“Check it out. If we can get those magnetic units on the underside of the vans, it will be of immense help.”
But it wouldn’t stop Katie from being attacked in a van. Joe almost said it and then swallowed the words. “Okay, I’ll see what I can find out tonight and get back to you.”
* * *
AT THREE O’CLOCK IN THE MORNING, Joe walked quietly around the two-story brick building. He’d parked his truck two blocks away on a back street. He wore a black leather jacket, slacks and boots. There was no way he wanted to be seen. Jackson Hole at this time of night had rolled up the sidewalks; no one was around. A stray dog barked at him for a block and then decided to quit following him. His heart was beating hard as he chose areas where there were no streetlights. The building was located on the corner of the square. He could approach it from another street, unseen.
The air was chilled, down in the forties. Hands tucked in his pockets, he moved silently. All his military experience in Afghanistan came to the forefront. Hearing keyed, Joe hugged the building, but not close enough to rub his jacket against it. He made a turn into an alley, then quickly walked down one side of it, his gaze restless. On the left stood the brick building housing Janet’s business. Seeing a small dirt road forking off to the right, Joe stopped. It led to the rear entrance to her establishment.
Craning his neck, he halted at the edge of a huge lilac bush. It was ten feet tall and provided good cover. There was a huge floodlight just above the loading dock. The light’s rays showed three white vans with the same name in large red letters on their sides. The vans had no windows in them except up front where the driver sat. Disappointment flooded Joe. As he studied the area, he spotted two security cameras, one on each corner of the building, so anyone around the vans would be taped. Damn. Sometimes security cameras were fake, acting as a deterrent he knew. Were these fake? He had no way of knowing.
There was a sliver of darkness along the building. The floodlight spewed out its brightness about three feet away from the loading area. The vans were all backed up against the dock. Maybe he could place the small round magnetic device under each bumper. Again, Joe studied the light, where the vehicles were parked and the location of the video cameras. Remembering his training, he also looked for laser devices that were invisible to the naked eye. He pulled out a set of night vision goggles from his jacket pocket, then settled them over his eyes. No lasers. Good. Taking the goggles off and stuffing them back into his pocket, he decided to walk past the entrance. The alley itself was dark and the video cameras would not pick him up.
At the corner of the brick building, Joe edged silently along the wall. The cameras were pointed toward the center area beyond the dock. He didn’t know how much area they covered, but he knew it wasn’t along the wall where he inched his way forward.
Heart pounding, he stopped every now and then to listen. Automatically, he scanned the area for any movement. Off in the distance, he heard the same mongrel dog barking once more. Toward the plaza, he saw a sudden flash of headlights and heard the growl of a pickup’s diesel engine. Above him, the stars twinkled in the black sky, bearing silent witness to his stealth.
Near the dock, Joe pulled a black ski mask over his head. If the video picked him up, no one could identify him. If he was seen on the video, Janet would suspect someone was messing with her vans. She’d have them checked and possibly discover the magnetic GPS device. It would tip her off someone was tailing her. Joe dropped to his hands and knees. The ground was wet from a late-afternoon thunderstorm. He inched forward to the bumper of the first van. Pulling a device from his pocket, he quickly attached it beneath the rear bumper.
Luckily, all three vans were parked close together against the dock. His pulse throbbed in his throat as he attached the GPS to vans two and three. Crawling back against the brick wall, he slowly made his way out of the area. Once at the corner of the building, Joe quickly pulled off the ski mask and trotted silently down the darkened alley toward his truck. He moved like a silent shadow through the back streets of Jackson Hole, wondering if the cameras had picked him up. In all likelihood, if they had, Janet would think the Garcia cartel had planted the devices. As Joe opened his truck and climbed in, he hoped Janet would see nothing on those tapes.
* * *
“WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?” Janet growled, watching the videotapes from the night before.
“What?” Eduardo demanded, walking over to where she sat at a small desk in the shipping area.
“Something...” She jabbed her finger at the grainy black-and-white screen on her desk. “There. Do you see it? Or is it my imagination?” She squinted her eyes. Maybe she’d done way too much coke and it was catching up with her. She wasn’t seeing as well as she wished.
Leaning over, Eduardo frowned and watched the replay of the video. There was nothing obvious he could see. The video cameras showed the vans parked at the loading dock. About one foot of them was invisible, out of camera range. “What do you see, señorita?”
“I don’t know,” Janet grumbled, frustrated. She wiped her eyes carefully because she’d just put eye shadow and mascara on them earlier. She pressed her finger to the computer display. “See that? Doesn’t it look like...something?”
Squinting, Eduardo studied it. “I...don’t know. Maybe a shadow?”
“Yeah, dammit. I want you to go out with the mirror and look under all three vans.”
“Sí,” he said. “This could be Garcia and his people.”
Worried, Janet rubbed her chin. “Maybe. Go check ’em. Let me know if you find anything.”
Within five minutes, Eduardo came back. He was frowning. When he opened his hand, he said in Spanish to Janet, “I found these GPS devices under the back bumpers of all three vans. Someone wants to follow us.”
Cursing softly, Janet picked up one of the small, round devices. Anger surged through her. She grabbed one of her throwaway cell phones and said, “I’m calling Señor Lobos.”
“Sí.”
Janet punched in the numbers. Her heart started to thud painfully in her chest. This happened sometimes with a good bump or two. Coke also made her feel strong and confident.
“Xavier here.”
“It’s me, Janet.” She quickly told him what Eduardo had found.
“On the video,” he asked, “is there a person? Someone you can identify?”
“No, just a sliver of a shadow. That’s what tipped me off. I can’t see anyone. Damn, Xavier, this isn’t good. What do you think?” She wiped her sweaty brow, the makeup coming off on her fingers.
“I think it’s Garcia,” he ground out, anger in his voice.
“Oh, God, this isn’t good!”
“Stop whining!”
“I’m not whining, dammit. This is my life! My business! I don’t need another cartel doing this to us, Xavier. You said it would be safe to do business here.”
“Well, I was wrong. Let me think....”
Janet sat feeling fear. Xavier had Cheyenne locked up. Once, when she’d just gotten into business, another cartel had tried to snoop around. Xavier had sent his soldiers across the border and there had been a series of gun-and-run incidents in and around the city. Janet knew no sheriff or city cop would ever protect them. Her mind whirled with fear, her imagination fueled by the cocaine.
“Listen, Garcia could throw a Molotov cocktail in the front door while I’m sitting here. You know how they like to make attacks look like accidents.” She planted her elbows on the desk, fear unraveling within her. “And by God, I’m not gonna let my daughter drive any of these vans! Not now! I know how rival cartels attack, Xavier.” Janet’s lips thinned. “Are you listening to me?”
“Yes, I am,” Xavier came back, his voice cool and hard. “Get hold of yourself, Janet. This could be the work of the FBI or ATF, too. We don’t know it’s Garcia. You’re panicking. It’s not
like you. Are you getting high again?”
Sitting up, Janet said, “Hell no! I told you, I don’t do drugs when I’m working!”
“Well, you certainly sound like it.”
She snapped. “What the hell am I to do?”
“Nothing,” Xavier ground out. “Not yet. Just go about your business as if nothing has happened. You said your daughter was going to be trained on the computer?”
“Yeah, Kyle trained her yesterday,” Janet said in a raspy voice, anxiety rifling through her. She began drumming her polished nails against the desk. “Xavier, I ain’t gonna let Katie drive. And that’s just it!”
“Yes, you will. It will look more normal to have men and women driving for you. It raises less suspicion with law enforcement. She will drive for you at least once a week.”
Rage tunneled through Janet. “Dammit, Xavier, she’s my only kid! I may not have been much of a mother to her, but I’m sure as hell not gonna put her out on the road where she can be blown away by a car comin’ up alongside the van and spraying it with bullets! I just won’t do it!” Her breathing became ragged.
“Get hold of yourself! You’re coked up, I can tell. You disappoint me very badly, Janet. You forget, it was my money that made your business. Without me, you’d have been found dead from an overdose in an alley a long time ago.”
Well, that snapped her out of her panic. Janet’s eyes widened. Xavier had never talked to her like this. Anxiety replaced fear for Katie’s life. “Listen, I’m just upset. I love you, Xavier. You know I do. I’d never do anything to make you angry at me.”
“I’m upset with you because you won’t do as I say. I’ve never put you in harm’s way, have I?”
“No,” Janet muttered, all the anger dissolving in her voice, “you never have.”
“And I won’t now. Put Eduardo on the phone. I need to talk with him. In the meantime, your daughter drives once a week.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
“BE CAREFUL,” JOE SAID, holding Katie and kissing her brow. “I worry about you out there on the road.” God, how badly he wanted to tell her everything. Hager’s warning haunted him. He felt her arms go around him, squeezing him hard for a moment.
“I’ll be fine, Joe. Stop looking so worried.” Katie patted her new uniform. She’d been stunned when her mother had called her to the office a day before she was to drive the van to Idaho Falls. Janet had presented her with a gift. The box was wrapped in pink paper and tied with a bright red ribbon. She almost cried as her mother gave it to her. A gift.
When Katie opened it on the desk, she saw it was a light blue short-sleeved shirt with Mercury Courier embroidered on the left side above the pocket. Her name, Katie Bergstrom, was also in red thread above the right pocket. A set of dark blue slacks went with the official uniform. Janet had urged her to try them on. When she came out of the bathroom to show her mother, Katie felt loved. Janet had been attentive and touched the shirt here and there to ensure it was a good fit.
The afternoon surprise lay warm in her heart as she smiled up at Joe.
“Look, can you call me on your cell once you reach Idaho Falls? And let me know when you’re turning around to come back.” It was all he could do. Joe couldn’t tail her. And he had found out from Hagar that the three magnetic GPS units he’d placed under the vans were not working. Hagar said they’d been removed and were in the Mercury building. Damn. He’d been seen on the videotape. Joe focused on Katie, who also had a dark blue baseball cap on her head with the name of the business in big red letters above the bill. She was so excited; her eyes were sparkling and she was more than ready to be a driver.
Katie patted the cell phone hanging at her belt. “Sure, I can call you.”
He leaned over and swiftly kissed her smiling mouth. “Be safe out there,” he growled, looking deep into her startled blue eyes.
“I will, Joe. It’s just an easy three-hour drive one way.” She lifted her hand and gestured to the sky. “Look, at 9:00 a.m., it’s a clear blue sky. There’s no weather today. Just sunshine. I’ll be fine.” She quickly left the facility and walked to her truck in the parking lot.
Joe unconsciously rubbed his chest as he watched Katie literally skip out the door like a joyful child going to a party. Only, it could end up being anything but. He wanted to stop her and tell her everything. Joe knew if he did, his job would be in jeopardy. At this point, he almost didn’t care. He’d decided the FBI wasn’t for him. And after this mission was over, he was going to quit. Never again did he want to lie as he had to Katie. She deserved far better from him.
Joe turned and forced himself to clean the mews. If only he could be a fly on the wall and ride with Katie. What had Janet have her men put in the back of the van? His gut screamed at him it was either drugs or guns. And what about the other cartel? Would Garcia be watching Janet’s business? Tailing each van to see where the guns and drugs were being dropped off in the different cities of the region? He knew Idaho Falls was a major center where drugs were distributed to the northern states and Canada. It was becoming a central hub in its own right, according to the FBI and ATF. And Katie was driving right into it....
* * *
JANET SMOKED HER cigarette as she walked Katie through her shipping instructions. “Now, listen, you are to drive to this address.” She handed her a piece of paper. “Eduardo has already dialed the coordinates into your van’s GPS unit. You just listen to the voice directing you and you’ll end up at the right place.”
Katie saw a lot of packages, many of them huge, long wooden boxes, all stacked neatly around the shipping dock. “Yes, I can do it.” She smiled and tucked the paper into her left breast pocket. “I feel so official.” She laughed and looked over at her mother.
Janet blew out a plume of smoke. “Listen, you be careful. This is a test run for you, Katie. I’m not sure I want you driving. So don’t get giddy on me, okay?” In her heart, Janet wanted to kill Xavier. She knew Garcia was snooping around. Eduardo thought he had spotted one of his soldiers. The man had been in a black hoodie, standing in the alley next to where the vans were parked. He took off as soon as Eduardo walked out onto the dock and spotted him. Had Garcia’s people put those magnetic GPS devices under their vans? Janet thought so. Then they could follow Katie’s van and where there was little traffic and even fewer witnesses, they’d attack. Her stomach turned. She looked over at Katie, who was literally bouncing with joy over the driving task.
Janet gripped her shoulder. It was the first time she had honestly touched her daughter. Oh, she’d fussed over how the uniform fitted her, but now her fingers sank into Katie’s shoulder. “Listen,” she said in a husky tone, “you have to be alert, Katie.”
Turning, Katie felt her mother’s hand tighten on her shoulder. Almost painfully. Her long, red nails reminded Katie of Sam’s long, curved claws. Looking at her mother, the thick pancake makeup emphasizing the lines in her face, she forced a smile. “Really, I’ll do everything by the book.” She pressed her hand to her heart. “Promise!”
Janet released her and scowled. They stood on the dock and she threw the butt down on it and crushed it with the pointed toe of her red shoe. She wore a bright red blouse, a navy blue skirt and the scarlet stilettos. “You stay in touch with me by cell, okay? Call me once you get to Idaho Falls.”
“Oh...all right. Is this normal?”
“No, it isn’t,” Janet snapped, irritated. “But it’s for your own good, Katie. I worry about you. Okay?”
A warm frisson of joy filtered unexpectedly through Katie. Her mother’s snarly admission showed how much she honestly cared for her. In that moment, Katie stepped forward and threw her arms around Janet. She quickly hugged her and released her. Breathless, she said in a tearful voice, “Thank you...it’s nice to be worried over. I promise, I’ll be careful. You can trust me.”
Shaken, Janet took a step back
and scowled at her daughter. She saw tears in Katie’s wide blue eyes. Her shoulders tingled where her daughter had spontaneously hugged her. Before, Janet had wanted nothing to do with her daughter except to keep her at arm’s length. With the threat of Garcia now real, she found herself wanting to protect Katie, keep her close and safe. She wondered if her maternal hormones were kicking in. Studying Katie’s fresh, exuberant face, Janet realized her daughter was beautiful in ways she would never be. She had birthed this beautiful child-woman. She bemoaned the fact Katie was starry-eyed, too trusting and thought the world was a good place. It wasn’t. Just the opposite. More than anything, Janet didn’t want Katie hurt in any way. She knew she’d be safe here working at the desk. Out on the road...well, that was an entirely different deal.
“Stop being so sloppy and sentimental, will you?” Janet gestured sharply to the van Eduardo had just pulled up. He’d loaded it with ten cases of rifles bound for Xavier’s contact in Idaho Falls. Katie had no idea what she was carrying. She had strict orders never to look at the boxes or packages. Just to hand the manifest to the man who asked for the papers. The boxes would be offloaded, the man would sign for them and hand it back to Katie, who would remain in the driver’s seat.
Laughing softly, Katie pushed back the tears she felt. “I can’t help myself, Mo...I mean, Janet.” She gracefully arced a hand across her neatly pressed uniform. “I’m overjoyed to be working with you.”
Janet winced inwardly when the word Mom almost came out of Katie’s mouth. Her daughter had barely caught the mistake. Still, the word did something funny to her. She was a mother. Janet continued to scowl as her daughter skipped down the wooden steps, took the keys from Eduardo and climbed into the van. Rubbing her jaw, Janet lifted her hand in farewell as Katie slowly drove the van out of the parking area. She felt a thread of happiness winding around her heart. Mom. Well, maybe she should let Katie call her that? It sounded pretty nice coming from her and it lifted Janet unaccountably as she walked through the building toward the front desk.
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