The sharp, brittle sound of ceramic shattering against the kitchen tiles pierced the heavy silence of the apartment. Warm brown broth and tender beans pooled around the shards of the broken plate, soaking into the grout.

The next morning, the city of Querétaro woke up to a heavy blanket of morning mist. Inside her house, Mariana moved with calculated precision. She dressed in a simple dark jacket, kissed a sleeping Sofía—who was staying safely under the care of a trusted, armed private security detail arranged by Garza—and walked out to her SUV.

She placed a brightly colored USB flash drive right on the passenger seat, ensuring it was clearly visible through the windshield. Then, she started the engine and pulled out of the driveway.

Almost instantly, the familiar matte-black sedan pulled out from a side street fifty yards behind her, accelerating to match her pace.

Mariana gripped the steering wheel, her knuckles white, her heart pounding against her ribs like a war drum. She drove out toward the industrial highway leading away from the city center, glancing repeatedly in her rearview mirror. The black car closed the distance, aggressively tailgating her bumper, flashing its high beams in a violent demand to pull over.

Instead of slowing down, Mariana slammed her foot down on the gas pedal. Her SUV surged forward, roaring down the empty stretch of highway toward an abandoned freight depot near the old railway yards.

The black sedan accelerated wildly, roaring right behind her, its engine screaming as it tried to force her off the road.

Mariana cut the steering wheel hard to the left, sliding her SUV through the rusted open gates of the freight depot, kicking up clouds of thick white dust and gravel. She slammed on the brakes, threw the car into park, grabbed the flash drive from the passenger seat, and leaped out of the vehicle, running toward the cover of a massive brick warehouse.

The black sedan skidded to a halt right beside her SUV. Two heavy-set men in dark suits jumped out, their eyes scanning the dusty yard.

"She went that way!" one of them shouted, pointing toward the dark, cavernous entrance of the warehouse.