by Sam Hawken
His phone vibrated on the bed stand and began ringing. It was not Marina’s tone. Jack did not recognize the number. He answered. ‘Hello?’
‘Is this the Searle residence?’ asked a man in halting English.
‘Yes. Who’s this?’
‘Is this Jack Searle?’
‘Yes, it is,’ Jack said. ‘Who’s calling?’
The speaker shifted into Spanish. ‘This is Gonzalo Soler calling. I wasn’t sure I had the right number.’
Jack held the phone more tightly. ‘Is there something new?’
‘Yes and no. I have no new information about your step-daughter. But something has come up and I wanted you to hear it from me first.’
‘What’s going on?’
‘It has been decided that the local police in our city are to be temporarily relieved of our duties. This is true for everyone, from the patrol units to the inspectors. I was not excluded.’
Jack searched for words. Finally he said, ‘What?’
‘I know this must be difficult for you, but I’m afraid I no longer have any control over your case.’
‘How is that possible? Can they even do that?’
Gonzalo sighed and his tone was bitter. ‘Apparently there are people who feel the army can do a better job of protecting the city than the Municipal Police. I turned over my caseload to a member of the security team responsible for our area.’
‘I have to talk to somebody,’ Jack said. ‘This isn’t right.’
‘I agree, but I am only one man and not a very influential person. I registered my complaint. I wasn’t listened to.’
‘They’ll listen to me,’ Jack said. ‘I went to the consulate. They said they could put pressure on the police to get things done. That hasn’t changed.’
‘You may find the military is less interested in politics than my superiors were,’ Gonzalo said. ‘They are very good at rooting out narcos and killing them, but this kind of thing… it is not what they do.’
‘Where are you?’
‘I am at home. I’ve been informed that’s where I should stay until I’m called.’
‘Can you meet me at the station?’
‘I don’t think that would do any good, Jack.’
Jack kept himself from shouting down the line. ‘Can you meet me at the station or not?’
‘My hands are tied. They have no use for me. If you feel you should make yourself heard then you should go, but I’m not going to be a help to you. My part is done.’
‘I thought you cared about this case.’
‘I do. I care very much, but they’ve taken my gun and my authority. I am just another citizen now. They may not allow me back into the ranks again.’
Jack rose from the bed and paced the room. ‘I’m coming down there and somebody’s going to listen to me. And if you’re not going to help me then you just go on hiding out.’
‘Jack, you don’t understand. I told them they were making a mistake, but these people do not listen. It’s the same all over the state: the army is taking over from the police.’
‘How does that make any goddamned sense?’ Jack exclaimed, and for the first time he raised his voice.
Gonzalo was quiet. ‘Things are very strange in Mexico, my friend.’
‘Will you come down to the station with me?’ Jack asked.
‘That would do more harm than good, I think.’
‘So you won’t.’
‘It’s better if you go yourself. Bring your brother-in-law. Show them a united front. I don’t suggest that you use my name. All police are under suspicion now. Better to make them think you are acting of your own accord. Ask for a captain named Alvares. He’s the one in charge.’
Jack stopped his pacing. ‘They really can do this to us, can’t they?’
‘I think you’ll find there’s very little the army can’t do anymore.’
‘I have to go,’ Jack said.
‘Buena suerte, Jack. I hope you find your stepdaughter.’
‘I will,’ said Jack, and he ended the call.
He gathered up his steel-toed work boots and put them on. When he looked he found Lidia in front of the television, but with her phone in her hands, steadily texting. She heard him coming. ‘Who was that?’ she asked.
‘Get your stuff. We’re going across the bridge.’
Lidia put her phone down. ‘What’s happening?’
‘Nothing you need to know about right now. Just get your purse and meet me at the truck.’
‘Is something going on with Marina?’
‘Yes. No. Look, just do what I tell you to do, all right? For once just do it.’
‘Okay, I’m going.’
She went away and left Jack to turn off the television. It went black on an image of some talk-show host hawking someone’s book. He went out by the front door and stood in the sun on the little concrete walk, feeling strange, as if everything had suddenly fallen out of focus. He got in the truck and turned the key and was careful not to rev the engine though he desperately wanted to.
Lidia appeared at the front door with her bag over her shoulder and hurried to him. Before she had even put on her seatbelt, Jack was backing out of the driveway into the street. Once he was on the road he pressed the accelerator and the truck’s big engine rumbled. He was driving too fast and he knew it. ‘Jack—’ Lidia said.
‘Somebody’s going to find your sister,’ Jack told her. ‘Somebody’s going to do that.’
TWO
HE HAD BERNARDO WITH HIM WHEN HE returned to the station house. The army vehicles that had been clustered around the front of the building when Gonzalo arrived for his shift had now been arranged in a double roadblock, forming a wall of steel between the station and the rest of the street. Jack was forced to park half a block away and walk.
Men with rifles stood up on the sidewalk or stared down from the back of pick-up trucks. Their eyes were hidden behind sunglasses and some of them wore black balaclavas despite the desperate heat. One swiveled a mounted machine gun toward Jack and Bernardo as they approached. The motion was casual and the man behind the weapon was unreadable.
Jack held up his passport when he came close. Bernardo brandished his identification card. ‘I’m an American citizen,’ Jack told them. ‘This is my cuñado. He is Mexican. We have to get through.’
One soldier broke away from the others and approached. He held his carbine across his chest, the muzzle angling downward, cradled. Jack was glad he was not masked, but the soldier’s expression was as flat as a mannequin’s. He held out a hand for Jack’s passport. ‘Give it to me,’ he said.
The soldier leafed through the passport. He compared the photograph to Jack once and then again before handing the little blue book back and extending his hand for Bernardo’s ID. This, too, he checked twice.
‘The police are investigating a case for us,’ Jack explained. ‘Our girls are missing. We want to talk to someone in charge.’
‘Come back another day,’ the soldier said. He held up Bernardo’s ID between two fingers as if he were about to flick it away. ‘Things are busy here. We can talk to you tomorrow.’
Jack pressed. ‘I don’t think you understand. Our girls have been missing for a while now. Every day counts. We can’t wait until tomorrow.’
‘I said for you to go now,’ the soldier returned, and he shifted the gun in front of his body. He did not point it at Jack, but he could tell the soldier wanted to. If he could see the soldier’s eyes, he would know for sure. ‘This is a secure area.’
‘Listen—’
‘Get out of here!’ the soldier barked.
Bernardo shrank back and looked as if he were about to turn away. Jack caught him by the shoulder and held him to his spot. ‘I want to talk to Captain Alvares,’ Jack said. ‘He’s the one in charge, right? Let me talk to Alvares.’
‘Captain Alvares isn’t available.’
‘You haven’t even goddamned asked!’
This time the soldier nearly did raise his weapon an
d Jack felt a shrinking sensation in his stomach. He did not step away. ‘If you don’t clear the street I’ll arrest you,’ the soldier said.
‘Arrest me, then,’ Jack said. ‘Then you have to take me inside.’
The soldier paused, and then called to another soldier, stepping away to confer with him. Jack heard them murmuring, but none of the words. His hands were shaking. He made them into fists.
When the soldier returned, his comrade jogged off toward the entrance of the building. ‘You will wait here,’ the soldier said.
‘I’m not going anywhere.’
A long minute passed and then another. Jack looked at Bernardo and he saw his brother-in-law had paled. He licked his lips over and over again, his gaze roaming over the assembled soldiers and their weapons.
Finally the other soldier emerged. Again he conferred with the first soldier, and then both of them approached Jack. ‘Well?’ Jack said.
‘You may pass. Corporal Govea will take you to Captain Alvares.’
‘Gracias,’ Jack said.
The soldier did not reply.
Corporal Govea signaled for Jack and Bernardo to follow and they trailed him past the cordon of vehicles to the inner circle where no vehicles could go. It occurred to Jack that they were hardened against an attack and he wondered how likely it was that they would be hit right then, directly in front of the station house. A Nuevo Laredo police chief had been shot to death his first day on the job. The cartels were not afraid to fight.
They were led into the building to an office Jack hadn’t visited before. Behind the desk was a man who must have been Alvares. He noticed no one wore their names on their uniforms. Like those who wore masks, the rest chose to be anonymous at least that much.
Alvares stood up as they entered. He put out his hand. ‘Captain Ernesto Alvares,’ he said. ‘What are your names, please?’
‘Jack Searle. This is Bernardo Sigala.’
‘You are an American, Sr Searle?’
‘That’s right.’
‘Are you involved with the police?’
‘What? No, I’m just a contractor.’
‘And you, Sr Sigala?’
Bernardo shook his head. ‘No, no.’
‘Then who gave you my name?’ Alvares asked.
Jack dodged the question. ‘We have a case the police have been working on. Missing persons. My stepdaughter and her cousin vanished over a week ago. I was told you were in charge now. The army, that is.’
‘You’ll have to forgive me, but this is my unit’s first day,’ Alvares said. ‘We haven’t had time to examine ongoing cases.’
‘I can tell you what we know, but it’s not much,’ Jack said.
Alvares made an open-handed gesture. ‘Go on.’
Jack told the story from the beginning and Alvares listened. When Jack reached the part where Marina’s car was found in the impound, Alvares raised his eyebrows, but said nothing. The tale petered out with the last dregs of information Gonzalo had shared and Jack’s account came to a halting stop.
‘Who was the inspector working on this case?’
Jack hesitated. ‘Gonzalo Soler.’
Alvares nodded briefly. ‘I know of Inspector Soler. He seems… very passionate. Is he the one who sent you to me?’
‘I came on my own,’ Jack said.
‘Of course. And you have every reason to be concerned. If it was my daughter, I would feel the same.’
‘Then you can help,’ Jack said.
‘It will take time,’ Alvares said, and he steepled his fingers in front of him. ‘Our unit is tasked with keeping the peace in the absence of a regular police force and we have been forced to hit the ground running. I can assign someone to this case, but it would not be right away.’
‘How long?’ Jack asked.
‘No more than a week.’
‘This can’t wait a week.’
‘Believe me, I wish I could work more quickly, but I can only do so much.’
‘Then what about letting Inspector Soler help out? He knows the case already.’
‘I’m afraid that is impossible. All members of the Municipal Police are subject to retraining and extensive background checks before they will be allowed to resume work. You must understand, the corruption situation in Tamaulipas is out of control. This municipality is not the only one affected.’
Bernardo spoke for the first time. ‘Please, Captain. Something must be done.’
‘And something will be done. As soon as I can organize my men.’
‘Inspector Soler was helping us,’ Bernardo said. ‘He is a good policeman.’
Alvares considered them both before putting both hands flat on the blotter in front of him. ‘That remains to be seen. Did Inspector Soler ever solicit you for money?’
‘No, never,’ Jack said.
‘Did he suggest that you work through some outside channel to speed the investigation? Did he have a partner who was not a policeman?’
‘No. He’s clean. He flat-out refused to take any cash from me when I offered it to him,’ Jack said.
Again Alvares’ eyebrows went up. ‘You offered him a bribe?’
Jack stopped. He was aware of Bernardo frozen next to him. ‘I didn’t know how things operated down here,’ Jack said carefully. ‘I thought it would help.’
‘But you offered a police inspector money.’
‘I did. I’m not proud of it.’
Alvares’ face turned to stone. ‘You’ll find that sort of thing is not tolerated by the army.’
‘Listen, I’m not in the habit of bribing cops.’
‘Just Mexican ones.’
‘It wasn’t like that!’
‘Don’t raise your voice to me, Sr Searle.’
Jack looked down at his hands. His face was flushed. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said.
‘If you had offered me money I could have had you arrested,’ Alvares said. ‘Inspector Soler did you a favor by not doing the same. Corruption is killing us, señor.’
‘I didn’t mean it,’ Jack said.
‘I’d like to believe you.’
‘I just want to find our girls,’ Jack said. ‘That’s all.’
Alvares was quiet for a long moment and then his expression softened. ‘I want to help you, Sr Searle. If you think I don’t care, then you are mistaken. I do care.’
‘Then you’ll put someone on the case right away?’ Bernardo asked.
‘I will do what I can, but I make you no promises.’
‘Thank you,’ Jack said.
‘Don’t thank me yet, Sr Searle. We are a long way from that. I am not a policeman like Inspector Soler, but I know a difficult case when I hear one. With work and with luck, we will bring your daughters home to you. But you must be patient.’
‘That’s what he said.’
‘What’s that?’
‘That’s what he said. Inspector Soler. What do we do now?’ Jack asked Alvares.
‘I would like you to file another form with us,’ Alvares said. ‘It will be something you have done before, but it will make it official that we are handling the case. Then we will consult Inspector Soler’s notes and proceed from there. Once I have a man available, that is.’
‘If you need us to do something, we’re ready to help,’ Jack said. ‘We’re tired of sitting around waiting. We want to do our part.’
Alvares shook his head. ‘No, that won’t be necessary. This is a military affair now and civilians will only complicate matters. What’s more, you are an American citizen. How would it look if something happened to you on my watch? I can’t allow that.’
‘I don’t mind taking risks,’ Jack said. ‘I do it every time I cross the bridge.’
‘No,’ Alvares said. ‘Inspector Soler was absolutely right to keep you at home with your families. It’s not safe to police the streets of this city even with an army at your disposal. You would only be hurt.’
With that, Alvares stood up and Jack and Bernardo stood up, too. The little man shook both of their
hands firmly and for the first time he offered them a smile. ‘My men are very good at their jobs. At first we have to find our bearings, but once we have done so the city will be safer than ever. It’s our promise to you.’
Jack hesitated at the door. ‘We were counting on Inspector Soler to get this done and now he’s gone. What happens if you go, too?’
‘We won’t,’ Alvares replied. ‘Until Nuevo Laredo is free of the narcos, we’re not going anywhere. Now, please, see the man at the front of the building. He will ensure you have the proper forms.’
Jack left the office reluctantly. A soldier escorted them to the tall wooden counter just inside the entrance where a uniformed policeman usually sat, only now there was a man in camouflaged battle dress, a ballistic vest bulking out his chest and back and making him seem huge. His automatic rifle lay on the counter where it could easily be reached.
Everything was changed.
THREE
BERNARDO SAID NOTHING AS THEY DROVE away from the police station, but Jack could sense from him a great disquiet. Bernardo drummed his thumb against his leg in quick time and after a while his knee began to bob. There was no music.
‘What are you thinking?’ Jack asked him at last.
‘It’s all gone wrong. Did you see their weapons? Their trucks? Alvares can say whatever he wants, but they are here to fight narcos, not to help the fathers of missing daughters.’
Jack wanted to disagree, but he could not. He had seen the weapons and the armor of the soldiers and though there were many men moving about inside the police station, he saw no one he could point to and say they looked like policemen. Not like Gonzalo. Gonzalo was a real cop, and now he had been pushed aside.
‘Alvares is right about one thing: the police in this city are a joke,’ Bernardo said. ‘They don’t stand up to the narcos or fight the battles. When you need one they are never there, and when they do come, they always have their hand out.’
Jack drove a little farther. They were stopped at a light that stayed red a long time. ‘I want to find out what Gonzalo knows,’ he told Bernardo. ‘Everything he knows, not just what he told me. He was holding back the last time we talked.’