19. Void
VOID
Alvaro took the verdict well enough, but I suppose when you grew up in a lifestyle where threats like this were common, it wasn’t as shocking.
Out of the triplets, Ghost and I got along great.
We had a similar mindset about things. Jaxson was fine too, as he had the same way about him that Cognac did.
They go along to get along until you cross the line, then they would take your ass out.
Magnus, however, was a fucking prick, and it might be the case that we are too similar to get along, but fuck, I wanted to clobber his face in after he said that shit to my little demon.
We needed them, and they had skin in the game now with Harper since Marco was still looking for her.
It would take everything in me to grit my teeth and listen to what he was saying as he ordered us all about like his fucking minions.
Eagle was our leader, and he could pull that shit but not this asshole.
“Magnus, while I get and agree where you’re coming from, Alvaro is our problem to deal with,” Sprocket interjected.
“This is a team effort, but at the same time, we also need to respect each other and the dynamics we have in our own groups. Besides, the FBI knows we have him, and I’m not sure having him show up dead when they know he was last with us is good for any of us. ”
The stormy look on Mag’s face was priceless. “What do you mean the FBI knows about him?”
“The facility where I have Mariana, Alvaro’s mother, is run by all the government agencies.
There was an incident that occurred wherein we learned Marco was trying to get his sister out of there and back to him.
Since the facility is more of a secret and was attacked, the FBI stepped in to investigate and handle the situation.
We gave them Franco who was far more involved with the family business than Alvaro.
They know we’re working on hunting down one of the biggest players on Dax’s list, and we needed Alvaro for information,” Cam explained.
The cool tone he used told me he was just as fucking pissed about Magnus’s action earlier.
The black knight was quickly earning all the respect he needed from me the longer he was around.
Obviously, I knew we were stuck with him for life, but at least I could get along with him.
He was finally meshing with the rest of us like family should.
It took a hell of a lot longer than it had with Westly, but it all worked out as it should.
“Franco’s also the one who tried to blow us up last night, so it’s better I don’t have access to him,” Dax added.
That had Harper’s eyes going wide as saucers. “Excuse me? Did you just say that you were almost blown up last night?”
“Good thing they didn’t go back to the apartment below us. That could have gotten messy,” Magnus muttered, then let out an oof as Harper elbowed him in the gut. “Doll, don’t start something we can’t finish here,” he warned.
Harper’s cheeks flushed, but she ignored his words. “Tell me what happened?”
“Later,” Dax answered, waving off her concern. “It’s all settled, and we’re fine. We need to stay focused on this so we can stop all these fucking near-death experiences.”
Harper opened her mouth to argue, but Jaxson rested a hand on her shoulder. “She’s right, gorgeous, we need to find Marco and make our plans.” She shut her mouth with a pout but nodded sullenly in agreement.
“Wes has a cell phone that we know Marco called. Do any of you have stuff for us to track down where the call originated from?” Dax asked, slipping into planning mode.
Ghost raised his hand then held it, motioning to Wes to toss it to him. “I got it covered.”
“Alvaro, what can you tell me about your uncle? Do you have any idea where he is or what systems he follows to transport his goods?” Dax questioned, taking a seat and sipping on her beer. “Anything and everything you know about him is going to be relevant, so don’t leave anything out.”
The kid took a seat as well and grabbed a beer out of the bucket. He paused as if he wanted to make sure no one was going to stop him. Personally, I was for it—get him a little tipsy and see if he’d tell us more that way.
“Martin, my oldest brother, left New York to join Marco in Mexico. I overheard a conversation… well, Martin’s side of it, that is.
He and Angeline were supposed to fly into Guadalajara, and he’d have a car come pick them up.
That’s one of the biggest airports, though, so they could be going anywhere in southern Mexico at that point,” Alvaro shared.
He made a good point, and Marco would be one to cover his tracks.
Then again, he could be using a fake out, where we assumed that, but really he was much closer.
Could it be that Marco never got married so he was going to make Martin his heir as well as Diego?
It would be one way that bastard could control it all.
“How long ago did your brother move out there?” Jaxson asked.
Alvaro scrunched up his face in thought. “I think it’s been a year or almost a year.”
“According to this phone, the towers that the call used were in Colima. That’s roughly about three hours south of Guadalajara, so it’s possible that’s where they are. Either way, it narrows things down and allows us to target search an area,” Ghost informed us all.
“That’s good, every little bit helps,” Wes said as he walked around the table to look over Ghost’s shoulder. “So if we focus our attention on the states, Jalisco and Colima, it will be a jumping-off point.”
“Wait a minute, Colima,” Cognac cut in. “Where’s Port of Lázaro Cárdenas from there? It’s one of the biggest ports for shipping in and out of the country.”
Ghost started to type away then flipped the laptop around for us all to see. “It’s in the next state over, Michoacán. I wouldn’t say it’s super close, depending on where in Colima you are, but it’s possible that Marco could have made the call there to ensure we didn’t know his exact location.”
“We all know he’s getting drugs, women, and God knows what else out of that country, so it has to be there.
It’s so busy, it would be simple to pay off the right people and have things loaded and unloaded without notice,” Cognac shared.
“So add Michoacán to the list to look into as well. No one would want to transport certain goods farther than they have to, so it would make sense to keep it close, but Marco has proved to be a sneaky bastard.”
“Nice work,” Eagle said, slapping Cognac on the back. “I have a feeling your knowledge is going to be invaluable.”
With our search area determined, the real work began.
Each of us were given various tools and technology to perform searches.
I’d been given a list of shipping companies that went from Mexico to the New York-New Jersey port.
Apparently, most would head for LA instead of going all the way south and around New York, but with Dax cockblocking his goods, that was his only choice.
My eyes started to cross as I looked at list after list of companies, then double-checking their routes when I found they went to New York.
When I narrowed it down further, I had to see how often they made these trips and if it was the same or different ship.
Everything about this made me want to scream, but I knew getting through this meant I’d be able to stab some people faster.
Grabbing for another beer, I found the bucket was empty. Letting out a sigh, I got up and grabbed the bucket with its melted ice water. “I need a break. I’m gonna get some more beer.”
“The club will be open by now, so don’t make a scene,” Magnus warned.
I glowered at him. “Thanks, Mom, you know just because I’m not an assassin doesn’t mean I’m an idiot. This isn’t the first strip club I’ve been to before, so I know how to act.”
The big man’s jaw tightened as he bit back giving me a piece of his mind, but I turned and left out the back door.
I noticed the parking lot was much fuller than when we’d arrived a few hours ago, and the sun was starting to set.
Personally, I’d never been one for strip clubs—too many rules, too public, and you knew the women there were only fawning over you to get paid.
Nothing about it was real, and that’s what I’d craved most of my life.
My parents tolerated each other growing up.
They were the type to close their eyes and think of England as they did their duty to produce an heir.
As soon as they could, I was sent off to boarding school, and they lived as they pleased only to gather for the holidays and show off what a happy family we were.
As soon as I graduated and turned eighteen, I sent my parents a note saying I was heading for the States and didn’t know if I was ever coming back.
At some point, a lawyer found me and informed me that my father had died in a sudden car accident, and since he’d divorced my mother, I was the sole beneficiary of his fortune.
So far, I’d never touched the money or gone back to see the estate.
A crew of people was looking after it, and I used the money to pay them and keep the house in good order.
One day I thought I might go back with my wife and kids to use it as a vacation home of sorts.
Now that I had Dax and the other guys, who were like kids enough to make it count, it might be a good place to possibly spend our well-deserved downtime after we dealt with Marco.
Pulling open the door, the bouncer stopped me. “I’m gonna need to see some ID, and there’s a twenty-dollar entrance fee.”
“I’m with the group in the poker room. We ran out of beer and figured I’d come up and buy another round,” I explained and lifted the bucket. “If you don’t believe me, I’ll wait while you ask Raven.”
The guy narrowed his eyes at me then looked down at the bucket. “Raven mentioned she had friends using the room. You can go on in, but don’t make me come in after you and toss you out on your ass.”