“There are no children in the family,” Gonzalez said, looking around at the bags. “Doña Margarita must have been shopping for a friend’s child. I’ll send a servant to clean this up. It’s not like Doña Margarita to leave her office in such a condition.”
Mark put the tiny car on the desk.
“Continue. I want to be sure no one has planted listening devices here. The girl can work around you. I’ll be in Don Ernesto’s office. Report to me there.” With that, he walked out, leaving the door open.
Mark listening to Gonzalez’s footsteps as he went into Ruiz’s office, counted to ten, then quickly closed the door to the hallway.
“Laura, it’s me. I know you’re in here,” he whispered.
Did she really think she was invisible? Did she really think Gonzalez would not have seen her?
He strode back to the desk, walked around and squatted. There she was, hunkered down, hugging her knees, eyes wide, looking up at him. He had to give her credit. This was the best—the only—hiding place in the office. As long as no one walked around the desk, her chances of being detected were slim.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
She scrambled out from under the desk. “Margarita has gone to see Tony,” she said quietly.
“What are you talking about?”
“She bought Legos and a soccer ball.” Turning, she grabbed the die-cast car from the desk and held it up. “This is a favorite of his. He has a ball exactly like the one Margarita took when she left the house. He loves it. It can’t be a coincidence. You heard Gonzalez, there are no children in the family. Someone has been taking care of him. The Gummy Bears, this. She’s giving him the things he likes.”
Estrada had said he knew the boy was safe with Margarita, that he was at another location. If Laura was right, finding that location would be the break they needed.
Still, taking toys to the boy didn’t make sense. Ruiz took him to flush out Herrera, who was now under arrest. Why would he treat the boy well? Threats were his modus operandi. Victor Fuentes, tortured and ordered executed was how Ruiz dealt with problems.
Unless… The argument Fuentes overheard between Ruiz and his wife had something to do with Tony Iglesias. Had Margarita intervened and taken the boy herself? But why would she?
Still, if Estrada’s only concern was his mission, why would he say the boy wouldn’t be harmed? Or had that been a ploy to keep Mark from jeopardizing Estrada’s operation?
He hoped like hell that Estrada, who’d spoken so definitely about Margarita Ruiz, wasn’t playing dangerous games with the boy’s life.
“Okay,” he said. “Quick, let’s search through all this stuff. Maybe there’s something that’ll tell us where she has Tony.”
Laura brightened, bent and grabbed a bag at her feet. Mark started to stop her, but if Gonzalez came in, she would be cleaning up. She carefully folded the shopping bags, examining the receipts as she did so. Only the scraps of wrapping paper went into the small trash can.
Mark found another toy car under the desk, then behind it, against the wall, found a hard plastic wrapper which had held four cars. Margarita must have opened the package and immediately lost two cars in the chaos. The receipt was buried under scraps of wrapping paper.
He held it out to Laura. “Know where this store is?”
“Between here and the center of the city.”
“What about the other receipts?”
“Two are from a shop even closer to center, a few blocks from the Presidential Palace,” Laura replied. “It wouldn’t make sense for Margarita to drive all over the city. These have to be close to wherever they have Tony. Both are on Avenida Arequipa which flows into the Plaza de Armas across from the Presidential Palace. The bakery where Margarita left me today is on the same avenue, only a few blocks away. I’ll follow her the next time she leaves.”
“No.” Hell no.
The door opened. Both of them turned.
“What are you doing here? Gonzalez, annoyed as usual, stood in the doorway as one of the female servants looking anxiously on.
“I saw my wife and asked if she could clean the office so I can continue my sweep,” Mark said.
“Go tend to your own duties,” Gonzalez barked at Laura. Turning to the servant, he nodded her inside. The young woman scurried past him.
Laura kept her face down as she left.
“Finish in here, then report to me,” Gonzalez ordered and left.
***
Laura placed the last of the flower vases on a lamp table in the living room, then clutched the crumpled store receipts in her pocket. Ciudad San Mateo was a huge sprawling city, so no one drove miles out of their way unless they had to. She was sure Margarita had bought these things on the way to or from the place where they were holding Tony.
Patience. She needed an extra dose right now because all she wanted to do was confront Margarita and demand the return of her son.
The woman was not back two hours after Laura found the receipts. The muscles in her neck and shoulders were tense from watching for the woman while making sure everything was ready for the party.
Adding to her anxiety was the stream of visitors. The most prominent being Ruiz’s cousin, one of the country’s top army generals. He arrived in his field uniform with a small entourage of lower ranking officers. They all went into Ruiz’s office, but moments later everyone except Ruiz and his cousin stepped into the hallway. After a quick whispered discussion, two captains left, leaving behind two young lieutenants. As they left, two more high ranking officers, one from the San Matean navy, the other from the air force, were ushered into the office. Luckily, none had ever met her. Mark, whom she hadn’t seen since Gonzalez ordered her out of Margarita’s office, was stationed outside the office with the two lieutenants.
Rosa had gone into Margarita’s office as soon as the maid had cleaned it. When Laura took the older woman a late lunch of hot tea and a ham sandwich, Rosa was calling guests to invite them to the next day’s party. The two names she heard were those of two very powerful businessmen she’d met several times. They would recognize her for sure. She’d have to find some way to either stay out of sight or disguise herself.
Or better yet, find Tony and be gone by tomorrow.
Laura waited until Rosa hung up the phone. “Doña Margarita, she has many nephews?”
Rosa looked up, puzzled. “No. Why do you ask?”
“She bought so many gifts. For a boy.”
Rosa stared at her, her lips pinched before she spoke. “Doña Margarita has a great love for children. I’m sure she’s taking gifts to a friend’s son.”
“She left toy cars behind,” Laura said. “Would you like for me to take them to her?”
“No.” Rosa’s tone was adamant. “No. I will tell her when she returns. Go now, let me finish the invitations.”
***
Mark listened to the whispered conversation between the two army lieutenants who’d been left waiting in the hallway while the generals remained inside Ruiz’s office.
“I tell you it’s true,” one argued.
“It can’t be. General Ramos would have told us.”
“He doesn’t know. My brother is stationed along the northern frontera. He has twenty-three tanks at his disposal. At six o’clock this evening, he is to advance on the Monte Blancan troops holding the border.”
“That’s crazy! We can’t violate the treaty.”
“Monte Blanco violated it by shooting one of our soldiers, Julio. Besides, San Mateo owns that land.”
“But Monte Blanco will respond by crossing our border.”
“The generals know this.”
“Do you know what this means?”
“Yes,” the other lieutenant whispered. “Guerra.” War.
Holy shit. Mark hadn’t discounted the possibility, but still. Even if the lieutenant had it wrong, something was definitely about to happen. Estrada had said that things would be resolved in a few days. Could he have meant a quick w
ar? Estrada was a hard ass, but as the intelligence service’s top man, this would be the last thing he’d want.
Mark had to get word to Sam. Unless he knew. No, Sam knew something was up, but not this. He would have told Mark when he asked him to tell Ethridge about the troop movements. This, if true, was something that JSOC, Delta and the State Department needed to know in order to evacuate Americans who’d be in danger.
Ethridge. Shit. Sam had surely already gotten word back that Mark had been in touch. Ethridge was shrewd enough to know he was avoiding direct contact. There would be hell to pay when this was over.
But if what these lieutenants were saying was true, Monte Blanco would retaliate in a big way to any attack from San Mateo, starting a chain of events that couldn’t be stopped, potentially involving the entire continent if other countries took sides.
A country at war was the last place to find one missing child.
***
Margarita returned just before dark. Laura didn’t see her, but she was ordered to take the woman something to eat. Laura kept her head down as she walked past the two young lieutenants who’d stayed beside Ruiz’s office door all afternoon. Mark stood guard by the front door. She knocked on Margarita’s door, then entered.
The office was empty. Margarita must have stepped out. Laura placed the food tray carefully on the desk she’d hidden under hours earlier. As she straightened, she scanned the top, hoping to find some other clue that would tell her where Tony might be.
The daily newspaper lay half on, half off the desk, as if tossed down quickly. Laura picked it up to make sure it wouldn’t fall off.
A picture of her filled the top left side. On the front page. A more current one than the ones run in the papers earlier.
Margarita Ruiz knew who she was.
Laura braced herself against the desk, her mind spinning. She had to get away, find Tony before they—
No. He had to be okay. But why had they kept him? They’d already captured her father.
Mark. She had to tell Mark.
She grabbed the paper, walked to the office door and peered down the hall. The two officers were still there. Mark turned and saw her. She held her palm up, as if telling him to stop, then waited the interminable seconds until both officers turned their backs to her so she could hold the paper up to Mark.
He gave her a barely perceptible nod, directing her to go.
Hands trembling, she folded the paper so her picture wasn’t visible, and left it on the desk. Opening the door again, she nearly slammed it shut when Ruiz’s office door opened. She hurriedly stepped back as Mark escorted two senators into the office. When she peeked out again, Mark was closing the door to Ruiz’s office from the outside. The young officers were gone.
She ran out to him.
“She saw my picture. She has to know who I am. I don’t know where she went.”
“I didn’t see her leave.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “Get out of here. Go back to the house.”
“If she knows who I am, she’ll know you’re not who you say you are. You have to leave, too.”
“Laura,” he said quietly, his gaze intent on hers, “if we both leave right now, neither of us will get away. Go now. If I’m not there by—”
“What are you doing here?”
Laura jumped, barely containing a scream as she spun around at Gonzalez’s angry question.
“You are not to be here,” he said.
“I brought Doña Margarita’s dinner,” Laura said, sure her voice shook.
“You are finished here. Leave us,” he ordered. “Your husband has more important things to do.”
She looked up at Mark, who mouthed a single word: Go.
As she reached the end of the hall, she heard Gonzalez speak.
“Find Doña Margarita. Don Ernesto wishes to speak with her.”
Laura bit her knuckles to keep from crying out. Margarita Ruiz would tell her husband that the maid they’d hired was his enemy’s daughter. That her “husband” was one of her father’s agents.
If Mark didn’t get away, Ruiz would do to him what he’d done to Victor Fuentes.
Chapter Thirteen
By the time Laura reached the kitchen, she was sure her legs would buckle. Finding Tony was all she wanted, but Mark. Mark could be hurt. Killed.
Rosa and the cook were talking quietly. Both turned as the door swung closed behind her.
“Doña Margarita was not there. I left the tray on her desk.”
“That is all then,” Rosa said. “I will speak with her later and pick it up.”
“I may go?” Laura asked.
“Sí. Go. You’ve worked hard. There will be much more to do tomorrow. Arrive early.”
“Buenas noches.” Hands shaking, she grabbed the small cloth bag that held her change purse, practically sprinted from the kitchen and headed for the servant’s entrance. The sun had set but the sky still held the blue of dusk. The city lights began blinking on. Margarita’s car was still parked in its usual spot.
Somewhere inside Margarita Ruiz was planning what to do with her newfound knowledge. Had she gone straight to her husband?
Mark. Por Dios, Mark!
He’d told her to go. He’d done that for her. For Tony. She wanted to rush back to him and...what? Tell him she was sorry? Tell him to be careful? She couldn’t be the cause—
Her vision blurred, but she blinked the tears away. Mark was her father’s agent. He knew the risks when he took the job. If the worst happened, she would be Tony’s only hope.
She walked to the back gate where another guard, one she didn’t know, stood watch.
She kept her head down so he wouldn’t engage her in any way.
He opened the gate for her.
When it clicked closed behind her, she looked up and down the street, then turned back. Maybe there was still time to convince Mark he had to leave.
Just then, she heard an engine crank inside the compound. She ran to a large palm tree that grew between the sidewalk and the street, and hid behind it, waiting.
The gate opened and Margarita’s car drove out. When it turned toward where Laura stood behind the tree. As it passed, she moved around the palm to keep from being detected. Margarita was alone. At the end of the block, the car turned to the right.
With feet so heavy they felt like they were encased in cement, Laura ran to the corner in time to see Margarita turn on her headlights. Was it possible she was going to see Tony now that she knew Laura was his mother? With the bright tail lights disappearing down the street, Laura raced a half a block, desperate to see which way she went. The car stopped at a red light.
An old red Volkswagen with the ubiquitous taxi sign propped on the dash, putted closer. The sign on the dash meant this was a private taxi, probably unlicensed. She held out her hand, waved until he stopped next to her. The driver leaned toward the open passenger window to talk to her.
“¿Adónde va?” Where to, the driver asked.
“I don’t know. La señora left something she needs,” she said. “I must catch her or lose my job. That’s her car. The black one. Up there.” Laura pointed.
“We’ll catch her,” the young man answered with a wink.
She opened the passenger door and hopped in. “She must not know I am chasing her. Por favor, can we follow and let me get out when she stops? I can have this for her there. She will never know I failed to put it in her bag.”
Laura clutched the seat as the driver weaved in and out of increasingly heavy traffic, keeping a constant watch on Margarita Ruiz’s car. Having lived in Ciudad San Mateo most her life, Laura knew they were bypassing the Plaza de Armas. Only once, when they turned off the main boulevard into an older neighborhood, did she fear they’d lost Margarita’s car. But they quickly caught up.
They drove through a more middle class neighborhood, past a school and a park. Margarita turned again, then pulled up in front of a green two-story house on a corner, its exterior plain and square, nothing like the Ru
izes’ other houses. The driver stopped the car two blocks away.
Laura oriented herself. A block over from a banking center, maybe three blocks from one of the main avenues to the Presidential Palace. There was no one on the street. If she was spotted, she’d have to run and hide.
“You’ve saved my life,” Laura said handing over the six peso fare plus an extra one as a tip, knowing one peso was nothing.
“At your service.” The driver saluted and gave her a broad smile.
Margarita entered the house just as Laura got out of the taxi.
She walked closer, her manner casual, her attention on the two windows in the front.
A shadow crossed behind the sheers in one window. Then a small silhouette appeared in the second window. The sheers parted slightly, just enough.
Tony!
Tears of relief welled in her eyes. It was all she could do not to run to her son. But she knew better. She had to be patient. A light came on inside and someone appeared behind Tony. A woman. She recognized Esperanza. They were both okay. Esperanza led Tony away from the window.
The man who’d opened the front door for Margarita stepped out and looked down the street toward another man standing on the corner. They nodded at each other, then the one at the front stepped back inside and closed the door.
Both men held automatic rifles.
***
“Doña Margarita’s car is gone,” Rosa said when Mark walked into the kitchen. He’d already checked the house for the woman, then started asking servants. “One of the guards says she left, but didn’t say where she was going.”
“Maybe she had to meet someone,” Mark suggested.
“No, she—” Rosa looked away with a guilty expression.
“Do you know where she might be?” Mark asked.
“Don Ernesto cannot—” The woman put her hand to her mouth, as if to stop herself from talking, her eyes wide. “¡Ay!”
“Is Doña Margarita in danger?”
Rosa looked confused. “Danger?”
“Is someone trying to hurt her?”
“No.” She shook her head adamantly. “There is a little boy.” Rosa faltered, as if unsure she should continue. “She loves him, but Don Ernesto wants no more children. He has a son and a daughter. Doña Margarita hopes to make him see that adoption—”
Whatever it Takes (Shadow Heroes Book 4) Page 15
