CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
Mia sat on the chair at the main desk, clicked the recorder, answered the phone, and put it on speaker.
“Hello?”
“ You listen to me, hija de puta! ”
Mia was startled in her seat and raised her arms at her side as if he could see her indignation.
“ If you want your whore back— ”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. That’s not a polite way to start a conversation. You wanted to talk to me, and I’m here, but we’re keeping this call civilized. And why not friendly? So, let’s try again, shall we?”
Then she disconnected the call.
Ben and Danny grinned in amusement. Zach’s eyes were rounded as he covered his mouth with his fist, trying his best to let Mia do her thing. Aaron rubbed his forehead with his eyes closed. Shane stared at her like she was crazy. And I was torn between fighting a mistimed erection and being worried sick at her daring attitude towards Pablo.
Everyone in the tent was holding their breath while Mr. Dawson was going crazy. “That was our in! I can’t believe you hung up on him. There are victims inside.”
“I’m very aware.” Mia retorted calmly. “And that’s why I did it. He needs to learn he’s not in charge, otherwise, he’ll keep terrorizing everyone inside.”
“But now he might be gone, and we’ll never find—”
The shrill ring startled us again. Not her, though.
Mia answered the call, and Pablo’s booming voice filled the tent.
“ Who the fuck do you think you are? I— ”
“I’m the one you want to talk to. We both deserve better treatment.” She touched her chest in reverence and pleading. “I arrested you. We killed your son. Nothing can beat a connection that strong. So, you call again when you learn to treat our relationship with the respect it requires. ”
Then she hung up again.
Mr. Dawson went ballistic, while we all watched the phone as if it were a snake ready to attack. Mia placed her elbows on the desk, interlaced her fingers, and rested her mouth over them, ignoring Mr. Dawson's reprehension.
The seconds turned into minutes, and I ran my fingers through my hair, urging the phone to ring. I was starting to get worried that Pablo had decided not to contact Mia another time. Until the phone rang for the third time, shutting Mr. Dawson and filling me with relief. Sort of.
Mia picked it up. “Hello?”
Pablo’s tense tone echoed around the space again. “ Hello, Ms. Bryant. How are you? ”
She smiled and tipped her chin in approval. “I’m fine, thank you for asking. It’s been a long time since we last talked. Even longer since we last saw each other. How have you been?”
“ I’ve had better days. ” His strained voice as he tried to be polite shouldn’t be so amusing. “ But today looks promising .”
She stood up to pace leisurely around the tent, uncaring about the audience. For what it was worth, we ceased to exist the moment she answered his call.
“I’m so glad to hear that. I bet you’re in desperate need of some wins, right? I’ve got to tell you, with all the stupid shit your people have been doing, I was starting to get worried. Getting murdered and arrested for invading my company. Losing all those girls you were trafficking. Then Matias’ stupid attempt at taking not only one but two of our own, only to get killed in the end.” She raised her arm in the direction of the headquarters. “And now this circus you’re performing. What the hell is going on with your people?” She shook her head in disappointment and clicked her tongue. “You’ll end up being the first one guilty of disorganized crime.”
“ You watch the way you talk to me, you— ”
“I’ll turn it off again,” Mia sang.
“ You need me .”
She squinted her eyes and grinned. “Are you sure? I’m not the one who demanded this conversation. I have many ways to reach you. After all, I’m a free person. But you depend on me. I’m your free ‘get out of jail’ card.”
“ Since that explosion, you’ve been looking for me! ”
She shook her head, even though he couldn’t see her. “No. I was looking for your son. You know? The one who died. Why would I want you? You were incarcerated. Because I arrested you. I already got you once, remember?” She snapped her fingers and smiled fondly. “Remember that day? At the mansion? When I arrested you in front of your whole family? Oh, good days.”
I peered around the room to witness everyone in awe, watching as she ambled within the tent seemingly without a care in the world. Even Mr. Dawson looked impressed.
“ You want me. You need me for the little adventure you’re playing .”
Mia scoffed. “Not even the cartel wants you anymore, why would I? We couldn’t care less about your whereabouts.” That was a big, fat lie, but she managed to say with confidence enough to rub him the wrong way. “If you were as important as you deem yourself to be, why the hell didn’t Carlos try to get you out earlier? Why didn’t he protect Matias? Why isn’t he here?”
She stopped her pacing and bit her lips, looking at me and waiting for his response. His reaction would tell us if Carlos was around. And it was effective.
Pablo's heavy breathing intensified as he fumed at Mia.
“Man, your breathing sounds weird. You should rub Vick VapoRub on your chest.”
“ I don’t need the cartel to get me out of prison. I did that all on my own with incredible results. So, I don’t need them to get me out of here. ”
Mia nodded tightly in silent understanding. Carlos Gomes wouldn’t try to get Pablo out, so he wasn’t around. He’d be our target at a later occasion.
She poured a glass of water for herself and walked back to the chair. “And now you’re trapped again, demanding to talk to me like a crazy ex. It serves you right to remember you are the one who needs this call. Not me. So why don’t you tell me what’s going on before I get bored? Your window is closing on that, by the way.”
He exhaled heavily through the phone, fighting to contain his rage, while Mia sat with crossed legs over the barely cushioned chair and swiveled it back and forth.
One of the agents touched my arm and tipped her head to the side, indicating one of the monitors. The activity underground was increasing, the tremors being registered proved they were working something heavy on the ground. I just couldn’t understand why or how.
“ I want a military truck, bulletproof, to drive me to the border. I demand a new passport as well and enough money to start over. In exchange, I give you back the whore, and don’t explode the building. ” I saw Shane’s jaw tick as he stepped closer to Mia when Pablo mentioned Delilah. She raised her palm at him and shook her head in silence. “ I’m a free bird with a badge. I’m meant to fly .”
“We’re not giving you any of that. Is there anything else you need?”
“ Do I need to remind you I still have the one you want? You don’t want to repeat the explosion that killed your brother, do you? How many more of you do we have to kill? ”
Mia looked at Zach impassively, but the lingering grief still darkened her features. She gave her brother a small nod and pointed at the extra headset on the table. “You still need to accomplish the first time.”
Zach adjusted the set and greeted gravely, “Hello, Pablo.”
Silence filled the call before he cursed, “ Cabrón de mierda— ”
Mia raised her arms. “Surprise!”
“ He’s dead, we all knew! ”
She nodded slowly. “I know, I was thrown as well. He’s a sneaky motherfucker.”
Zach placed his hands on his hips. “This is game over for you, Pablo. There’s no way out, and you’re as good as arrested. Or dead.”
“ Does Carlos know about this? How is your little family, by the way? I’d love to inform him you’re taking care of them .”
Mia stood up and grabbed Zach’s arm to calm him down. His eyes were lethal as he struggled to keep his wrath under wraps. She fisted his shirt so he’d look at her, and they breathed silently until he could control himself.
She nodded at him to go on, so he answered, “You should worry about yourself, Pablo. You won’t be alive for long to tattle anything to Carlos. Especially since he didn’t care enough to be here for you.”
Mia let go of her brother and resumed pacing the tent. “ We’re digressing. We should stick to the matter at hand. Now, we were pointing out how desperate you are and how you depend on me to get out of this alive—”
“ I have a new proposition. ”
She stopped in her tracks. “Go on.”
“ Give me your brother to deal with me. I’ll give you the whore and the other hostages. I’ll even give him a fighting chance. My guys won’t shoot him. It’s just me and him .”
Despite her efforts to keep her composure, I couldn't miss the troubled glance she shot at Zach, her hands briefly turning into fists. It was admirable how she could maintain her voice steady and nonchalant.
“Wow. Are you that desperate to appease Carlos? I've got to say, I’m disappointed in you. Show some self-respect.”
“ I don’t need to appease anyone. I’m a legend to my people .”
She clicked her tongue. “Come on, man. You’re drowning in lies.” She snorted in amusement. “I’m so sorry, that was a mean thing to say to you.”
“ What do you mean? ”
Mr. Dawson waved frantically at Mia with rounded eyes, calling her attention and interrupting her ambling. He mouthed with emphasis, over and over, “ Show empathy !”
Mia rolled her eyes so hard it was a wonder she didn’t pull a muscle. “Well, since my brother is here, I realize the dynamic between me and you is uneven. And I’m sorry for that.”
She stared at Mr. Dawson and pointed at the headset in a “ See? I’m being empathetic ” posture.
“I don’t believe you know how Matias was killed, right?” At his ominous silence, she sat down again and reminisced. “Oh, it was so touching. The ground was covered in the whitest snow. The wind surrounded us as Danny and I chased after him. Matias was beautifully deranged. Desperate really, for once again doing something stupid.”
She ignored Pablo’s grumbling over the phone and waved her hands as she recollected Matias’s murder tale. “He drove fast right into the frozen lake. Danny and I jumped after him to get Lisa back, so he could die knowing it was all for nothing. Because he’d failed yet another time. I pulled Lisa out of the car, and Danny shot him twice. It was oh, so beautiful. And here comes my favorite part, you’re going to love it.” She closed her eyes in nostalgia. “As he drowned knowing daddy dearest couldn’t save him, his last words were, ‘ Blurb blublurd blublub .’”
Aaron threw the pen he was holding on the table and raised his hands. “That’s it. I don’t care anymore. If she wants to get killed, I. Don’t. Care.”
Ben, Danny, and Shane burst out laughing at her. Zach rubbed his face, suppressing a string of curses. Mr. Dawson and Edward stared at her horrified. Edna winked at me, and I couldn’t keep the pride—and worry—from my face.
That was my Spitfire.
“ Hija de puta! You’re going to pay for that! ”
“I don’t see how. Because you’re either getting out of that building with handcuffs on your wrists or a bullet on the head. It depends on how much you’ll piss me off.”
" You can dream all you want. No man has ever caught me. No man ever will! "
She placed her hand over her chest and shook her head. "Oh, honey. I'm not a man. I'm a fucking lady!"
With that, she hung up the phone. For good.