(Inspired by true events)

Clara, obsessed with the feel of danger, started as a teenage “mule” or drug courier for the powerful Columbian cartel, Antioquia. Young female teenagers were the perfect cover for transporting large quantities of cocaine to the US.

She caught the attention of the big boss, Carlo, after she smuggled $56-million worth of cocaine in six short months. Her style was simple. She was guised as a haughty Contessa wearing expensive jewelry. Because she traveled regularly, loaded sometimes with coke, sometimes without, the drug enforcers got used to her presence. Carlo was impressed by both her charm and her street smarts. She was promoted to be his right hand instantly.

Clara was a fast learner. She keenly observed Carlo’s modus operandi and, in no time, learned how he ran his entire empire to the last detail. Her photographic memory helped. And so it happened. Carlo was ambushed by a rival cartel. And that’s where our story of the Cocaine Queen begins.

Clara grew up in a family of eight rowdy kids run by a vicious alcoholic father. That is where she learned to deal with bully brothers. She could stand her ground against all of them. The bully brothers respected her and kept their distance.

Growing up in a violent family, Clara imbibed all the traits needed to be a Cocaine Queen — viciousness and vendetta coupled with an obsession for detail. In the first year of her reign, she killed 14 cartel members who cheated her. She had deadly secret spies everywhere. The cheating suddenly ground to a halt.

Antioquia grew rapidly. Clara was feared by rival cartels, and even by the corrupt government. Her empire grew by leaps and bounds. Clara, the Cocaine Queen, reigned for 12 years.

But suddenly, she contracted cancer of the ovaries. She was asymptomatic until it was too late, stage 4 when discovered. She had it removed, but it spread to her lungs. Six doctors unanimously said she had less than a year to live.

In the solitude of her palace in the heart of Colombia, Clara wept profusely for the first time in her life. She sought advice from a dear childhood friend, who was an archbishop at the Vatican. She visited him secretly.

Clara: (in tears) What do I do, Miguel?

Archbishop Miguel: Simple. Retreat and retire. Of what use is your empire to you. It will simply be inherited by others. You built a towering edifice with your blood, sweat, and tears for nothing, only to give it to others.

The two R’s echoed in Clara’s soul — retreat and retire. All of a sudden, she stood up.

Clara: Miguel, I am not licked yet. I’m adding a third “R” — reform. I have to reform myself and the world. Can you help me?

In that instance, Clara’s soul made a 180-degree turn. And so, an archbishop and a drug queen together struck a strategy of reform never before seen. She set up a cancer foundation for the poor of Colombia, funneling half of her cartel empire into it. Her cartel cohorts were angry. Several attempts to assassinate her failed. The Lord was on her side because He needed her. To survive future assassinations, she gave away her cocaine cartel to her aides. Now she was free.

Not satisfied, she expanded the Clara-Miguel Foundation to include the rehabilitation of drug addicts.

The cartel did not mind, no harm to business. Government drug rehab centers were notorious, using a whip to make addicts kneel as punishment. They were a complete failure. Clara had the wisdom to build a rehab center run by the Carmelite Sisters. The whip was replaced with tender loving care, including counseling by experts hired by the Sisters. Their success rate went viral. Many addicts flocked to the Carmel Rehab Center.

Clara did not die in less than a year as doctors predicted. Doctors declared her cancer-free as soon as she set up the foundation. In her old age, she embarked on a pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. There, the ex-Cocaine Queen died a peaceful death on a pew where she slumped while praying in front of the Virgin.