Mayan Gods in the Yucatan (Peyton Brooks, FBI Book 5)

by M. L. Hamilton

  “You almost had enough?” She remembered him saying the same thing the previous night with his gun pointed at her temple. Peyton shifted, resting the pad on her other leg. “What do you mean you almost had enough?”

  “To get away. I had five million saved up. They kept giving me more money for every major transaction that went down. I planned to disappear, buy an island, I don’t know, but I planned to just vanish. I don’t have a family, no living mother or father, so no one would miss me. I planned to get away and live a quiet life where no one knew me.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  He stared at her. “It was never enough. At first I told myself, I’d go when I had a million. Then it was two and three and suddenly, it was too late.”

  “Okay, go back. The fentanyl deaths happened in Northern California and Hanson wanted to see some results?”

  “Exactly. They finally realized I’d been down here for six months and I had nothing to show for it. Then they did a little more snooping and they found the offshore account.”

  “So they sent Miller to see what was going on?”

  “Right. Miller came down and I pretended to work the case with him for about a week, but he was getting closer and closer to the heart of it. I wasn’t sure what to do. I knew the Dios Mayas would be pissed, but I knew Joe Miller had too much integrity to ignore what was really happening.”

  “He was twice the man you are!” said Rosa.

  Peyton shot her a quelling look, but Bass just stared at her. “You’re right. I don’t know what more to say.”

  Rosa jerked her chin up and pretended to ignore him. Peyton reviewed her notes.

  “Okay, so Hanson sends Miller to investigate you?”

  “Right. Miller starts putting some pressure on the Dios Mayas, so one night we’re coming back from dinner and this black sedan pulls up next to us, just like last time. A group of armed guards gets out and tells us to get in the car. Miller wants to refuse, but I tell him, it’ll be just like last time. We’ll talk to El Monstruo, strike a deal, and we’ll be on our way back to the States to figure out what we should do to shut this cartel down.” Bass tried to lift his hand, but his cuffs jangled. “They take us to the same warehouse. They don’t even try to hide where they’re going. They know they operate with impunity.”

  “Because Vega and the other AFI agents are overworked?”

  Bass’ gaze went to Vega on the other side of the window. “He’s a really good guy, but what can he do when the cartels run everything?”

  “What happens in the warehouse?”

  “They force us into chairs and handcuff us. Miller threatens them that if they touch us, the American government will tear them apart, but the cartel knows…” His voice choked off and he closed his eyes.

  “The cartel knows what?”

  “The American government does not negotiate with terrorists.”

  “Okay, but you’ve told Joe to go along with the setup until you can get back to the States?”

  Bass nodded, but he didn’t seem able to speak.

  “Bass, I need to know what happened after you got to the warehouse.”

  Bass clenched his fist. “I asked him just to go along with it. I wanted him to agree just so we could get out of there alive. If he’d just done that…”

  “What happened in the warehouse?” Peyton pressed.

  “They show him the account. I don’t know if he panicked or what. I know he must have been thinking they know everything about his family – his wife’s name, his kids, his parents – they had it all. He realizes that the account makes him seem culpable. Just like that, just in an instant, everything he’s worked for is gone. No matter what he does, he’s going to seem guilty.”

  Peyton could imagine the panic, the terror of that moment. The fear they might retaliate against his family, the knowledge that no matter how much he might deny it, it was going to look guilty that he had so much money in an offshore account.

  “Go on,” she said.

  Now that Bass had begun, it seemed he couldn’t stop. “They tell him to agree to their demands, but Miller refuses. I couldn’t believe it. I was so scared, I was about to shit myself, but he refuses. He tells them to go to hell, he won’t be blackmailed. He tells them to release us or the American government will destroy them.”

  “And how did they react?”

  Bass didn’t answer for a moment. He stared at Peyton, but she suspected he wasn’t seeing her. He was still in the warehouse, had been in that warehouse since the moment it happened, and she actually felt a pang of mercy for him.

  “Bass?”

  “They laughed. They laughed at him.”

  “Then what?” she said, dropping her voice.

  Bass’ haunted eyes rose to hers. “They asked me if we still had a deal. I said yes.” The delivery was wooden, emotionless. Rosa made a mewl of distress. “I was so scared they were going to kill us both, I said yes. I betrayed a fellow agent. I betrayed him because I knew if I didn’t I would die.”

  “Keep going.”

  “They uncuffed me and pulled me up, headed toward the door. Miller never said a word. He just watched me go. He just…watched me leave.”

  “What do you think happened then?”

  “I can guess. I can speculate, but all I know is before we reached the sedan…” Bass made a strange sound and closed his eyes.

  “Bass, before you reached the sedan?”

  Bass opened his eyes and met Peyton’s gaze. He trembled, his complexion growing more pale.

  “Bass, before you reached the sedan?” Peyton pressed.

  “Miller started screaming.”

  Silence fell in the room, then abruptly, there was commotion in the hallway. Peyton and Rosa turned to look as Beardy McBeardson and four armed DEA agents marched past the AFI guards and into the hospital room.

  “Stop questioning the suspect!” said Beardy.

  “Arroyo, what the hell do you think you’re doing? We have jurisdiction here. This is an FBI matter now.”

  Arroyo slapped a sheaf of papers against Rosa’s shoulder. “Not anymore. He’s our man, our problem. We’re extraditing him back to the U.S.”

  Peyton had moved up beside Bass without realizing it. He grabbed her hand tightly. She looked down at him as Rosa reviewed the papers.

  “I’ll never make it back to the US alive if you let him have me.”

  Peyton stared into his face aghast. What the hell was he saying?

  Arroyo came toward the bed. “We have a medical chopper waiting on the roof.” He motioned to a man in scrubs waiting in the hallway. “Unhook him.”

  Peyton stepped between Arroyo and the approaching medic.

  “Out of my way,” said the DEA agent, reaching to shove Peyton aside, but Rosa was suddenly there and a moment later, Radar and the rest of her team had crowded into the room.

  “Don’t touch my agent!” said Rosa, pressing into Arroyo and moving him back a step.

  “Is everything in order?” asked Arroyo, nodding at the papers in Rosa’s hand.

  “For now, but I promise you this, Arroyo, if anything happens to Bass in transit, I go straight to the top. Do you understand me?”

  “What’s going to happen to him? He will be tried for treason in his own country, then if the Mexican government wishes, they can apply for extradition to try him here as well.”

  “He’d better make it to the United States, Arroyo. He’d better be in good health and his rights had better be preserved!”

  Peyton felt a flush of pride as Rosa spoke. Earlier she hadn’t given a damn about Bass’ rights, but now, she was fiercely defending him.

  Arroyo smiled slowly. “Why would he be anything else?”

  Rosa glared at him for a long moment, then she reached back and took Peyton’s arm, drawing her off to the side. Peyton met Bass’ gaze and she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow at the terror in his expression.

  * * *

  Rosa waited for the video chat to connect. A mome
nt later Chief Inspector Hanson’s face appeared in her screen. He was in his late fifties, early sixties, grey-shot black hair, very dark eyes and lean. He wore an expensive suit with an American flag pin affixed to the lapel of his jacket.

  “SAC Alvarez, nice to see you. How are you doing?”

  “Cut the bullshit, Hanson,” she said. She held up an envelope. “I’m sending you a transcript of Bass’ interrogation and the other evidence we uncovered down here. I’m also sending it to the Attorney General.”

  “That’s unnecessary, SAC Alvarez, we can handle the situation ourselves.”

  “You set me up,” she said.

  “I don’t understand what you mean.”

  “You didn’t tell me you sent Miller down here to investigate Bass.”

  “It was an internal affair, SAC Alvarez.”

  “Then you didn’t tell me about Arroyo.”

  “It was an internal affair, SAC…”

  “You almost got one of my people killed, Hanson!” she said in a chilling voice. “You had an obligation to tell me exactly what was going on and you didn’t. You almost got one of my people killed!”

  “The DEA takes care of its own problems.”

  “No, that’s not the way it works. You take care of your own problems, Hanson, just you and it costs lives. I’ve prepared a very detailed report that I will send to the Attorney General, then I go to the media.”

  “Are you blackmailing me, Alvarez?”

  She smiled coldly. “Not at all. The report goes to the Attorney General. You have twenty-four hours to get in front of this story, announce your retirement, and walk away with your pension in tact. If you do that, we can keep the whole thing quiet with one condition.”

  Hanson’s jaw clenched. “You’re overstepping yourself, SAC Alvarez,” he said finally.

  “Is that your answer?”

  “I saw a problem in my organization and I neutralized it.”

  “You caused the death of one of your agents and you nearly cost me one of my own. I call that negligence.”

  “The DEA takes care of its own.”

  “I was DEA! You should have told me about Bass!”

  He smiled, his smile just a chilling as Rosa’s had been. “You left the DEA. You were no longer one of us.”

  Rosa lifted her chin. “I protect my people, Hanson. I protect what’s mine. Do not get in my way.”

  “You should have some respect…”

  “And so should you.” She glanced at the time. “As of ten minutes ago, the Attorney General received everything I’ve collected on this case. In addition to that, the same evidence is about to be sent to every news organization in the U.S. All I have to do is press a button.”

  Hanson’s attention was snagged by a light flashing on his office phone.

  “I suspect that’s the Attorney General as we speak.”

  He looked back at her. “What do you want?”

  “Exactly what I said. Retire immediately, tell them you’ve suddenly developed a health condition, but before you go, you had better contact Arroyo and tell him that Bass arrives alive or everything is exposed. I’ll be checking up on Bass in the next few days.”

  Hanson’s eyes strayed to the flashing light on the phone, then he looked back at Rosa. “I won’t be blackmailed.”

  She smiled a slow, calculated smile. “Then have a nice day, Chief Inspector Hanson,” she said and disconnected the call.

  * * *

  Adrian waited for her outside the gate as she and the Ghost squad made their way down the terminal. Rosa surprised both of them by launching herself into his arms, kissing the side of his face. He spun her around, laughing.

  She placed her hands on either side of his head and kissed him on the mouth. “I missed you,” she whispered.

  He laughed again and kissed her back. For a person who did not believe in public displays of affection, she knew she’d shocked her whole team. “I missed you,” he said, then he pressed his forehead to hers. “I took the job with the CIPAC task force.”

  She reared back and looked at him. “You did?”

  “I did. I’m moving to San Francisco.”

  “Awesome,” said Radar, wearily. “Can we go now? I’m exhausted and I’d like to see my wife, if you don’t mind.”

  Adrian motioned to the baggage claim area. “Of course, your chariot awaits, sir.” Then he reached out and chucked Peyton under the chin. “How are you, Buttons?”

  “Better now that we’re home.”

  Dropping an arm around Rosa, he led them to claim their baggage. “So there was an interesting development in the DOJ today.”

  “Was there?” asked Rosa, looking over at him.

  “Yes, quite surprising actually. The Chief Inspector of the DEA, Justin Hanson, suddenly announced his retirement.”

  Radar stopped walking and looked over his shoulder at them.

  Rosa gave him a wink and pushed him in the back to get him going again. “Did he now? Why, that is truly unexpected.”

  Adrian squeezed her closer and kissed her on the temple. “Is it now?” he said.

  * * *

  Radar pulled his Corvette up outside the physical therapy building and put the car in park. “Why didn’t you just have him pick you up at the airport?”

  Peyton stared up at the building, realizing she was so damn glad to be home. “I wanted to surprise him.”

  “But here?” He held out a hand, indicating the location.

  “Yeah, here.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “Go home, Radar, and spend time with your wife. I’m sure the kitties miss you something awful.”

  Radar shook his head as she pushed open the car door. Before she could get out, however, he grabbed her arm. “Look, kid,” he said, tightening his hold briefly. “I’m glad you’re okay. You scared the hell out of me.”

  She leaned back over and kissed his cheek again. “Thank you, old man.”

  He laughed and released her. “Now get out!”

  “Yes, sir,” she said, climbing from the sports car. She pushed forward the front seat so she could grab her bag. “See you soon.” Then she closed the door, patting the roof, and stepped up on the sidewalk.

  He lifted a hand out the window, and then he sped away.

  Carrying her bag, Peyton walked through the automatic doors, turned into the corridor on her left and walked to the physical therapy office. She checked in at the front desk, and the receptionist agreed to hold her bag behind the counter as she headed toward the gym.

  A wall of windows marked the area where the equipment was. Peyton saw Marco and Joyce before she got to the doorway. He stood at the end of a set of parallel bars, Joyce at the other end. He wore athletic shorts and a tank top, the brace on his left thigh. As he held himself up on the bars, his arm muscles strained. Then he balanced himself and lifted his hands. A moment later he was walking on his own, moving down the bars without touching them.

  Peyton’s eyes welled with tears and she eased to the opening, not wanting to break his concentration, but Joyce noticed her and looked over, a smile of triumph on her face. She motioned Peyton into the room.

  As he got to the end, Marco caught the bars and closed his eyes briefly, breathing out a sigh of relief. When he opened them again, Peyton stepped into his line of sight, her hands clasped at her breast.

  A smile blazed across his face. “Hey, sweetheart,” he said, the joy in his voice unmistakable.

  As Peyton moved closer to him, Joyce moved back. Emotion swamped her, filled her to bursting with love for this man. He had worked so hard for this, fought so hard to walk again. And she knew that no matter what happened, she wanted this for as long as she could have it. She wanted him and she wanted their life and she wanted their future.

  “I love you!” she said, tears spilling over and running down her cheeks. “I love you more than anything!”

  He gave her a bewildered, but happy look.

  “Marry me, Marco D’Angelo. Marry me and make me the happiest woman
alive!” she blurted out.

  Joyce squealed and clapped her hands, but Marco looked stunned.

  “Come again?” he asked in bewilderment.

  Peyton laughed through her tears and moved forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Marry me, you silly man! I love you!”

  He gave a bark of laughter and wrapped one arm around her waist, drawing her closer to him. “Are you sure about this? You know I’m wickedly possessive. I’ll run background checks on all your boyfriends.”

  “Will you now?” She looked up into his handsome face. “Well, we’ve all got our crosses to bear. You know Homeless Bob on the corner?”

  “The one with the tattoo of boobs on his arm, just boobs?”

  “That’s the one. He’s moving in.”

  “Is he now? Well, it’ll be a bit crowded. He’s got about five people living inside him already.”

  “Six, actually. There’s a new one.”

  “Really?”

  “Yep. His name’s Jesus.”

  Marco laughed and crushed her against him, pressing his cheek to her hair. “I love you, Peyton.”

  “Well, what do you say? Do you accept my proposal?”

  He leaned back and looked her straight in the eyes. “Yes, sweetheart, yes, I accept your proposal.”

  Then he kissed her.

  THE END

  Now that you’ve finished, visit ML Hamilton at her website: authormlhamilton.net for more information on her novels.

  All ML Hamilton titles available in ebook and paperback formats.

  The Complete Peyton Brooks’ Mysteries Collection:

  Murder on Potrero Hill Volume 1

  Murder in the Tenderloin Volume 2

  Murder on Russian Hill Volume 3

  Murder on Alcatraz Volume 4

  Murder in Chinatown Volume 5

  Murder in the Presidio Volume 6

  Murder on Treasure Island Volume 7

  The Peyton Brooks, FBI Series

  Zombies in the Delta Volume 1