by Ali Vali
“Don’t backslide on me now, mobster. Remember our deal—no more secrets.”
“Cain, you do realize who’s out there waiting for you,” Remi said, quietly joining their conversation. “Not to mention who’s out there taking mental notes of your guest list tonight.”
“For the record,” she said to Emma first, “I don’t know what Hector Delarosa is doing here.” Then she turned and faced Remi. “And Muriel’s too old for me to take her over my knee.” Her patience had ended and she couldn’t stop the sarcasm from tainting her words.
“I’m on your side, okay?” Remi said, and held up her hands.
“I appreciate that. I need time to give Jarvis the attention and respect he’s due. After that I’ll take on all this other shit that’s popped up.” She buttoned her jacket and walked away holding Emma’s hand to greet Hector. The way Shelby looked at her when Hector took her other hand between both of his made her feel as if someone had started a stopwatch that was ticking away how much time she had left before her charmed life ceased to exist.
Chapter Five
The overcast sky had cleared the beach for the day, but somehow the water of the Pacific seemed even more beautiful to Anthony as he enjoyed the view from Gracelia’s terrace. They’d docked a few days earlier and taken a long drive down the coast to the house she owned on a bluff with a panoramic view of the ocean. It was the only place in either direction for at least five miles, but even so usually a few topless sunbathers lay on the beach soaking up the privacy along with the rays.
“Do you like the rain, Agent Curtis?”
Because of where he was and who he was a guest of, he hadn’t pushed to find out where Juan was, but he hadn’t seen him since their arrival and was fairly sure he wasn’t in the large house. Gracelia, though, hadn’t let Anthony spend too much time alone.
“Weather isn’t my thing so it doesn’t really matter one way or the other,” he said, watching her as she leaned against the banister, her hair blowing wildly against her shoulders. “You can call me Anthony if you want. Considering everything’s that’s happened I’m fairly sure I’m not an agent anymore, even if I were working undercover.”
“The manhunt your boss has organized seems zealous enough to convince me.” She turned and placed her hands on her neck to keep her hair from her face. “But it could be an act, so I’m here to give you a choice.”
“If it’s a multiple-choice question and the ‘b’ option is someone flinging me over the side there, I’ll go with ‘a.’”
Gracelia laughed and her beauty almost made him forget the trouble he was in. “If it’s true that you are through with that life, I would like for you to join us.” Her English was precise and sounded cultured. “If not, you’ve recovered from your adventure and are free to go. I’ll even arrange transportation to the airport.”
“Are you new to negotiation?” he said as she joined him under the large canopy when big rain drops splattered the stone where she’d been standing. “You’ve made it easy for me to lie to you and tell you anything you want.”
“Unless you’ve got some sort of homing device in your rectum, I doubt anyone knows you’re here, so it would be easy for me to lie should anyone come looking for you,” she said.
The face was beautiful, but for the first time he saw the complete coldness in her eyes and expression. This woman wouldn’t need to call anyone to throw him to his death. She’d do it herself and enjoy lunch afterward with no remorse.
“You don’t have to worry. No one has any idea where I am. It’d be easy for you and Juan to kill me, and I doubt you’d ever answer for it.”
“It took some time but I think you finally understand your position.” She smiled at him and sat closer. “You are where I need you, even if it’s not what you had planned. And joining my son wasn’t in your plans, was it?”
Her hypnotic gaze reminded him of a king cobra’s and he felt the allure of telling the truth. But his will to survive was stronger than being that stupid. “My alliance with Juan occurred because we had a common enemy, but you know that already. I thought that after we brought Casey down, my partnership with Juan would end and I’d return to what I do. That’s impossible now.”
“If you were working undercover I’m sure your boss is willing to forgive pretty much anything.” She spoke softly and put her hand on his leg above his knee.
He laughed as he stared at her hand. It was hard to remember the last time someone had touched him except his mother hugging him after a visit. “My job doesn’t encourage kidnapping someone and shooting someone else in the head in broad daylight in front of federal agents. We have rules we don’t break without losing our freedom, no matter how bad the Bureau wants to catch you.”
“Tell me about this woman you took.” Gracelia stood and poured him a drink, sitting next to him again after she set it before him. It was the first time since their arrival that she’d bothered to wait on him like she had for Juan.
“I’m sure you know plenty about Juan’s great obsession.” As he brought the glass to his nose he detected a hint of citrus mixed with a good amount of liquor, and for some reason the odor triggered his desire for a hit of cocaine. “I’m not sure what the attraction is, considering how obsessed she is with Casey.”
“My son seldom tells me anything of what he considers failures, so you’re wrong. This woman Emma is a mystery to me.”
He gulped so much of the drink that a pain shot through the side of his head, making him press his fingers to the spot. “Shit,” he said, and flinched when Gracelia caressed his face. “If you and Juan are so close how come he didn’t share this with you?”
“Very good, Anthony. You didn’t waste too much time at the Academy—you’re quite observant,” she said, then took her hand away from his face so she could lift her drink.
“I told Juan as much about his father as I could when I raised him. I described what kind of man Armando was and what he did to my heart in the short time I knew him. Those stories gave Juan a sense of himself and what kind of man he in turn wanted to be. It would’ve been better for Juan to have had both of us guiding him, but for my purposes, what I gave him was enough.”
“Your purposes?” He noticed one of the guards moving closer and wanted to yell to keep him away since Gracelia was providing more answers than he had questions. “What’s that mean?”
“My brother stole something precious from me, so it’s time to return the favor.” She kept her eyes on him as the man bent down and whispered in her ear.
“You sound determined.”
“Underestimating my determination is a mistake I hope you don’t make, Anthony. Remember what I said.” She cupped his cheek again and to his amazement he grew hard. “Mistakes that serious will cost you dearly.” She glanced down when he squirmed but didn’t move away from him. “Be ready to move at six.”
“Where?” His pulse pounded in his groin as Gracelia’s hand moved down his neck to his chest.
“You look like a man who needs a new beginning, and I’m the woman who can give it to you.”
*
“Mr. Delarosa, sorry to keep you waiting,” Cain said, making Hector turn around from staring out the window in Jarvis’s study. She’d asked him for a brief private meeting away from curious eyes.
Hector Delarosa was handsome and impeccably dressed, and he immediately took her hand between both of his again. His thick mustache somehow made his smile appear wider, and Cain wondered why he’d made the trip.
“I’d think we are friends by now, so please call me Hector,” he said, and bowed his head slightly. “Please accept my condolences on the loss of your uncle.”
“Thank you, but is there something else I can do for you?” She knew the question sounded blunt, but she wasn’t in a diplomatic mood.
“I see the stories about you are true,” Hector said, and laughed. “I wish I had come only because of your uncle, but I was already here and hoping to meet with you.”
“So you’ve brou
ght the DEA to my door as a gift?” She waved to one of the leather visitor’s chairs and she took the other. “I’ve got plenty of admirers without adding to my dance card.”
“Your DEA has only suspicion about me, much like the FBI has about you, and I want only to extend my friendship to you. I do that because we have a common problem. A problem best handled among friends.”
“I’m sure that’s true, but not tonight. My uncle deserves to be laid to rest and I won’t take that from him. Once this is over I’ll be happy to meet with you. I owe you that for your recent help.”
“Discussing history doesn’t require payment. It’s the future that piles on the debts we must deal with.” He put his hands on the chair arms and pushed himself to his feet. “At least that’s what my mother always told me. I’ll be here meeting with Vinny and his father, and I won’t leave until we’ve had our talk.”
“Thanks, and if you need anything while you’re here, call the house.”
He left and she stayed seated in the chair her father used when he visited his brother’s home. They seldom discussed business here but told and retold stories of their childhood until she, Billy, and Muriel knew them by heart. She remembered the last family dinner they’d all shared at Jarvis’s before her family had left her one by one.
That night they’d had no premonitions about the future and no sad moments to hint at the pain they’d all endure. It’d been a happy time that stayed stamped in her heart so clearly it made her want to recreate the experience for her own children as much as possible with their own family dinners and outings. That was important because in the end the memories were the treasure she’d inherited.
“I don’t think he’d mind you sitting at the desk,” Muriel said. She joined her and took Hector’s seat.
“I haven’t had the chance to tell you how very sorry I am for your loss,” Cain said, and took Muriel’s hand. “It’s just us now, and I’ll always be here for you. Don’t ever lose sight of that.”
“How did you survive this?”
“By remembering the good times, finding Emma, and having you and Uncle Jarvis.” She stopped talking when Muriel started to cry. “You’ll find your way, cousin, because he raised you to be true to yourself.”
“What’s that mean?” Muriel asked as she pressed a tissue to her eyes.
“That you’re strong in your own unique way. The ache will always be with you, but you’ll be able to stand on your own, even if that’s hard to imagine now.”
“Muriel,” Shelby said from the hallway. “The bishop is here to say a prayer for your father.”
They stood and embraced until Muriel’s emotions were under control. In the parlor Cain’s good friend Bishop Andrew Goodman led everyone in prayer before the funeral home removed the casket for the night. The mourners followed soon after, and when Shelby began to comfort Muriel, Cain went in search of her family.
In the den Emma was sitting with her head back and eyes closed holding Hannah’s head in her lap, with Hayden pressed against her on the other side. Father Andy’s prayers had proved too long for their hyperactive daughter so Emma had taken her back to play with her living jungle gym, since that’s how she treated Hayden.
“How can you look at them and take the chances you do?” Shelby asked softly. Cain glanced back at her and saw Muriel wasn’t with her.
“Do you remember the night we met?”
Shelby nodded at the innocent-sounding question, but Cain could tell the subject matter frightened her somewhat.
“Don’t worry, my bug-extermination crew is the best in the business. At least, for both our sakes I certainly hope so.”
“If you really want an answer, it’s yes.”
“Then you should know better than anyone that even though the surveillance is constant, you still don’t have any idea who I am.” Emma opened her eyes when Cain picked Hannah up. “And don’t take that as a challenge to make you try even harder to figure me out. Turn all that curious nature in Muriel’s direction.”
“Giving advice now?” Shelby asked.
Emma spoke before Cain could respond. “It beats the hell out of telling you where to get off, Agent Phillips.” Emma accepted Hayden’s hand to stand up and continued. “I know that sounds rude, but I’m tired and my patience and politeness ran thin about ten minutes ago.”
“A couple more months of pregnancy and I’d fear her more than a reincarnated Al Capone,” Cain said, and laughed. “Good night, Shelby, and please keep our earlier talk in mind.”
“Don’t worry, Cain. I keep every one of our talks in mind. So much so that I take notes,” Shelby said in what Cain gathered was the most sarcastic tone she could muster.
*
The traffic along Airline Highway leading out of New Orleans was light at the moment, but Johnny Moores could tell it was a major thoroughfare because it had so many lanes. Now instead of commuters from the suburbs trying to get downtown, a mix of people was either in a hurry to get somewhere or driving slow, talking to the women and men walking in front of the cheap motels.
After he had gone downtown and protested the price of the rooms, one of the employees at the Hilton had suggested the area after Johnny had cursed him. “The little fucker was right. These places are dumps.”
The faded red paint of the one he picked appeared almost pink in the glare of his headlights, but he only got a glimpse before a young woman tapped on his window and made a sign for him to roll it down.
“You interested in a good time?”
The memory of a young Katie Lynn popped into his head because the prostitute appeared so innocent and didn’t quite look right in her miniskirt and tight Lycra top. His daughter had never dressed like a whore for him, but she never did look quite right when he visited her room at night. That had never slowed him down, though, and this little bitch wouldn’t either.
“How much?” he asked as he put his hand on his crotch.
“What are you interested in?” She stepped a little away from the truck door as if to give him a better view of her whole body.
“I’m interested in you not being a cop,” he said, swinging the door open and hopping out. “I’m going in and getting a room, and if you’re still out here I’ll take it you’re interested in me.”
The night clerk accepted a wad of bills for a two-week stay and another twenty for forgetting about the registration form. He grabbed the key from the counter and cursed when the plastic ring with the room number felt sticky.
What didn’t surprise him was the little bitch in heat propped against his truck waiting for him. He opened the driver’s side and smirked when she jumped in without any other prompting. She would be a good diversion until the morning when he started his search for Katie Lynn and they could have their grand reunion.
*
“You holding up okay?” Ross Verde, Emma’s father, asked Cain when they got back home.
“I’ll survive this too, but I’ll miss him,” Cain said, and poured them both a little brandy. “I hope he knows how special he was to me.”
“You’re good at getting your feelings across, don’t worry about that. I’ve always known where I stood with you, and we haven’t discussed the subject much.”
“Thanks, Ross, and thank you for not going back to the farm.” The sunroom was quiet, but outside she glimpsed the heightened security Lou had put in place. “You’re good for your daughter and I don’t need her stressed right now.”
“She looked a little upset tonight,” Ross said, his eyes on his glass. It was a habit she’d observed whenever he opened a subject that might upset her.
“Your little girl usually only gets upset by one thing, or should I say one person—me.” Her admission made him seem to lose interest in the amber liquid. “When she came back here we agreed to two things.”
“What’s that?”
“That she wouldn’t tell anyone that she’d kicked my ass for being a stubborn bastard and dragging my tail when it came to what I wanted—what we both want
ed.” They both laughed. “And that I wouldn’t keep her in the dark about anything she had a desire to know.”
Ross’s nod seemed more out of habit than agreement. “What about tonight made her feel otherwise? If you want to talk about it, that is.”
“Hector Delarosa’s sudden appearance surprised her.” Cain’s glass was empty, but anymore and sleep would elude her. “He surprised me too, in a way I don’t like.”
“I’m sorry I thought you’d kept that from me,” Emma said as she entered the sunroom. She had traded her dress for the linen robe Cain had brought home the day before as a gift.
“Who’s this guy?” Ross asked.
“From what little information I’ve found on Hector, he’s third from the top of the Colombian drug cartel. And with his style and ambition he probably won’t have much trouble convincing himself that he needs a promotion.” Emma sat on the arm of Cain’s chair and smiled at the gentle caress to her cheek. “He’s the kind of guy that attracts a lot of attention from people I go out of my way to avoid.”
“All you big fish attract the Feds,” Ross said, and laughed.
“Compared to Hector I’m a minnow in a ditch.”
“Not to me, baby,” Emma said, and kissed her. “Muriel’s girl almost lost an eye, though, when he walked in.”
“Shelby isn’t our problem because no matter how hard she looks, she’ll never find drugs in my business.” Cain sat back when Emma decided to join her. “It’s idiots like Juan who worry me if they get the impression I’d ever go into business with them.”
“I’m here for you if you need my help with anything,” Ross said. He kissed Emma good night and placed his hand on Cain’s shoulder before he left for his room.
“He really likes you,” Emma said. “It makes me sad he missed out on so much when Hayden was born.”
“Ross doesn’t seem like the type to dwell on the past, so he’s building a good relationship with our boy.” The temptation to place her hand over Emma’s middle was one she never deprived herself of, so she gave in. “Girl, you think?”