. Peter and Junior were prepared to be the biggest drug informants in US history, and we had targets on our heads just because we were married to them.

  “Good morning,” she said when I offered her a seat. Then she dove right into the subject that had brought her to my house. “So, as you know, your lives are in danger, and we’d like that not to be the case…”

  I wasn’t going to pull any punches with her, so I cut her off. “We’ve been telling you that for the last three days, but no one from the government has helped us. Not one fucking bit, except for Matt, and I made that happen. It took us hours to get across the border, and our in-laws just got out yesterday. The US Attorneys had to work to get them clearance; that took a few days, and they had to jump around the border from hotel to hotel. They could have been killed on your watch. We could have been killed. We’re not going to be your sitting ducks.”

  Carol just sat there, straight-faced. But she didn’t apologize.

  “What we can offer you now are two spots in the Witness Protection Program. We’ll give you new names and relocate you and your children.”

  Mia and I had talked about this beforehand, but we still had real questions.

  “When would we see our husbands?” I asked, knowing what the answer would be.

  “You’ll be far away from their prisons, but even if you travel to see them we can’t allow unscheduled visits. You’ll see them once a year, maybe, and it’s entirely scheduled and supervised. We can’t permit calls unless we set them up weeks in advance.” Then she paused. “Your lives will be very different—and very separate—from your husbands’.”
/>   “Would we be near each other?” Mia asked.

  “No. You’d be in different parts of the country.”

  I didn’t even look at Mia when I started talking for both of us. We were on the same page about this, no questions asked. I couldn’t lose the only person in the world who understood me, and she couldn’t give up the only person in the world who reminded her of home. We were sisters, and no one was going to separate us.

  “Never,” I said. “We gave up everything. Our husbands sacrificed themselves for the love of our family and to give our children better lives, and the last thing we want to do now is break our family up. Our husbands need us, and we need them, and there’s no way our babies are going to grow up not knowing their dads. Mia and I only have each other, and we cannot get through this alone. So our answer is absolutely, no.”

  Carol looked at both of us in shock. “You’re making a huge mistake. This is a terrible risk.”

  “It’s a risk we want to take,” Mia said.

  Carol nodded slowly. “Then it was wonderful to meet you, and I wish you all the best.”

  Together, we walked her to the door and showed her out, thanking her for her time. Then we went back to the couch, sat down, and without saying a thing, reached for each other’s hands.

  We’re in this together for the long haul, I thought. It might be twenty years till we’re back with our husbands, and we’ll sure as hell never be living on the beach in Mexico again, but we’ll always have each other. And we’re not giving up.

  PART FIVE

  PURGATORY

  CHAPTER 24

  Chicago

  Olivia

  Christmas 2008 was our first without Junior and Peter, and it was the most depressing of my whole life. My parents were still disappointed and hurt, but they loved me no matter what. Holidays and being together meant everything to them, but Mia and I were too worried about being in the city, so we decided to spend the day alone in my big, quiet house in the suburbs. The most I did to decorate was go to Walmart and buy a plastic tree that I put up on a side table, with a few glass balls that I’d found right at the checkout aisle.

  We didn’t hear from Junior or Peter, and we had no clue when we’d get to see them.

  Brandon’s birthday had been a few days before Christmas, and he’d kept asking, “Where’s Daddy? Why isn’t he here for my birthday?” He spent most days hiding under Benjamin’s bassinet, holding his blankie and sobbing for Junior. I tried to be strong for him, but sometimes I couldn’t hold it together. As tears rolled down my face, I’d just turn off the lights so he wouldn’t see me.

  If you thought I was bad, Mia was worse. Bella was colicky, and she would cry all day, every day. Mia finally gave up trying to be strong around her, so she’d just sit and sob right along with her.

  Mia

  I’d hold Bella all day and night trying to soothe her, but it didn’t help. I bought a sound machine, but still, nothing. I remember thinking, I’m just glad Bella’s too young to remember this. She and Benjamin will never know how bad this is.

  Olivia

  I’m totally OCD when it comes to cleaning, but that December I didn’t give a shit about anything. I’d roll Benjamin’s dirty diaper in a ball and just throw it on the floor. Then I’d walk outside in the middle of the night in the freezing cold just to get away. Mia and I felt guilty for the little we did have, and after hearing through our lawyers that Junior and Peter were in jail, starving and freezing cold, we started taking cold showers as some sort of punishment.

  Mia

  I talked to my mom every day, and she’d always beg to come over. Finally, I let her, and she was shocked when she arrived. The house was a mess, and we were worse.

  “What are you thinking?” she said. “Snap out of it! Your babies need you!”

  But I felt stuck. Olivia and I were too depressed to do anything but just exist.

  Olivia

  We didn’t hear from Junior and Peter till after New Year’s, when we were allowed our first visit. We were about as excited as we’d been on our wedding days, but getting to the federal building where they’d been transported was a total scene. We had to drive downtown, practically to the center of the Loop, and we packed everything: diaper bags full of wipes, bottles, and formula, a change of clothes for the kids, and bags of snacks. It was like we were going on a freakin’ field trip. Our armed guards drove us downtown into an underground parking deck, and when we stepped out of the cars we were met by US Attorney Tom, assistant US Attorney Mike, and Eric from the DEA.

  As Mia and I lifted the kids out of the cars and loaded them and all our stuff into our huge Orbit strollers, we must have looked like we were ready for a week-long trip because the agents all stared at us like, What the hell?

  I didn’t care. I was about to see my husband.

  Mia

  We got into a back service elevator, since the main elevator was used to transport prisoners to court, and we couldn’t risk being seen. When we got off, we walked into a room that had two long windows on each side of the door. It looked like a conference room in a regular old office building. We stood inside waiting for them, with Brandon holding Olivia’s hand, so excited that he was jumping up and down. I’d taken a million pictures of Bella and had written to Peter almost every day. I never wanted him to feel like he was missing out, so I hoped that when he saw her, he’d as much as know her.

  Suddenly, we saw Peter and Junior through the skinny windows, walking toward the room, shackled at their hands and feet.

  Olivia

  “Daddy! Daddy!” screamed Brandon, and he ran toward his dad and grabbed him around the knees.

  Junior’s face lit up, and I couldn’t stop staring at him. I loved and missed him so much that I ached deep down, and all I wanted to do was hold him and never let him go. Still, underneath his huge smile, he was clearly a different person than I’d known before he went away. He looked like he was suffering from malnutrition and smelled like he hadn’t showered since he’d left Mexico. He kept staring down at Brandon, like he was ashamed to hold his head up. After a moment or so, I lifted up his chin and looked him in the eyes.

  “You’re the handsomest man I’ve ever seen,” I said. “And the bravest, most courageous husband in the world.”

  Mia

  When I saw Peter, I couldn’t believe how skinny he was. His hair was long and ratty, and his beard had grown out. The prison officials hadn’t allowed him to take a shower in four weeks.

  He didn’t even want to hug me. “I’m so sorry you have to see me like this,” he said. “I’m so sorry. Please forgive me.”

  “I’ve missed you,” I said, pulling him toward me. “I’m just happy to be here with you.”

  I didn’t want him to apologize. Just for that one afternoon, I didn’t want to think about how our lives were upside down. And, luckily, it wasn’t hard with Bella in the room.

  Peter couldn’t keep his eyes off of her. She’d grown so much over the last month that she looked like a different baby. The agents took his handcuffs off and let him hold her, and he was so happy, like this pure, innocent joy. It was beautiful.

  Olivia

  Junior was so worried about me and the babies. At home, he’d done everything for us, and he knew being on my own was hard.

  “Are you doing okay?” he kept asking.

  “I’m fine, but I’m more worried about you.”

  “Please don’t be. Your happiness is what keeps me going. I just want to see you smile, Liv.”

  My poor husband, I thought. He’s having to live through us now, and I spend all day depressed.

  I decided to keep that to myself and, instead, listened to Peter and Junior recount how they’d spent the last month.

  Mia

  After Peter and Junior were flown out of Guadalajara, they went to Mexico City and were there for a day. The next morning at six, US Marshals escorted them out of their hotel, hid them in an armored truck, and drove them into a nearby hangar, where they were place
d on a US government jet. They were sent to Dallas, and as soon as their feet touched US soil, officials shackled them and read them their rights.

  Olivia

  All around them, cameras began flashing; so many, in fact, that they were temporarily blinded. As they walked onto the tarmac, Junior squinted, turned to Peter, and without words communicated what they were both thinking: I can’t believe all that we’ve done. Suddenly, he felt like a terrorist. In his worst nightmare, he’d never imagined how notorious he and Peter really were.

  Mia

  From Dallas, they went to Milwaukee, where the federal investigation against them had begun almost a decade before. Agents shackled them, then led them into a federal building in the dead of night. The structure had been locked down as a security precaution, and Peter and Junior could hardly turn their heads without seeing an armed guard or an official from one of several different agencies. Some placed their fingers on their weapons, and many just stared. There had never been a trafficking case as huge as theirs in the United States, much less the state of Wisconsin. And the fact that they were major figures in the cartel world who’d willingly turned themselves in? It was the most remarkable case any agent there had seen.

  Olivia

  Peter and Junior spent one day in Milwaukee in separate prison cells, within earshot of each other. During the night, Peter called out to Junior, “Please don’t sleep. Talk to me, I’m lonely.” They’d been building a criminal enterprise for almost half their lives, and Peter was no stranger to captivity, but this was their first night in jail, a place they’d spent their whole lives avoiding.