"Well if Cortez has a strong media presence and he's a big influence among the community, I say we work with that. What's one thing people hate to hear about their trusted leaders? Anything that involves a scandal right? Cortez makes it seem like Eliśa and he is this big power couple, with the perfect marriage. If we can somehow put something out into the media that debunks that, then it would have tons of people questioning him and it would surely take some heat off our backs." Zadia suggested.
Roman thought about it for a second. "That doesn't sound like a bad idea."
"I agree. I think I'd be able to pull something up that proves this." Said Adam."
"Any other suggestions?"
"I've got one," Abel stated. "Cortez is an investor, so what if we can prove that the things he's investing in are corrupted?"
Roman nods, after thinking it over. "Go on."
Abel continued. "Well, there's this really expensive furniture store on the west side of town that my tía used to warn me about. She and most of all the adults in my neighborhood used to always tell us not to go inside because they knew that there was a lot of sex trafficking involved there. Allegedly, the truck that they use to bring the furniture in and out is also filled with a bunch of people inside of it, mainly women and kids from different parts of the world. Guess who's currently the lead investor of that store?" Abel finished.
Everyone in the room shifted. "And you're one hundred percent positive that this is true and not just some story your aunt told you to keep you from wandering around?" Lynn asked.
"I'm positive. My aunt wouldn't lie about something so serious."
"Any other suggestions?" Roman asked. No one said anything. "Okay then, that leaves us with two suggestions and one choice. If we can get proof, then this will slow Cortez down. Lynn, what's your pick?"
Lynn placed a finger on her chin, thinking it through. "If we go with the first suggestion, there's a huge possibility people won't care. And since Eliśa isn't around, plenty of people will debunk the whole thing even with proof. Now Abel's suggestion... that would make Cortez catch a lot of heat. Even if it's true or not, it would get people asking questions. I'd say we go with that."
Roman looked over to Adam. He cleared his throat. "Abel's suggestion sounds good, but if we take this route I'm sure it would only frustrate Cortez more and do the opposite of benefiting us. Besides that, we've gotta think about the other factors at hand. The time and resources put into finding proof about this could be endless. Zadia's suggestion seems more convenient."
Lynn scoffed in disagreement. "All Cortez has to do is say fake news and the media will dismiss it. That's all it takes. With Abel's suggestion, there's no way of dismissing it. It'll stick."
"Why can't we just go with both?" Zadia asked. She didn't understand why they had to choose.
Lynn rolled her eyes at Zadia's question. "Because if we do both, then people would know that something is up. Just one is better."
"That's stupid."
"It's logical." Lynn resorted.
"We'll go with Zadia's suggestions," Roman said, shutting the both of them up. Zadia stared at him in surprise, while Lynn sucked her teeth. "Adam makes some good points, Cortez is a hothead, and outing the operation that he's got going on will only cause us to make enemies with other folks. We don't need that right now and I'm sure those people are as good as dead if word about this gets out. Cortez won't leave a trail."
"I'm sure they would rather be dead than trafficked for the rest of their lives," Lynn argued.
Roman sighed. "That may be true, but it has nothing to do with us. So we stay out of it for now."
ChApTeR - 10
Start from the beginning
