Smooth-Talking Texan

by Candace Camp

  Meredith had seemed quite nice, and Lisa had liked her, but she was also much quieter and more conservative than Eve. No doubt Eve would have jumped at the chance of a mysterious meeting, but she was not so sure about Meredith. Still, she didn’t have a whole lot of choice. She looked up Meredith’s phone number in the telephone book and called. There was no answer, but she had an answering machine, so Lisa left a message to call her on her cell phone. Meredith had said she was a teacher, so Lisa hoped that she would come home from work before long.

  Lisa returned to her work, though it was difficult to concentrate on anything. When her mobile phone rang almost an hour later, she jumped on it.

  “Hello?”

  “Lisa? This is Meredith Turner.”

  “Meredith. How are you? Thank you for calling me back. I was wondering if you might meet me for dinner tonight at the Moonstone.”

  “Of course. That sounds like fun.”

  “Great. How does six-thirty sound?”

  “Sure. I’ll be there.”

  “This may sound a little odd, but could you meet me in the parking lot in front of the café? Wait for me if I’m not there yet?” If Garza did follow her, she wanted him to see that she was having an innocuous dinner with a friend.

  “Uh, sure,” Meredith replied, her voice puzzled.

  “I’m sorry to sound so cryptic,” Lisa said, “but it’s kind of important.”

  “It’s fine. I’ll look forward to seeing you at six-thirty.”

  Lisa spent the rest of the afternoon in a futile effort to get some work done. She felt sure that she would have to go back over everything she had done. When the clock finally edged close to five, she cleaned off her desk and picked up her purse, managing to stroll out of her office just as the secretaries in the reception area were standing up to leave.

  “What’s this?” her secretary asked jokingly. “You’re actually leaving at five o’clock today?”

  “I’m meeting someone for dinner.”

  “Ah-hah.” Kiki looked knowing.

  “Not Quinn,” Lisa responded.

  “Even more ah-hah.”

  “No, no ah-hah about it,” Lisa responded with a smile. “It’s just a friend.”

  Lisa walked down the stairs with the other two women, telling herself again that such precautions were probably not necessary. Outside, she turned toward the right, where her car was parked, not daring to glance back to the left to see if Garza’s car was still there. The other two women crossed the street to Kiki’s car, and Lisa waved them a cheerful goodbye.

  Unlocking her car, she slipped inside and started the engine, looking into the side rear mirror. She could see the edge of the front of the blue Mercedes. She put on her seat belt, her insides jumping nervously, and pulled out into the street. A glance in the rearview mirror told her that the Mercedes was also pulling out half a block behind her.

  She drove to her apartment, making no effort to lose Garza, though she checked her mirror once or twice to see if he was still following her. When she turned into her apartment’s parking lot, she saw that Garza’s car drove on past. Quickly she parked and got out of her car and went up to her apartment. Obviously he was not going to pursue her to her apartment door. He was probably going to wait and watch again. But Lisa could not suppress the nerves in her stomach, and she wanted to get inside her door as quickly as possible.

  Inside, she showered and changed into jeans and a casual shirt. Then, not bothering with any more makeup than a quick application of lipstick, she left her apartment and once more got into her car. She did not see Garza’s car, but as she drove down the street, she glanced in her rearview mirror and saw that a dark Mercedes was almost a block behind her. Obviously she had been right to take precautions, but that fact only increased her jumpiness.

  She drove to Angel Eye, deriving some satisfaction from the thought that her follower would probably be hopeful that she was going to lead him to Benny, only to be disappointed when she pulled up to the café and met someone for dinner.

  It was almost exactly six-thirty when she turned into the Moonstone’s parking lot. She was glad to see that Meredith was already there, standing behind her small car and chatting with a couple. Out of the corner of her eye, Lisa saw that the Mercedes had parked across the street from the café. She waved to Meredith and strolled over to her. Meredith, who had said goodbye to the couple, met Lisa halfway and greeted her.

  Politely Meredith did not ask Lisa why she had asked her to meet her out front. The two women walked into the restaurant, and Teresa came forward to seat them, guiding them toward a booth in the back. Lisa scooted in on the back side, where she could keep an eye on the door. Meredith glanced back curiously at the door, then returned her gaze to Lisa.

  “I’m sorry,” Lisa said apologetically. “I know this must seem all cloak-and-dagger.”

  “A little,” Meredith agreed with a smile. “But don’t apologize. It’s making my day much more interesting than it usually is. Just tell me that you’re going to explain this all later.”

  “I will. I promise. I may be worrying about nothing, but…” Lisa knew deep inside she was not. “But if I’m not, then it’s very serious. I think someone is trying to find one of my clients, and I’m trying to throw them off the scent.”

  Meredith’s eyes widened. “You’re being followed?”

  “I think so. But I really can’t tell you who or why—it’s one of my cases.”

  “Sure. I understand,” Meredith said agreeably, opening the menu. “Are we really going to eat or what?”

  “Yes, but I’m going to have to leave in a few minutes. If you could just go ahead and eat until I get back…Are you okay with that?” She continued to keep her eye on the front door, but to her relief Garza did not enter the café.

  “Sure. I feel like a spy or something.”

  “Thanks for being such a good sport.”

  Teresa returned, and they placed their orders. Then she looked questioningly at Lisa. Lisa turned to Meredith.

  “I’m sorry,” she began.

  “I know, I know. You’re going to leave now. That’s okay. But, remember, you owe me….”

  “Big time,” Lisa agreed and got up to follow Teresa.

  The girl led her around to the hallway beside the kitchen. The kitchen opened off one side of the hallway, and on the other side was a closed door. Teresa knocked softly at it, and a moment later, the door opened. Elizabeth Morgan stood in the doorway, and behind her lay a room which was obviously her office.

  “Come in,” she said, stepping out and motioning for Lisa to enter. “I don’t know what’s going on, and I don’t want to know,” she said firmly.

  “Okay.”

  Elizabeth left, closing the door behind her, and Lisa turned back to the room. Benny Hernandez sat on a bar stool on the other side of the room beside a file cabinet. He slid off the stool and stood awkwardly for a moment.

  “All right, Benny. I think you better tell me what’s going on.”

  “I…” Benny glanced toward the door, then walked over and turned the lock. “I don’t know what to do.”

  He paused again, frowning and looking at Lisa.

  “I’m your attorney, Benny. What you tell me is privileged information. I can’t reveal it to anyone, including the cops. But I need to know the truth so I can help you. The sheriff’s looking for you. Garza’s looking for you. What has you on the run?”

  “I knew him—the guy they found dead the other day. I didn’t know that first guy. I’d never seen him before—I mean, even though the picture was gross, I knew I didn’t know him. But Miguel…I’ve seen him over at the house a few times.”

  “Your house?”

  “No. That house—the one…the one the sheriff was asking me about.”

  “So you do know the house?”

  “Yeah. I—we—that’s where we go, where we bring the people.”

  “The people? Are you talking about illegal immigrants?”

  Benny nodded. �
�Yeah, see, Paco told me that I could make this easy money.” He sighed and sat back down on the stool.

  Lisa settled herself on the edge of Elizabeth’s desk. “By transporting illegal aliens?”

  “Yeah. It was good money—and easy. We didn’t have to bring ’em across the border, see. We just drove down to the Valley and out to this place, and the people’d be there. Then we’d drive them back here and take ’em to Senor Rodriquez’s house. Paco was his grandson. Paco used to live here. I went to middle school with him. His family moved to San Antonio when he was in high school. I hadn’t seen him for a couple of years, and then he came back last summer. Anyway, he said he had this good deal and did I want a piece of it? I said sure. I mean, it was real easy and a lot more money than I was making busing tables here. Besides, I figured I was helping those guys out, you know. I mean, it’s not really a bad thing, helping somebody get into the country. It’s not like stealin’ or anything, right?”

  “So is Paco the one who thought this up?”

  “Oh, man!” Benny looked scornful. “Paco? Paco couldn’t think nothin’ up. He was working for some guy back in San Antonio. I don’t know who. But this Garza guy, he works for him, too. He’s, like, his man, you know.”

  “His assistant?”

  “Yeah. He’s real slick.”

  “Yes, he is.”

  “But I didn’t know nothin’ about the drugs. None of us did. We thought we were just bringing in these guys, givin’ them a break.”

  “What did you do with these immigrants then?”

  “Just took ’em to the house.” Benny shrugged. “Somebody else took them somewhere after that. I don’t know, really. I never thought about it till the sheriff was asking me those questions, talkin’ about those work camps and stuff.” He frowned, looking distressed. “I never meant to do anything wrong, you know. I wouldn’t have done it if I thought they were hurtin’ them. And drugs—I don’t want anything to do with that. That’s serious sh—stuff. You know? That’s what Miguel was telling Paco the other night.”

  “The boy who was killed.”

  Benny nodded. “Yeah. I saw him and Paco talking, and they were real serious, you know. And Paco, he goes, ‘Hey, ese, you got paid good money,’ and Miguel, he’s saying, ‘Yeah, but I never bargained for this! I knew that guy. I drove him!’ He was talking about the one the sheriff showed me the picture of. Miguel had heard it was from drugs, and he was all scared about it. You could see it in his face—he was scared. So Paco’s tryin’ to calm him down and all, tellin’ him they’ll go see Garza, and Miguel can tell Garza all this. Miguel, he doesn’t want to go, but Paco says he has to talk to Garza, explain how he wants out. He says Garza’s the one makes the decisions.”

  “So what happened?”

  Benny shrugged. “I don’t know. I left. I didn’t want to get in the middle of that. I didn’t know what to do.” He paused, then went on, his voice roughened, “Then Miguel turns up dead.”

  “You think Paco killed him?”

  “Hey, it’s kinda hard to think anything else,” Benny replied honestly, turning his face away from her. “Him or Garza.”

  “It sounds likely,” Lisa agreed.

  “And I heard ’em arguing!” Benny burst out, jumping off the stool and beginning to pace around the office. “Paco knows I did. He saw me—he’s gotta figure I heard it. Part of it, at least. So I lit out. I didn’t know where to go. All my friends—well, they’re part of it, too. Paco would go to them if he was looking for me. But I figured they didn’t know about Teresa. I don’t—I never talk about her. She’s…different from them, you know? I met her when I was working here at the café She’s from Hammond, and she goes to school there. So I came over here and waited out back to talk to her. She let me stay in the storage room.”

  “That’s where you’ve been?”

  He nodded. “I sleep over there on the couch after everybody leaves. She asked Ms. Morgan, and she said it was okay. She didn’t mind having somebody here to watch the place at night, anyway. I used to work here, so she knows me.”

  “You told Elizabeth what happened?”

  “No!” He looked horrified. “I wouldn’t tell her something like that. She just—Teresa made up some story about me having trouble with my family. She said my stepdad had come home, and we don’t get along.”

  “I see.”

  There was a long moment of silence, then Benny asked quietly, “What am I gonna do, Ms. Mendoza?”

  “I won’t lie to you, Benny. You are in a bad situation.” She crossed her arms and stared at the floor for a moment. Finally she raised her head. “I think there’s only one thing you can do. You have to tell the sheriff about this.”

  “But I can’t! I can’t tell him! I can’t squeal on my friends. I got loyalty. I got honor. You know? You’re Latina, you know how it is. Paco is my friend—I can’t turn him in.”

  Lisa knew she had to tread carefully here. For a Latin male, loyalty to one’s friends was a code that was embedded deep in his culture. Benny would look with horror upon the idea of turning in his friends even though he was afraid that they would kill him. “I understand how important those things are to you, yes. But you’re afraid that they’re going to kill you. What kind of loyalty does that show on their part? Is that honor?”

  “No,” Benny agreed slowly. “I guess not, but…”

  “Look, Benny, I know it’s hard for you to give information about your friends to the authorities. You feel loyalty to them, and that’s good. But, you know, you have a loyalty to your family, too, to the people you love. Like your grandmother. And Teresa. Maybe you could keep Paco and Garza from killing you by running away, going to some other part of the country where they’ll never find you. But you will have to leave all the people you love behind. And you don’t know what will happen to them.”

  Benny looked up at her, paling a little, quick to catch on to what she was suggesting. “You mean you think Garza will hurt them?”

  “I don’t know,” Lisa replied honestly. “But I think it’s a possibility, if he can’t get to you. If he wants to send you a message.”

  Benny muttered a curse, dropping his head to his hands. Lisa watched him for a moment, scrupulously examining her own conscience. She wanted to make sure that she was not being influenced by her feelings for Quinn but was doing what was best for her client.

  “Benny,” she said carefully. “I am your attorney. My interest in this matter is doing what’s best for you. And I think this is the correct course of action for you both legally and personally. Even though your intention may have been to help people when you got into this, you can see that you’ve gotten into something a whole lot worse. Unfortunately, you don’t have a lot of choices. You can run and leave everybody you love behind and hope that Garza never catches up with you. Or you can go to prison with the others when the authorities figure it all out, and you know the odds are they will. You don’t want to go to prison, Benny. You don’t want to hurt your grandmother that way. Or Teresa. And if Garza finds you, it’ll be even worse than prison.”

  Benny nodded and said in a resigned voice, “I know.”

  “Or you can turn state’s evidence. When Sheriff Sutton came by today asking about you, he told me that he will take you into protective custody if you’ll tell him about what’s going on at the house. I can make a deal with the prosecutor in return for your testimony—hopefully immunity, or at least probation. You’re still a juvenile, and if you give yourself up, show good faith…I think you can come out of this pretty clean. Are you willing to do it? Shall I call the sheriff and talk to him?”

  Benny sighed. “Okay. Call the sheriff.”

  She spent a few more minutes explaining to Benny exactly what would happen, then cautioned him to sit tight and wait for the sheriff to come pick him up. He nodded in agreement, and Lisa left the office.

  Hurrying out to her table, she found Meredith placidly eating and her own dinner growing cold on the table across from Meredith. “I’m star
ving,” she said, sliding into the booth and taking a quick bite of her food. “Do you absolutely hate me?”

  “No. I am terribly intrigued, however. I never realized being a lawyer was so exciting.”

  “Believe me, it’s not, most of the time. Now, if you’ll put up with some more rude behavior from me, I have to call Quinn.”

  “Go ahead. You want me to have them put your dinner in a doggie bag?”

  “That’d be great. You’re so kind.”

  “No problem.” Meredith got up and went to ask Teresa for a take-home container, politely leaving Lisa to make her phone call in private.

  She dialed Quinn’s office number, assuming that he would still be at work, and after a moment, his voice came on the line. “Hey, Lisa. I just tried to call you at your apartment.”

  “I’m not there. I’m with Benny.”

  “What?” He paused, then said, “So you did know where he was.”

  “No. I told you—look, there isn’t time for this. The thing is, Benny wants to meet with you. He’s ready to talk.”

  “Okay. Where are you? I’ll come over and pick him up.”

  “Wait. Not so fast. I need a few assurances from you.”

  “Such as?”

  “Immunity from prosecution.”

  “You know I can’t promise that, Lisa.”

  “Then get the prosecutor to call me.”

  Quinn made a low growling noise on the other end of the line. “Let me come get you first. If you’re with Benny, you’re in danger, too.”

  “I’m fine. Call the D.A. and tell him to call me. Tell him I think Benny’ll make his whole case for him—Miguel Sanchez’s murder, too.”

  Quinn muttered a low oath. “I want you out of there, Lisa.”

  “I will be—as soon as I hear from Keith.”

  He hung up without even saying goodbye.

  Meredith returned with a foam container, and Lisa gratefully put her barely eaten dinner inside. They paid their check and went outside to their cars. Lisa got into her car and pulled out of the parking lot after Meredith, turning right and heading for Hammond. She kept an eye on the rearview mirror, and she wasn’t sure whether she was more relieved or scared when the headlights of one of the cars parked across the street came on and it pulled out onto the road after her.