Chapter 13
Kai unfoldedfrom the driver’s side of her car and stared at the house. She looked at Amber as she joined her on the stone walk. They started up the path, and Kai stopped when they got close to the front door.
“Head around to the back in case she’s home and tries to squirt.” Kai touched Amber on the shoulder to halt her. “Arm yourself. We have every reason to believe this woman to be the head of the very sophisticated Los Esmeraldas and extremely dangerous.”
Amber nodded. “Yes, boss.” She pulled her weapon out of the holster and skirted the side of the house, making a beeline for the backyard.
Kai continued down the walk, which had nicely trimmed hedges alongside the white and light blue house. Once she reached the front door, she knocked and waited.
While she was waiting, she glanced down and realized there was a smear on the side of the doorjamb. She looked closer and stiffened. It was blood.
She knocked again, harder. “Federal agents!” she called out. She heard a noise inside, a kind of shuffling, and then the sound of breaking glass. She left the landing, running to the side of the home to discover a man climbing out of the window. He jumped to the grass, then leaped for the fence. But Amber was there, her gun trained on him.
“Don’t move,” she said, but the guy took one look at Kai and Amber. He didn’t hesitate. He brought his gun around to bear on Amber, and both of them fired. He went down. After entering, they found a dead man in one of the bedrooms.
She bet the slug in his chest would match the gun found at Finch’s house. They searched the rest of the residence but didn’t find any other weapons. But it was clear that Freddy was planning a trip. She had two suitcases on her bed.
Kai left Freddy’s bedroom and went back out to the living room. Amber was bagging her laptop. “Kelly is on her way over to pick up the two bodies. We’re pretty much done here. Let’s head back to the office.”
Before she could even turn, she heard brakes squealing in the quiet air.
Kai looked over her shoulder frowning. If it had been the cops, there would have been sirens blaring, which meant?—
The sudden, instantaneous rising of the hair on the back of her neck had her jumping at Amber.
“Get down,” she shouted as automatic gunfire ripped through the residence and adrenaline flooded her system. They grunted when they hit the floor, staying still. Bullets punctured through the walls, opening holes and streaming sunlight inside. Windows shattered everywhere as the gunmen swept their weapons back and forth.
For several very long minutes, they lay there as their world was filled with whizzing bullets, a wall of deadly lead.
Kai and Amber were ready once the shooting stopped. “I’ll take the back. Call 911.” Releasing Amber, Kai pulled her weapon and crawled on her elbows toward the back of the house, her heart racing but her reflexes honed and ready for anything. Kai glanced back at Amber. With eyes like steel, Amber nodded curtly and pulled out her phone. Kai knew she would have her back, and vice versa.
Kai heard the sound of glass crunching beneath someone’s boot. She gained her feet and, in a crouched run, made it to the extended island with the sliding glass door entrance just behind it. She went to her side so she could get a better look at the situation.
When she peeked out from behind the kitchen counter wedged there on her side, she saw several men moving into the house through the sliding glass doors. She knew she had no choice but to engage them. More would be coming in through the front, but she’d have to leave those to Amber, whom she trusted implicitly. It was her job to take out the ones coming in the back.
She pushed out and took out the first man. He reeled back, hit the small dining table, knocking it back and sending all the chairs tumbling. The second guy blasted at her, but she ducked behind cover just in time, the bullets burying themselves in the plaster and wood.
Typical cartel move—overwhelm your targets with superior firepower and sheer numbers. But that was why she and her agents trained for just this scenario. What they thought they would get away with using brute force, she and Amber would handle with finesse and their own brand of street fighting.
She intended the underdogs to win.
She took a hard breath and went for the second man. He was coming through the door with another man behind him. She got into a crouch and waited until she heard the second crunch of glass. With a mighty push of her thighs, she launched herself from her hiding position, sliding on the floor, she pulled off several shots, both of them hitting dead center of mass, one for each man.
She came to rest against the wall and was up and running to them. She stepped on the man’s wrist and shook her head. The other man wasn’t moving. She pulled out her cuffs and secured him to the frame of the broken sliding glass door, then rolled the other gang member and zip-tied his hands behind his back.
Then she turned and sprinted for the hallway. “Amber?”
“Hiya, boss,” Amber said from behind the couch. Several men were dead at the entrance to the door. In the distance, sirens blared, and she heard the sound of running feet and the squeal of tires, but the thugs were too late as cop cars pulled up and blocked their exit. Several men ran from the vehicles with the cops in pursuit.
Amber rose from behind the couch as two officers came through the door. Kai already had her hands up, and Amber followed suit.
“Federal agents,” she said, showing them the badge clipped to the waistband of her jeans. They lowered their weapons.
After explaining to them what had happened, Kelly showed up with the NCIS van, and they got the seven bodies in the van for Kelly to process. The rest of the suspects in custody were headed over to NCIS for interrogation.
She and Amber got back into their vehicle and headed back to Pendleton, so thankful both of them had gotten out of the kill box unscathed. “You all right, Amber?” The younger woman had always been as tough as nails through her service to NCIS. She and her husband, Tristan, had met during a case of what was thought as friendly fire, but turned into something far worse and had almost taken both her and Tristan’s lives. Thankfully, Tristan had been a seasoned cold-weather Marine instructor at the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center in Pickel Meadows, California.
“Yes. This had to be one of the most deadly and volatile cases we’ve ever had.” She pushed back some of her long blonde hair that had escaped her ponytail. “How about you? You’ve been shot at more in the last three days than in the whole time you’ve been our boss. Can’t be fun to have a target on your back.”
“I’m holding up okay. It has been quite a case, but I think we’re getting to the bottom of it.”
Amber nodded, then with a whimsical smile, she said, “How is it working with the delectable Davis Nishida.”
Kai laughed softly, just the thought of Davis sending her heart into overdrive. “Delectable?”
“Oh, come on. The man is drop-dead gorgeous and I’m not blind. I’ve seen the way you look at him.” She gave Kai a knowing look. “I’m very much in love with Tristan, but I’m not dead.”
Amber’s response made her smile instead of freeze up like she had in the past when it came to her private life. She couldn’t help thinking how right Amber was about their initial meetings and the immediate attraction between them. The man’s smoldering looks, shameless interest, and direct approach had told her how interested he was in her. There was no denying the sexual tension that sparked between them whenever they were near one another. Heated glances. Unspoken desires, especially when they inadvertently touched, made her crave so much more. “Okay, the man has it in spades, and that’s not all.”
“No?”
“He’s very kind, thoughtful, and a really good kisser.”
Amber chuckled. “Ah, you are as smart as I think you are.” She smiled then sobered. “You deserve someone in your life, Kai.” She took a breath. “We don’t know what happened in your past, but we know something did. Obviously, it’s not any of our business, but?—”
“You’re curious about me.”
“Well, yeah, but more importantly, we care about you…me, Derrick, and Austin. Drea had nothing but good things to say when she left for DC, and Lucy worships you.”
Amber was feeling the same effects of the gun battle, the adrenaline rush just starting to pass. For women, it lingered in them for almost an hour. “My past was tough, but I’m beginning to realize that it’s not who I am anymore. Maybe we can talk about it over drinks at a later time.” The thought of finally opening up to someone other than Davis made that tightness around her heart release a bit. Was this progress? Was she moving away from the lonely existence she’d firmly placed herself in for so long? Reach out for the comfort other people could provide? She took a hard breath. “But Davis scares me a little, and the thought of messing up what we have built over just a few short days—I don’t know. It’s all so intense. I feel we need a breather to find out what this all really means.” Maybe she needed some time to digest everything, time in which she wasn’t inundated by Davis and his very distracting presence. She had so much to work through, to reconcile, to find a path forward.
“After this is over, you should take that time.” Amber reached out and clasped her hand briefly and squeezed. “You’ve earned a vacation. We can manage.”
Kai nodded, thinking that she loved her colleagues right back. All of them, including Andrea “Drea” Hall and Chris Vargas, even Makayla Littlestar, now Ballentine. She married Errol “Pitbull” Ballentine, and it was eerie how their backgrounds were so similar. She’d lost her son and husband to violence stemming from her job before she joined NCIS, but her circumstances were the same. Kai’s time in special operations had been top notch, and Lucy was on her way to becoming another solid agent. She was blessed to have had them all in her life.
When she got off the elevator, Davis was standing there. “Heard you ran into a little resistance.”
She nodded. “We did, but we recovered two bodies who I think may have been with Freddy at Finch’s mansion. I suspect she shot the senator.”
His face inches from hers, he stared at her for a moment, the muscles in his jaw hardening. “Okay on all of that, but are you all right?” She opened her mouth, but he interrupted before she could say anything. “That’s not exactly the right question. I can see you and Amber are all right. I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”
The way he said it, the look on his face, made her heart squeeze. She tried to ignore that and focus on business. “We should get a BOLO out on Freddy.”
“Already done. The gang squad is also rounding up Los Esmeraldas.”
“I’m all right, but I appreciate your concern,” she said, even as her insides were melting a little. This was so new to her…to have someone actively concerned about her. It had been a long time—a very long time—since someone had taken care of her. It nearly put her into sensory overload when he brushed her arm, sending a trail of shivers down her back. Tension blossomed in her, and she had to work to keep her hands at her sides. She wanted to touch him so much. She wished she could have a private moment with him, but it was impossible, as they were on the verge of getting to the end of this case.
He smiled, and there was something tender, almost vulnerable in it. “We are good together, Kai. I like that. On and off the playing field.”
She held his gaze, couldn’t seem to find whatever it was she had left that would keep her head strictly on business. Davis was too important for that. “I agree,” she said, relieved to say the words. “But off the playing field will have to wait for a while longer.”
He nodded, his expression etched with strain. Swallowing hard, he looked at her, his eyes dark and tender. Then releasing a long, shaky sigh, he shifted looking toward the bullpen. This moment wasn’t exactly over, it was just postponed until they could be alone. “Kelly has started on the bodies. She’s working on the suspect you found dead in the house.”
“Good. Where are we on Freddy?”
“We’re digging into her possible job situation, but we’ve got something even better than that.”
“What’s that?”
“We’ve figured out what Eduardo’s text meant. The 3865707 is an IMO number for the cargo ship Summer Sky, which means the 2501 number is the port number for San Diego. The International Maritime Organization assigned numbers to identify ships to prevent maritime fraud and enhance the security of merchant vessels. “We’re still working on the 7785 number, but the freedom in the message most likely refers to Freedom Roses shipped from Ecuador. Austin is on the phone with the shipping company to find out the schedule for the Summer Sky. As soon as we have that information, we’ll know the date and time the ship is supposed to dock.”
“Keep us posted on that information, won’t you, special agent?” Leigh said as she approached them. “We’ve got some suspects to interrogate.”
“Will do, ma’am,” he said, giving Kai one last look filled with subtle amusement at the woman’s assertive demeanor. He walked away with his usual confidence. She watched him go, appreciating the width of his shoulders and firm backside before she looked at Leigh. “Does your pushy, somewhat acerbic personality work for you in all situations?”
Leigh wasn’t even fazed by Kai’s question. She didn’t even have to think about it. “Pretty much, and when it doesn’t, I get really mean. It’s all part of my charm,” she said, then looked at Hazard. “Right, petty officer?”
Leigh tipped her head, lifting an inquiring brow, and regarded her bodyguard.
With an amused smile, he chuckled, the sound as intimate as his blue-eyed gaze traveling over Leigh’s face. “She’s a regular ball-busting sweet talker all right.”
Leigh smirked at him and grabbed Kai’s arm as they passed, heading toward the interviewing rooms in the back. “He’s such a smart ass. Luckily, once this case is over, he’ll be going back to his team. Navy SEALs…they’re so damned intense with all their commando bullshit, mansplaining, and hero complexes.”
“And you didn’t notice how handsome or ripped he is.”
She sniffed. “No. I don’t have time to notice anything like that, especially about someone who’s temporary and only here to guard me. He takes everything so very seriously, by the way.” When they reached the first room, she said, “I told my boss I didn’t need a bodyguard, but he’s so spooked about the task force, and losing Betsy was such a blow. They’ve known each other for quite some time.” Her voice broke, but she cleared it and continued. “All that matters now is getting the bastards who murdered her and so many others. That’s why we’re here and I’m such a ball buster. I can’t let down the people who I seek justice for because they cannot seek it for themselves. We stand against the world’s thugs, Kai, and we have to win. We can’t let them get away with murder, no matter how rich they are or believe they’re above the law.” A fire lit in her unusually bright eyes, which were a pretty intense emerald green.
Kai had to alter her opinion of Leigh. Even though she was somewhat abrasive, she was on the same kind of mission they all were on. “Let’s get to work, then.”
The rest of the afternoon was spent interrogating the suspects, and even though they were an effective tag team, the only thing they got out of the thugs who had tried to gun her and Amber down was a whole lot of nothing. They were either too dedicated or too scared to give them any information that was going to get them to what cartel was behind these incidents.
After a frustrating talk with the last suspect, Kai decided that she needed a break. She checked in with the bullpen who was still working on tracking down Freddy but discovered that the Summer Sky was expected to dock in the morning. After trading a meaningful look with Davis, who was working with Jason to track down Freddy, Kai headed down to the morgue. Kelly was finishing up with the last body. She looked up as Kai came into the chilly room.
“Hey, I was just about to come upstairs to find you.”
“What do you have?”
She walked over to the first metal table where the man they had found dead in Freddy’s house was stretched out. “This is Pablo Martinez. He took a twenty-two to the chest, right through the heart. He was dead before he hit the floor.”
“And, that slug came from the senator’s twenty-two,” Math said as he entered the room. “It matches the gun.” So the senator had killed the man but hadn’t been fast enough to stop the bullets that had killed him. She sure would have loved to have had the chance to interrogate the senator. A wealth of information died with him, which was why Freddy had broken into the mansion in the first place. As she’d discovered in Ecuador, the Los Esmeraldas left no loose ends.
Kai was completely aware that once they identified the cartel involved with these murders, the justice department and the attorney general would take over the dismantling of the deadly organization. It would fall to Leigh and whatever force they tagged to bring the leader to justice. She had to make sure that Leigh kept her apprised of the situation, and especially of the takedown. She had no doubt they would get the information they needed to lead them to the people responsible for giving the orders for the murder of Mayta Mosquera, where everything was put into motion. Kai suspected that Freddy was the leader who had been present when Mayta was being tortured, and Kai wouldn’t be surprised if Freddy had pulled the trigger to end the innocent young woman’s life. She’d deprived her and Carter of a chance for their romance to blossom and lives that should have been lived to the fullest.
She also couldn’t forget Nate, his counsel over the years, and his dedication to his job. She could forgive him for his refusal and inability to confide in her about Carter’s involvement, which had stalled their initial investigation. Whether he’d been right or wrong was now moot. All she knew was that she had lost a good, solid friend.
Kelly went over to the drawer and rolled out Senator Finch’s body. “He died from a nine mil,” Math said.
She stared down at the man who had sold out the task force, betrayed his country, and endangered his family for money. He’d been in bed with ruthless killers and his luck had run out. So many bodies and blood on his hands.
“He was shot in the chest first, then the head, which killed him,” Kelly said, rolling him back inside.
He’d received the ultimate justice.
Back upstairs, she walked over to Davis. “Did you find out where Freddy works?”
“Yes, the port. She’s one of their managers. Derrick and Amber went over to find her, but no luck. They said Freddy’s not expected until tomorrow morning.”
“When the Summer Sky docks?”
“Exactly.”
“So, we’re at a standstill right now. We got nothing out of the suspects either at the house or off the streets,” Kai said.
“Why don’t you head to the beach house? I’ll be there soon,” he said softly. “Jason and I have to brief our boss.”
She nodded, giving Davis a warm look, while Jason smiled. “See you soon.” She smiled again when Jason nudged Davis in that cute way men did when they noticed their pal besotted.
Back at their cozy little house, she wandered down to the shore to enjoy the sound of the waves and relax after another full and busy day. They were so close to the end of this, she could feel it. Capturing Freddy, and a possible massive shipment of drugs, would be good first steps to finally getting to the bottom of all this.
Which only left her own baffling and jumbled-up personal journey to complete. Once again, she thought that some time away from Davis would give her a better perspective and allow her to breathe a little without Davis distracting her thoughts with his exciting and wonderful presence. How was she going to come up with her next steps when she wanted all of her steps to be toward him? That wouldn’t solve anything, although it did sound heavenly. She could pretend that what had happened to her didn’t matter and move on, but would she really be moving forward?
Streaks of red and purple lingered low between the sky and rolling water. Letting her thoughts drift, she inhaled the wind blowing around her, the warm air filled with the tang of salt. Trying to focus her fluttering thoughts, a froth of foam tickled her toes as she watched the waves rippling closer.
She sighed and lifted her head, watching the waves rising and falling ever closer in the deepening darkness, her thoughts circling endlessly around a path she had yet to see. She kept her gaze on that far distant horizon until it vanished, leaving before her only the warm night and the onrushing tide. She focused on what she thought was the most important thing in life, and if her answer were true, then her path should be clear.
When the water was soaking her jeans, she shook herself out of her reverie. Love was at the heart of everything in life. Love filled the heart, filled up all those empty, lonely spaces. Love was life. The love of everything that made up the foundations she held so dear.
Love was never to be taken for granted. It wasn’t a given.
She couldn’t deny it for one moment. It was too basic. But was love enough?
Burying her toes in the wet sand, she thought, too, about cowardice and fear, about the balance of pain and joy.
About forgiveness and if it was truly possible to let go of all that bitterness, blame, and resentment.
Without forgiveness, there could never be joy, and a heart without joy couldn’t fully embrace that basic love. It would be buried under so much weight and pressure, trapped in a heart that would, eventually, turn to stone.
But then there was redemption, a word so filled with struggle, mind-twisting thought, toil, and deliverance. Yet with that recovery, there would be a price to pay. Atonement and thus salvation.
To her surprise, there were eddies, small pools, around her and she ran her sandy fingers through them. Davis had stormed into her life, pulling her from the shadows, wearing down her defenses with his need for her. Davis, she thought with so much emotion spilling out of her, what am I going to do about you? How am I going to keep from losing you?
She looked down, her thoughts as muddy as the water. Where was that path that eluded her?