unmoved and silent

At 9:00 PM, New York time, Fox News reported that six warplanes were on their way to Paraguay to bomb the compound where Peter Throw was hiding. It was two o'clock in the morning in Matosinhos, district of Oporto, Portugal.

Minutes later, judge Cathy Littleriver De Almeida woke up with a strange, secretive phone call:

-Liz ... is you?... It's Ass speaking... from Buenos Aires...Have you seen Fox News?

Liz had gone to bed early after a much stressful day.

-No... Ass... What's going on?...

-The Americans are coming to bomb the place... We must get the President out of this mess...

Liz dressed up rapidly and went to the operations room, her office at the Criminal Instruction Court. She called back Buenos Aires in a hurry:

-Ass... do you have any plan...?

-Yes, Liz ... we get the President and Magellan back to Buenos Aires... and leave Throw and the donkeys in the place...

There was a little tone of happiness in Ass's voice. This was a God's gift for him, the opportunity to get rid of Peter Throw without the involvement of the Portuguese Public Ministry.

From the other side of the line, there was a long, deadly silence. Then, Liz said:

-No ... Ass...I cannot do that...

She then requested:

-Put me in line with Lopez.

Thirty seconds later she was talking to pilot Ramón Lopez in the Paraguaian jungle:

-Mr. Lopez ... please board the three men and the two donkeys ... and take flight level thirty-nine... direct to Cancun, Mexico ... skies clear ... wind twenty knots southeast...Roger.

-Si ... señorita Liz ...understood ... flight level thirty-nine to Cancun...Roger.

Six minutes later, pilot Lopez was calling back Liz, via Buenos Aires:

-Señorita Liz ... hay dos problemas ...los burritos aún no llegaran ... Señor Throw refuses to board without them ... And not enough fuel to Cancun...Roger.

The American airplanes, flying from north, had just entered Brazilian airspace and would be in southern Paraguay within one hour and a half. In her operations room in Matosinhos, Liz was now under great pressure.

For one of the problems reported by pilot Lopez she immediately found a solution:

-Mr Lopez...Take a vector to Rio, Brazil ...flight level fourty-two ... I'll make the arrangements there for re-fuelling... Roger.

The other problem was more difficult to solve.

Peter Throw had told Castro to be back with Branca in two hour's time. But five hours had passed and there were no signs of the donkeys emerging from the jungle. Peter Throw was refusing to board the helicopter without them.

In Buenos Aires, Toni was listening to the conversation. Very nervous, with a strong voice, he told judge De Almeida in forceful terms:

-Liz... leave that guy to be bombeb by the Americans together with the donkeys!...And get the President and Magellan out of there!...We have one hour left!...

From Matosinhos, Portugal,  De Almeida was unmoved and silent.

Pressure was mounting on her. Within thirty-five minutes the American bombers would be flying over Peter Throw's compound.

Suddenly, Lopez went on line:

-Señor Ass...señorita Liz...los burritos llegaran!...We are boarding...Roger.

Ten minutes later, the helicopter would take off from the Paraguaian jungle, Lopez at the throtles, his five passengers packed in the rear, President De Susa, Magellan with his TV camera, Peter Throw, Castro and Branca still kissing each other.