by Mia Flores
Finally, to my in-laws: You’ve traveled down this road with us, and your life has been affected in so many ways. I know it’s been hard. We’ve been through so much together, and still, you have opened your hearts and been there for us. No matter what, we’ll always be family. Suerga (my mother-in-law): Thank you for being so sweet, kind, and loving. I love you and will always be here for you.
From Mia and Olivia:
A special thanks to our readers: After reading our book, you may have different opinions and may even judge us, but all our mistakes were just the ingredients that have made us into the wives and mothers we are today. People like us aren’t given the chance to show the world we are human just like everyone else. We cry when we are hurt, we laugh when we are happy, and we love our family just like you. We hope you understand our message: that the life we once had doesn’t define who we are today, and by reading this book you’ve witnessed a family that would go through the toughest obstacles for a chance at a simple, beautiful life together.
To our attorney and his wife: Thank you for not judging us, but instead believing in us. You opened the doors for us, and this book wouldn’t be possible without you. You have always gone the extra mile and have our best interests at heart. Thank you for being our friends.
Thank you to our husbands’ criminal attorneys for all your hard work over the years, which continues today. For receiving our phone calls at all hours and answering our never-ending questions, we’re so grateful. Yes, we’re a handful, but I hope you now understand. We are sure there are many attorneys who wouldn’t have taken the case. We are grateful to you both, especially to Joe, who put himself in harm’s way to be there for his clients. You have dedicated time that took you away from your family and spent so much energy fighting for us. We will be forever in debt to you.
Thank you to everyone involved in the making of this book. Coming from where we came from, we never thought we’d be given the chance to publish our life story. We feel honored and privileged to be surrounded by such wise and intelligent people. You all saw past the stereotypes and took us for who we are. We never thought we would receive such touching and profound comments and praise. We will forever hold your words in high esteem.
To our TV/film agents: Thank you for believing that our story should be out there for the world to see, and for giving us the opportunity to take our project to the next level. We have an awesome team!
We’re ashamed of our past lives, but we couldn’t be prouder of the decision we made. Writing this book was one of the most difficult things we’ve ever done, and we thought about not going through with it many times. But we realized that if this could help change someone’s life, it would all be worth it. We wanted to do something positive and hopefully inspire someone who’s living this lifestyle. Too many families and children have suffered, and if everyone thought of the people they love the most, they, too, could change their lives and put an end to the many dangers drugs pose to the world today.
We’re extremely disheartened and saddened by the drug problem today. So many people are addicted and dying, and we hope our and our husbands’ difficult decisions have made an impact in helping to end this epidemic.
Olivia’s life is a living testament to the fact that a person can overcome the torment and misery that is an abusive relationship. She has lived through and survived these relationships, and we’re hopeful that our story will empower women and give them the strength to love and value themselves and find true love like we have.
Thank you, reader, for letting us tell you our story.
Sources
Chapter 1: Olivia
Tanvi Misra, “Why Chicago Is Still the No. 2 U.S. City for Mexican Immigrants,” The Atlantic, Citylab, October 9, 2014, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.citylab.com/housing/2014/10/why-chicago-is-still-the-2-us-city-for-mexican-immigrants/381304/.
Chapter 3: Junior
Annie Sweeney and Jason Meisner, “A Dad’s Influence: How the Flores Twins Learned the Drug Trade at Home,” Chicago Tribune, May 7, 2015, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-father-flores-brothers-met-20150507-story.html.
Chapter 5: The Heat Is On
Annie Sweeney and Jason Meisner, “How Twins from Little Village Rose to Win the Trust of Drug Kingpin El Chapo,” Chicago Tribune, March 28, 2015, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-flores-brothers-drug-cartel-met-20150327-story.html.
Annie Sweeney and Jason Meisner, “A Dad’s Influence: How the Flores Twins Learned the Drug Trade at Home,” Chicago Tribune, May 7, 2015, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-father-flores-brothers-met-20150507-story.html.
Sun-Times Staff, “Final Round: Cartel Twins vs. Cop-Backed Kidnapper,” Chicago Sun-Times, April 15, 2016, accessed November 8, 2016, http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/final-round-cartel-twins-vs-cop-backed-kidnapper/.
Chapter 7: Guadalajara
Duncan Tucker, “The City of Guadalajara Is the Money Laundering Capital of Mexico,” Vice News, June 14, 2015, accessed November 8, 2016, https://news.vice.com/article/the-city-of-guadalajara-is-the-money-laundering-capital-of-mexico.
Juan Montes, “Deadly Mexican Cartel Rises as New Threat,” Wall Street Journal, May 15, 2015, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.wsj.com/articles/deadly-mexican-cartel-rises-as-new-threat-1431509401.
Chapter 9: El Chapo
Michelle Garcia, “Court Docs Raise Questions about Mexico Sinaloa Cartel Narrative,” InSight Crime, November 12, 2013, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.insightcrime.org/news-analysis/zambada-trial.
Chapter 15: “This Is Going a Little Too Far”
Charles Bowden, “Mexico’s Red Days,” GQ, June 30, 2008, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.gq.com/story/juarez-mexico-border-murder-drug-war.
Jason Meisner, “Chicago Brothers Detail How Mexican Cartel Moved Cocaine by Jets,” Chicago Tribune, November 11, 2014, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-mexican-cartel-cocaine-transportation-met-20141110-story.html.
Chapter 26: Wives at War
US Attorney’s Office, “Three Alleged Mexican Drug Cartel Leaders and Twin Brothers Who Ran Chicago-Based Distribution Crew among Dozens Indicted in Chicago as Part of Coordinated Strike against Drug Traffickers,” FBI.com, August 20, 2009, accessed November 8, 2016, https://www.fbi.gov/chicago/press-releases/2009/cg082009.htm.
Chapter 28: Arrests
Steve Schmadeke, “Six Charged in Elaborate DEA Operation,” Chicago Tribune, April 23, 2009, accessed November 8, 2016, http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-04-23/news/0904221240_1_cocaine-drug-dealers-drug-enforcement-administration-sting.
Chapter 30: Sentencing
Jason Meisner, “14 Years for Chicago Brothers Turned Informants in Takedown of Cocaine Cartel,” Chicago Tribune, January 27, 2015, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-flores-brothers-cartel-sentencing-met-0128-20150127-story.html.
Chapter 31: Bringing Down El Chapo
BBC News, “El Chapo: Mexico to Extradite Drug Lord to US ‘by February,’” BBC News, October 16, 2016, accessed November 8, 2016, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-37663107.
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