Above the Law

by Carsen Taite

  “There are mics all around the room,” the guard who’d introduced himself as Leo, told her. He pointed out a set of headphones on the counter in front of her. “Put those on and we can direct what mic you’re getting input from once you see your mark. It won’t be perfect, but you should be able to get a good idea of what’s going on.”

  Dale put the headphones on and listened to the murmur of voices in the room. She’d debated figuring out a way to get Sophia to meet with Arturo in one of the plexiglass cubicles normally used for attorney-client meetings, but she’d decided that might arouse suspicion. She looked at the closed circuit screens that gave them a view of every angle in the room. Two of the walls were lined with vending machines featuring everything from candy and chips to soups and burritos. Visitors were allowed to bring in up to thirty dollars in quarters to purchase food for the inmates to consume during the visit, and she knew many of the inmates looked forward to the vending machine food more than the fellowship of their family.

  A few minutes later, a line of men in orange jumpsuits filed into the room, accompanied by prison guards. She spotted Arturo Vargas right away. He looked around the room for a moment before his eyes finally settled on Sophia, and Dale caught just a hint of surprise in his eyes. She held her breath as she waited for his reaction. There was a chance he would refuse to see her.

  She watched Sophia stride across the room. When she was within a foot of Arturo, she reached out both hands. One, two, three seconds passed, and finally Arturo grasped her hands and pulled her close. Dale saw them exchange whispered conversation as they hugged until a guard in the room barked at them to separate. Arturo shot the guard a feral grin before he and Sophia took a seat in the far corner of the room.

  “They’re over there,” Dale said to the guard in the booth. “Can you hook me up?”

  “Got it.” He flipped a few switches on the control panel in front of him. “You should be able to hear them now.”

  Dale listened closely, filtering out the surrounding noise until she heard Sophia’s voice. She gave the guard a thumbs-up and focused on the conversation between Sophia and her brother.

  “You look surprised to see me,” Sophia said.

  “Do you blame me?” Arturo asked. “You’ve spent a lifetime betraying our good family name. First by giving birth to a bastard and then you set up your blood family with the feds. Surprise doesn’t begin to cover what I feel.”

  “I was young and foolish. Surely, you wouldn’t hold that against me for my entire life?”

  “Your youth doesn’t explain away recent events.”

  “You’re in here because you showed up at my ranch, tried to steal my prize stallion, and threatened my daughter. I stood up against you to protect what is mine. What would you have done in my place?”

  “Don’t pretend to compare our places in the world. You chose the life of a kept woman while Sergio and I earn our way. The daughter you speak of isn’t family—she will always belong to another world.”

  “That may be true, but she’s my blood as much as you are, and I would do anything to keep her safe.” She paused and stared hard at Arturo. “That’s why I’m here. If you will guarantee her safety, I have a way we can help each other.”

  Dale watched Arturo glance around the room. Sophia was following their instructions about being purposely vague regarding the recent threats against Lily, since they believed Arturo was less likely to go along with her plan about the money if she hammered him on the subject. Plus any mention of violence in this not very private place could pique the interest of one of the guards. So far, Sophia sounded sincere to her ears, but she had no idea if her sociopath brother was buying what she had to say. The true test would come in a moment.

  “I’m listening,” Arturo said.

  “My ranch is in dire financial straits. Recent events…” Sophia paused and cleared her throat. “Events I believe you are very much aware of have caused my usual funding sources to become unavailable.”

  “So? You have a winning horse and the opportunity to stud him for much money.”

  “Do you know how much it costs to operate the ranch? The purse Queen’s Ransom won was spent before he earned it.”

  Arturo steepled his fingers and stared at a distant point on the wall as if he were completely disinterested in the conversation. “What do you want from me?”

  “I thought we could help each other. I have a reputable business, but I need cash. You may need a reputable business to handle your cash. Don’t make me say more.”

  At that moment, several other people settled into chairs near Sophia and Arturo, and the noise level grew. Dale strained to hang on to the threads of the conversation. When Arturo responded, his words were measured and his tone even.

  “Don’t worry,” he said. “I have no desire to hear more from you. How dare you come here and try and entice me with problems of your own making. If you wanted to be a part of this family, you should have thought about that before you went to bed with him. You want help, you should go see him.”

  He stood up and Sophia followed suit. Then, to Dale’s surprise, Arturo pulled Sophia into his arms. The embrace lasted several seconds before he broke away and walked toward one of the guards. Sophia looked down at the table as Arturo left the room.

  “What the hell?”

  The guard in the booth looked over at her. “What’s up?”

  “I’m not sure.” She pointed at the screen that showed Sophia still seated at the table. “Are these units recording?”

  “Yep.”

  “Any chance you could play back the last few minutes for me?”

  “Sure, but it’ll just be a visual. Sound is recorded separately.” When she nodded, he reached over and flipped a few switches and the screen scrambled as the tape rewound.

  She stopped him after about a minute. “Right there. Let it play from there.” He showed her how to replay the tape and went back to his duties. Dale watched the final exchange between Arturo and Sophia again. First their back and forth with words, and then a moment later, their unexpected embrace. She replayed it three times before she caught the subtle hand signal from Arturo, delivered as he stood to leave. He’d motioned for her to come closer, and Dale was certain their hug was a cover for another whispered exchange.

  Their arrangement had been for Sophia to leave on her own and meet up with Mary at the diner where they’d gathered that morning. Mary was supposed to do the debrief and fill them in later, but Dale knew she had to get to her as soon as possible. She let the tape play out to avoid drawing attention to the screen that had caught her attention, and she thanked the guards for their help and left. When she reached her truck, she picked up her phone and saw at least five missed calls from Diego and Lindsey, but she ignored them all and dialed Mary’s number. When the call went straight to voice mail, she decided to take matters into her own hands.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Once they passed through security on the first floor of the federal building, Lindsey located the directory and ran her finger along the lines until she found the floor for Judge Niven’s court. “Eight.” She motioned to Alice and Jed. “Let’s go.”

  When they emerged from the elevator on the eighth floor, Lindsey looked around for another sign to direct them to the courtroom.

  “Excuse me, miss?”

  She turned to the voice and spotted two older men dressed in charcoal gray slacks and blue blazers standing next to a metal detector just like the one they’d passed through downstairs. “Hi, we’re looking for Judge Niven’s court.”

  “What’s your business here this morning?”

  It had been a while since a story had led her to federal court, but the intricacies slowly came back to her. She pulled out her press pass. “We’re just here to observe this morning’s proceedings.” She gestured to Jed and Alice. “They’re with me.” She watched as the taller man eyeballed Alice’s and Jed’s casual attire and then scanned her credentials.

  He pulled out a plastic tra
y from underneath the desk. “I’ll need to see everyone’s ID, and phones and any other recording devices go in here. You can collect them when you leave.”

  Damn, she’d forgotten that little detail. What if Dale called her back? She was wrestling with what to do when a large group of people starting walking toward them, on the other side of the ID-checking, phone-grabbing gatekeepers who were holding her up. She recognized the man in the lead as Herschel Gellar, the US attorney. He was flanked by a tall, androgynous woman dressed in a suit that didn’t quite hide the fact she was carrying a gun, and following close behind them were reporters calling out questions as Gellar strode down the hall. They were headed toward the elevators, and for a second she was torn between pursuing her original idea of looking for Bianca and following this press circus wherever it led.

  She caught Alice’s eye and made a snap judgment. “You two, go with them. I’ll catch up with you in a bit.” She handed over her phone and ID and waited impatiently for the marshal to check her in. A few minutes later, she slipped into Niven’s courtroom and took a seat in the back row.

  Bianca was at the podium, and Lindsey took the opportunity to assess the young attorney. She argued her position a little too fervently, but she appeared to be smart and well-versed in the facts. Experience would make her less eager and more jaded, but for now Lindsey planned to use her youth and inexperience to her advantage.

  The hearing lasted the better part of an hour as each side called several witnesses in an attempt to convince the judge to suppress certain evidence in an upcoming trial. By the time it was over, Lindsey had a good feel for the best way to approach Bianca, and she lingered in the courtroom until Bianca was almost out the door.

  “Ms. Cruz?”

  Bianca turned toward her, and instantly, her face lit up with recognition. “Lindsey Ryan? What in the world are you doing here?”

  Lindsey flashed what she hoped was a winning smile. “Hoping I could buy you a cup of coffee? Please tell me you have a well-deserved break coming after that beast of a hearing.”

  Bianca smiled. “Is this about the Take-Back Initiative?”

  “In a way, yes. I’d love to get your perspective on the event.” Lindsey delivered the half lie and hoped she sounded convincing. “Is there a place close where we could talk?”

  Bianca hesitated for a moment, but then she acquiesced. “Sure. Let’s take a walk.”

  Lindsey followed Bianca to the marshal’s desk and retrieved her phone, and then the two of them rode down to the first floor. During the elevator ride, Lindsey glanced at her phone, but there was still no return call from Dale. She looked up and caught Bianca smiling.

  “Busy day?” she asked.

  “Always. I’m sure you understand.”

  “I do, but then I’m not in the limelight every day like you are. Must be different, always having to be camera ready.”

  “You’d be surprised how much of my job is pure drudge. Fact-checking, research. My on-camera time is only a sliver of the job. But, hey, how about you? I bet you wind up on camera with some of the cases you handle.”

  “Rarely. Federal judges almost never let cameras in the courtroom, and the office usually lets a spokesperson handle the press so we don’t have to try to field questions on our own.” Bianca’s hand flew to her mouth and her face reddened. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that exactly the way it sounded.”

  Lindsey offered up what she hoped was a bright and disarming smile. “I kinda think you did, but I won’t tell. I get it. It’s important to craft the message, and most agencies have people assigned to do just that.” She paused for a minute and then whispered, “Although your boss probably doesn’t like to go through a spokesperson.”

  Bianca’s face wrinkled into a frown. “Peyton?”

  Lindsey filed Bianca’s response under things she would examine later and told a little white lie. “I’m not sure I know who that is. I was talking about Herschel Gellar.”

  “Oh. My boss’s boss.” She grinned. “You might be right about that. Good hunch.”

  “It was more than a hunch. I saw him wading through a pool of reporters on his way downstairs when I was on my way in to see you.”

  The elevator door pinged, and they stepped out into the lobby where Herschel Gellar was holding forth, still surrounded by reporters with Alice and Jed on the periphery. Bianca edged away from the crowd and Lindsey followed, although her instincts were divided on whether she would get better information watching Gellar or talking to Bianca. When they stepped out of the building, she tossed out a casual remark to get Bianca talking. “He likes to talk. Has he always been like that?”

  Before Bianca could respond, another voice beat her to it. “Herschel Gellar would light himself on fire if it meant he could get time on camera.”

  Lindsey whirled around and sucked in a breath. Instead of her usual jeans and T-shirt, Dale was wearing gray wool slacks and a pale blue, button down shirt. Shiny black alligator boots replaced the Ropers she usually wore, and her normally ruffled hair was combed into some semblance of order. She looked delicious.

  “Wow. Look at you, all dressed up.” The words tumbled out before she could stop them, and Lindsey risked a quick glance at Bianca’s face to see if she’d registered anything off. But Bianca didn’t seem to be paying any attention to her; instead, she was mouthing words at Dale. Lindsey looked back and forth between them and said, “Am I interrupting something?”

  Bianca’s face flushed red and Dale pulled her aside, tossing a simple, “We’ll be right back,” over her shoulder as they walked a good distance away. Lindsey watched their conversation, punctuated by various hand gestures, but as hard as she tried, she couldn’t hear a word they were saying, which, though frustrating, left her free to stare unabashedly at Dale.

  She looked camera-ready. Had she had a change of heart about doing the interview? If so, why hadn’t she returned one of the dozen calls or texts from this morning? She glanced at her phone. If Dale was ready and willing, she should get in touch with Alice and Jed right now, but a wave of caution flooded her brain and kept her from thumbing the words to summon them.

  The minute she sat across from Dale with the camera trained on them, any chance this smoldering attraction might spark into something more meaningful would be extinguished. She shouldn’t care, and the list of reasons why was exponential, but the top two were the biggies: Dale was a widow, still grieving her loss, and Lindsey had never let her personal life get in between her and a story. She’d never regretted the latter before, but right now she couldn’t help but feel a stinging sense of loss.

  Dale had a hunch Lindsey was staring at them, and when she turned back around, her suspicion was confirmed. The brief jump of exhilaration she’d felt when Lindsey had commented on her appearance had leveled out and now she was on alert. “What’s she doing here?” she asked Bianca.

  “I’m not sure. I think I was about to find out when you dragged me away. Did this morning go as planned? Any idea when you know who will be meeting up with the other you know who?”

  Dale shook her head at Bianca’s attempt to be clandestine. “On the surface, it looked and sounded like Arturo rejected Sophia out of hand.”

  “But?”

  “But I think there was more to it than that. He said something to her at the end of her visit that I couldn’t hear, and she’s MIA. She didn’t show at the diner, and Mary hasn’t heard from her and our calls are going to voice mail. I was hoping you’d heard something. I’ve been trying to reach you.”

  “Oh crap.” Bianca pulled her phone out of her briefcase and looked at the screen. “I had it off because I was in court, and then…”

  “And then you got distracted by a reporter.”

  “She’s pretty distracting. Emphasis on pretty.”

  Dale couldn’t help but glance over her shoulder at Lindsey who was pretending not to try to listen in to their conversation. Pretty wasn’t the word she’d use. Lindsey was storm and shadows. Dangerously attractive, yet lik
e many dangerous things, her allure was strong. “Be careful. You can’t let her get too close.”

  Bianca raised an eyebrow, but didn’t question the warning. “So, what’s the plan to track down Sophia?”

  “Mary’s working on it. I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to show up at Sophia’s place in case she’s being watched.” She jerked her chin in Lindsey’s direction. “I’m supposed to spend the rest of the day selling my soul for a news cycle, but I want to fill Peyton in.”

  “She’s at the ranch today. Pretty sure Lily’s there with her.”

  “Thanks for the warning about that. At some point we’re going to have to take off the gloves and start fighting anyone who is working against us. No matter who they are related to.”

  “Agreed, but I think I’ll let you get things started. I’m headed back to the office.” Bianca cast a wistful expression at Lindsey. “Tell Wondergirl I’m sorry I had to run.”

  Dale watched Bianca duck back inside the building and then turned to face Lindsey.

  “Are you going to run off everyone I need to talk to or just the important ones?” Lindsey asked.

  “Whatever you needed to ask her, you can ask me.”

  “Really. Are you sure about that?”

  Dale detected the undercurrent of disbelief. She knew she’d given Lindsey plenty of reason to doubt she’d be cooperative, but maybe it was time to surrender. She could give the interview, answer all the questions Lindsey or anyone else had about Maria, and be done with it, once and for all. She could almost hear Maria telling her it was the most expedient, painless thing to do. “I’m sure, but here’s the thing. I have something I have to do today. Let’s have dinner tonight. You can ask me anything you want and, if you think it’s newsworthy, I’ll give you the on-camera interview after the event tomorrow.” She offered what she hoped was a humble expression. “I’ll be less distracted then. Deal?”

  Lindsey narrowed her eyes for a minute like she expected Dale to yank away the generous offer she’d just extended, but then her features settled into one of her famous broadcast smiles. “Deal.”