GRIM, s. mactavish

Chapter 4

Location: Las Almas
Italics are spanish

     Rudy and Carmen stayed in the car while Alejandro went to meet their guests, Ghost and Soap. Carmen applied her lip balm to her lips as the doors on both sides of her opened, revealing their guests. Carmen glanced at the man on her left, seeing his mohawk.

     He stared at her with confusion as he was told it was only Alejandro and Rudy they were meeting, not someone they weren't sure they could trust. His eyes wondered to the freshly coated lips as it shined in the light of the sun. Her eyes examined him from afar and wasn't entirely sure if he was naturally built like a god, or was wearing a lot of layers. Either way, she liked it. She pulled her legs together and made sure both men had enough room to sit comfortably in the car. It wasn't enough. 

     She leaned forward on her knees and used her elbows to hold herself up. Carmen mentally cursed at herself for not fighting her brother for the passenger seat.

     Ghost had seen the encounter between Soap and Carmen and thought it was quite ridiculous that they would eye each other, especially during a mission.

     "This is my second in command. Sergeant Major Rodolfo Parra. This is my third in command, Sergeant Major Carmen Vagras." Alejandro introduced them to the guests, looking back at Carmen to see a irritated look present on her face.

     "I'm afraid of Ghosts." Rodolfo stated as he started to drive.

     Alejandro looked back at Soap and Ghost, "You know Spanish?"

     Soap replied, "No."

     "You're going to need to being in Las Almas." Carmen spoke from between Soap and Ghost. Soap looked slightly down at her, to see her looking at him.

     She leaned over, "Say, 'you're a bitch, Alejandro'." She whispered as a smirk appeared on her face. She was known to make people who never spoke Spanish in their entire life, insult people who speak spanish everyday. Soap almost smiled as he wasn't really sure what it meant. He cleared his throat before he repeated the words she had told him to say. Alejandro glared at his sister to find that she was holding in her laugh.

     The car ride remained silent throughout the drive and once they got into town, Soap and Ghost were on alert. Carmen forgot they didn't live there. Soap instinctively reached for his gun that rested between his and Carmen's legs, "White truck, four armed in the back."

     Carmen gently pushed the gun out of Soap's hands and rested it against the seat while Alejandro turned to assure Soap, "Hey - tranquilo. Easy - that's normal here. Guns on the street is jurisdiction of the police." He turned back around, facing the front of the car.

     "Where are the police?" Ghost questioned.

     "Well, Las Almas has a very serious problem. There are few here to uphold the law. And many of those who resist corruption. . . disappear."

     Carmen let out a small breath of air, "Do you have to make it dramatic with the pause?"

     "What about the military?" Soap asks, looking at Alejandro. He felt Carmen shift uncomfortably and that's when he glanced at her. She was using her free hand to hold over the wound on her waist, seeing a slight stain of red on her hand. He moved closer to the door which wasn't very much, but enough to allow Carmen some extra room.

     "Well, because we are well trained, soldiers are recruited by the narcos. . ." Alejandro explained.

     Ghost was full on staring in the rearview mirror from the backseat,"Why not you?"

     "We grew up here. They call us Los Vaqueros. . . Cowboys. We love this place. And we will die fighting for it."

     Carmen was applying lip balm once again until Ghost was staring at her with annoyed looks, "Stop with the damn lipstick." He grumbled. She slowly put it away and rubbed her lips together to spread the lip balm.

     "I should have gotten the passenger seat so I dont have to be squished between two men." She muttered loud enough for Rodolfo to hear her and he quietly chuckled. Soap heard the man chuckle and asked why he was laughing but he didn't respond.

     "Who's Sin Nombre?" Ghost asked as they drove by the dead bodies covered with cartel sheets, typically meaning a warning.

     "El Sin Nombre. The Nameless. The leader of the Las Almas cartel." Alejandro explained, looking at Rodolfo's headrest.

     "Where can we find him?" Soap inquired about the El Sin Nombre.

     Carmen let out a scoff, "You can't. El Sin Nombre is named El Sin Nombre for a reason."