The Lord of Opium

“For the drug lords, very much so,” said Cienfuegos. “As for Aztlán and the United States, they experienced a few drug-free years. In the long run, who can say whether it was worth it? Allowing Opium to return to the wild preserved the ecosystem. Throughout history there have been disasters that have had beneficial results. Bubonic plague killed a third of the people in Europe, but it destroyed the old governments and allowed their citizens to gain freedom. The result was a burst of creativity and prosperity never seen before.”

“Dr. Rivas has a supply of plague germs frozen in his fridge,” Listen revealed, having gotten over her tantrum. “He’s got smallpox and cholera, too. He spanked me hard when I opened the door.”

“Now I know he’s one of the villains. Show me which fridge the next time we go to Paradise and I’ll blowtorch it,” said Cienfuegos. She stuck her tongue out at him.

They flew over another deserted town called Benson. It was crossed by a meandering stream that sparkled in the light. “That’s the San Pedro River,” said the jefe. “Not long ago it was dry, but with the people gone, the water isn’t being sucked away.” Cottonwoods filled the river valley, and the ground was covered in tall grass. Suddenly, a large catlike creature emerged from the grass and bent down to drink from the stream. It was followed by four adults and four cubs.

“That’s a lion!” cried Matt.

“Well, what do you know? They’ve spread from Tucson,” Cienfuegos said, pleased.

“Lions don’t live here!”

Listen got up and peered out the window. “Looks like they do,” she observed.

“They broke out of the zoo during the fighting,” said the jefe, “along with a lot of other animals. The elephants didn’t do well, and the hippos died from lack of water, but there’s still quite a wildlife population around Tucson. In winter they stay close to the nuclear power plant, where it’s warm. Some of the lions have adapted to the cold and moved away.”

Matt saw a herd of antelopes grazing along an old road. “We can collect some of these for Esperanza,” he said. “She won’t believe what we’ve got here.”

“Let’s keep it our little secret, in case we need to negotiate with her,” advised Cienfuegos.

As they went on, Matt saw more greenery and more animals. There were large stretches of desert covered with saguaro, paloverde, and ocotillo, but between them were green valleys where water ran. Clusters of deserted adobe buildings appeared, and rusting metal dwellings that Cienfuegos said were called trailers. The dead city of Tucson loomed ahead with skyscrapers like the ones Matt had seen in Aztlán, only these stood against a bright-blue desert sky, not the polluted air to the south.

To the north were two gigantic power plants, one nuclear and the other a cold-fusion energy producer. By the nuclear plant was a large lake surrounded by reeds and waterbirds.

“Are the power plants deserted too?” Matt asked.

“Oh, no,” said the jefe. “El Patrón had them built. This is where Opium gets its power. Most of it goes to protect the border. We’ll land here to recharge our antigravity pods.” They floated down to a large hovercraft port and clamped onto one of the magnetic strips.

Immediately, men swarmed out of a nearby building. “I’ve alerted them to our arrival,” said Cienfuegos.

He stepped out, and the men snapped to attention. “At ease, amigos. I bring you our new patrón. Try to look fierce,” he said in a lower tone to Matt.

As Matt stepped out, a cheer went up from the men. “¡Viva! ¡Viva El Patrón!”

“I’m not El Patrón,” Matt whispered.

“Oh, but you are,” said the jefe. “You’re the old man reborn. I’ve watched you develop these past weeks. You were nervous at first, but the power grows in you. You’ll make a fine drug lord.”

“I’m not—”

“Walk past them into the building,” said Cienfuegos. “Don’t wave. They don’t expect it. There’s a lunch waiting for us inside.” Matt, feeling uneasy, did his best to look tall and fierce as he went past the cheering men. Mirasol walked obediently at his side, and Listen followed with her head held high, as though she were already a drug queen. Inside was a table covered with a white tablecloth and bowls of food. Three places were set.

“What about Mirasol?” asked Matt.

“She will serve you,” said the jefe. “You can’t be seen treating an eejit as an equal.”

“Oh boy! Apple pie!” said Listen as her eyes lit on the dessert.