Chapter Fifty-Two
“First of all, you’re saying we were careless with information that was shared on the back of a practically empty tour bus and a gondola with one possible witness. How do we know it will be safe if we talk about it here on a completely packed train? And how was the information obtained in the first place? None of our geriatric tour group, as you called them, were present for the gondola ride, yet you have transcripts of conversations in both locations,” Fernando asked.
“Good, at least you’re starting to think. Do you really think I would be on this train, talking to you, if there were any possibility of a further breach in our security thanks to you two jabber jaws? I’ll give you thirty seconds to figure it out, and then I’ll tell you,“ Julio challenged, looking down at his watch.
Fernando considered all kinds of scenarios, but he couldn’t see how any of them were feasible. He felt Sophie stiffen at the same time realization hit him.
“Our phones!” they said in unison, glancing at each other in horror before turning to Julio for confirmation .
“There’s hope for you two yet,” he said, clapping his hands together.
“But, how? I thought Enrique had our technology buttoned up?” Fernando asked.
“You have opened yourself up to questions about your loyalty and your ability to maintain important confidential information. Enrique has your technology buttoned up. That doesn’t mean he hasn’t allowed access to certain allies in an effort to prove your trustworthiness. Which, you failed, by the way. Our mutual friend reached out and said fix it. I’m here to do that, and you should be grateful it’s me and not Rique or Tom because they are both pretty mad at you right now. So, first question: do you want to move forward with your plan to work with Sarah? Understanding that there will be absolutely no room for error in the future. There will be severe consequences in the future if her safety is jeopardized by our family again. We aren’t just talking about a book deal anymore. We are talking about people’s safety. Their lives.”
“I understand. I didn’t before, but I have a better idea now and moving forward, we will be extremely careful with any and all information regarding her. Will I be able to discuss her book details over the phone or only in person? What about in my Suburban or now on planes as we’re working during our commute between locations?” Fernando asked, trying to wrap his head around how his communication routines were going to need to change.
“We’ll have to verify everything with Rique because I’m not sure what measures he has in place or are practical to put into place. For now, no communication about Sarah outside your office and home, which we know beyond a shadow of a doubt, is secure. The car we will have to work on. Nothing confidential in there for now. Planes. You, little brother, are about to join the elite club of jet owners. No, your plane will not be going in the BBCDGT flight network, no matter how much pressure Gabe puts on you. Not until we can tighten up the security network around you. You need to get on that right away, seeing as you won’t know when you will need it. My guess is it will be soon. You will need at least six hours’ notice before a flight for your new security team to do a full sweep and clean anything not put in place by us. Any more questions on that front?”
Fernando turned questioning eyes on Sophie, who shook her head. “No, we understand the parameters now. Will our phones still be monitored and listened to by Braveheart or your allies ?”
“Definitely. For the record, they have always been monitored by Enrique. The data was just collected, analyzed, stored on servers or whatever, and never processed for any reason. If at any time one of us was endangered, attacked, or abducted, alerts would have gone off, and Rique would have needed less than ten seconds to pull the information and have all the data for the minutes, hours, and days surrounding the incident in the palm of his hand. The monitoring has always been for our protection and still is. The same is true for our allies. They are watching over us for our protection and that of their family. It’s a symbiotic relationship, and we have benefitted from it over the years. The only reason you are on this web now, or have become aware of your position on it since you have always been there, is because you pulled a string connected to the sister, and the mighty spider now has his eyes on you. He is trying to decide if you are a friendly little spider he will allow to play on his web or a fly he will suck the life out of,” Julio explained.
“Nice analogy. I don’t feel threatened at all,” Fernando quipped.
“You shouldn’t as long as you decide where you stand with Sarah and how tight-lipped you will be with her information. Plain and simple,” Julio replied with a shrug... as if it really was that simple.
“Well, I want to move forward with a working relationship with Sarah. My original plans have changed, and I want to bring her on as a partner in my publishing house—one of our top-tier authors, at the very least. As soon as you and Rique give me the green light that all the security measures Tom demanded are in place, I will reach out to her to schedule a meeting and discuss terms.”
Julio nodded. “Good. That’s settled. Now, back to the cartel business.” He looked at Sophie with appraising eyes. “That little surprise got everyone’s attention. Good job keeping your mouth shut on that tiny nugget. I wish you had divulged it to Rique a little sooner since you know you can trust him, but we all get it. Now, where do we go from here? I need the details, Sophie. When was the last contact you had with any of them, your old home or childhood friends? Don’t leave anything out. Tom will not allow any further contact with Sarah until we understand the danger. The family is keeping you at arm’s length until we understand the potential threat. Phone calls, with your cell phones only, are fine, but no visits, at least with Sophie in tow. Also…“ pointing his finger between the two of them, “How serious is this. You two are looking really chummy right now. Are we talking long-term security plans around the clock for entire families now?”
“Did you read the full transcript?” Fernando asked,
“No, like I said, I’ve been a little busy this week handling a crisis situation. I just wrapped it up this afternoon and came straight to find you. I was handed that document on the plane. I had no idea why I was coming to see you other than Rique said I could... or Tom and his brother would. That was a pretty easy call. I just want to throw it out there that I almost didn’t make their deadline for handling this, so you may still get a visit if they are already in transit. They seem like that type to do things just for good measure. ”
Squeezing Sophie a little tighter, Fernando replied, “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind. Please pass along our sincerest apologies for this whole situation and express my desire for Sophie not to be involved in any power play they may decide would benefit me. All of this is my doing. I don’t want her to be scared by two protective males needing to make a point. They need to make it with me, not her. And yes, this is long-term. Her family will need to be included in all security plans, including… my future son.”