by Jordan Dane
“Yeah, good call,” Athena said.
With phones off, Rafael ditched the white apron he’d stolen from the kitchen in a trash bin as he shoved through a door and into an alley behind the hotel. Athena followed him, fighting a grin. When he’d said, ‘I have a plan,’ she trusted him to get them out of the hotel unnoticed and she’d marveled at his inventiveness. She didn’t have to tell her brother anything. He acted instinctively and she loved seeing him work.
“You have cojones, Rafe. Big ones. It takes balls to improvise on the fly in the middle of a busy chef’s kitchen.”
“I was a dishwasher, back in the day. I know how things work.”
Rafe led the way down the alley, not wasting any time, with her close behind him. His eyes were alert to any signs of danger and once he got on the street, he used window reflections or car mirrors to spot anyone tailing them. Athena did the same.
Shadows cast fingers of darkness from the buildings they passed. In two hours the sun would drop below the horizon and the evening’s chill would close in. They didn’t have much time if they wanted to see anything of the crime scene in the daylight. A growing sense of urgency quickened their steps. When they got to a quieter street, Rafael slipped his hands on car doors as he passed by them, slyly testing if they were locked. He kept his head up and eyes alert as he did.
After he found an open one, he said, “Act like it’s ours and get in.” He slid into the driver’s seat. Rafe reached into his pocket for a small knife and used it on wires he pulled from under the dash. With a cut and a twist, he worked fast, without any hesitation. He did it by feel and barely looked down.
“You’ve done this before,” Athena said. “Is this something they taught you at the Chicago PD?”
“Chalk it up to my misspent youth before I saw the error of my ways.” The engine rumbled and Rafael grinned and winked at her. “Just like riding a bike.”
When he pulled from the curb, Athena reached for a folder from under her jean jacket, a part of the murder book that Ruiz had sent to their hotel room. The file showed the crime scene and had a map. Athena glanced at notes in the folder and gave Rafe directions, but her brother interrupted her.
“Sun will be down soon. I know a faster way.”
“I thought you hadn’t been to Havana before.”
Rafe scrunched his face and shrugged.
“I knew we’d be pressed for time. Before we headed out, I looked for a short cut on that map and found one, that’s all.”
They rode in silence toward the outskirts of the capital until urban sprawl gave way to rural rolling hills and ranch lands. Athena pointed to a dirt road.
“Turn here. This’ll get us close.”
“You realize this is Borrego land according to that map you’re holding…and we are without weapons,” he said as he made the turn and kicked up dirt behind him. “I thought I was the only one with a death wish.”
Cuban law restricted visitors from bringing firearms into the country, except for an approved and limited list used for hunting. Ruiz had offered his protection for a reason, but after seeing how the man showed his trust—by putting them under strict covert surveillance—Athena wasn’t sure the politician’s protection would mean much.
She wouldn’t mind looking a Borrego in the eye and getting their side of the story. If she came to hunt down a cold case killer, she wouldn’t get at the truth by seeing only what Ruiz wanted her to see.
“We’re here to find out who killed their cartel leader. Maybe they will not think of us as the enemy.”
“That only means they’ll have mixed feelings when they hack off our heads,” Rafe said.
They drove long enough for Athena to question whether they’d turned down the right road before she saw a rusted carcass of a truck with its nose in a ditch. The vehicle had baked in the sun for years. It had weeds and grasses growing up through its cracked windows.
Rafael pulled up behind it and they got out. Her brother didn’t say a word as he approached the vehicle.
“This is it.” Athena handed him a photo of the crime scene and the truck from five years ago. Rafe didn’t even glance down at it.
She looked at the police report of the first responders on the scene and furrowed her brow. After she read the findings of the report and compared it to what she saw in front of her, she shook her head.
“This is wrong. The report says the gun had been fired point blank, but look at the cracked glass of the driver’s side window.” She leaned closer to get a better look at the fracture pattern. “This had to come from a long range rifle. But there’s nothing in the file about a sniper.”
Athena peered into the surrounding hills, turning in a slow circle from where she stood.
“If I were the shooter, I’d have been up there.” She pointed behind Rafe.
Her brother turned to see where she aimed her finger. He didn’t say a word. When he fixed his gaze on her, the sad expression she’d seen before had returned.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“Yeah. I will be.”
“Come on. This could be good news.” She smiled and punched him in the arm. “Let’s head up there. Maybe we’ll find evidence the Cuban police never found.”
In her hunt to find a murderer, Athena got a rush off the adrenaline pumping through her veins. She trekked up the hill toward a ridge that would’ve provided the shooter cover. A boulder caught her eye. In the waning hours of daylight, the glint of something shiny snagged her attention.
“I think I see something shiny on that rock.” Athena could not contain her excitement. “This way.”
***
Seeing the wrecked truck and the old blood stains that had browned with time, Rafael fought the sickening feeling of taking a man’s life with the squeeze of a trigger. Images of the man’s skull exploding in a red mist flashed in his head, haunting him then and now. He didn’t feel sorry for the man who had condemned his wife and child to death with one phone call, but he hated what he had become in the name of revenge.
Avenging the murders of Elena and Ariana had done nothing. He had only corrupted his soul. If he truly believed in heaven and God, he would never see Elena and Ariana again. He was no better than the man he had killed.
“Lo siento, mi amor,” he whispered under his breath as he followed Athena up the hill to the location he had used to kill Hector Borrego five years ago.
“I think I see something shiny on that rock,” his sister called out to him and picked up the pace. “This way.”
It would only be a matter of time now.
Rafael still didn’t know why he had reached out to Athena when he did, to be closer to her. Perhaps he knew this day would come and if justice would find him, he wanted her to hear the truth from his lips. But the more he worked alongside her, the more he dreaded the day she would learn what he’d done.
“It’s a shell casing.” Athena reached into her jean pocket and came up with latex gloves for evidence gathering. She’d brought an extra set for him. She retrieved the casing from an indentation in the boulder, the rock he’d used for cover. Careful not to scratch the casing and ruin evidence, she used her gloved fingers to extricate the spent cartridge. Local cops never bothered to look for a sniper years ago, but did Ruiz know what they would find?
The man had taken a special interest in him at the reception. Did he suspect something? Rafe’s mind raced with any number of paranoid scenarios. It didn’t matter if the crosshairs were now on him. What he worried about most was that Athena and the Omega Team might bear the punishment meant for him.
“Whoever did this, they didn’t police their brass. I wonder why?” Athena wrapped the shell casing in one of her gloves to protect the evidence. “Our sniper signed his work. I’ve heard of fingerprints lasting up to forty years on certain surfaces. Normally being exposed to the elements might degrade any prints, but this shell had been encased into a notch in stone. We may get a lucky break. Why didn’t the police catch this when the prints would ha
ve been fresher?”
“Hector Borrego was just another dead cartel leader,” he said. “The police would’ve seen his murder as a gift.”
“Then why is Ruiz pushing to solve this case now and using me to do it?”
“It would appear our Vice President has a personal agenda.” Rafe glared toward the setting sun. “He’s either trying to stir things up between the cartels or he’s targeting the Borregos for a reason we have yet to discover.”
“Then why use me to do it?” she pressed.
“Because you’re a pit bull, Athena. No matter where this investigation leads, you will find the truth and expose a killer. It’s what you do.”
He jammed his hands in the pockets of his jeans.
“You and the Omega Team don’t compromise on what’s right,” he said. “Whatever happened five years ago, you will force the truth to come out. You have to. Everything you and Grey are building depends on it.”
He’d seen the excitement in his sister’s eyes when she uncovered the new evidence. Rafael wasn’t sure he wanted to see her enthusiasm be replaced with the shame he knew would come. Athena had the reputation of her Omega Team to think about now. Rafael hadn’t considered how this could affect his sister and the future she and Grey were making. He’d brought this terrible thing to her door.
Damn it! What would she do?
Rafe wished he hadn’t reached out to her and he regretted accepting her offer of an interview in Florida.
“It’s getting dark,” she said. “We did good, little brother. When we get back to the hotel, I’ll have Jacquie run the shell casing through our handheld fingerprint identification system to capture it digitally. She can upload the scan into our worldwide databases. I don’t want Ruiz to know our findings until we’re sure of what we have.”
Rafe’s stomach clenched. Jacquie would be the first to know he was a killer. He wanted to stop his misery and just confess to his sister, but before he opened his mouth, Athena pocketed her prize and headed back down the hill.
Coward!
His sister had the evidence to convict him, but once his name came out, he would never stand trial in Cuba. The Borrego cartel—or Ruiz with his personal agenda—would see to it that he died a horrible death.
Rafe was one step closer to the justice that he’d sought years ago when he dared to leave his shell casing behind with his fingerprints on it. If he truly believed in retribution, he had to play things out and stay strong.
His courageous sister had always been a good teacher on how to live. Perhaps she would now show him how to die.
***
“What’s that?”
Athena stopped dead still and turned to listen. The sound of an engine came over the rise, followed by another until the noise played with their ears. The guttural rumble came from all around them and grew louder until Athena cringed at the intensity. Goose flesh raced over her skin and her scalp prickled.
“Get to the car,” Rafe called out and grabbed her arm. “It’s our only cover.”
Athena raced for the vehicle and didn’t stop until she jammed her back against metal. With her brother at her side, she craned her neck to see where the noise came from.
A black truck cleared ground and bounded over a hill. Two men were inside the cab but others clung to a roll bar and carried AR-15s and M4 Carbines. Across the road, more SUVs raced from cover, loaded with armed men. They circled Athena and Rafael until a thick cloud of dust made it hard to see.
They were outnumbered and without weapons on foreign soil. Athena only hoped these men wouldn’t let their bullets do the talking for them.
Chapter 6
Borrego Ranch
Athena stood her ground as if she had the right and glared at the men who circled their car. She couldn’t see their faces. Headlights blinded her until she had to block the light with her hand. Rafe didn’t bother shielding his eyes. He held his head high, defiant. Madero blood would not allow anything less.
Six trucks and SUVs carried armed men. They had them surrounded. A door creaked open and boots hit the ground, crunching in the dirt. Athena strained to see who it was through her splayed fingers.
“What are you doing on Borrego land?”
The voice shocked her. It was the voice of a woman.
“We’ve been hired to find out who killed Hector Borrego,” Athena said.
“Hired? Who would pay to know such a thing? The police were content to let the investigation grow cold.”
“Vice President Esteban Ruiz hired my private security agency. I’m Athena Madero with the Omega Team, out of Tampa, Florida in the United States.” She dared to take a step closer to the woman. “And you are?”
“Outraged. Ruiz doesn’t care about Hector Borrego.” The woman raised her voice and crossed her arms. “He’s up to something and you are part of his plan. Why should I not kill you now?”
“Please…my sister is only trying to do the right thing,” Rafe said. “Let her go and you can do what you want with me. I’ll be your message to Ruiz.”
“No, Rafael. Don’t!” Athena shoved her hand to his chest to stop him.
“And who are you?” the woman asked.
“Rafael Madero. Athena is my sister. She deserves to live. If you want justice for Hector, she is the one you can trust to get it.”
“This is very brave of you, Rafael. Foolish, but brave.” The woman waved a hand and three men raced toward Rafe with guns drawn.
Athena stepped in front of her brother and held up both her hands to stop the men who would take him down. Others in the shadows raised their weapons and aimed at them. She prayed no one would shoot.
“Don’t, Athena. Let me do this,” Rafe said and shoved her aside.
Her brother didn’t understand. She would fiercely defend him no matter what it cost her. She wouldn’t stand by while a drug cartel butchered him. She would’ve done the same for any member of her team who tried to sacrifice their life for hers. She had taken the role of leader for a reason. She would do anything to make sure her team returned home alive.
The men had Rafe on his knees in the dirt and they held his arms. One man yanked his hair and thrust a machete to his throat. The men looked to their leader and waited for her to give the order.
“No! Don’t touch him.” Athena dug deep for anything that would stop this ruthless woman from killing Rafael. “I found new evidence today. I don’t trust Ruiz to process it. That’s why we’re here without him or his men to protect us. Do you believe me?”
“What evidence?”
The woman came into the light. Strands of her long dark hair wafted in the breeze. She wore tight jeans and a red jacket, surprising Athena with her sense of style. Her stunning beauty was totally unexpected.
Athena dug into her pocket and retrieved the shell casing, still wrapped in a latex glove.
“The police at the original crime scene got it wrong. They reported Hector Borrego had been shot point blank. That wasn’t true. The driver side window shows a fracture pattern that is from a bullet at a higher velocity. It had to be a sniper.”
She held out the casing—keeping it protected in the glove—and dared to hand the cartridge shell to the woman. If Athena wanted to be trusted, she had to trust in return.
“I figured the shooter took a position along that ridge behind you. When I went up there with Rafael, we found it wedged into a boulder. Whoever shot Borrego signed his work and left his brass behind. Pretty ballsy.”
The woman narrowed her eyes at the casing before she shifted her gaze to Athena. She didn’t say a word as she pondered what Athena had shared with her. Eventually the woman stepped toward her and handed back the ballistics evidence.
“I have nothing to lose by trusting you with this proof. If you can find out who killed…Hector—and publically put a name to the face of his killer—I can live with that.” The woman shrugged. “Besides, I can always have you killed, even in your precious land of the free.”
Athena let out the breath she�
��d been holding until the woman walked over to Rafael who was still on his knees and held by her men.
“I would still like to take you with me, for different reasons now.” The dark-haired beauty trailed a hand down Rafael’s cheek to his neck and chest. “But I do not think your sister would be patient enough to wait until I had my fill of you.”
Rafael glared at her and fought the men holding him. His defiance only made the woman laugh.
“Such passion.” She patted his cheek. “Yes, I would enjoy you far too much, my brave one.”
She smiled and turned her back on him before she vanished into the shadows.
“Release them,” the woman ordered. “Vámonos!”
“Please,” Rafael stood and called out to her as she climbed into an SUV. “Honor me with your name. Who are you?”
“My name is Camila Borrego.” She softened her voice. “Hector was my father.”
In a fleeting glimpse of rare frailty, Camila let them see the grieving daughter who had lost her father. Even a dangerous man like Hector Borrego had a family who had loved him. Camila didn’t stay. She shut the door to the SUV and called out to her men in Spanish. They gunned their engines and pulled out in a cloud of grit, leaving Athena and Rafael under the bluish haze of the moon.
Rafael turned his back on her and kicked at the dirt at his feet. Athena didn’t need light to sense his anger and frustration. It radiated off him like heat.
“Who would’ve figured it? Borrego had the love of a daughter.” The minute she said it, Athena wished she hadn’t.
Rafe stopped pacing and turned toward her with his face dusted in moonbeams.
“Not a day goes by that I don’t dream of the woman Ariana would’ve become, how she would’ve looked like her beautiful mother and been blessed with her heart.” Rafe’s eyes watered in a glistening hue of blue from the moon. “Don’t talk to me of Hector Borrego and his good fortune for having a daughter who loved him. I don’t want to hear it.”
Rafe climbed into the car and slammed the door.
Lo siento, mi hermano. Perdóname.