# # #
Audra helped herself to more mashed potatoes. She had helped with dinner tonight. Gordon rarely let her make the whole thing by herself, and the majority of the time, he cooked and either she or Jerry helped.
She never ceased to be amazed at the food that came out of that kitchen although there was never a delivery of any kind.
“So, tell me again how you manage to have such fresh-tasting food here.”
“Two ways,” Gordon said. “The dome tends to be its own natural preservation core, so things that would generally have to be swapped out in the average prepper’s stash last indefinitely here. Secondly, we have a vast amount of freezer storage.”
“Doesn’t your electric bill send up red flags somewhere out there?”
Both Jerry and Gordon laughed. “In the middle of the Mojave? It’s all solar. I don’t ever have to worry about equipment failure. Nothing disrupts it naturally, and I maintain it well enough, replacing parts sporadically as necessary, so that it just keeps on chugging.”
“Well, I, for one, am grateful to not be eating MREs, and I hope Lucas isn’t having to, either.”
“I sincerely doubt that he is.”
Silence prevailed at the table for a few minutes. Then, Gordon asked, “Audra, have you thought through what will happen after the trial, or in the event that there is no trial?”
“No trial? I have never even thought of that as a possibility. As far as after the trial, I don’t know….” Her voice trailed off.
“So, you don’t know and you don’t know.”
She could tell he wasn’t intending to be offensive, so she didn’t allow him to see her irritation.
“Or, you don’t know and you don’t want to say.”
“Why wouldn’t I want to say?” she asked.
“Because I’m guessing that, at least in some vague way, you think whatever happens afterward will involve Lucas.”
She looked at him, startled. She had entertained those thoughts, of course, but mostly she just didn’t pursue that line of thinking.
“I think I prefer your ‘don’t know’ and ‘don’t know’ postulation,” she said calmly.
Jerry spoke up. “We’re not trying to upset you, Audra, and we know this was kind of an abrupt way to bring it up. But we think you should think about it.”
“About being with Lucas?”
Gordon cleared his throat. “About the likelihood of not being with Lucas.”
Audra just sat, staring at both of them.
“We know what your heart is telling you, and it’s completely understandable because Lucas has encouraged your heart in that manner. But we want to walk you through it logically.”
She said nothing, knowing they would go on with or without her consent. There was no escaping this conversation.
“First, there’s the Service. He will either go back, or he won’t. If he doesn’t, there will be penalties—perhaps even imprisonment. If he does go back, do you think they will allow him to be with a witness? Being with you would mean a full-time job for the rest of your natural lives.”
Now she couldn’t help but become visibly upset. The last statement was completely conjecture, wasn’t it? Or was it? Will I become a complete liability to anyone with whom I keep company? She laid her napkin onto the table, gulped the last sip of wine from her glass and stood.
“I’ll take your advice under strict consideration,” she said. But as she turned away, she had to blink back tears. She quickened her pace across the floor and out of the door, fairly running back to her Airstream living quarters.
25
Lucas and Fetsko went out for breakfast the next morning, returning to the hotel parking lot to see two big, black SUVs with U.S. Marshals Service emblems on the side.
“Oh, shit,” Fetsko said, looking quickly at Lucas. “I never thought…”
“Don’t say you never thought. We both thought it would be a possibility. We just hoped otherwise.”
Fetsko just gulped.
They got out and strode into the hotel lobby where two marshals and two deputies stood at the registration desk.
Lucas walked right up to them. “Marshal Lucas Roberts, sir,” he said, shaking the first one’s hand.
“Show us to your room, Roberts?”
“Follow me,” he said, calmly.
They turned, curiously sizing up Fetsko, wondering what he was doing with Lucas.
All six men entered the elevator and stood watching the numerical progression toward their destination until they reached the floor where Lucas’ and Fetsko’s rooms were.
Stepping out of the elevator, Lucas had the distinct impression of leading a parade down the hallway. When they entered the room, there weren’t enough chairs in the suite for all to sit down, so Lucas and the detail chief stood.
“I take it you know why we’re here,” the chief said.
“Why don’t you tell me and save me from having to guess,” Lucas said.
“First off, we need to know where the witness is.”
Lucas nodded, acknowledging that he understood the question, but then turned to shaking his head to indicate his position on the request.
“I’m not revealing anything. She’s very safe where she is right now. To tell you where she is would not only compromise her safety, but also the location of an extremely secure facility. When the time is right, I will produce her.”
“And just when do you consider the time to be right?”
“When El Toro Blanco is behind bars.”
“And if he never is?”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. But I don’t intend for him to remain free.”
“Do you have any information as to his whereabouts?”
“Not yet. But he’s right around the corner.”
“Don’t get cheeky, Roberts. You think I can’t arrest you and put you on ice for a while?”
“I’m sure you can, but what good would that do?”
The second marshal spoke up. “It would teach you that you can’t go rogue and get away with it.”
Lucas waved him off. “What’s the goal here? To push the Service’s weight around by penalizing me, or to keep the witness safe and bring Blanco to justice?”
“We can turn the whole investigation over to Fetsko here and send him a new partner.”
“Granted, you can do that. But truthfully, I don’t think anyone has quite the motive and passion I do for bringing him in. Plus, it wouldn’t change the situation with the witness. The Service has already let her down in a very big way, and I’m not entrusting her to the Service again, period.”
The second marshal started to stand, but this time it was the chief’s turn to wave him off.
“I’ll grant you that there are some suspicious circumstances around what happened in Angels; we’re still looking into that. And, of course, she has the right to be somewhere secure, but it would help us to know who she’s with since you’re obviously working outside the Service.”
“No. There’s no use to keep asking me that or to try to persuade me of that. I’m not giving her up until I know it’s as safe as possible to do so. Now is not that time.”
Thick tension hung in the room.
“We’re still pulling you off of it.”
“Go ahead,” Lucas said. He walked over to a jacket that was hanging over the back of the chair where Fetsko sat, reached into the pocket and pulled out his badge.”
He tossed it onto the coffee table where they sat, then pulled his service revolver out of the room safe and handed it, butt-end first to the chief.
“There. I’m no longer a U.S. Marshal. Now, I’m no longer a ‘rogue.’ I’m independent.”
The chief was taken aback, and the other marshal and two deputies shifted uncomfortably in their seats.
“Why so adamant, Roberts? Are you and the girl involved?”
“If you’re asking me whether I’ve had sex with her, no.” In his mind, he honestly hadn’t. Giving her a few moments o
f pleasure was a gift, not a sex act.
“What kind of resources do you think you’ll have without the U.S. Marshals Service?”
Lucas waved his arm, indicating the room. “This is not provided by the Marshals Service. Nor is my vehicle nor my fire power. I am officially independent.”
Silence ensued for a few seconds; the chief finally broke it. “I don’t think that’s what anybody really wants,” he said.
“No?” Lucas questioned. “You’d rather pull me off the detail, give it to somebody who hasn’t a clue what’s going on, and slap my wrists? Not to mention what’s come before. Whoever arranged for me to be on this detail in the first place is gunning for me in a big way, maybe even literally. They brought me back off medical leave way too soon, and set me up, not only to fail, but possibly to get myself and the witness killed.”
The chief’s face showed a dawn of awareness. “Michaelson arranged the detail.”
Now, it was Fetsko’s turn to jump up. “Michaelson? That son-of-a-bitch? I don’t understand why he isn’t under lock and key somewhere. How many agents has he compromised in the last three years?”
The chief and the other marshal looked at each other. “Nobody seems to be able to prove anything, and in his position, he has too much autonomy.”
Lucas made a disgusted sound. “Even more reason for me to be independent.”
“Okay, let’s all calm down here,” the chief said. “It’s now dawning on me what has happened here.”
“Me, too,” Fetsko said, still snarling.
“Michaelson is the go-between, a double agent, so to speak. He’s Blanco’s bitch, and he pimped out Brighton. Question is, where do we go from here? Internal affairs can handle him later, but right now we’ve got to figure out how to get Blanco into custody so the girl can testify. We can’t leave you two in the wind forever.”
“So, let’s use the situation to our advantage,” Fetsko proffered.
“How do we do that?” asked Lucas.
“We came down here to run an undercover operation, so let us do it. Roberts can stay here while I recon in Mexico.”
“I understand why I can’t go in,” Lucas said, “but how will you? Your disguise will only work in certain places. You’ve been a regular in this corridor for quite a while.”
“Fuck the disguise,” said one of the deputies. “Go as yourself.”
“I see what he’s thinking,” the chief said, picking up on the thread. “We disavow you, you go bumming around in Mexico, snooping and making yourself available to the other side.”
“I’m not sure I get it,” Lucas said.
“In other words,” Fetsko said, “they’re going to use me as bait, troll me out there, and let me catch the big one—if he doesn’t eat me first.”
“More or less,” said the chief.
“I’m a pretty straight arrow though. Always have been. How are you going to convince anybody?”
“Because you’ve hooked up with a rogue, and he’s turned you. He’s in it for revenge, and you’re an idealist…a broke idealist.”
“But what reason will you give them for not arresting me?”
“You were never here.”
“I get it. You came to bust Roberts, he told you I was his accomplice, you looked for me, but couldn’t find me, so you suspect that I’m dirty.”
“Okay. That’ll do for the moment. It’s kind of weak, but I’ll think of something. Shit. We need to all get coordinated in our story, and you guys,” the chief said, talking to the deputies, “will have to back me up. It’s going to be a lot of paperwork and conniving, but we’ve got to make it convincing enough that it will filter through the system quickly to Michaelson and force his hand to make a call. He’ll be plenty eager by now to prove his worth by suggesting a replacement for Brighton.”
“Why do I feel lost in all of this?” Lucas asked no one in particular.
“Because we need you to lay low. Let Fetsko do the work across the border. Blanco is gunning for you, too, you know. I’m not foolish enough to try to send you away. You wouldn’t listen if I did. Stay here and be point man while Fetsko does his recon, but once he has a solid plan, you need to just lay low until he has his finger on Blanco.”
“But I….”
“Roberts,” he continued, “you’ve been made. They all know who you are and what you look like. You have no choice except to lay low until the very end. By the way, I’ll take your weapon and your badge. I’m guessing you have other firepower anyway.”
Lucas nodded.
“And, if you’re going to be looking for business in Mexicali,” the chief said, “you need to know what business it is.”
Lucas gave him a quizzical look.
“The big smuggling operation out of Mexicali is people, not drugs.”
“You think that’s what Blanco’s people are up to?”
Fetsko shrugged. “I’m sure Blanco’s into whatever is the most lucrative wherever he has access points.”
“The file on Audra said they had discovered evidence of heavy trafficking of both in the house where she saw him.”
“If it was this side of the border, chances are the drugs came up the pipeline from Sinaloa while the illegals came from Mexicali.”
“I get it. What kind of a report will you file on me?” Lucas asked, turning to the chief.
“That you turned in your weapon and your badge and that we scared you underground. I’ll turn everything in and write up my reports.”
“Do you think they’ll believe that I’ve gone underground?”
“For a while. Try not to drag this out any longer than necessary.”
“I won’t. But let me ask you this: do you think the Mexican government has what it needs, including the desire, to keep Blanco on ice until he can be extradited?”
“Probably not. So let’s skip that intermediary step. I’ll handle the extradition orders myself and put them into your hands. Too bad for him.”
Something about that was both satisfying and terrifying at the same time.
“Give me three days to put this together,” he called over his shoulder as he walked out the door.
26
“I’m not sittin’ around on my ass for three days. I have some contacts here in Calexico who may be able to point us in the right direction,” Fetsko said.
“You had better be careful,” Lucas responded. “Your contacts can give you up in a heartbeat. Wouldn’t it be better to lay low and wait till the word is out there that you can be bought for a price?”
Fetsko seemed to sulk for a while. Finally, he said, “Look, there’s this woman I know…Marlena. I’d really like to contact her, bring her up here.”
“Up here? Why?”
“She’s been on my mind ever since we struck the plan. If Blanco is in Mexicali, especially if he’s Cachanilla, she would know him. She has learned to play both sides to the middle really well, and she knows all the rich and famous. She’s available to the highest bidder, but she’s a class act.”
“I’m not sure those two things go together.”
“Wait till you see her, then you’ll know what I mean.”
“Why is it you are so confident she has the information we want? I’ve spent—hell, the U.S. Government has spent—all this time and money for years looking for this guy, and you think this one woman is the answer to all our dreams? And who trusts someone that’s available to the highest bidder? You think Blanco can’t or won’t pay more?”
“Well, she’ll want more than just money, she’ll want some coke and something that we have that Blanco doesn’t.”
“Which is…?”
“A big, blonde hunk that’ll sex her up real good.”
Lucas was ready to explode. “You said you knew it was dicey working with these informants, but this seems downright idiotic if you ask me.”
“Let’s just give it a whirl and see whether she seems to know anything. If she does, we’ll proceed. If she doesn’t, I’ll cut her loose.”
; Lucas just stared at him for a minute, thinking. One, it was a woman, and he would have the upper hand. Two, if he played it just right, he could get the information he wanted without having to give in to her. Jesus, he wondered. Was this what a woman felt like when she was being used for sex?
At last he spoke. “I’m willing to give it a try. Is she here or in Mexicali because I’m not going south.”
“She works both sides of the border.”
“Literally, I’m sure,” Lucas said. “Okay. I don’t like this. I’m supposed to be laying low and out of harm’s way like the chief said. But I think I see how this can work. Here’s how it’s going to go….”
# # #
An hour later, Fetsko was sitting in the hotel bar waiting for Marlena.
She walked in shortly after he sat down. He was hard-pressed to look away from her. He didn’t know how she managed it without looking cheap, but the woman was outfitted like a Hispanic Marilyn Monroe right down to the blonde hair and the mole on her left cheek.
“Nick!” she said, as he stood. She kissed him on both cheeks. “You look so good. It’s been a long time since you called Marlena.”
He certainly would have preferred someone a little less conspicuous. From the way she was greeted around the hotel, her talents must be well-known. What he hoped was not well-known was her talents as an informant.
Looking at her, he immediately had a hard-on, remembering the last time they had crossed paths.
“Mmmmmm…it looks like you haven’t forgotten Marlena,” she said, looking directly at his bulging crotch.
He ordered drinks for them and tried to carry on pleasantries, but it worried him that everyone who was anyone that came into the room stopped by their table to speak with her, making him feel quite exposed.
“There’s someone I’d like you to meet, Marlena. It’s a friend of mine, looking to do business.”
“Business?” she asked. “What kind of business?”
“The people-moving business.”
She looked at him with surprise. “You, Nick? You know someone like this?”
“I’m on my own now.”
“What does that mean…on your own?”
BILLIONAIRE BIKERS: 3 MC Romance Books Page 57
