When they arrived, they sneaked into the building. Among the shadows and glass statues of the brand, they heard voices. The boys were inside. But so were the kidnappers. Frederica signaled to Lara. They had to act quickly.

In a moment of courage, they burst open the door and pulled Martim and João out. The four of them ran to the van. But the kidnappers weren’t giving up so easily. They jumped into a Coca-Cola truck parked nearby and sped after them.

The rain made everything more dangerous. The streetlights reflected on the puddles, confusing Frederica as she tried to drive at high speed. The kidnappers’ truck was gaining on them. Suddenly, a sharp turn. In the rearview mirror, they only saw lights vanishing. The crash was deafening. The truck lost control and slammed violently into the city’s most important statue, the great Phoenix of Atlanta sculpture. The impact shattered the statue, which collapsed with a loud crash, damaging part of the vehicle. The kidnappers were trapped in the wreckage, left behind.