Stories published in my book "Para vivir Seguros" 2.005

The meeting with the Administration and Finance people at the company had ended at eight-thirty in the evening. The impact of the recent currency exchange measures decreed by the government required a price adjustment, which was going to cause problems with marketing. Important decisions would have to be made at the next board meeting. Engineer Santiago Madrid stopped his Renault Cité in front of the gate of his building. He was so absorbed and deep in thought that he didn’t notice the two men who got out of a Maverick parked on the street and walked toward the gate.

The engineer drove into the basement to his parking spot. He parked next to Amalia’s SUV, his wife’s car. He disconnected his cell phone from the charger cable, grabbed his briefcase, and got out of the Renault. As he was activating the car’s remote alarm, he felt a presence behind him.

Thinking it was the janitor or a neighbor, Santiago Madrid turned around. He found himself face-to-face with two men, dressed in suits and ties. One of them was pointing a gun at him. Still distracted, the engineer’s brain took a moment to process and interpret the signals his eyes and senses were sending.

— "Yes…?"

— "Shut up… Let’s go to your apartment!"

— "Look, gentlemen, there must be some mistake..."

The blow from the gun barrel hit his jaw and lower lip. He stumbled and fell to the cement floor. A hand grabbed him by the coat and forced him to get up. Dazed, Santiago Madrid put his hand to his mouth and drew it back with blood on it. He cursed and tried to struggle. He felt the gun barrel pressed into his back.

— "Stay calm or I’ll kill you… Let’s go to your apartment…"

They shoved him toward the elevator core. Somewhat recovered, furious with himself, and feeling humiliated, Santiago Madrid began to think and reason. He prayed to God for a neighbor to intervene or notice what was happening. But it didn’t happen. They reached the gate that led to the elevators.

— "Open it!"

Santiago Madrid took the keychain out of his pants pocket. His hands were trembling. It was difficult for him to insert the key into the lock. They entered the hall. One of the criminals pressed the button to call the elevator. The engineer was trying to come up with a plan, to do something, but nothing came to mind. The doors opened and they entered the small cabin.

— "Floor?"

Santiago Madrid hesitated. His fear and instinct told him anything was better than taking these men to his apartment. His wife and children were there.

— "Which floor, idiot? Do you want me to break you right here?"

He pressed the button marked 12. The doors closed and the cabin slowly began to ascend. Santiago Madrid’s mind was filled with recent stories he had heard at work or at the club: "They spent several hours in the apartment, hung the baby by his feet until we told them where the safe was. They kept him suspended over the void. They locked themselves in a room with one of the teenage daughters and raped her."

Santiago Madrid had heard many of these stories. By the fourth floor, he had firmly decided not to let these men into his apartment. But how to achieve this without getting hurt or killed?

Paralyzed by terror, the engineer watched the floor lights go up and couldn’t find a solution. Try to reason with the men? Offer them money? He looked at them. They were young, with hard features, they seemed determined... Maybe he could talk to them. A slap to the face brought him back to reality.

— "Don’t look at me, idiot..."

The gun barrel was pressed into his stomach. Floor eight. My God, what do I do? Why is this happening to me? When the button for the 10th floor lit up, a desperate plan came to mind.

His neighbor on the floor was a retired Army colonel. Maybe he could try something, get his help... Floor 11. Santiago Madrid swallowed hard and took a deep breath. Floor 12. With a soft whistle, the doors opened.

The engineer headed not to his apartment, which was A, but to B, the colonel’s apartment. He took the keychain, fumbled nervously with the keys, and dropped them on the floor. With his foot, he pushed them into the stairwell. The keychain hit the metal railing a few floors down and bounced to the ground floor. The gunman violently grabbed Santiago Madrid by the hair and forced him to walk to the gate of apartment B.

— "Oh, you think you’re smart, you think you’re brave? You’ll see, you bastard… You’re dead, you and your family…"

The man pressed the apartment buzzer twice.

— "Make them open the door or I’ll shoot you and whoever is behind the gate, understood?"

Footsteps were heard and the door opened. Colonel Manzanares’ face appeared behind the gate. Surprised, the colonel looked at the three men without understanding what was happening. The criminals sensed something was wrong. Santiago Madrid took advantage of the confusion. Drawing strength from where he had none, he pushed one of the men while grabbing the arm of the gunman with both hands. He shouted.

— "Help... Help me, please!"

The colonel violently slammed the door shut. Santiago Madrid continued to struggle with the armed man. The other criminal drew a .38 revolver. The engineer was so enraged by the colonel’s cowardice that he doubled his efforts. He managed to push the gunman towards the other man, break free, and run. A shot rang out and then another. Desperate, Santiago Madrid reached the door of the utility room and trash chute and went inside. Another shot was fired. The engineer entered the small room and stood to the side of the door, using the wall for protection. He was in total darkness. He grabbed the doorknob and pressed it to prevent them from opening it from the outside. Several shots were fired and points of light appeared on the door. He felt particles of plaster and ceramic bouncing against him. The detonations echoed.

Time seemed to stop. Finally, he heard footsteps, running, and shouting. He recognized his wife’s voice. Someone opened the small room’s door. It was his wife and eldest son. They pulled him out. He let himself fall to the floor, trembling. Thinking he was wounded, his family checked him over. Miraculously, engineer Santiago Madrid, who had no injuries, laughed nervously.