Chapter 11
Revelations
The Mexican wilderness stretched out around them, vast and unyielding, the sun beating down on their backs as they moved quickly through the arid landscape. Caleb’s shirt clung to his skin, damp with sweat, and his muscles ached with every step, but he didn’t dare slow down.
The memory of the safe house; of the agents who had found them, of the fight that had nearly cost them their lives, was still fresh in his mind. Luca had saved him. Again. And Caleb didn’t know how to feel about that.
They walked side by side, the silence between them heavy and charged. Caleb’s thoughts were a tangled mess, his mind replaying the moment in the basement over and over. The way Luca had looked at him, the way he’d stepped so close that Caleb could feel the heat of his breath, the way the air between them had crackled with something raw and undeniable. And then the sound from upstairs, the interruption, the fight. It all felt like a blur now, but the tension from that moment lingered, unspoken and unresolved.
Caleb glanced at Luca out of the corner of his eye. The man was walking with his usual swagger, but there was a tightness in his jaw, a tension in his shoulders that betrayed the calm facade. Caleb wondered if Luca was thinking about it too; if the memory of that almost-confession was weighing on him as much as it was on Caleb. But Luca didn’t say anything, and neither did Caleb. The silence stretched on, bordering on uncomfortable, until Luca finally broke it.
“There’s someone we can go to,” Luca said, his voice low and measured, cutting through the quiet like a knife. “An old friend of my family. Lives in a small town near the border. He’ll help us.”
Caleb froze for a moment, his steps faltering. He’d expected Luca to bring up what had happened in the basement, to restart the conversation they’d been on the brink of having. Part of him was scared of that conversation, of what it might mean, of what it might force him to confront. But another part of him, a part he didn’t want to acknowledge, was eager for it, desperate to hear what Luca had been about to say.
But Luca didn’t bring it up. Instead, he offered a solution, a way forward. And Caleb didn’t know whether he was relieved or disappointed.
“A friend of your family,” Caleb repeated, his voice flat. He didn’t like the sound of that. Every bone in his body was screaming at him to run as far away from the Morettis and their associates as possible. He’d spent years trying to distance himself from that world, and now Luca was suggesting they walk right back into it.
Luca must have seen the apprehension on Caleb’s face because he stopped walking and turned to face him, his expression unreadable. “You’ll be safe,” he said, his voice quiet but firm. “I know you don’t trust me, or my family, but nothing will happen to you. You have my word.”
Caleb stared at him, searching his face for any sign of deception. But there was none. Luca’s eyes were steady, his gaze unwavering, and for the first time in years, Caleb felt like he was seeing the real Luca, not the criminal, not the man he’d convinced himself Luca had become, but the person he used to know. The person who had once been his closest friend, his confidant, his...
He cut the thought off before it could fully form, his chest tightening. Luca’s words had been hesitant, almost reluctant, as if they’d slipped out without his permission. But they’d rung true, and Caleb knew it. He didn’t trust Luca, not completely, but he believed him. And that was enough.
After a moment, Caleb nodded. “Alright,” he said, his voice quiet. “We’ll go.”
Luca’s shoulders relaxed slightly, and he gave a small nod of his own before turning and adjusting their course. They walked in silence after that, but it wasn’t as uncomfortable as it had been before. There was something different about it now, something softer, like the tension between them had shifted into something more manageable.
As they moved through the wilderness, Caleb couldn’t help but think about what Luca had said. You have my word . It was a simple promise, but it carried weight. Luca had always been a man of his word, even when it cost him. And Caleb knew that no matter how much they had both changed, that part of Luca hadn’t.
The sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows across the landscape, when Luca spoke again. “We’ll reach the town by morning,” he said, his voice breaking the quiet. “We’ll rest there, get supplies, and figure out our next move.”
Caleb nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He didn’t know what the next move would be, or how they were going to get out of this mess. But for now, they had a plan. And for the first time in days, Caleb felt a flicker of hope.
They walked on, the silence between them now filled with an unspoken understanding. The past was still there, hanging between them like a shadow, but for the first time in years, it didn’t feel insurmountable. And as they moved through the wilderness, side by side, Caleb couldn’t shake the feeling that something had shifted between them, something that neither of them was ready to name, but that neither of them could ignore.
???
The village was small and quiet, the kind of place where everyone knew everyone else’s business. Luca kept his head down as they walked through the narrow streets, acutely aware of the stares they were drawing. He didn’t blame the villagers for being wary; two strangers, battered and bloodied, showing up out of nowhere wasn’t exactly an everyday occurrence. But he also didn’t have the energy to care. All he wanted was to get to Diego’s house, sit down for five damn minutes and figure out their next move.
Diego’s house was at the edge of the village, a modest adobe building with a faded blue door. Luca knocked twice, the sound echoing in the quiet street. For a moment, there was no response, and he was about to knock again when the door creaked open.
Diego stood in the doorway, his weathered face breaking into a look of surprise as he recognized Luca. “Dios mío,” he muttered, stepping aside to let them in. “What the hell happened to you?”
Luca didn’t answer right away. He stepped inside, Caleb close behind him, and took a moment to look around. The house was exactly as he remembered it; small but cozy, with photos of Diego’s family lining the walls and the faint smell of garlic and tomatoes lingering in the air. It felt safe, familiar, and for the first time in days, Luca allowed himself to relax just a little. Diego had been a friend of his dad, once upon a time, an honorary uncle to Luca and his brothers, and had been a calm in the storm after their father’s death. When he moved back to Mexico a few years back, Luca had been devastated, feeling like he was losing the last connection to his father, though he never showed it.
Diego closed the door behind them and turned to Luca, his brow furrowed with concern. “You look like hell,” he said bluntly. “Both of you. Sit down. I’ll get you something to eat.”
Luca didn’t argue. He sank into a chair at the small wooden table, his body aching with every movement. Caleb sat across from him, his expression guarded but his eyes scanning the room with a sharpness that Luca recognized. He didn’t trust Diego, not completely, and Luca couldn’t blame him. Trust was a luxury they couldn’t afford right now.
Diego returned a few minutes later with a plate of bread, cheese, and cured meats, along with a bottle of wine. He set it down on the table and poured them each a glass before sitting down himself. “Now,” he said, his tone serious. “Tell me what’s going on.”
Luca took a sip of the wine, the rich flavor grounding him, before he started to explain. He kept it brief at first, sticking to the essentials; the ambush, the DEA agents, the safe house, the fact that they were being hunted. Diego listened without interrupting, his expression growing darker with every word.
But when Luca mentioned his meeting with Miguel Castillo, something shifted. Diego’s face went pale, his hands tightening around his glass. Luca noticed it immediately, his instincts kicking in. “What?” he asked, his voice sharp. “What is it?”
Diego hesitated, his eyes flicking to Caleb before settling back on Luca. “I just... I don't want any trouble... but I just never thought you boys would be in those types of things...” he said quietly.
Luca’s stomach dropped. “What are you talking about?”
Diego watched him for a moment and something on Luca's face must have told him that he seriously didn't know what he was talking about. He set his glass down and leaned forward, his voice low. “Castillo cartel… you do know that they’re not just moving drugs, Luca? They’ve been trafficking people for years now. Women, children, anyone they can get their hands on. They smuggle them from South America to the US and Europe.”
Luca froze, the words hitting him like a punch to the gut. He stared at Diego, his mind racing. “What the hell are you talking about?” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “The Morettis don’t deal in that. We’re in drugs, guns, the usual. Not… not this. Never this.”
Diego’s expression was grim. “I know that Luca, that's why I was so surprised a moment ago when you mentioned them, and that coupled with you being with a DEA agent, it confused me for a bit.”
Luca felt a cold wave of anger wash over him. Vito, the Sicilian don who’d torn through the Italian families, who’d tried to kill Matteo and Aldo, who’d been killed for his betrayal, had left a power vacuum in his wake. The Morettis had stepped in to fill it, to establish new alliances and secure their position. But this… this was something else entirely.
“We didn’t know,” Luca said, his voice tight. “None of us knew. If we had...”
“I believe you,” Diego interrupted, his tone firm. “But Castillo doesn’t care about what you knew or didn’t know. He’s been using the chaos Vito left behind to expand his operation. And now that you’re here, negotiating with him, he’s going to assume you’re on board with all of it.”
Luca pushed his chair back and stood, pacing the small room as he tried to process what Diego had just told him. His mind was racing, memories flashing before his eyes, Castillo’s smug smile, the way he’d talked about “mutual interests,” the way he’d been so eager to finalize a deal. It all made sense now, and the truth was worse than anything Luca could have imagined.
He stopped pacing and turned to Diego; his voice tight with anger. “How long have you known about this?”
Diego held up his hands in a placating gesture. “I only heard rumors,” he said quickly. “I didn’t know for sure. And even if I had, what could I have done? You know how it is round here, you shut your mouth or they shut it.”
“What do you mean by Luca being with a DEA agent?” Caleb suddenly joined, startling them, both of them seemingly forgetting the third person in the room. “What does DEA have to do with Castillo and the Italians?”
Luca blinked, then turned to Diego.
“Well…” Diego started, glancing from Caleb to Luca as if unsure if he should say anything in Caleb’s presence.
“It’s okay. I trust him.” Luca said, ignoring the way Caleb’s eyes snapped to him as the words left his mouth, as well as slight warmth he could feel in his cheeks, which was caused buy nothing more than Mexican heat. Nothing more.
“They are in it as well.” Diego said eventually. ”They are working with Castillo.”
Luca’s head whipped around toward Caleb just in time to see the man’s face blanch.