A couple of weeks go by without a lead as to where Hernandez disappeared to. We interrogate people from his gang, past girlfriends, and we’ve even pulled in some bosses from other crews that did business with him. Every lead turns into a dead end.
Chloe understands my need to know she’s safe and has adopted the habit of calling when she gets into work, and she texts every couple of hours and calls me when she’s on her way home. Is it overkill? Maybe, but I can’t shake this feeling that he’s still hanging around and waiting to pounce.
Alex offered to go back into his douchebag character and poke around. Caleb quickly kiboshed the idea, and I agree wholeheartedly. He’s been through enough and needs to step back and live the clean life before taking on any more undercover work.
Alex and I are on our way back from another dead end when Zeke calls. “Yo, just got a call from the Texas State Police. They’ve had a number of calls about spotting a man fitting the description of Luis Hernandez. They got their team out following up as we speak.”
I’m not sure how I feel about the news. Part of me is relieved that he’s far away from Chloe. The other part of me is frustrated as hell that we nailed the asshole and he’s out of our jurisdiction. Alex isn’t hiding his frustration at all.
“Fucking hell. Months and months of eating his horseshit. Ricco’s slimy initiation of handing me a new whore every night, thinking I’m gonna stick my cock in an STD-infected cunt. Watching my back ’cause the old-timers didn’t like the attention I was getting. He slips through our fingers. We let him get away,” he rambles, throwing out the odd cuss word in Spanish.
“We’ll get him or they’ll get him. He’ll be sent back here eventually,” I say, trying to calm him down.
“You know how long we’ve been at this. A year of watching and following. Six months getting my foot in the door, even longer once I was in. Why wasn’t there a police car following the van? It’s protocol, but not this time. This never should have happened. We have a leak.” Alex had mentioned this once before, and Caleb said he would investigate. So far, he’s been stonewalled, but Caleb’s no fool, and if he can’t go over the mountain, he’ll go through or under or around.
“You might be right. We’ve got to put our trust in Caleb,” I say.
“I trust Caleb with my life. You gotta see that someone’s leaking information to Los Asesinos. If they can pay off a guard, the likelihood is that they’ve got someone else on their payroll.”
“Let’s trace it back. We have the signatures of anyone who knew Luis was being moved that day. One by one, we’ll delve deeper. We do it together, and neither of us goes it alone.” I glance over at him, making sure he’s catching my meaning.
“Fair.” He puffs out a breath, then tilts his head back against the headrest, gaze on the ceiling of the car. “We had him, man.”
When we get back to the station, I confirm Hernandez’s last sighted location with Zeke. He pulls up an image from a place outside an ATM in Dallas.
“That’s him,” Zeke says.
I stare intently at the photo. “It’s fuzzy. Looks like him, but might not be.”
“I can run it through a recognition program, see if it matches,” he offers.
“Do it.”
His fingers are so fast on the keyboard, they make me dizzy, and within seconds, a ping goes off on the computer and a ninety-two percent match flashes on the screen.
“It’s a match,” he confirms.
I put a hand on his shoulder, my way of making up for being curt. “Thanks.”
“Do me a favor?” he asks. I jut out my chin to comply. “This is my own program. It’s not police approved. Keep this to yourself.”
I give him a smirk. “You got it. Honestly, you should have your own software company. You’d be making way more than a cop’s salary.”
“It’s not about the money,” he replies. Any cop who believes in the badge would say the same. It’s about justice, order, and looking after our community.
“Ain’t that the truth?” Alex saunters over to stand next to us. He glances over to the screen and sees the image. “Where is that?”
“Dallas,” I reply. Alex seems to have to force himself to turn from the image before he gives me a list filled with names.
“That’s everyone who had anything to do with Luis’s transfer. Everyone from his sleazy lawyer to the guy who services the vehicles before they drive them off the lot,” he confirms.
“Caleb’s already talked to the most likely people on the list. You can cross off the lawyer. Caleb’s had him in here twice. Nick’s told us all he knows. I don’t think he’s got anything else. Let’s start with the last person to visit him before the move,” I suggest.
Caleb’s striding our way, just as we’re about to leave. “Hold up. Marty’s conscious. Alex and Damian, go see if he can add anything to the story we already have.” Alex is ready to barrel out when Caleb grabs his arm. “Go gentle. His wife and kids are there. They’ve all been through enough. Get what you can and get out.”
On the way over to the hospital, Alex is silent, and not the good kind. It’s the silence of a simmering pot that’s about to overflow.
“Talk to me,” I urge.
“Caleb’s treating this like it’s nothing,” he explodes.
“You know that’s not true.”
“Isn’t it? He’s sitting behind that desk instead of coming with us. And he’s acting like I don’t have a reason to be pissed,” he says, waving his hand in the air.
“Have you ever thought about the fact that he’s feeling guilty? That he dropped the ball?” I ask. Alex turns in his seat giving me his full attention. “You’re more than a cop who works under him. You’re his brother, and he sent you into the lion’s den, and every fucking second you were in there, he was worried sick about you. Now Hernandez is gone, and he’s looking at all we’ve done and going through every decision he’s made up to that point and wondering if he could have done one thing different, we could still have him in custody.” I give him a minute to take it in. “We look after each other, but he’s feeling the pressure from above. This was his operation, and even though it didn’t happen on our watch, he’s wading through fire.”
We ride the rest of the way in silence. Alex stares out the window until we get to the hospital. It’s not until we’re outside Marty’s room that Alex turns and stops me. “I know Caleb’s doing all the right things, but I can’t help being mad as hell. You’re right, though, it’s not at him, and he’s got enough pressure to deal with. I’ll rein it in.”
“Come over tonight and hang with Chloe and me. Zeke and Caleb can use a night to chill. We’ll think more clearly if we can let it go for a night,” I suggest. Dad used to say that to us all the time. Alex remembers it too, based on the goofy smile on his lips.
“Your dad was awesome,” he says.
“Yeah, he was.” I hate hospitals. The minute I walk into one I remember it being the last place I saw Dad. Then ending up in one after I was shot didn’t help my view of the place. The smell, the beeping machines, it all churns my stomach. I clear my throat. “Let’s see if Marty’s up for a chat.”
When we walk into his room, his wife is stroking his forehead. One of his daughters is curled up in a chair, but straightens when she sees us.
“Hello, ma’am. I’m Detective Locke, and this is Detective Perez. I hope we aren’t interrupting.” I look over at Marty and see his eyes flicker open. It takes a second, but he recognizes me, and his eyes come to life.
“Did you find him?” Marty asks, his voice gravelly and low.
“We’re working on it, sir. That’s why we’re here. We’re hoping that we may be able to ask you a few questions. Sometimes something that seems so slight might make a difference.”
Alex takes a step forward and speaks to his wife. “This will give you and your daughter a chance to grab some coffee. We promise not to leave until you come back.” Alex must sense her hesitation, but as soon as he tells her that Marty won’t be left alone, her shoulders drop.
“My mother is coming to watch the kids. I have to drop Katie home. I’ll be back in an hour. Is that okay?” she asks her husband.
“Go, baby. Stay home. Get some sleep. I’m worried about you,” Marty says.
“I haven’t slept one night without you by my side since the day we were married. We’re not starting now,” she insists, tears welling in her eyes.
Marty brings her fingers to his lips and kisses them. “Okay, baby. I’ll make the nurse bring the cot back in,” he says. Marty’s wife drops a kiss on his lips, then gathers their daughter and hustles out.
“Be back soon,” she says before she leaves. Marty’s gaze follows her out the door.
“We’re sorry to have to make you retell this nightmare, but we want this guy back where he belongs,” Alex tells him, and Marty nods at the chair beside him.
“Take a seat. Ask me all you want. Not only do I want you to capture this guy, I want them all behind bars.”
“Let’s start with that. How many are all?” I ask.
“Not including Nick, who I found out later is a son-of-a-bitch traitor, I saw four. One in the car, one who came up to Nick, and two who stormed the back of the van to get to Hernandez.” He’s got a right to be pissed. Finding out your partner betrayed you is hard to live with.
“How long have you known Nick?” Alex asks.
“Five years. He’s godfather to my youngest. Do you fucking believe that?” Marty’s getting aggravated, and that’s the last thing we want.
I take a seat next to Alex. “It hurts, man, but we’re strong enough to move past this and have a future with our families. Has anything been different with Nick lately?”
“A couple of weeks before this went down, he told me his wife was sick. He was worried about her all the time. The day of, it’s like he was a new man, no cloud over his head. I thought maybe the doctors figured it out and they were good. I was happy for him.” He pauses for a moment before asking, “How do you do that to a friend? Set them up to get shot.”
“I’m not going to make excuses for him,” Alex bites out. “Friends got your back.”
“I’m not condoning his choices, but it could be that Hernandez found out about his wife and offered him a way to pay for her treatment,” I say.
Marty thinks on it. I can see the wheels turning in his head. “I’d do anything for my wife,” he admits.
“Desperation leads to terrible decisions. We’ll check it out and let you know. Whether you make peace with it or not, you still deserve to know. Also, if it’s any consolation at all, he never thought you’d get hurt. According to Nick, they were supposed to take their man and leave. He didn’t count on you fighting back,” I tell him.
We ease away from the topic of Nick and begin to dig into the events leading up to the transport. We make note of anyone that looked out of place, last-minute changes to the schedule, and that’s when he remembers. “We weren’t supposed to be on that day. It was our day off. We got a call the night before requesting for us to take the shift. Got into a big fight with the wife about that. She was planning on spending the day together, and I took the shift for extra money. I got three kids to put through college.” He pauses. “I guess she was right.” He sighs. “She’s right an awful lot. Her head’s going to swell.” He manages a soft chuckle.
Alex is making note of everything while I keep the conversation flowing. Marty is telling us more than he realizes. Based on the descriptions of the men who freed Luis, Alex is compiling his own list of suspects. Having spent almost every waking hour with these guys, he may be able to identify them.
We leave and promise to be in touch if anything comes of the information he’s shared.
“It’s a start,” Alex says as we head out.
“Caleb needs an update.”
“We can tell him tonight if he’s coming to hang out too.”
“Yeah, I’ll ask.” I give him a call and invite both Zeke and him to come over. The next call I make is to Chloe to let her know we’ll be having company,
“Awesome, honey bear. I’m going to ask Sabrina to come by. You and the guys can hang out, and Sabrina can keep me company.”
In the background, Sabrina says, “I heard my name.”
“We’ll order in. Pizza and wings,” I tell her.
“See you at home.”
Chloe
I can feel the electricity in the air whenever Sabrina and I are in the same room as the guys. For the most part, we hang around on the back deck, having a glass of wine after dinner. When it gets chilly and we come back inside, Alex fixes his gaze on Sabrina’s every move. When Zeke tells one of his lame jokes and she laughs, I see the glint in Alex’s eyes. He likes her. A lot.
Sabrina’s phone rings several times throughout the night, and each time, she declines the call, saying they can leave a message if it’s important. I don’t mean to be nosy, but I can see it’s the same person calling all the time. The caller is persistent enough that Sabrina finally picks up.
“Are you ignoring me, you stupid cunt?” I am by no means eavesdropping. The guy on the other side of the line is bellowing so loudly that you can hear him clearly from across the room. Embarrassed as hell, Sabrina runs into the kitchen.
Alex is on his feet and heading that way when Caleb says to him, “Do you know what you’re doing, man?”
“It’s her business. If she wants us to know, she’ll tell us,” Damian adds.
The room is dead quiet, and we hear Sabrina sobbing in the kitchen. I jump up to console my friend. Alex watches me go, but I can tell he wishes it were him.
I find Sabrina sitting at the table, hands covering her face, crying softly. I sit beside her and wrap my arms around her, and that’s when the hailstorm of tears comes fast and furious.
“I got you, sweetie. Shh, it’s going to be okay,” I whisper, waiting for her tears to subside.
“He f—found me. I have—have to—leave,” she hiccups. I hand her more tissues and let her wipe her face.
“Who found you?” I stroke her hair gently.
“My-my ex.”
“What does he want?”
“Me,” she sobs.
“And you don’t have feelings for him anymore?”
“He’s crazy, Chloe. He’s obsessed. He locked me in the house. He wouldn’t even let me go to work. Told my parents I never wanted to see them again, alienated me from my friends, and now he’s found me,” she says with a whimper.
I gasp. “Oh my God. We have to tell Damian.”
“It won’t do any good. The police can’t do anything unless he’s caught in the act, and by that point, I’ll be dead.”
“They can help,” I insist.
“I won’t go through another six months of captivity. The only reason I got away the last time was because he had to go to a work function and needed to bring his girlfriend because it was a couples thing. I went with a bunch of the other ladies to the bathroom and made a run for it. It’s been almost two years, but he’s tracked me down, and he won’t stop until he gets me.” The hair on the back of my neck stands on end.
“He’s not getting anywhere near you.” Alex is in the doorway, and four pairs of eyes are on us, all very angry. Alex has his fists clenched, and the others are just as upset.
“I have to go. Last time, he almost found me. He beat up the man I worked for to find out where I lived. I barely got away and had to escape out the fire escape. Cameron will do what it takes to get me back, and it’s not because he loves me, but because he thinks he owns me,” Sabrina says.
“How did you get mixed up with someone like him?” I ask.
“We met at the park where I had lunch, and he seemed nice. We dated awhile, then moved in together, and that’s when he started to change. At first, I thought it was cute that he was so worried about me, but then it got worse and then violent.” She puts her hands over her trembling lips and says with a shaky voice, “I’m so stupid.”
“Right. First things first, you’re not going back to your apartment tonight,” Caleb announces.
“She’s with us,” Damian states.
“Second, we need his information to see if we can locate this fucker. To and from work, you go with Chloe, her car, not yours. If you can take a few days off, that’ll be even better. I can have Zeke or Alex work from here when Damian’s out,” Caleb says.
“This isn’t your problem,” Sabrina begins to say.
“As a cop, the citizens of this city are ours to protect. As our friend, no way in hell are we letting this guy make you live in fear and run for your life,” Damian says.
Alex isn’t speaking, but his expression says it all.
I knew there was something weighing on Sabrina the last week or so. I never would have guessed it would be this horrific. No wonder she’s been on edge. She jumps when the phone rings, doesn’t matter whose phone. She kept saying she wasn’t sleeping well and that was her excuse for being fidgety.
Now, it all comes out.