Tess's stomach churned with anxiety.
Michael reached over and took her hand, squeezing it to calm her, but until they had actually picked up Rachel and Sadie, she wouldn't believe the attempt to rescue them would succeed.
"What if he doesn't let Sadie go?"
Michael shrugged. "Then, we regroup, and I contact folks in the local police force who we know we can trust. We go in with big guns. That will take some time, so if we can do this, it'll remove both Rachel and Sadie from immediate danger."
"You don't think they'll come after us?"
"I don't know for sure, but hopefully, they won't be watching Rachel that closely. We'll see when we get to the location how busy it is."
They drove to the main street in San Felipe and found the ice cream store, parking down the block from it on the right side of the street. Tess sat in the back, behind Michael and was ready to open the door when Michael gave her the signal. Craig was waiting on the outskirts of town in his own vehicle. They would meet up if the coast was clear and Rachel and Sadie would rejoin him, but for now, and until it was safe, they would go with Michael in case someone had already seen Craig's vehicle and knew who owned it.
Then, both vehicles would cross the border together, using the farther crossing so none of the border guards recognized Rachel and questioned why she was re-entering the U.S. If there was any trouble getting Rachel and Sadie back into the U.S., Michael would step in and flash his badge. Hopefully, that would grease the skids.
Outside, the street was filled with tourists and residents going about their business, shopping and walking down the street. It was a nice calm spring day and with the sun lower on the horizon, the day was finally starting to cool off a bit. The downtown area was festive, with decorative lights strung between the streetlights. Street vendors hawked various foods, including tacos and ice cream as well as other local delicacies. A busker sat on a street corner and played Spanish guitar. It was really quite picturesque, and Tess thought she might enjoy a vacation in the tiny town if it weren't for the underlying threat from the cartel.
But the cartel's presence and seeming iron grip on the town made all the difference.
Soon enough, up drove Rachel's vehicle -- a small camper van with California license plates. Rachel and Sadie got out and walked hand in hand to the ice cream store. They waited in line, talking and laughing together like they were a couple of tourists out for a nice evening in town and not two fugitives from the U.S. who were hoping to escape a vicious crime lord in the cartel. They got their ice creams and started to walk down the street, still hand in hand. They stopped to look at a small display of toys at a shop next to the ice cream store, and Tess felt her pulse increase.
She wanted to get it over with.
Finally, they started walking again, the street busy with pedestrians.
Tess glanced around and couldn't see anyone who looked like cartel goons, but what did she know? The people on the street looked like normal tourists to her.
"Open the door when I tell you," Michael said. He was busy watching the street using the side view mirror.
Finally, he nodded. "Now."
Tess opened the side door and scooted back over to her seat. In less than ten seconds, Sadie piled in with Rachel right behind her. Rachel closed the door and they drove off, pulling into traffic as the crowds continued past them. Tess craned her neck to see if any vehicles followed them, but so far, it looked like no one rushed to their vehicle or pulled out into traffic behind them.
"Looks clear," Michael said.
Beside Tess, Rachel and Sadie fastened their seatbelts.
"Hi, Sadie," Tess said, giving the small girl a smile. "How are you?"
"Hi," Sadie replied, smiling politely. "Who are you?"
"This is Tess and Michael," Rachel said. "We're going to go back to the U.S.. They're driving us to where Craig is so we can go home. Would you like that?"
Sadie nodded. "I want to go to school," she said. "I don't have to go back to Miguel's house?"
"No," Rachel said and slipped her arm around Sadie. "You don't have to. We're going to live with Craig again back in the U.S. Maybe Montana or Wyoming. Would you like that?"
Rachel nodded, and then she started to cry.
They were tears of relief and fear and anxiety all mixed together. Tess reached out and squeezed Rachel's shoulder, giving the woman a smile.
“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Sadie asked, her expression fearful. “Why are you crying?”
Rachel shook her head and struggled to speak. “I’m happy. That’s all. Happy to be going back to the U.S.”
They drove on, and Tess kept craning her head to see if anyone was following them.
"Looks like the coast is clear," Michael said, driving out of the town to the location where they would meet Craig. It was a rest stop about ten miles out of town. "No one is following us that I can see. Maybe Miguel was trying to scare you into complying with him."
"Maybe," Rachel said, drying her eyes with a tissue Tess gave her. "I'll believe it when we cross the border."
They parked beside Craig's vehicle.
When Sadie saw Craig, she gave out a squeal.
"Craig!" she said, jumping into Craig's open arms. They embraced for a moment, but then Michael put his arm on Craig's shoulder.
"We better get moving," Michael said, his voice soft.
Craig nodded and let Sadie down. "We have to go. You and your mom get into my car, okay? We're going back home."
They made the switch, Craig and Michael quickly helping her and Sadie into Craig's vehicle.
"You take the lead," Michael said, shaking Craig's hand. "I'll follow. If I see anything, I'll call you. Keep driving until we get to Tijuana and the border crossing. Don't stop unless I tell you to."
Craig nodded and gave Tess a quick hug. "We won't. Thanks a million," he said to them. "I hope you can help us if there's any issues at the border."
"We'll be fine," Michael said and gave Rachel a smile.
They drove off, with Craig in the lead and Michael following close behind. The traffic on the highway was light, but so far, there was no sign that anyone had followed them out of town.
It was the first time in a while that Tess felt like she could actually breathe.
"That was almost too easy," Michael said as they passed the fifteen-minute mark with no one apparently in pursuit. Ahead of them, Craig drove with Rachel and Sadie. Traffic passed them, and nothing seemed to be concerning. No one tried to pull them over, and no police were tagging along behind them.
"Maybe Miguel was trying to scare Rachel into compliance," Tess said. "Maybe he had no one watching her after all."
"Probably. I haven't picked up any tail yet, and so I think we're in the clear. Hopefully, we'll have no problems at the border. If we do, I'll have to contact Nick and have him clear things up."
"Let's hope."
The drive to the border was pretty fast, taking over five hours. When they arrived at the border crossing, Michael pulled in directly behind Craig's vehicle. They stopped and spoke to the Customs and Border Patrol officer who inspected their documents and waved them through. When Michael pulled up, they received the same treatment. Apparently, all their documents were accepted, and they were both waved on without even a cursory inspection.
Now back in the U.S., they stopped at the first gas station in town and Michael pulled the Jeep into a parking spot beside Craig's vehicle.
Michael and Tess both got out to stretch their legs and speak with Craig, who was standing beside the vehicle. Rachel was leading Sadie into the station, probably to buy something to drink or use the restroom.
"Well, that went better than I feared," Craig said and stood with his hands on his hips, watching as Tess and Michael walked up.
"It did. Maybe Miguel was all talk and no action. I thought we might be followed but I think we can safely say we're clear at this point."
"Maybe he figured it wasn't worth the effort. Thirty-thousand dollars is a pretty nice sum for doing nothing."
"Maybe," Michael replied and glanced around. "Should we keep going for a while or do you want to stay here tonight?"
"Rachel would rather keep going if possible. She wants to get as far away from the border area as possible.”
"Understood. Okay," Michael said and took out his cell. While Tess watched, he opened the Google Maps app and checked for towns a few hours in the distance. "We could make Palm Springs in three hours if we head northwest. We could stay there overnight and then get an early start in the morning."
"We're not coming back to Seattle, though, right? Rachel wants to go to Montana."
"Yes. Nick is setting things up now, but we may need to come to speak with her at some point. Knowing that she's safe and where she is and that she's under police protection will help us close the case. But we will also want her to provide testimony about the body of her sister and anything she can provide us about her father. She has to provide a statement on that."
"She said she'll cooperate but only if she's not in Washington State. She doesn't feel safe."
"We're making all the arrangements," Michael said and that seemed to calm Craig. "I think we'll go to Salt Lake and then Missoula, Montana. How does that sound?"
"Sounds good to me," Craig said.
"I need you to make sure to stay close to me so we can coordinate with authorities in Montana. You'll travel ahead of me so I can tail you, make sure you're safe."
"I will," Craig said. "Thanks a million. Having you here gave Rachel the confidence to come back to the states. It means I can work, and she can work, and Sadie can have some kind of normal life. She could start school in the fall. It'll be better than if we went to Montevideo, like Rachel was planning."
"I think so," Michael replied.
Rachel and Sadie returned from the station and came to stand with them. "Where to now?"
"We're going to Palm Springs to stay for the night and then tomorrow, we'll head to Salt Lake City," Michael said. "Then, we'll keep going to Montana. By the time we get there, Nick should have a safe house set up for you."
"Good," Rachel said. "I can't thank you enough, Michael, for helping us escape Miguel."
"I did nothing, really," Michael said. "You did it all yourselves. Both of you are really brave."
"Let's stop at the first motel we come to with vacancies," Tess said.
They agreed and after getting some coffee for the road, the two vehicles left the gas station and took off on the secondary highway northwest to Palm Springs.
They arrived on the outskirts of the desert city after two in the morning, and checked into a small motel that had vacancies. The price was low, and the rooms clean enough, although Tess found some dead bugs in the corner, but a check of the mattress told her that there were no bedbugs. It would do for the night.
Craig, Rachel and Sadie would stay in the next room.
Once they said goodnight, Tess had a shower and got into bed next to Michael, who was busy on his laptop, no doubt sending a message back home about the events of the day.
"You sending an email to Nick?"
Michael nodded. "I want this to be the first thing he reads when he gets up in the morning," he said and closed his laptop. "I hope we're doing the right thing, taking Rachel and Sadie to Montana with Craig."
"It is," Tess replied and pulled the covers up over her shoulder. "They'll start over in Missoula. Sadie will go to school in September. Maybe being somewhere new, they can escape the ghosts from their pasts."
"Hope so," Michael said and got up, going to have his own shower before bed.
As Tess closed her eyes, waiting for Michael to return, she felt that maybe she could finally relax.