Warnings: language, violence, torture/beating, descriptions of injuries and pain, discussion of murder, kidnapping, mentions of misogyny, allusions to domestic violence, teenage romance resulting in pregnancy, pining, dirty thoughts, allusion to possibility of sexual assault...let me know if I missed anything, and I'll happily add it here!
A/N: So, this starts around episode 4. This is going to be a multi chapter story that will follow along the three seasons of the show and beyond. The timeline of the show and the real timeline of events aren't always accurate, so some of the future chapters may be wonky, but I tried to make everything work best for this story. Also, in this series, Escobar is ten years older...so he would have been 52 when he dies, not 42...only way I could make the age of my OFC work. I'm just guessing how the DEA handled info with foreign authorities. Please, please, please let me know if my Spanish translations need improvement! This is just a working title, it may change. I hope you enjoy it, and please feel free to leave me feedback!
Chapter 1
"Peña," Javier Peña said curtly into the phone.
"Peña, I need you guys down here right away," Horacio Carrillo said on the other end of the line.
"What's going on?" Javier asked.
"I have a big lead on Escobar. I'm interrogating an accomplice, but I need your help." Javier stiffened slightly. The slight tension was not missed by Steve.
"We'll be right there," Javier said. "Same location as last time?" He heard Carrillo's grunt of confirmation and hung up.
"What's up?" Steve asked, rising from his chair and putting on his jacket.
"Carrillo needs help interrogating an accomplice. Said it's a big lead," Javier answered gruffly as he stood and put on his own coat as well. The partners glanced at each other with slight trepidation. They stood for a moment, hands on hips, looking at each other. With a small sigh they exited their office. Carrillo's interrogations were never easy and usually stayed with them long after.
They traveled to the isolated building where Carrillo liked to perform his "interrogations" in silence. They walked briskly down the stone steps. They could hear the sounds of flesh violently meeting flesh and the grunts of the poor bastard who was unlucky enough to have fallen into Carrillo's clutches. They reached the end of the steps and made their way into the large, open room.
"Ah, Murphy, Peña," Carrillo called out as they approached the small group. Directly in front of them they saw the back of one of Carrillo's men, slightly hunched over a metal chair, blocking the prisoner from their view. His knuckles were bloody and bruised. Carrillo stood calmly off to the side along with Trujillo and another man. Their hands all seemed to be in a similar state to the man in front of them, and the Americans noticed some bloodied tools and weapons scattered across a table behind them. As soon as the DEA agents reached the man in front of the prisoner, he straightened up and slowly backed away to join his colleagues. Steve and Javi stopped in their tracks as they took in the scene before them.
Tied to the chair was not the hardened, evil criminal they were expecting of an accomplice of Escobar's. No, tied to the chair, bloody and beaten, was a small woman with long dark hair. Javier heard Steve swear beside him. When her current attacker moved away, and Carrillo's words reached her, she looked up at the two men who had just entered the room. Her face had taken quite a beating. There was blood and swelling, but they could still see her features beneath the grime and gore.
Javier sucked in his breath at how battered her face was.
"What the fuck," he hissed between his teeth. His enraged gaze turned to Carrillo. "What the fuck are you doing, Carrillo?" he spat at him.
"I'm interrogating an accomplice," Carrillo said calmly. "You've seen me do this countless times."
"You're beating a woman!" Steve yelled. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"Don't let her fool you," Carrillo insisted. "She took down three of my men before we were able to restrain her." Javier rushed forward and dropped to his knees in front of the woman. He gently cupped the side of her face to raise her eyes to his. She had violet eyes. Christ, he didn't even know someone could have eyes that color. Tears clung to her thick, long lashes.
"No te preocupes," (Don't worry) he said gently. "Te sacaré de aquí." (I'm gonna get you outta here.) He saw the quick flash of gratitude in her eyes before she looked away. Javi stood back up and turned to the Colombians. "Release her," he demanded. Carrillo, arms crossed, slowly shook his head and chuckled.
"I haven't gotten the information I need yet," he answered simply. "When she tells me what I want to hear, then, maybe, I'll release her." Steve and Javier stared at him in horror.
"This is taking it too far, even for you, man," Steve said gruffly, shaking his head. "What the fuck could you possibly think she knows?"
"She's Escobar's daughter," Carrillo said.
"What?" Steve said, not understanding what he just heard.
"She is Escobar's daughter," Carrillo repeated slowly.
"Bullshit," Javier said quietly. "Escobar's daughter is a child."
"Yes," Carrillo explained. "His daughter with his wife is just a baby. This woman," Carrillo gestured to the small, battered beauty before them, "is his daughter from a summer tryst when he was a teenager."
"How could you possibly know that?" Steve questioned.
"We've been gathering intel," Carrillo told him calmly. "His sicarios have been talking a lot about her lately. She's confirmed the story as well." Javi and Steve looked unsure. They didn't like what was happening, but if she was in fact the daughter of Pablo Escobar...well, this was huge.
"We grabbed her sneaking out of one of the fincas we've been staking out," Carrillo stated. "She claims to have been held there against her will. If that turns out to be true, we may be able to let her go when we get all the intel from her we can."
"And if it's not true?" Steve asked.
"Then he's going to put a bullet in her head," Javier said quietly, staring at Carrillo, who nodded in agreement.
"It would be too dangerous to let her go," Carrillo explained.
"Jesus. FUCK!" Steve shouted as he threw his hands in the air and turned away. Javier looked at the girl in the center of the room. Shit, she was tiny. She couldn't be more than five feet tall, and maybe a hundred pounds. If it wasn't for the mouthwatering curves of her body, she could easily have been mistaken for a child.
"Let us talk to her," he said to Carrillo. "No more torture." The bulky colonel looked like he was about to argue when Javier cut in. "You called us here to help. Let us help." Carrillo nodded and waved his men back. Steve and Javi crouched down in front of the woman. "Hola, soy Javier Peña, y este es Steve Murphy de la DEA." (Hey, I'm Javier Peña, and this is Steve Murphy from the DEA.) They saw her eyes widen in relief when he mentioned DEA. "No dejaremos que te lastimen más, ¿de acuerdo? Cuéntanos qué está pasando. ¿Cuál es tu nombre? ¿Por qué estabas en el complejo de Escobar? Díganos todo lo que pueda." (We won't let them hurt you anymore, ok? Just tell us what's going on. What's your name? Why were you at Escobar's compound? Just tell us anything you can.) The girl took a ragged breath in and out.
"Ariana," she croaked out, her throat sore. "Ariana Morgan." Javi could see bruises all over her neck from where they had choked her. "Escobar's men kidnapped me. They've been holding me at various safe houses since they brought me to Colombia." Steve and Javi shared a look when they heard her speak in unaccented, perfect English.
"Brought you to Colombia?" Steve asked. "From where?"
"Mexico," she said, straining the talk. She coughed a few times, wincing at the pain. "I was on assignment in Mexico when they grabbed me." She started coughing again, small flecks of blood splattering out.
"It's alright," Javi soothed gently. "Take your time." Her coughing stopped and she took a shallow breath.
"I was assigned to Mexico to help bring down the Guadalajara Cartel after the murder of Kiki Camarena," she continued hoarsely. The Americans reared back at her words.
"W—What?" Javi and Steve stuttered together.
"I'm DEA too," she panted.
"She said this already," Carrillo said with an undercurrent of rage. "We know you are lying. The field office in Guadalajara has no record of her. If you're going to give us bullshit, we'll just put a bullet in you now!"
"Calm down, Carrillo," Steve warned.
"The field office won't give you information on an agent," Ariana gritted out through the pain. "I told you,"—she gasped at the pain in her ribs— "they'll only give the info to the embassy or DEA." Steve and Javi nodded in agreement. The DEA wasn't in the habit of sharing intel on agents with foreign police. They needed to protect their agents.
"Let me see if I can get this straight," Steve asked quietly, looking down at Ariana. "You're telling us you're an American DEA agent?"
"Yes," she answered, raising her chin, slightly.
"Fuck!" Javi growled. He stood up quickly and looked at the men. "Release her. Now." They glanced at their colonel, who nodded his head sharply. They rushed forward to cut her loose. Javi carefully helped her up. He saw her grimace as she tried to stand up straight and her breathing was shallow. He guessed she probably had a few broken ribs.
"Do you need to go the hospital or would you rather go to the embassy?" Steve asked her gently.
"I'm fine," she gritted out between her teeth. Javi could see she was in a lot of pain but was fighting it. "I don't want to take any chances of Escobar's men finding me. Let's go to the embassy." They looked concerned but nodded.
"You cannot take her," Carrillo said stubbornly. "She may be lying."
"We'll figure that out at the embassy," Javi said.
"You're more than welcome to come with us, Carrillo," Steve told him. "Keep her in your custody until we confirm if she's DEA." Carrillo considered his words.
"Very well," he said. He dismissed the other two men and told Trujillo to meet him there. They followed the Americans out. Javier helped Ariana into the back of the Jeep before sliding in next to her. Steve jumped into the driver's seat, and Carrillo sat up front with him. Ariana leaned her head against the window trying to breathe.
Javier watched her carefully. Her breathing was ragged and shallow, her eyes squeezing shut with every bump in the road. He knew she had to be in tremendous pain, but she stayed mostly quiet. Only letting out a small whimper or quiet gasp if the car jolted too much. He saw a single tear leak out from the corner of her eye and run down her bruised face.
A particularly large bump in the road caused her to let out a low groan, and she reached her hand out blindly towards Javier, seeking whatever comfort she could find. He gently clasped her hand that didn't have the obviously broken wrist. He entwined his fingers with hers. She squeezed his hand gently, letting him know she appreciated the small comfort. He rubbed his thumb soothingly back and forth over the back of her hand. He didn't know why, but every fiber of his being was screaming at him to protect this woman. He felt her clench his hand tightly, sucking in her breath as Steve had to slam on the brakes harder than normal.
"Fuck, Murphy," Javi hissed out, "careful!" Steve and Carrillo looked back at Ariana.
"Sorry," Steve mumbled. Carrillo stared at her a few moments longer. Javier could see the first stirrings of doubt in his eyes. Javi moved next to her and put his arm around her shoulders, gently pulling her into his arms.
"Is this ok?" He asked her gently. She nodded and buried her face into his chest. Javi's other arm came around to encircle her, his hand coming up to gently cup the back of her head.
"It's alright, Ariana," he whispered, pressing his lips to the side of her head. "I've got you. You're gonna be fine." He felt her relax a little in his arms.
"Ari," she mumbled into his chest.
"Hmm?" Javier looked down at her.
"You can call me Ari," she sighed, melting into the warmth of his embrace. She drifted in and out of consciousness for the remainder of the ride.
They managed to get back to the embassy with Ari in one piece despite Steve's atrocious driving. They led her to a much more comfortable interrogation room. Javier had insisted on checking her over before they would proceed.
"I don't know about this, Steve," Javier said quietly. They were standing off to the side with Carrillo, trying to keep their voices low enough so Ari wouldn't hear. "She's in pretty bad shape. We should get her to a hospital."
"We need to find out if she's telling the truth first," Carrillo insisted.
"He's right, Javi," Steve agreed. "Whether she's DEA or not, Escobar's men will be looking for her. We need to play this smart." Javi clenched his jaw, but nodded in agreement. He didn't like this at all. Javi and Steve moved to sit across the table from her. Carrillo leaned against the wall next to them, staring at the woman he had tortured.
"The ambassador and CIA are checking everything out right now," Javi told her. "We should be able to get this all cleared up soon."
"Do you think you can talk?" Steve asked her gently, gesturing towards her bruised throat. She nodded, shifting in her seat and wincing at the pull in her ribs. She looked so small and breakable, but Javi knew she had to have a lot of strength to have taken what Carrillo and his men dished out. "Let's start with how you ended up with Escobar."
"I told you," she said quietly, her throat too damaged to speak in a normal voice. "I was in Mexico, working. Escobar sent some men to get me. They grabbed me outside my apartment after work one night, tossed me in a car, and then onto a small plane. I was tied up and blindfolded. I know we made two stops, I'm guessing to refuel. We landed and I was tossed into another car. When they finally took the blindfold off, I was in one of Escobar's houses in Colombia."
"Alright," Steve said, sitting back. "So how the hell did Escobar end up with an American DEA agent for a daughter."
"When my mother was young," Ari began, "she went on vacation to Medellín with her best friend's family. She met Escobar while she was here. He was young too, just a teenager like my mom. Apparently they had a summer romance, and I was the result of that. She didn't even know until she got back home. My grandparents were furious when they found out. They married her off to a friend of the family right away to hide the shame. He was older, in his thirties." She looked away a moment, and swallowed thickly. "He wasn't a good man," she said, looking back at the men in front of her. "When I was twelve we were finally able to get away. We stayed on the move as much as possible, so he couldn't track us down." She paused a moment to rest her throat.
"My mother came clean about who my father was after we left. They had never outright said her husband wasn't my father, but the things he said to me and the way he treated me...well, I kinda figured there was more to the story." She fidgeted in her seat, trying to find a comfortable position. "Once I found out Escobar was my father, and what kind of a man he was, I decided to focus my life and career on bringing him, and men like him, to justice. Eventually I went off to college, criminal justice. Ended up working for the NYPD for a few years. My record was impressive enough to get me into the DEA. I was bounced around a bit, but I ended up in El Paso. After Kiki was killed, they sent me to Mexico." She shifted uncomfortably in her seat again.
"I was hoping to get assigned to Colombia, but they insisted I go to Mexico. I had been down there a couple years, but I had to go to D.C. for some briefings. I went to visit my mom before I had to return to Mexico. She was living in Miami at the time. We were out shopping and having lunch one day. And guess who happened to be in Miami on vacation with his family?" The three men looked at each other. They remembered some intel about Escobar taking his family to Disney, with a stop in Miami.
"Escobar saw us. He recognized my mother. And then he noticed me. He realized my age and saw enough of a family resemblance that he started to wonder. He ended up losing us in the crowd, and he didn't want to draw attention to a possible bastard child while on a family trip. So, when he got back to Colombia, he had his guys start digging, but he said he knew I was his."
"But how did he know for sure?" Javi pressed. "He had to be pretty fucking sure to send men to kidnap a DEA agent."
"He managed to bribe my doctor to take blood for 'routine tests' during my physical I had to have done before I returned to Mexico." She paused. "He showed me the paperwork. I really am his daughter." Ariana looked up at the men with so much sadness in her eyes they felt their hearts constrict. She clearly was not happy about her origin. She cleared her throat and looked away. The room fell silent for a few minutes, taking it all in.
"Shit," Ari said suddenly, "I don't even know how long I've been missing." She let out a humorless laugh.
"When did they take you?" Steve asked. She told them. Steve and Javi looked at each other and then slowly back at her.
"They've held you for four months," Javi told her quietly. She seemed to pale slightly when she realized just how long Escobar had held her.
"Well," she croaked out, "I guess you better call El Paso and let them know to take my damn picture off the memorial wall." Steve and Javi chuckled.
"We'll get right on that," Steve said with a smile. They stood up from the table. "You hang tight in here. We're gonna go see what the ambassador has found out. Let us know if you need anything."
"Some food would be nice at some point tonight, if it's not too much trouble," she asked politely. She looked up at the two men, a somber look on her battered face. "Your friend over there had me for almost three days," she said with a nod towards Carrillo. She turned to the man in question. "While I enjoyed your company, Colonel, your hospitality was severely lacking." Carrillo couldn't help but smirk at her sass. Javi looked away angrily and clenched his fist. He turned back to her.
"I'll get you something right away," Javi said gently. "Any requests?"
"I'm not picky," Ari said with a small shrug. She winced from the pain that small movement caused. It was fleeting, but Javier caught it. He offered her a reassuring smile.
"I'll stay here with her," Carrillo told them, his eyes still on Ari. The Americans paused, not sure they wanted to leave these two alone together. They shared a look, finally deciding they could trust Carrillo.
"Play nice," Javier warned, pointing to Carrillo.
"I always do," Ari quipped. The men couldn't help but chuckle. She was turning out to be much spunkier than they originally thought. Steve and Javi exited the room, and Carrillo pushed off the wall to take a seat across from Ari. The two stared at each other, contemplating the situation and each other.
—
As soon as the DEA agents left the room, Ari sagged slightly in her chair. Everything fucking hurt. She knew she had to have a few broken ribs. That would explain the pain and difficulty taking a deep breath. Her wrist throbbed where they had snapped the bone. She slowly took inventory of her injuries and decided she would be alright. Time would heal all the physical wounds on her body. Nothing was life threatening. Broken bones, bruises, lacerations, they all healed eventually, leaving behind scars and memories. Ari knew that all too well.
She studied Carrillo as he sat silently across from her. Though her entire body throbbed in pain, she wasn't angry at the man seated before her. She knew what was required to get results in this battle against the narcos. If she was being completely honest with herself, she was impressed with Colonel Carrillo. She had overheard conversations between him and his second in command, Trujillo. Before they knew she spoke English, they had spoken more openly in front of her. Carrillo couldn't be bought by the cartels. She had a lot of respect for a man like him.
Her fellow DEA agents seemed to be just as solid as their Colombian counterpart. She had been around long enough to know a good agent from a bad agent. Murphy and Peña were good agents. And more importantly, she sensed they, just like her and Carrillo, would be willing to do anything to bring down the cartels.
She was grateful that they had shown up and gotten her out of there. She was tough, but she wasn't sure how much longer she could have withstood the torture by Carrillo and his men.
When she felt Javier's hand on her face and looked into his eyes, she swore it was the most beautiful sight in the world. She wasn't sure if it was her torture rattled brain seeing her savior, or if it was his insanely gorgeous face. No one had the right to be that sexy. She had to physically restrain herself from running her finger across his mustache as soon as she was cut free. Jesus, she thought, get your shit together.
She noticed Carrillo studying her carefully. She wondered what he was thinking.
—
Carrillo quietly watched the young woman across from him. He was worried she was telling the truth. He wasn't concerned about the consequences of his actions. He knew they would be justified in the eyes of his superiors. He had followed all necessary protocol to verify who she claimed to be. He felt guilt slowly creep into his veins.
When his men had grabbed her, he had felt elation that they had managed to acquire Escobar's daughter. When he had her in front of him though, he felt hesitation. There was something in her eyes that made him not want to harm her.
He had been so focused on getting information on Escobar and worried that her beauty would cloud his judgment, he had ignored his instincts.
"If you truly are DEA—" he began.
"—No hard feelings on my part," she cut in. He looked shocked. "You did what you had to. Let it go." He didn't look convinced, but he nodded curtly, falling back into silence.
—
Half an hour later Javier came back in with food. He opened a bag and pulled out a bunch of wrapped items.
"I hope you like arepas," he said. Her eyes lit up.
"Love them," she gasped as she reached for one. She dug right in as Javi took the seat across from her, next to Carrillo. She swallowed carefully, grimacing at the pain it caused. It was clear she was starving, but she had to take it slow with her battered throat. She looked at the large pile of arepas in front of her. She pushed a few towards Javier and the colonel.
"Here," she said. "Help yourselves. There's no way I'll eat them all." They seemed to consider something for a moment before slowly opening the wrappers and taking a bite.
"Did he behave himself?" Javi asked, nodding towards Carrillo.
"He was a perfect gentleman," Ari said, flashing them a smile, and then wincing at the pain that shot through her head. "Fuck,"she hissed.
"You alright?" Javi asked, concerned.
"Yeah," she assured him. "Just have to be more careful for a bit." She took another bite, and a bit of filling oozed onto her thumb. Ari stuck her thumb in her mouth and gently sucked the filling off. Javi watched her. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat as thoughts he shouldn't be having jumped into his head. They had washed her face of most of the blood and grime when they got to the embassy. She was still bruised, but Javi could still tell she was quite beautiful underneath. He cleared his throat and sat up straighter.
"So your mom lives in Miami?" Javi said suddenly, needing to focus his thoughts on something other than her tongue. "Steve was working there before he came to Colombia."
"She did live in Miami," Ari said. "She was murdered just before I returned to Mexico. The detectives that worked her case said it looked like a drug cartel hit. I assumed it was a retaliation from the Guadalajara cartel; I had just made a pretty big bust. But after something Escobar said to me, I think he was the one who ordered her death. Punishment for hiding me all those years."
"You're probably right about Escobar," Carrillo said quietly. "He is a family man through and through. It would infuriate him to have a child out there, growing up without him. He would have seen it as an unforgivable betrayal." They sat in silence for a few moments.
"So, four months," Javier said.
"Hmm?" Ariana looked confused.
"Escobar had you for four months." Understanding dawned on her face. "How'd you get out?"
"Wasn't easy, that's for fucking sure," she said in a voice tinged with anger. "He had me under guard all the time. Kept moving me to different houses. He tried to keep me with him and his family whenever he could, but he found I needed to be moved more than them. I guess he figured out I'm not an idiot, so he wanted to keep me guessing so I wouldn't escape. Honestly, I preferred when he had me at the houses without him and the family. His wife hates me. I'm pretty sure she would have killed me if she could have made it look like an accident. His mother fawned over me, but she's so damn loyal to him, she wouldn't dream of helping me escape. But Escobar, he was the worst to be around."
"Did he mistreat you," Javi asked, an edge to his voice.
"No, no it wasn't like that," she assured him. "He was very good to me. But that was the problem. He was so interested in me, doted on me. It made me sick."
"Because of who he is?" Javier asked gently.
"That was part of it," Ariana said, looking away.
"What was the other part?"
"If it's alright with you, I-I'd rather not discuss that right now," Ariana stuttered. Javi watched her for a moment. He could see the darkness swirling in her eyes. She had some demons buried that she didn't want to dredge up. He understood all too well.
"Of course," he told her. She offered him a small smile of gratitude.
"I knocked out the guards," she told him quietly. He looked at her a question in his eyes. "When I escaped. Escobar wasn't there. He was at a different house with his family. He left seven guys to watch me. They were going stir crazy. I overheard them bitching about the fact that they weren't allowed to touch me." Javier stiffened at her words, worried what might come next. "They said it wasn't right to lock them away with 'an irresistible pussy' and not allow them a taste." She cringed at the crude words those animals had spoken about her. Javi and Carrillo felt rage. If those savages touched her...
"They decided to make a run to a brothel to satisfy their needs. Left two of them behind to keep an eye on me. I waited about twenty minutes, to make sure they wouldn't change their mind and head back. Then I got the jump on the two idiots they left behind, grabbed their guns, keys to one of the cars, and took off." She looked at Carrillo. "Your guys caught me a few miles from the house." The men were impressed. She was a lot tougher than she looked.
"Yes, and you beat the shit out of three of my men," Carrillo said in a deep voice. "You are a surprise, niñita." Ari made a face at the nickname.
"I'm not a little girl," she mumbled. Carrillo smirked at her. "Have you guys had any luck contacting my superiors?"
"I'm not sure," Javi said. "Steve told me the ambassador was making a few more calls."
"Should you be helping them?"
"They can handle it," he shrugged, leaning back in his chair and propping his ankle over his knee, threading his fingers together on this lap. Ariana grinned at him.
"How long have you been down here hunting Escobar?" She asked. Javi blew out a stream of breath.
"Fuck, it's been a few years now," he said. Ariana nodded in understanding.
"I know how that feels," she said. "Sometimes it sucks being stuck in a foreign country." He shrugged.
"Eh, it's not so bad. They gave me a pretty decent partner this time around. The government issued apartment is comfortable enough. It's been better since Carrillo was put in charge of the investigation. Despite your...interaction with him, he's one of the only cops we can trust in this country."
"I got a sense of that," Ari said. Carrillo looked surprised. "I've always been a good judge of character. He's one of the good ones...even if I wouldn't mind kicking his ass a bit right now." They fell into silence once more. Ari finished eating and crumbled up the wrapper.
"Thanks for the food, Agent Peña," she said quietly. "It was delicious."
"Javi," he said quietly. She tilted her head with a questioning hum. "You can call me Javi."
"Oh, o-ok," she stuttered out. "Thanks, Javi." He stared at her full lips as his name slipped out of them.
"You're welcome, hermosa," Javi said huskily. He saw her face warm at the endearment.
Javi realized he was still staring at her mouth. And Carrillo was watching them, very closely. He needed to put as much physical distance between them as he could. He checked his watch and noticed it had been well over an hour since Steve left to check out her story.
"I'm going to go check on Steve," he said as he pushed up from his chair.
"I'll come with you, Peña," Carrillo said, standing. "Trujillo can keep an eye on her. I want to see this information for myself.
"All right," Javi nodded. "We'll be back," he told Ari.
"Ok," Ariana said, looking up at him. "I'll be here." He nodded curtly as they walked out. The door closed quietly behind them. Javi could not remember a time a woman had an effect on him like this. It scared the hell out of him. He was hoping her story would check out because that meant she would be heading off to Mexico and far away from him. He ignored the twist in his gut at never seeing her again. This was the way it should be. He didn't need a distraction like her.
Javi and Carrillo made their way into the ambassador's office. Javier's mind was occupied with thoughts of whether or not he should try to sleep with Ari before she left. She would probably need to stay in Colombia for a couple weeks to heal up, so he would definitely have some time to make a move. Then she would be on her way out of the country, and he wouldn't have to agonize over her anymore. All he knew was that this girl was trouble, and he needed her as far away from him as possible. He stopped his train of thought when they got to Noonan's office. He walked up to her secretary, Laura.
"Murphy in there?" He asked, pointing to the closed office doors.
"Yes, sir," she said. "The ambassador told me to send you in when you got here." Javi nodded, and they went in.
"Peña, Colonel, come in," Ambassador Noonan said. She motioned them over to her desk. Steve was standing to the side looking over some papers.
"Any update?" Javi asked.
"Yes," Noonan said. "She is indeed with the DEA, and she has quite the impressive record." Steve handed him the papers he had been reading.
"Javi, check this out," he said. Javi glanced through the papers and realized they were a history of Ariana's career. He sat down and took a closer look.
"Christ, man, this girl is incredible," Steve exclaimed. "I haven't seen a career like that on most guys that have decades in the field!" Javi had to agree. Her skills and record were amazing.
Unfortunately, in this male dominated field, women were held to a ridiculously high standard. Misogyny ran rampant in the DEA, and a female agent would have to be practically perfect to get noticed by anyone. Based off her records, Ari knew how to play this game well. Carrillo took the paperwork to read over. Javi saw a look of admiration and then a grimace pass over the man's face. It was clear to Javi the colonel was impressed with Ari...and feeling guilty for what he had done.
"I've already updated El Paso and Guadalajara, and they approved the request," Noonan stated.
"Request?" Javi questioned.
"Transfer to Bogotá," the ambassador clarified.
"Transfer?" Javi asked, his eyes wide with surprise. "You want her to join the team?"
"It's already done," she stated. "Her superior sent confirmation just before you walked in. Looks like you two have a new partner." Javi looked at Steve who was grinning like an idiot.
Well, shit.