“You better.”
Gomez shook Kino’s hand and Kino thanked him for the information. Clay patted his shoulder. “Let me know how she’s doing.”
“I will. And, Clay?”
“Yeah?”
“Be careful.”
Kino watched the two stride away and then turned his attention back to Lea.
The doctor arrived. She was heavyset with thick glasses, short, wavy brown hair and deep-set lines flanking her mouth. She checked the CT images on a laptop then ordered medication to be injected into Lea’s IV. Kino watched the muscles of Lea’s face relax as her body slackened.
“You her husband?” asked the doctor.
Kino hesitated, suddenly speechless, but he found his voice a moment later. “Bodyguard.”
He showed her his shield.
“Remind me not to hire you should the opportunity arise.” She pointed at the laptop. The screen was filled with a colorful image that Kino could not interpret. The doctor returned her attention and her hands to Lea’s abdomen, which looked flat. Kino had seen spleen ruptures in some of the more horrific auto accidents on the rez and he knew what a distended stomach meant. So the sight of Lea’s smooth cinnamon skin was a relief.
“I’m ordering an ultrasound to check her spleen. Two ribs broken but not displaced. I gave her a painkiller, but no sedation. Her breathing is shallow enough. It’s going to hurt to breathe, but she needs to or risk getting pneumonia.”
“You admitting her?”
“We’ll see. Depends on the blood work.”
He edged closer, slipping in beside Lea as the doctors came and went. He took her hand.
The nurse who had first treated Lea reappeared through the curtain circling Lea’s bed.
“How is she doing?” he asked.
“Blood pressure and heart rate are all good. I’d say that body armor saved her life.”
“Is she awake?”
“The pain meds are making her a little out of it, I’d imagine. But she’s conscious.” The woman’s gruff exterior was belied by the twinkle in her eyes and the slight twitch at the corners of her mouth. “I’ve got other patients to check on.”
With that, she hurried down the corridor and into another curtained examination area. He could hear her speaking to a patient.
Kino sat on the plastic stool and wheeled up beside Lea.
“I’m still here. Lea? Can you hear me?”
She nodded and then flinched.
“I’m sorry for everything I said. I admire you for helping them on their journey. And I’ve got no right to judge what your mother and aunt had to do. Given the same circumstances, I might do the same thing. I’m sorry I didn’t protect you better. We should have stayed at the house where you were safe. If anything happens to you I’ll never forgive myself.”
Her hand was limp in his and her fingers were cold. He pulled the thin cotton blanket up over her body. This time when he took her hand, she squeezed back. Some of the fear left him, replaced by hope. She’d be okay. But what about the next time?
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Kino settled beside Lea’s hospital bed as she dozed, attuned to the shallow drawing of her breath and the slight tension at her open mouth. The machines beeped and hummed; the shuffle of rubber soles came and went. He kept the curtain open, his gaze shifting from Lea to the corridor. As afternoon wore into evening, they moved Lea to an observation room in the ER. This room had a door, which he kept shut, and blinds that he kept open.
The doctor came back and reported that Lea’s blood work was good, but that they wanted to keep her a few more hours for observation. She’d be going home with a prescription for pain pills. Kino settled in. He called Clay, who told him he’d decided to keep an eye on the entrance to the ER. Kino felt much better knowing that Clay was close. Still, he kept alert.
Lea woke in pain and was given more medicine in her IV, which made her groggy and helped her sleep. Each time she woke her eyes went wide and shifted across the room until she found him. Then she smiled and relaxed.
“I got you,” he said.
“I know you do,” she answered, her words slightly slurred.
It was nearly four in the afternoon by the time Lea got her release papers and a prescription for the pain medication. Kino paid attention as they wrapped Lea’s ribs with an ACE bandage and then he helped her dress.
“This is a switch,” he joked. “Trying to get you into your clothes.”
She gave a sound that started as a laugh and ended as a groan as she clutched her ribs. She was sweating from just the effort of tugging on her jeans.
“Don’t make me laugh,” she chided.
He lifted the vest, considering. Their eyes met.
“I don’t think I can stand the weight,” she said.
Before leaving, Kino called Clay, who met them at the observation room.
“How does it look out there?” asked Kino.
“Sunny. Hot. Like always. Man, I miss the trees. The shade and the lakes.”
Clearly, Clay had understood what his brother was asking and was just busting chops. Kino scowled.
“Looks clear,” said Clay, finally consenting to answer the question.
An orderly wheeled Lea to the exit and Kino helped Lea to her feet, his hand on her elbow. Lea’s face was grim and determined as she made slow, shuffling forward progress to the SUV Clay had pulled into the ER roundabout.
They had Lea nearly to the door when Kino’s and Clay’s radios both sounded at once. It was Dispatch. Border patrol had called from the site of the shooting. They had found tracks and had spotted the shooter. They were in pursuit of the suspect, who had escaped in a large ATV. They needed the Shadow Wolves’ help. Captain Rubio was en route. Dispatch gave the location that Kino knew all too well and radioed out.
Kino got Lea into the passenger seat.
“A sighting,” said Clay. “That’s our guy.”
Kino nodded. “Yeah.”
“You coming?” asked Clay.
“Nope.” Kino couldn’t believe what he was saying, and from the shock registering on his brother’s face, Clay couldn’t believe it, either.
“But it’s him,” said Clay, his voice incredulous.
“She’s worth a hundred of him.”
Clay glanced at Lea and then back to his brother, a look of open speculation on his face. “Maybe we’d better take her back to Black Mountain. At least there we have home-field advantage.”
“Yeah,” said Kino. “I like the sound of that.”
“What do you want me to do?” asked Clay.
“I want you to catch him,” said Kino.
Clay gave a lazy smile and thumped Kino’s shoulder. “Will do. Then we can get back home. Should be easy, not having to watch your back.”
“Just watch your own.”
“You going to the safe house?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll see you there.” Clay hesitated. “Maybe I better stay with you.”
Kino considered that then shook his head. “Go take him into custody.”
“Custody? Really?”
Kino nodded and Clay smiled. “I’m only good at shooting animals anyway.”
The two embraced and Kino watched Clay meet up with Nesto Gomez and stride away, feeling a slight tug of envy. He’d wanted to see the Viper captured. To be there when he went down. But now all he wanted was to see Lea through this and, if she’d let him, to protect her for the rest of their lives.
Kino rounded the SUV. His phone vibrated and he lifted it from his pocket, checking the caller ID. It was Gabe. He might be calling to order him back to work, but Kino knew he might have information. He paused beside the driver’s-side door and took the call.
“Hi, Gabe.”
“Just got the word on that suspect, the one with the storage unit. Rosa Keene?”
“Yeah. What’d they turn up?”
“The detective who interviewed her said that she denies any knowledge. He also said she still owes eight months on her used Escort and rents a shitty apartment, so he’s inclined to believe her. She said it might be her ex-husband. The guy retired, according to Keene, when they threatened to charge him with a felony. The detective my guy spoke to didn’t know him or anything about her allegations but reports that Mrs. Keene said her ex-husband was under investigation for taking bribes and involvement with drug smuggling. She told us that the department let him go with his pension in exchange for his resignation.”
“What department?”
“Tucson PD. He was a detective.”
Kino let the dust from that bombshell settle. His suspect was a retired cop.
“You got a name?” Kino thought about the new tribal police chief, Charlie Scott. He was retired from someplace.
“Yes. His name is Gus Barrow. That mean anything to you?”
Kino nearly dropped the phone. The border patrol captain, the one who’d just got Captain Rubio to order his men to the scene of Lea’s shooting. The surge of adrenaline made his ears ring and his skin tingle. Kino turned to Lea and heard her door open.
Kino looked over the roof at Gus Barrow, gun drawn and pointed at Lea’s head.
Gabe’s voice came through the phone. “Kino? You there?”
“Yeah.”
Barrow pressed the barrel of the gun to Lea’s head and lifted his chin toward Kino.
“I gotta go. Tell Tessa I send my love.” Kino disconnected.
He faced Barrow.
“You,” he said.
Barrow nodded. “Get in.”
Kino hesitated. It would be better to confront him here. But not better for Lea.
Barrow gripped Lea’s arm and she grimaced as Barrow turned the gun on Kino.
“Make up your mind. I can kill you both here.”
Kino got in the driver’s side.
“Toss me the keys.”
He did.
Then the captain climbed into the backseat and threw the keys up on the dash.
“Drive.”
Kino started the engine and drove as directed, his fingers itching for a chance to reach for his gun, but when he tried to release the wheel, Barrow noticed.
“Hands at nine and three, Cosen. I don’t really need you, you know.”
They left town, driving south into the desert. Kino glanced at Lea to find her face pale and her eyes huge. He’d promised to protect her, to keep her safe, and he’d failed. He knew what would happen next. Barrow would take them somewhere remote and shoot them both.
“Sure wish you’d responded to that call. Didn’t think you could resist a chance to catch... What do you call me? The Viper? I like it. It has a certain superhero ring to it.”
“Villain,” said Kino.
“What?”
“Supervillain.”
“Whatever. Why are you so interested in my business?”
Kino snorted. “You killed my father.”
“Well, I’ve killed a lot of people.”
“My mom said my dad used to pick up drugs from a plane drop and take them to Tucson.”
“Yeah. Tractor-trailers. We used to do it that way. Before all the damned homeland security. Drones are hell. Plus, they got choppers up the wazoo. They stop one trailer and they get the whole 50,000 pounds of pot. We lose it all. So it’s back to old school. Human mules, each with a fifty-pound pack. Harder to catch a minnow than a whale. You know? They catch maybe one train out of ten. Acceptable losses.”
“And the people?” Kino asked. “The ones they leave behind to die.”
He saw Barrow smile. “Like I said, ‘acceptable losses.’”
Kino’s hands fisted the wheel. “Like my dad, Henry Cosen? You shot him ten years ago in his kitchen.”
“I remember your dad. Don’t you think I checked you out? Couldn’t keep you off the Shadow Wolves, unfortunately. Your dad would be mighty surprised to see two of his boys working for the tribal police. Ironic, when you consider his choices. An ex-con with two cops in the family. Funny old world.”
Kino’s jaw tightened. It was something he never spoke about. But it was true. His dad had been in once for drugs and once for arson. “You shot him in his kitchen.”
“It’s business, kid. Your dad was an addict and he was shorting me. Had to make an example. You should have let it go. You could be pulling over drunks at Black Mountain. Instead, you’ll end up just like dear old dad. You think he would have wanted that?”
“You left a rattle in the wound.”
“How do you know that?”
“I was under the table.”
Barrow’s brows lifted. “You don’t say. Why didn’t you recognize me, then?”
“Just saw your feet and hands.”
Barrow shrugged. “Lucky for me. Unlucky for you.”
“Why a rattle?” asked Kino.
“Yeah, that’s my calling card. Though I don’t always leave them. Especially if I don’t want credit. Credit helps in my business. But not all the time. People give you more respect. Funny. A man might not be afraid of dying. But that rattlesnake rattle, it just creeps them right out. And I do love rattlesnakes. Got a special treat for the two of you. Found a nest. Big one. Parked a stash truck right nearby.”
Kino checked the rearview, staring at the face of the man he’d hunted all his life. Kino tried to think of something, but the best he came up with was flipping the car. With her ribs already compromised, he was afraid that might kill Lea.
Kino knew that Gabe had got his message. Mentioning their mother would send the cavalry, or in this case, the Apache. But he didn’t know if they’d find them in time. For now, Kino and Lea were on their own.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Lea could see his face in the side mirror. It was him, the one Kino called the Viper. The one she had seen that day in the desert. And he had been right there with Kino all along. A border patrol captain collaborating with the Shadow Wolves. He called the trackers whenever they needed help and could have put Kino down on so many occasions it made Lea’s blood freeze in her veins.
She had no doubt that Barrow was the one who had murdered Ernesta, shot at her and now was leading them to their deaths. And despite the pain in her ribs and the aching in her heart, she did want to live. But more than that, she wanted Kino to live.
All this time she had allowed him to protect her and that had brought him to this. She wondered if she could reach across for Kino’s gun without Barrow seeing or if she should open the passenger door and simply throw herself out of the vehicle. It would give Kino two things he needed: time to make a move and the benefit of not having to consider her safety first.
She glanced at Kino and his eyes shifted to her and then slid away. He gave a slight shake of his head. He couldn’t know what she considered, but he seemed to know she was up to something.
She cast her gaze to the right, where the cactus and scrub brush flashed by as she imagined rolling along the sandy shoulder of the road. Just the anticipation of the pain in her ribs made her nauseous. She reached for the door handle.
“Why don’t you just shoot me now?” she asked. Each word caused a knife blade of pain.
Barrow made a tsking sound. “Not on the road. Anyone might happen along. They’d see the blood on the windshield. I need privacy. Besides, I’ve been working all day to organize this. Nice of the hospital to give me hourly updates on your condition.”
Lea slipped her phone from her front pocket with the hand Barrow could not see and prayed the battery wasn’t completely dead. She swiped the mobile phone awake and us
ed her thumb to flick it to Silent. Then she punched in her personal code.
“How did you know where we were?” she asked and then hit the phone icon and the star for favorites.
“Tracking device. All my vehicles have one. It keeps me updated on the whereabouts of my men.”
Kino glanced at her and then back to the road.
Barrow continued. “But the Shadow Wolves’ vehicles, I didn’t have them rigged. I’ve since corrected that mistake.” Barrow rested his gun hand on Lea’s seat, just beside her left ear. “Cosen here left his vehicle behind that day. Didn’t you? Followed my mules right to me. I told your captain I wanted notice if his men were on tribal land. But Rubio isn’t any better at communication than lover boy here. Plus, the Shadow Wolves have special permission to come on Tohono O’odham land, right? Mi casa es su casa. Indian thing. You should have called that in, Cosen. Told your captain you’d heard gunfire. Man, you almost had me there. Didn’t you?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “You know why I operate there, right? Harder to prosecute on Indian land. Bureaucratic nightmare. That’s what. It’s why your father was so handy. Moving product. Stashing product. We’ve got others on your reservation now. Plenty to replace him.”
Kino made no reply, but his hands inched down the wheel.
Lea glanced at her phone and hit the first name on her favorites list. Her mother.
“You don’t check in often. That will work in my favor now,” said Barrow. “And you didn’t report for duty last night. Your brother did, but not you. You’ve been off course and out of communication a lot over the past few days. Telling everyone about the Viper. Well, won’t they be surprised when they discover that you’re the one behind this.”
She saw the words calling mobile appear on the screen.
“Been running drugs up in Black Mountain,” said Barrow, “where the local police have no jurisdiction. Same reason you’ve been running drugs out of this reservation. Chip off the old block, right? Won’t be hard to pin this on you. Might even have enough to implicate your older brother, the police chief.”
Kino’s hands clenched the wheel and his jaw muscles popped. Lea could only imagine how much that threat hurt him.
Harlequin Intrigue, Box Set 1 of 2 Page 51
