Chase was focussed on the road ahead of us, but squeezed my hand. "Apparently that was quite the norm for him." He gave me a fleeting smile. "If what Paulina said last night was true, Nicandro was pulling away from her anyway, and Paulina was trying to trap him back into the relationship by trying to get pregnant."
"Oldest trick in the book," I muttered darkly. I hated women like that, who didn’t have enough dignity to get up and walk away. And then I thought about my recent situation with Luke. Never once had I considered having children with him. He was never the 'Daddy' type. I hadn't even seen a wedding in our future.
I shook my head. Perhaps deep down I already knew that Luke wasn't going to stick around, but yet I'd kept playing happy families with him anyway.
Chase pulled the car over in a quiet street lined with shorter apartment buildings. There were hardly any cars parked on the roadside, as they were probably all hidden away in underground residential parking.
I grabbed Chase's arm just before he got out of the car. "Wait a second," I said as he turned back at me surprised. "What role does this woman play in the El Diablo Cartel? Surely we're not killing her only because of Nicandro?"
"No." Chase smiled. "Paulina is Nicandro's second in command... she's now leading Strategic Relations, managing all of the political influences of the cartel, and the military control."
"They worked together?"
"Yeah. And we always knew that once Nicandro died she was primed and ready to step in immediately."
I got out of the car. "Wow," I muttered, falling into step with Chase as we crossed the road. I couldn't imagine ever having that much power or the political savvy to manage a job like that. "And she was in love with him?"
"Appears so." He smiled. "Follow my lead, chica. We’re going in there to pay our condolences, slip her something, and then get out again."
We stepped into the elevator and rode three floors up to the penthouse apartment. Chase knocked on the door, and a maid answered.
"Estamos aquí para ver Paulina Silva."
The maid looked at Chase curiously and asked who they were. From what I could understand from my poor Spanish, he said that we were here to give Paulina our condolences.
The maid turned on her heel abruptly, and we followed her inside to the foyer. "We'll wait here," Chase said putting his hand on my arm to stop me from following the maid right into the apartment.
“There’s no security or anything,” I whispered, my heart beating fast with nervousness.
“Probably no need.” Chase's hand lingered for a few moments before it made its way down to the small of my back and settled there.
The maid returned a moment later. "Sígueme," she instructed, and we trailed after her. The apartment was gorgeous and expansive, with floor to ceiling glass. It was furnished with expensive pieces of artwork, sheer flowing curtains, rugs, and exceptionally tasteful furniture. This woman lived in the epitome of opulence.
When we were shown into the sitting room, we found a beautiful woman in there, lying back on a French chaise. I recognised her as the same woman who was dressed in red at the ball, hanging off Nicandro's arm. But this morning she had red, puffy eyes, and she was dressed only in a flimsy white dressing gown, giving me the impression that she'd just got out of bed.
"Señora mía," Chase said respectfully. "Mi nombre es Davin, y esta es mi hermana Ciara. Yo era un viejo amigo de Nicandro."
Her eyebrows rose up at the mention of me, and I assumed Chase had introduced us.
"You are English, no?" Her accent was thick, but her English was very clear.
Chase nodded. "Yes." I could almost sense the relief from him that he didn't need to speak Spanish anymore.
"So, you worked with Nicandro?"
Chase shook his head. "No. I met him when he was in America, and we kept in contact over the years."
She nodded, her eyes misting over. "So you have heard the bad news..." She trailed off, and sniffed.
Chase gestured for me to sit on one of the cream covered seats, and he sat down on the other. "Yes," he said quietly. "He spoke most fondly of you, and so I thought we should pay our respects."
"Ha!" She laughed. "He was a great one for fondness," she said sarcastically. She then waved her hand. "I'm sorry. I apologise. As you can tell, I am feeling... how do you say it? A bit under the weather?" She pulled out a tissue and dabbed delicately at her nose and eyes.
Chase smiled warmly at her. "You have had a rough time," he said, his voice caring. "Nicandro was a good man, Ms Silva."
She nodded, her dyed blonde ringlets bouncing limply around her features. "Yes. Yes he was." She sighed. "I have been trying to organise his funeral, actually. Very stressful," she whispered. "He has only been gone a few days, and I miss him."
As she reached for a tissue, I saw just how hard she was taking Nicandro's death. Guilt licked at the edges of my empathy for this woman... and then I quashed it. This was Nicandro's partner in crime. They both ‘managed’ the police and the politicians. They were both responsible for public relations, for information, and they both technically worked for Javier and Carmen. God only knew what sort of damage they had done over the years.
"I love your hair, Ciara..." Paulina said, instantly drawing me back to reality. "Is that your natural colouring?"
I shook my head. "No. I get it coloured." I fingered the long dark red tresses between my fingers. "But thank you." I smiled.
"Did you also know my Nicandro?"
"No. I had only ever heard about him from Davin."
She shrugged. "He would have liked you," she said simply.
The maid came back in, and brought with her a tray laden with coffee and cups. Paulina dismissed her from the room, and turned to cast her eye appreciatively over Chase. "So tell me, Davin, what other business brings you to Mexico?"
Chase gave her a winning smile. "The usual," he said flippantly. "Contacts, friends, and loved ones."
Paulina poured the coffee into the cups, and turned her sharp brown eyes back to Chase. "Contacts? You wish to build further relationships, yes?"
He nodded, and I watched Paulina smile.
"Well perhaps I can assist you with that." She winked.
It suddenly dawned on me that despite the fact that the supposed love of her life wasn’t even in the ground yet, she was hitting on Chase. I almost bristled. In fact I did bristle slightly... I just hoped that she didn't notice.
Her eyes turned to me. "And do you accompany your brother often on business, Ciara?"
I wasn’t sure how to respond. "Sometimes," I answered thoughtfully. "But only when he goes to interesting places."
Paulina tinkled with laughter, and then lay back on the chaise as if she had exerted herself too much.
Chase immediately crossed to her. "Are you all right?"
She opened her eyes and turned her gaze back towards him. "I'm a little lightheaded."
He checked her temperature with the back of his hand against her forehead. "Can I get you anything?" His voice was full of concern. "If you want, we can come back and visit later."
She shook her head. "No, no. I like the company." She smiled lazily at him. "It is lonely when I am by myself."
Chase smiled down at her. "We'll stay a little longer then. Now, would you like a glass of water or anything?"
She smiled. "Such a gentleman ... Water would be lovely." Chase turned and started walking from the room. "And ask Amora for my medication as well, please?"
She turned back to me once Chase had left the room. "Your brother is a very handsome man. Is he married?"
I shook my head.
"Many women?"
Again I shook my head and smiled. "Not lately."
She nodded, her features lighting up. "Good."
I felt sick just thinking about the possibility of them together, but I knew that this was all an act for Chase. A ruse to get her to like him, to trust him.
Chase returned a few moments later carrying a large glass of water. He also had a
small porcelain dish in his hand, containing a number of tablets. He passed her the dish, and without even looking at the pills, she dropped them down her throat and gulped back some water.
Chase grabbed her hand. "I'm sorry, Paulina, I've had a call and we must go. I would love to catch up with you later though if you're free?"
Paulina smiled, captivated by his attention. "How about dinner?"
Chase chuckled, and kissed her gently on the cheek. "I'll pick you up at eight."
Paulina wiggled her fingers at him as we let ourselves out of the apartment.
Once we got down to the car, and my heart rate had semi-regulated again, I turned to Chase. "Are you really going to have dinner with that woman?"
Chase laughed and started the engine. "God no. Ghastly. She'll be dead by then."
"She will?" I thought back to the medication Chase had given her. "I would highly doubt a few tablets of paracetamol are going to do much to her, Chase."
Chase shrugged, pulling the car out onto the road. "No, but the cyanide will."
16
“How was she?” River asked as soon as we walked through the door. I still couldn't believe that Chase had slipped her cyanide. I never would have thought to do something like that.
"She was sad..." I responded. "For a while anyway, until she started eyeing up Chase."
River laughed. "She was a bit like that last night too. One minute she was talking about not being able to live without Nicandro, and the next, she was groping my leg. It was about that time that I decided she should probably go home and sleep it all off."
"Guess it wasn't just the alcohol talking then." I laughed. I felt a sense of seriousness wash over me suddenly as I thought about that woman. "She was pretty upset though, to begin with. I could feel her pain, and I had to keep reminding myself that she's not a good person."
River shrugged, and put some of his paperwork down on the coffee table. "No, she wasn't. And if it makes you feel any better, she's the one encouraging the police to turn a blind eye to all of the blonde beheadings."
I stared at him, a calmness settling over me. "She is?"
River raised his eyebrows at me. "Yes. But now she is no longer our problem." He patted the paperwork beside him, and I caught a glimpse of profile pictures, and a heap of other writing surrounding them.
"What's that?"
"Possibly the next job that we'll take on. I don't know." He blew out a breath. "I need to run over it with Chase before we make a call on it."
A part of me itched to see what sort of people they were, and if they were bad enough to kill, but then I didn't want to know. Beyond Mexico, this wasn't going to be my life. I was going to head home to England, spend some time with my aunt, and settle back into a normal life. Without Luke.
"So..." River crossed his legs at the ankles and watched me carefully. “Alicio Mendoza is hiding out at Alvarez’s place. I was wondering why we couldn’t find a sign of him anywhere. How was that coming face to face with him?”
“Kind of scary,” I admitted. “He doesn’t look like a very nice person on paper – but in the flesh … he made my skin crawl.”
River grimaced. “Well, his reputation does precede him. I’m glad we never got him on board with our operation. It could have been messy. We’ll catch up to him when we plan the hit on Alvarez. Now that we know where he is – that will make it easier.” He changed the subject, “So I found Osvaldo Corona this morning."
I looked at him blankly. "Corona who?"
River laughed at the confused look I gave him. "Yes, Corona. Like the beer. It’s actually a very common last name around these parts. He was on our original list. He's the head of exports for the El Diablo Cartel. He's loading a big shipment as we speak."
"And?"
"And you and Chase need to come with me on the job. Osvaldo is a slippery prick at the best of times, and there will also be a few staff there."
Another job, already. I nodded slowly. "Does Chase know?" I looked towards the hallway. Chase had gone for a shower as soon as we got in. He had suggested that I join him, but I still felt a little odd about jumping in the shower with him, we’d barely hit second base.
"I'll text him about it once I spot Osvaldo."
I slapped my hands on my knees. "So I guess this means I need to go get ready, yeah? When are we leaving?"
"You're fine as you are, Mack. We'll leave once we're ready. I need you to come and help me down in the artillery room though."
It was a statement rather than a question. I stood and followed him to the hatch of the artillery room, then descended the spiral stairs. It was dark and cool down there, and to be quite frank, a relief from the constant Mexican heat.
River picked up two black bags, and hefted them up onto the steel table. "Go through those, and tell me what ones you like."
I hesitated before peering in. They were loaded with hand guns. I almost groaned, but forced myself to stop. River obviously needed my help with this job, or else he wouldn't be making me do this. I started pulling out the guns slowly, handling them, and then placing them carefully down on the table. I pulled out two small silver versions of Chase's Glocks, and gripped them in my hands. They actually felt quite comfortable. I looked at the writing etched into the sides of them: Smith & Wesson.
River looked up at me right at that moment. "You like those?"
I shrugged, and gave him a small nod.
He gave me an approving look. "Good choice. Small, light, can hold a cartridge." He reached over and took one from me. "And these ones even have a laser sight so it's easier to see where you're aiming." He turned the laser on, and pointed it around the room for me to see.
He handed back the gun. "Let me see if I can find the cartridges for those guns, and then they're all yours."
He was giving me guns? "To keep?"
River gave me a small smile. "Yes, to keep. You need to have your weapon of choice. I think you should probably be carrying at all times from now on. Especially since you’ve now met Alicio Mendoza."
I felt sick just at the mention of his name. "So are you going to give me any gun training with these?” I turned the guns over in my hands, eying them up.
River grinned. “Yes. Now, actually. I don’t want you being unprepared. You may have shot a gun before, but a little training will go a long way.”
I bit my lip, and looked up at him. He seemed to have faith that I could actually use these. “So, where are we going to train then?”
River lifted up two long black tubes from the table, and screwed them into each of the weapons. “Out in the garden. I don’t have a gun range here, but with these silencers on, we’ll be fine just as long as you can aim straight.”
I cringed. That was something I could not guarantee.
* * *
On the way back to the house an hour later, River stopped and turned to me. “You should probably start watching Carmen if you can." He gave me a tired smile. "Get Gabe to track her accounts for you and you'll know where she's likely to go."
"Is that how you normally do it?"
River smiled. "It’s one option. Usually the first anyway." He shrugged. "Electronic tracking is the easiest way. Everybody leaves digital footprints."
"Except me, at the moment." I laughed. "Well ... not since I’ve been here with you guys, anyway."
River gave me a knowing smile. "You would be surprised. Didn't you transfer a heap of money this morning to your Ex? Someone would be able to track that you're in Mexico from that transaction."
I didn't want to know. It gave me the creeps that someone could track me like that. But I did kind of want to know what Luke was up to. I wondered if I should have a look at that file that Chase was talking about earlier to see if I could glean any new information.
We walked back into the house and down to the artillery room, putting our guns down on the bench. I watched as River reloaded cartridges and pottered about. The more I thought about Luke… the more I realised that I just didn’t care anymore. He ha
d his money, and hopefully I would never hear from him again.
River started zipping up the gun bag, and I jumped off the stool I was perched on. He handed me a small box along with both my new guns. I looked down at the box with confusion. Damn it was heavy. "What's this?"
River winked at me. "Bullets."
Oh what a dumbass, I smiled. That was kinda obvious.
"Come on," River said as he started to climb the stairs. "Let's get going."
* * *
When River stopped the car I found we were back in the warehousing district where we had picked him up from the night we had to go and rescue Gabe.
"The warehouse is five hundred metres in that direction." River pointed, and both Chase and I looked. There were a number of cars parked along the road, and a bunch of warehouses that all looked the same.
"I'll take your word for it." Chase grinned. He turned to look at me sitting in the backseat of the car. "Stick close to us. This could get messy."
Once again I felt myself tense with anxiety, and I nodded mutely, hoping that he couldn't read my mind. They had already told me that there would probably be a few people there.
I wasn't sure that a gunfight was something I really wanted to get involved in, but I guess I had to know how to handle myself in one. Not that assassination was a career option for me, but I thought a new skill in survival probably wouldn't hurt, well, unless it killed me.
I followed River and Chase down the road. They both had slim line backpacks on, fully loaded with further ammunition. River had found a double gun halter for me, and now I had two guns nestled in the small of my back, hidden beneath my jacket. It was too damn hot to be wearing a jacket, but I sucked it up. This would all be over soon, one way or another. This was nuts though. I was supposed to be either running from Carmen, or killing her, but not any of this crap.
I wanted a drink, and not just water. A cold margarita would have gone down nicely at that point. That was what I was going to do once we got back to River's. Have a drink, put my feet up, and imagine that I was anywhere but here.
Tijuana Nights (The Nights Series Book 1) Page 17