by TL Reeve
AJ “Two Hands” Hoover – Analyst/Hacker and ASL interpreter for Scotty. Joins the team in Extracting Mateo.
Scotty “Ears” Reisner – Hacker extraordinaire. Joins the team in Extracting Mateo.
Jaqueline “Rainbow” Herrera – Ex Mexican Special Forces (Cuerpo de Fuerzas Especiales). She cares for her Autistic brother, Christian, on her parents Ranch.
Miguel Ángel – Federales. Helps Noah coordinate the takedown of member from the Nieto Cartel and also serves as backup for Thomas’ team when they infiltrate Emporio de Monstruo. (Emporium of Monsters)
Santiago Velasquez – Undercover within the Nieto Cartel. He is the right hand man to the leader of the cartel. Before the assignment, he was used to infiltrate gangs and destroy them from the inside. As a former member of the La Rasa Gang located in East L.A. he rose within the ranks quickly. But after a near death experience and an opportunity to change he took it. Now, he uses his rap sheet to his benefit while working for the FBI.
Luca Trapani – Has several names. He works for the CIA and is based out of the Mexico City Station, which is also located inside the US Embassy. Most of his undercover cases are in the sex trade division.
Jamie Escobar - an ex-member of the 18th Street Gang. He’s trying to save the lives of teens and children who might get caught up in the gang scene through GIP—Gang Intervention Programs. Part of the conditions for becoming a member and staying a member of GIP was to do odd jobs for Jamie—speaking at high schools, filming commercials for public access television, speaking to at risk groups, however when Jamie hooked up with Tex, the group parameters changed.
Bella “Hearts” Duran – Sister to Iliana, has been stuck in the Nieto Cartel since her and Enzo “Rascal” Suarez were recruited. Her father was killed at a young age, leaving her mother to raise two small children on her own, before Enzo and his father entered their life. She is part of the WVLS like Enzo. She was a caretaker for the Nieto Cartel, taking care of those who couldn’t care for themselves within the Emporium of Monsters.
Enzo “Rascal” Suarez – Member of WVLS who was recruited for the Nieto Cartel by his father. He joined thinking it would protect Bella, Iliana, and their mother from his father. Instead, it placed them in harm’s way. He is a runner and mule for the Nieto Cartel. He has seen more stuff than he should, which could be considered valuable information to some.
* * *
K-9 and Bomb Detection Division of R.O.O.T
Calvin Drake
Wayne Drake
Paul Drake
* * *
Strategic Reinforcement Team (SRT) a division of R.O.O.T
* * *
Commanders
AJ Hoover and Scotty Reisner
* * *
Mentors
Noah Hanover, Mateo Aquino, and Jamie Escobar
* * *
Members
Bexley ‘Bex’ Iniguez
Alé Romero
Alex Shin
Eito Wantanabe
Jacolbi Stewart
Bronx Lewis
Prologue
Duncan Frazier watched as the SUV carrying Hannah, Christian, and Jaqueline followed the ambulance with Scotty inside. The mission had been a success for the most part—the ‘most part,’ being the operative words. He glanced back at the shell of the building and shook his head. The front facade was gone, and a hole the size of a tank replaced the entrance. Debris littered the area, and in some spots chunks of lath and plaster continued to fall onto the floor of the club. Someone had told on them. Someone who had connections to the Federales and the cartels corrupting the majority of the police force. He had his suspicions, but without proof, he couldn’t say a word. Instead, he strode back into the mess of a building and got to work.
The blasts were rudimentary. Easy to spot if the person had bomb detection training, like Duncan did. The charges were hidden right under Raul’s nose. The C-4 had been placed in strategic areas around the building. If all of them had gone off like planned, it would’ve brought the building down on top of them. But, again, someone had an itchy trigger finger and went too soon.
Inside, the destruction was devastating. It was a wonder how anyone survived. Those who hadn’t lay strewn about, their bodies savaged by bullets and debris. Even with Asher’s help, it would take days before the building could be considered cleared, and since the others were likely to spend time at the hospital, he’d be in charge. Of course, if Asher had it his way, the bastard would be on the next plane to relieve Duncan of his duties.
The comm in his ear buzzed before Asher said Duncan’s name. “I don’t trust anyone on the scene. This is your job now. Tell me everything.”
Duncan twitched, surprised by Asher’s admission. “Are you asking me in a professional capacity or FBI capacity?”
Asher grunted. “Both.”
Duncan rubbed his forehead and blew out a breath. “Raul is gone. I suspect the bastard got out before all hell broke loose. The rest... It doesn’t sit right with me, Asher.”
“Why?”
The simple question required a complex answer, one Duncan didn’t think should be talked about while clearing the building. Too many noses to butt in and too may ears to eavesdrop. “Can I respond to that another time? Perhaps, after I leave here?”
“I understand. Make contact when you’ve done a complete sweep of the building. The Federales will begin the process of mopping up while the team sent to excavate the place will start in the morning.”
“I’m going to be honest with you, Asher. I don’t think the building can be reinforced enough for you to dig anything up.” Duncan glanced at the holes in the ceiling then those in the support walls. “It could come down at any moment.”
Asher blew out a string of curses. “Is this part of what you don’t want to talk about?”
“Yes.” He’d been on alert the whole evening, waiting for the go signal while pretending to enjoy the festivities. It should’ve been simple. It should’ve taken no more than two hours for them to begin the incursion. Unfortunately, shit went sideways faster than they’d been prepared for.
“I’ll let the team know and have them ready.” The comm went silent, ending their conversation.
Duncan continued through the mess. The tunnel to the left had completely caved in. Those who’d gone through there were either dead or trapped, and either way, they wouldn’t be found in time. It was a sickening means of dying but fitting, considering what the individuals of this club participated in—the Emporium of Monsters. The depraved individuals preyed on the weak and helpless, and there wasn’t an ounce of humanity left in them.
They deserved to rot.
Since the passageway to the right was still passable, he decided to clear that side of the building first. Going higher might require equipment they didn’t have at the moment. He stepped around the fallen debris so as not to disturb the weakened walls, until he found one of Raul’s men lying across the body of one of the poor helpless souls. If Duncan didn’t know any better, and to be honest, he didn’t, he’d have sworn the man was protecting the woman. Were there more like Santiago imbedded in the cartel? Did they know how disgusting Raul was and so they tried to protect the ‘submissives?’
He shook his head. He couldn’t think about it now. Later, while writing up his report and talking to Asher, he’d voice his finding and put it out there. Duncan kneeled beside the man and patted him down, discovering a set of keys on the guy’s belt loop. He glanced at the locks on the doors and began the arduous task of locating the key to fit the locks. After three of the rooms netted nothing, he opened the fourth door and paused.
A man and woman cowered away from the door, clinging to one another. Both of them were covered in several gang tattoos. He recognized the man, because he’d studied all of the files they had on the Nieto Cartel. The woman, not so much. Duncan stepped into the room with his hands up to show he wasn’t a threat.
“I’m Duncan Frazier, FBI. You can come out now. You’re safe,” he
said, drawing near. “Were you in here the whole time?”
The man helped the girl to her feet. Both of them were a little too wide-eyed for Duncan’s liking. The information he’d gleaned from the club dossier didn’t match up with the way this guy cared for the woman beside him.
“We were,” the man said, while continuing to check on the person at his side.
“I can get you out of here.” Already Duncan came up with a plan. He’d have to take them back to the hotel and question them there. Maybe, if he was lucky, which sometimes he wasn’t, they’d help him with the case.
The man gave Duncan a once over. His hardened brown eyes filled with suspicion and relayed years of tough living, while his body said he trained often, probably to protect himself and his companion. He was rough around the edges, kind of like Duncan, and attractive to boot. “Aren’t you part of the group who did this?”
“No.” Duncan shook his head. “We were the ones trying to prevent this from happening.”
“But you wanted to take down the cartel. You wanted Raul.” The man lifted his chin, exposing the smaller tattoos traversing his neck. Most were roman numerals, one was a set of lips, and another was a clown mask. “We knew everything, ese.”
Duncan had his confirmation. Only two people on the inside knew what the plan had been going in. One of them ended up betraying R.O.O.T. “We did.” He had to be careful with them. If he said too much, the guy might tuck tail and try to run. If he didn’t give the man enough, however, it could turn into an all-out brawl ending in one of their deaths.
“Told you,” the woman said. “I’ve been saying something isn’t right for a while now, and you didn’t believe me.”
“Hermosa, I did believe you.” The man sighed. “I—”
“Would you be willing to talk to me?” Duncan needed to get them to focus on the situation, not their petty squabble.
“We talk to you and we’re good as dead,” the man said. “Raul will eventually find us. He’ll always find us.”
“You could come with me. I can arrest you, so it doesn’t appear you both came willingly. Once we’re back in the States, I’ll hide you where no one can find you.” It was a long shot. He was only on loan to the FBI and didn’t have much pull. Still, if they gave information on the inner workings of the cartel and the club, their assistance would be immense in capturing and finally imprisoning Raul Iniguez. With the intel the FBI and R.O.O.T. gathered, if they stayed in Mexico, the chances of them surviving were slim and none. Raul would kill them to keep them from talking. Duncan had seen it one too many times over the years with different cartels.
“Fucking arrest us?” The man made a derisive sound. “Fuck that. I’d rather take my chances back in Cali.”
Duncan knew better. Going home alive might lead some to believe they did snitch on Raul. They were in a lose/lose situation. “It would be a show. I can’t promise you a lot of things, but I can get you out of here.”
The woman broke away from the man and stepped toward Duncan. “Where would we go? You say you were trying to prevent this from happening, but it did. What makes you think we can trust you?”
Duncan stared at her for a moment. “You can’t.”
She frowned. “What?” As tough as she sounded, Duncan didn’t think she’d hurt anyone. If anything, she reminded him of a caretaker. She wore a pair of brightly colored scrubs and had her long black hair pulled back in boxer braids. Across her brow and down to her temple were a smattering of heart tattoos with a red one in the middle. Like the man beside her, she had several, including a rosary and roman numerals. She had beautiful doe eyes and full bow-shaped lips. As he took in the rest of her appearance, he noticed the flower petals peeking out from the collar of her shirt.
“You can’t trust my words after this shitstorm. What’s the alternative though? The minute you walk out of what remains of this building, the Federales will arrest you, and you’ll rot in a cell before your trial ever begins. Worse, whoever initiated this little coup d'état will send someone to take care of any loose ends. And, if you think someone within the cartel will protect you, you’ve got another thing coming. Everyone is either saving their own asses or dead. Plus, your fearless leader, Raul, has fucked off to an unknown location. The minute he determines he’s safe, he’ll kill you too.” He went at them hard, maybe harder than he should have. He didn’t have the agency grace like Thomas, nor did he have the wherewithal to be ‘nice’ in situations like these. It wasn’t why he was brought into the agency.
The girl frowned while the man behind her hissed out a string of curses in Spanish. He couldn’t finesse them into coming with him. If he pushed any more than he already had, they might turn around and tell prosecutors he coerced false statements from them with the promise of freedom. Once the court heard that, Raul would be in the wind, and their case would be closed.
“We’ll go with you,” the man said.
“Enzo!” The girl pivoted. “What are you doing?”
“He’s right. We should’ve died today. We didn’t. Now, we have targets on our backs.” Enzo stepped forward. “If we go with him, we might have a chance.”
“At what?”
“Living another day,” Duncan said.
“What’s stopping you from killing us once we tell you everything we know?” She crossed her arms, drawing Duncan’s attention to her full breasts.
He lifted his gaze back to her whiskey-colored eyes. “Nothing.”
“Mantén a tus amigos cerca, pero tus enemigos más cerca,” she muttered.
“Yeah.” Duncan scratched his cheek. “Something like that.”
Bella narrowed her eyes. “What?”
“We’re going with you,” Enzo said, cutting his gaze toward the girl. “When can we leave?”
Duncan pushed into his hotel room in El Paso as the sun touched the horizon, bringing forth another day. He paid for a suite, so there was a full bedroom for Enzo and his sister Bella to use. Getting them away from the scene had taken a little finagling on his part. The Federales swarmed everywhere, along with their investigators. There were also state investigators in conjunction with those brought in by Asher. By the time he climbed into the SUV and drove away from the scene, the place had been crawling with people.
“Go through there.” Duncan pointed to a door. “Catch a few hours of sleep then we’ll begin the debrief.”
“Don’t you want to rest too?” Bella glanced up at him, hitching her finger at the bed. “We could take turns.”
It would be so easy for Duncan to join them. He’d been spying glances at the duo since they’d been on the road. However, he had to keep it professional, even if he found it attractive when Bella batted her eyes or when Enzo’s heated stare found his. “Why do you care if I sleep?”
She frowned. “You should rest, but if you’d rather be an asshole, fine by me.” She spun away from him and stormed toward the door he’d pointed to.
“She has a point.” Enzo shrugged, following her.
Duncan sighed. Of all the agents who could’ve found them, it had to be him. He wasn’t a people person. Being close to anyone other than Thomas created problems for him. When the door to the room closed, he tapped the comm in his ear and waited. Asher’s rough, sleep-addled voice answered a few seconds later.
Duncan jumped in with both feet. “I brought two people with me. They’re witnesses.”
“Fuck,” Asher snapped. “What kind?”
“I have a runner and his sister. They were in the building cowering when shit went down. I think they have information.”
“What’s your plan?” Asher perked up a bit, some of the sleepiness erased from his voice.
“Question them. If they have legitimate information that can help us with the case, I plan on bringing them to Virginia with me.” He would have to put them into protection, but in the meantime, he happened to know a place to keep them safe.
“This could blow up in your face and be a trap,” Asher reminded him.
“I agree. If it is,” he said, glancing at the door, “I’ll turn them loose.”
Asher chuckled. The dark, sadistic sound fit the man’s personality. “Cold-blooded.”
“In my line of work, you have to be.” He wondered if Asher had known the truth about him when he kicked Duncan out of the conference room at the start of this mission. The leader of R.O.O.T. had a shrewd sense about him, and Duncan’s suspicions were confirmed when Asher pulled him aside before sending him to Mexico.
“Keep me posted.”
“Understood.” Duncan cut the connection before removing his comms from his ear and his shirt. He needed a shower. Being inside the blown out remains of the club exposed him to all kinds of shit, including blood and dirt.
Once inside the bathroom, he closed the door part way, allowing him to keep an eye on the room without having to worry about where his wards would be. He glanced at his reflection in the mirror and winced. He looked like shit. His normally black hair had turned a dust-colored grey. His face was streaked by soot. His chest and torso had splotches of blood from where he’d checked on the fallen.
He turned on the water and finished stripping off his clothes while it warmed. He stepped under the hard spray and groaned. The shower massaged the tense muscles of his shoulders and back, pushing away the first throbs of an oncoming migraine. Everything that could go wrong on this stupid fucking mission did, and the one person they needed out of all of this was still on the run.
Frustration filled him.
A simple takedown had blown up in their faces on a massive scale. Because of the shootout and the explosives, the rat Raul got away, and they had nothing to show for it. Sure, he had witnesses and the initial mission of retrieving Scotty and Hannah panned out, but the rest... Fuck, they’d be lucky if they found anything of worth in the carcass of a building once the Federales went through it.