****
Genie yawned. It was too early to be working with Rafael Santiago. While he had re-interviewed Flores Cera yesterday, her boss ordered her to have face-to-face time with the FBI. And they were hiring. She smiled. As soon as she put this case to bed, she’d be a shoo-in for the agency.
Genie glanced at Rafa, who sat beside her in the conference room. He’d been talking non-stop for the last ten minutes about some offshoot case the DEA was running against drug smugglers indirectly tied to the Snakes.
“My mother would like to know if you want to stop by her place for lunch this afternoon. I think she’s making your favorite: fajitas and rice.”
Genie’s gaze shot up from her case notes. When had he gone off-topic? Rafa leaned away, watching her, his eyes filled with humor. Genie fluffed her curls over her shoulder to hide her face. She once again leaned over the table and feigned interest in the paperwork by shuffling a few pages around. “Of course I’ll come, thank you for inviting me.”
She felt her hair being displaced, and Rafa’s hand shifting the curls behind her shoulder, his gaze on her face.
“Good. She’ll be thrilled. She talks about you quite a bit.”
Genie arched her brows, wondering why his mother would be discussing her — with her son, no less. “I’ve missed seeing her in church.” Genie toyed with the edges of a sheet of paper. “But I guess that’s my own fault,” she mumbled. Silence. He expected her to continue. She knew very little about him, so no need to go in to anything about her. “So, what happened when you went to see Ms. Cera?”
“I think she’s hiding her brother.”
Genie’s head popped up. “What?”
“I can’t be sure, but we should probably have surveillance sit on her house for a few more days.”
Genie searched his eyes for more information. “Really? What did she say?”
Rafa sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. “It’s what she didn’t say that I’m concerned about.”
“Explain.”
“I confronted her about her brother’s credit card being used in town.”
Genie leaned forward. “And?”
“Well, her non-verbals were all over the place. She couldn’t look me in the eye, she fidgeted uncontrollably, and then she shot off.”
“Shot off?”
“Accused me of lying. Said we had her brother under arrest, and demanded to see him. I calmed her down, but she confirmed what we’ve been thinking.”
“That Diego is here in town. He never left.”
Rafa gave her a short nod. “Exactly. The Snakes wouldn’t be stupid enough to use his credit card if they’d already killed him. Dealing in cash is far more difficult to trace.”
Genie blew out a breath. “You’re right. Wow. Does she know where he is? What else did she say?”
“She claimed no knowledge of his whereabouts. But I think she’s lying. If we sit a few more nights on her house, I suspect we’ll find she’s harboring Diego.”
“That’s it?”
He averted his gaze.
“What aren’t you telling me, Rafael? You’re hiding something.”
He gave her a small smile. “Just so we’re clear. We aren’t hiding anything from each other.”
Anything about the case. “Of course.”
“Flores is scared.”
“Of what?”
“I’m thinking she’s afraid of what could happen to her brother,” he responded quietly. “The same thing that happened to the others.”
Genie put her face in her hands and then ran them through her hair. “Compton told me the FBI should have their inquiry on the restaurant completed by tomorrow. If anything is remotely shady, they’ll open a full-blown investigation.”
“Sounds like this is something the IRS would sink their teeth into.”
Genie nodded. “Compton said they’d call the IRS the moment they audit La Cocina Dulce’s financials, but I wish we had a little more to go on. Perhaps the surveillance will yield something useful.”
Rafa surged to his feet. “I’m going to run the surveillance plan by the lieutenant.”
Genie nearly jumped herself at how quickly Rafa had left the room. Was there a fire somewhere she didn’t know about? She shook her head. Well, at least he’s eager to do what’s needed to solve this case.
Genie glanced at her watch. They had a few hours until lunch. Lunch with Rafa and his mother; strange, she was a bit eager for that, too.
Rafael (The Santiago Brothers Book One) Page 19
