by Aimée Thurlo
“Ask your former partner in the Bureau. He’ll know who Jeremy Robertson is. He arrested the guy last week.”
“For what?”
“I’m not doing all your work for you, Ramos.” K.T. smiled. “Do you know Jack Lumet?”
“I’ve heard of him.”
“He’s started a new business. It’s in a room behind Pedro’s Pool Hall. Go tell him you’re looking for Hugo—that’s the code—and he’ll open the door.”
“What’s happening there?”
“I’ve earned my money. Go do a little work for yourself.” She took the bills from Tony’s hand. “It’s time for me to disappear for a while. I’ll be leaving town. It’s been nice doing business with you.” She started to walk off, then glanced back. “Don’t try to follow me.”
“Wouldn’t think of it,” Tony replied.
Amanda started to walk back to the car, but Tony touched her shoulder, holding her back. “Not yet. Let K.T. get away first. Otherwise, she’ll get nervous. Last time she got nervous, she put a bullet in my front tire. Both cars were moving at the time. It was a polite warning. She always hits what she’s aiming for.”
“She seemed so nonviolent,” Amanda said, surprised, “not the type to be a deadly shot.”
“On the streets, no one is quite what they appear to be,” Tony said softly.
Chapter Twelve
Tony drove away from the cemetery quickly. “I’m going to drop you off at your day-care center. You probably have work to do. Then I’ll go check this out.”
She shook her head slowly. “No. I think it’s best if I stay away from the center for now. I think it’s too dangerous for me to be around the kids. There’s no telling what the kidnappers are going to do next at this stage,” she said sadly. First she’d been separated from her daughter, now from the work she loved. She felt trapped in an endless nightmare. “Bernice is fully qualified to take care of the business for me until I’m able to put in regular hours again.”
“Then why don’t you get the adoption papers from the safety deposit box? You agreed to show them to me.”
“No. Not now. I’m seeing this thing through. I’m going with you. You’re not cutting me out now.”
“Well, you certainly can’t come with me, not on something like this. I have no idea what I’m going to be walking into. Worrying about you isn’t going to help me at all.”
“Then don’t. I can take care of myself.”
He groaned. “All right. I don’t want to waste time arguing. K.T. sometimes pulls a fast one. I don’t want her to warn Jack that we’re coming.”
Tony drove to the pool hall K.T. had told him about. Motorcycles lined the parking area closest to the building, and the rest of the lot was occupied by oversize pickups. Two heavily tattooed men with bulging muscles stood by the front door, drinking beer from long-necked bottles.
“Pedro’s boys. Will you reconsider coming in with me now?”
“And stay out here by myself? Not on your life.”
As they reached the entrance, one of the men suddenly blocked Tony’s way. “You’re not welcome in here anymore, Ramos. Get back in your car and take off while you still have all your body parts.”
“Cut the formalities, Frankie. I haven’t got time. I’m looking for Hugo.”
“Tough.”
The man threw a right-hand jab, but Tony slipped inside the blow, landing a heavy fist on the man’s jaw, slamming him against the door with a thud. Suddenly, the second man blocked Tony’s way, his fists up. Now that Amanda saw him close up, she realized the goon was a full head taller than Tony and twice as wide. Tony didn’t stand a chance.
“Gentlemen, enough posturing!” she enunciated in her best teacher’s voice. “I’m here on business. Mr. Ramos is simply escorting me.”
The big guy took a step back and looked down at her in surprise. “You have bad taste in men, lady. Next time, try to pick one who doesn’t have quite so many enemies.”
Tony managed a smile for Amanda, then returned his attention to the two men. “You boys are still in the way.”
“Don’t push it, Ramos,” Frankie said, folding his burly arms across his chest.
Amanda stared at Frankie, who seemed to have recovered instantly from Tony’s punch. He looked as if he spent his days bench-pressing trucks. “We’re here to do business,” she said briskly. “We’re not looking for trouble. If you’ll kindly introduce us to Hugo, I would appreciate it.”
“Let them pass,” a voice just inside the slightly open door ordered. Something about his tone indicated that this was the person who made the final decisions around here.
As they were led through a maze of sweaty men and pool tables to the back room, Amanda’s hands went cold and her heart began racing. She was proud of herself for getting them this far. Tony’s fists would have only resulted in bruises and broken bones, possibly including his own.
“Your ‘friend’ will be in shortly,” the man said, opening a door for them.
As Tony and Amanda entered a dimly lit storage room lined with cases of beer, the door was promptly shut behind them. Amanda looked at Tony questioningly.
Before Tony could say anything, a young man in his mid-twenties strolled in. “Hello, Jack,” Tony said.
“The name’s Hugo. What can I do for you?”
“I need some information.” Tony brought out the paper K.T. had given him and placed it atop a case of beer. “Is this your work?”
“What’s in it for me?”
“I got you out of a jam once. It’s payback time,” Tony answered.
The man nodded and looked at the document resting on the carton. “This isn’t my work, but I wish it was.”
“Let’s see a sample of what you can do.”
“The score’s even now. Nothing’s free from this point on.”
When Tony stepped forward menacingly, they suddenly heard a shout, then the crunch of wood. A flurry of shouts and thuds continued, then a gunshot blast echoed just outside the door.
Tony pulled Amanda toward him and dived to the floor with her. Pushing her next to the wall, he shielded her with his body. “Stay down.”
“FBI,” they heard a familiar voice yell.
“We’re in a raid?” Amanda asked, horrified. “I can’t afford to get arrested!”
A second later, Raymond burst into the room. He glanced at Tony and Amanda in surprise as they rose from the floor. “What the—”
As two more agents rushed into the room, Raymond hustled Tony and Amanda out into the pool hall. “We’ll square this later,” he told Tony in a harsh whisper. “You’re lucky as hell that I’m in charge and that the senator is in your corner.” He escorted Tony and Amanda past the line of officers and the men facedown on the floor. When they got to the parking lot, Raymond turned to Tony. “I want a full statement later, clear? But just tell me right now. Is this linked to the kidnappers’ forged documents?”
“My source led me here, but no, Jack isn’t the guy we’re looking for.” Tony fished out the birth certificate for Jeremy Robertson. “This is what I got from my source.”
“Interesting. Robertson’s a known associate of Henderson, the armored-car robber. We arrested Robertson last week, but he had an ironclad alibi. He wasn’t in league with Henderson. The two had a falling-out a year ago. Robertson claims that he never dealt with Hugo, and that he knows nothing about Henderson.”
“I think he told you the truth. Jack said these papers weren’t done by him. Obviously my source knew of only one counterfeiter in the area making phony documents and attributed a lot more to him than he was capable of producing. So there’s somebody else out there taking up the slack. And they’re better than Jack.”
“What’s next?” Raymond asked. “Do you have another lead you can follow?”
“I may. I’ll be in touch.”
Once they were underway, Amanda leaned back against the seat and tried to stop shaking. “I’ve never been in a place like that in my life, much less been caug
ht in a raid. With any luck, I’ll never have to go through that again.”
Tony raised an eyebrow. “You stayed cool. That’s the important thing. You’ve got guts, Mandy. You stood up to those thugs and never blinked an eye.”
“I just used my common sense. Brawn wasn’t getting us anywhere.”
“Sometimes it’s needed.”
“Maybe it is, but so far I’m the one who experienced less trauma.” She nodded toward his skinned knuckles.
Tony rolled his eyes but chose not to answer. After several minutes, he finally spoke. “I’ve got another idea I want to pursue, but I’ve got to act now. You’ve seen how fast things can go wrong. Do you still want in?”
“You bet. Where are we going?”
“We’re going to pay Bobby Serna a visit. He and I haven’t met, but I know what he looks like. Bobby’s served time for passing bad checks and has worked for Jack in the past. It’s possible he’s involved in this scam, too. But first I’ve got to make a quick stop to change my appearance a bit. I’m going to play the role of a high-stakes gambler on the run from creditors—the back room kind. A mustache and a Western-cut jacket should do it.”
Amanda glanced down at her long skirt and cotton top. “Am I okay in this?”
“Sure. It makes you look sexy, and what better outfit for a man’s mistress?”
She choked. “A man’s whaaat?”
“That’s your role. Don’t you like it?”
“Not particularly.”
“How about if you pose as my wife? That, I think, would suit you far better.” He smiled gently, as if he were keeping a secret from her.
A fierce longing assailed her. “It’ll do,” Amanda managed to reply.
Tony stopped at a gas station. “I’ll be right out.” He took a small suitcase from the trunk of his borrowed sedan, then went into the rest room. When he came out, he looked entirely different.
Amanda stared at him. He looked good in a mustache, and the brown jacket with the silver-and-turquoise bolo tie made him look wonderfully male, yet elegant. “I approve,” she said with the ghost of a smile as he slipped behind the steering wheel.
He raised an eyebrow. “Don’t get too attached to the look. I want you to be prepared. I may have to get down and dirty.”
“Where are we going?”
“The racetrack. Don’t worry, I never resort to violence unless it’s the only way.”
“But you like the physical action,” Amanda observed. “That’s why you’re in the business you’re in.”
“I enjoy the challenge, that’s true. Once I find Carmen, though, that’ll change. I’ll have to put in more office time than fieldwork. I intend to make my agency the best in the Southwest. It won’t all happen at once, of course, and it’ll take hard work, but it will happen.”
She believed him. If there was one thing she knew about Tony, it was that he never gave up.
Once they arrived at the racetrack, Tony parked and led her toward the crowd of racing fans gathered by the rail. “Serna is short and in excellent physical shape. He’s got salt-and-pepper hair and black eyes. He’s a fancy dresser and tends to wear Stetsons.”
Amanda’s gaze passed over several men in hats and came to rest on a man standing near the gates, watching the horses. He was wearing an expensive-looking light gray jacket and dark pants. The brim of his black hat covered his face, making it impossible to get a clear look at his features. “Like him?”
“That’s our man, all right. Let’s go have a chat with him, but let me handle this, okay? If we push him too fast, he’ll spook on us and we’ll get zip.” Tony strolled up casually and took a spot at the rail next to Serna. “Number three looks good,” Tony said casually. “Know his best time on this track?”
“Check the racing form. I prefer the long shots, so I’m going with Sonny Boy. He’s got a few good races in him yet. Maybe this will be his day.”
“My luck’s better when I stay with sure things. The more the risk, the less they seem to pay off for me.”
“Lady Luck’s unpredictable. That’s what makes her so much fun.”
Tony turned his back to the track and leaned back, staring at the stands. “If you’re who I think you are, we have a mutual friend.”
“Who?”
“Hugo.”
“Yeah?”
“Unfortunately, just as I drove by to enlist his...shall we say, services, he had members of a government agency drop by unexpectedly. I think his shop’s going to be unavailable for a while.” Tony deliberately avoided being too specific. If nothing incriminating was said between them, Serna would be more likely to give him the information he needed.
Serna’s eyes grew wide. “When did you say this happened?”
“Less than a half hour ago. The guests are probably still there.”
Serna glanced at his watch. “Thanks for the tip. It looks like a good time for me to go see how the horses are running out of state.”
“I did you a good turn. How about doing one for me? Hugo’s unfortunate situation left me in a jam. He had some papers for me and my wife. Fortunately for us, no photos were included.”
“You need another source?” Serna turned and gave Amanda an appreciative look.
Tony nodded. “One who’s good and can work fast. We need to be somebody else right away.”
“Hugo was the best for the money. There is another provider, but he comes at a very high price. And you can’t deal directly. Everyone is screened.”
“I’ll manage.”
Serna nodded. “Okay. Call Ron Vila. He’s a lawyer. Cagey guy. Does the screening, I suppose. Tell him Bobby sent you. He won’t deal with anyone who doesn’t come recommended.”
Hearing her ex-husband’s name, Amanda felt her heart leap to her throat. For endless seconds, the ground seemed to tilt and shift out of focus.
As Serna walked away, Tony put his arm around her waist for support. “You don’t look so good. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. It just took me by surprise. I never thought Ron would be capable of involving his law practice with something so blatantly illegal. I knew he would take shortcuts when it was to his advantage, but nothing like this. The person who’s playing this game bears no resemblance to the man I married.”
“I know that the longer you walk the line between what’s legal and what’s not, the easier it gets to cross over.”
Amanda looked at Tony, tempted to ask him if he was speaking from personal experience, but she didn’t dare. She wasn’t sure if she could take an honest answer, at least not now.
“To answer the question in your eyes,” he said, “I still respect the law. It was my job to uphold it for too many years to lose that. But in order to find Carmen, I’ve had to spend my time cultivating a network of informants and being, at least outwardly, one of them. I’m an honest man, Mandy.”
“But I know you spent time in jail before I met you,” she countered, unable to stop the words. The truth would demand courage from both of them, but its time had come.
“The creep I went after was in the business of picking up runaways. The police had suspected him for years, but couldn’t touch him for lack of evidence. By the time he released the girls he abducted, they were usually too frightened to testify. Then he made the mistake of picking up the daughter of a friend of mine.” He shrugged. “I convinced him right away to tell me where she was. That convincing carried a price, and I paid it.”
“Was that the only time you were in jail?”
Tony didn’t answer directly. “I’m not telling you that everything I’ve ever done was right. But when I’ve broken the law, it hasn’t been so I could make a buck.”
Amanda looked over at Tony as he started the car. “What now? Ron will certainly not talk to you, no matter what your disguise is. If he’s involved in this, at even the lowest level, you can bet he knows precisely who you are.”
“Yes, and that’s why I’m going to need your help. You have to get me into your ex-husband’s off
ice. If that’s not possible, then you’re going to have to go over there and take a good look around.”
“Ron wouldn’t trust me now! If I do go see him, he’ll make sure I’m not left on my own for more than half a second. That assistant of his, Katrina, is just as bad.”
“You have to find a way to plant a bug in his office. Trip over something, drop your purse, do whatever it takes, but you’ve got to leave one where they won’t find it. It’s the only chance we’ve got now.”
Amanda took a long, deep breath. “I’ll do my best.” She hesitated a moment. “Do you have a listening device in your little bag of tricks—the one where you got your gambler’s outfit?” Seeing him nod, she added, “Then let’s go over to Ron’s office now. I want to do this as soon as possible. If I think about it too much, I may just blow it by telling him off.”
“You cannot do that. Listen to me. It’s crucial that he doesn’t know you’re really on to him. If he suspects, we could lose our opportunity.”
“I know.” Her shoulders slumped. “I’ll tell him I must speak to him about discrepancies I found in Hope’s adoption papers, and that I won’t take no for an answer.”
“That sounds all right. I’ll wait for you in the parking area behind the building. He’ll never know I’m there.”
“Let’s do it.”
* * *
AS AMANDA WALKED INSIDE Ron’s plush, wood-paneled outer office, Katrina Clark stood up and blocked her way.
“You can’t just come in here without an appointment, Amanda.” The tall blonde stared at her with venom in her eyes. “What are you doing here anyway? You’re not his client.”
“And I never will be. But I am Ron’s ex-wife and the mother of his child. Either tell him I’m here, or I’ll do it myself.”
“He’s a busy man. You’re not going to be able to see him now.”
Amanda met Katrina’s gaze squarely. “Get out of my way. I’m not here to cause trouble. I just need answers to a few questions. If you push me, however, I’ll create a scene that will have every person in this office building rushing to your door.”
