Miami Malice

by Matt Lincoln

  Xavier approached me from the left side of the table. He looked okay, from what I could tell. Doc walked up, and I could see a cast on his right hand. He had a few scratches on his face and forehead, some covered, others not. He actually looked pretty relaxed for a guy who was busted up and broken.

  “We’re both fine, and so is Rosa,” Doc told me. “She’s just taking a bit longer to convalesce and rests more than I do. She’ll be around when you get back on your feet, I can promise you.” I could hear the honesty in his voice, and that put me a little more at ease about this.

  “So, what do you say? Is this guy on the level? Kippy’s friend, I mean?” I lowered my voice so that only they could hear me.

  Xavier was already nodding in the affirmative. Doc saw that and grinned.

  “He’s clean,” Doc assured me. “Xavier checked him out, and he’s as good a physician as any I’ve known that works in these conditions.” Doc wasn’t prone to sugarcoat things. “He did right by us and kept Kippy in line. I don’t know what their connection is, but he is what he says he is, so far anyway.”

  “What kind of conditions?” There was a lot I wanted to understand with regard to all this.

  “Header, he fixed Rosa and me, and also Mia, without any questions. He has a firm handle on the kind of work we do and how and why we sustained these injuries. I’ve talked to him since we got here, and I’m comfortable enough to have let him work on me.” Doc raised his hand as proof. “All he’s asking you to do is take a hot bath and rest. Even you should be capable of following those orders.”

  I gave in. After the scalding bath where Xavier stood outside the door to make sure that I didn’t pass out and drown myself, I was led into my “room.” It was a double bunk room that looked like a cell, with a flat-screen tv and satellite streaming in. I noticed a small metal table and a rolling office chair in the corner. The bunk was supplied with a down comforter, an electric blanket, and several pillows.

  The walls had a textured plaster in a peach color that reminded me of Eve on that first day we’d met each other. That reminder was the push I needed to get better. So, I settled down into the bed and closed my eyes. I didn’t remember anything until two days later when I found Rosa sitting in my room, next to my bed, and clicking the remote for the tv too fast to see what was on there.

  “Hey, gorgeous,” I whispered to her. I’d meant it to be in my full voice, but that wasn’t happening.

  She turned and looked at me, both startled and thrilled that I was awake. She started signing right away. I thought maybe you’d slipped into a coma or were practicing for a role in Sleeping Beauty. Are you feeling well? Any nausea?

  I lifted myself off the bed halfway, propped up on an elbow. “Why would I be nauseated? But, no, I’m fine. Just groggy. And thirsty.” I saw bottled water on the metal desk and motioned for it. “Maybe a little hungry. Let me see.”

  Rosa handed it to me, and I took some long, painful gulps. It tasted better than water ever had before. She watched me with wary eyes. I peeked down at her leg, as it was covered in fresh bandages. There was a pair of crutches leaning against the wall near her, too. She had a few bandages on her arms and neck, but they didn’t look to be of a serious nature.

  “I promise I’m fine. I just need…” My head started to spin, and I fell back against the pillows. “Wow, that was unpleasant.” I wasn’t ready for how bad I still felt.

  Too much, too soon. I did the same thing. Now my body is paying the price. She patted me on the arm. Don’t rush it. That George guy talked a lot about your stress levels affecting your physicality and some other BS about exhaustion, collapse, whatever…

  I wasn’t worried about that just now. “What about Arik? We still need to find him, and I don’t even know where to start.” I closed my eyes to keep the room from revolving around me. I hoped that maybe she’d have some good news on that front.

  We think we know where he is and what this might be about, at least a little more than we did a week ago. Whatever it was, it really seemed to bother her. Rosa was not much of a defeatist type, but her body language was off and showing signs of strain. And the way she was looking made it seem like Arik’s abduction wasn’t the pressing matter we had been led to believe that it was.

  “Rosa? Tell me what you know.” I hated being left in the dark. I needed to be caught up and fast.

  She sighed and shook her head. First, you need to be up and mobile. Doc and doctor’s orders. Sorry. There’s time. I don’t think we’re rushing the clock. I’ll tell you that, at least.

  Chapter 17

  Jake

  I spent another day in bed before I forced myself to get up and get moving. My muscles screamed at me, but I was more determined to meet their demands just to get some answers about what had been going on. Rosa and Doc had been checking in on me occasionally, but I knew that I wasn’t going to get any answers until I got up and convinced everyone that I was ready to work.

  I hadn’t been up long when Doc came to visit and tell me all the things I was doing wrong in terms of healing up.

  “That was a stupid move, Header,” he informed me, propping himself up on the doorframe and giving me the same look he always gave me when I didn’t listen to his medical and safety advice. “Bringing Wraith all this way alone, and in a single drive. You could have caused considerable damage to yourself. And not the kind that people like us get over without serious consequences.”

  “I know,” I sighed, rolling my eyes. I knew he was right, even if I didn’t want to hear it. “It was not a bright idea to come on straight through. But it's too late now. Lesson learned, let’s move on.” I wasn’t one for being lectured. “Tell me about Arik and the news you all have been dancing around.” I kept my end of the bargain. I was up and mobile. It was time for the information.

  “We’re planning a meeting tonight. With Eve here now and her connections, we’ve got a clearer picture of what we’re going up against.” Doc looked away, avoiding my gaze.

  “How bad is it?” I knew that he wouldn’t tell me everything about what was going on right now, but he wouldn’t leave me totally in the dark either. If there was something going on that needed more than one person to explain it, then I could respect that.

  “It’s bad. And weird.” That was all he’d offer. “Anyway. You feel up to pizza? George was going to order out tonight. He thought that we could use the break.”

  I nodded, and Doc pushed off the doorframe to leave and let me rest for a while.

  “So, the mysterious doctor is still around, is he?” I hadn’t seen him much since I’d woken up and had started to move around.

  Doc scoffed at me in a teasing way. “This is his place, Header. The whole thing. So, be nice to our host, huh?”

  I treated him to another eye-roll, and he shook his head with a chuckle and walked out.

  The room we were all supposed to meet up in was not what I’d been expecting. The floors and two of the walls were a type of diamond plate metal, and all sanded to dull the reflectiveness quality. The third wall framed an impressive freshwater aquarium that looked to cover maybe six or seven feet of the wall. The tank was decorated with tiny castles and dragons and green rock. There were also brightly colored fish that I’d have to look at later on.

  The fourth wall was glossy and gave the impression of raindrops running down it. There were no windows at all in the entire large space. The lighting consisted of recessed tracks running along the ceiling and the occasional triangular sconce. A pair of hanging lamps hung over a table and six chairs, which I figured was a repurposed dining area, now used for planning if my team had any say in it.

  Eve and Rosa were already sitting on a textured green sectional couch that assumed half of the room. It faced the table and the aquarium. There were end tables with drinks on them in the middle, and it looked like someone had already been into some wine. I hoped that they’d left some for me.

  Eve jumped up when she saw me and gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. “I’
m glad to see you doing better, Jake.” Her eyes were saying more, but we’d have to discuss that in private after whatever this was going to be. Eve’s kiss was enough to let me know that she and I were on the same page. I smiled at her, wishing that I could do and say more, but that would have to wait.

  Eve led me over to the couch to Rosa. Rosa’s red hair was in its usual braid, and she wore a loose white tee and some cut-offs. Her leg was still wrapped, and a singular crutch rested beside her. She had some healing cuts and bruises running along her arms and on the other leg. But all in all, she seemed like her customary self.

  Everyone else will be in here soon, she signed, reaching for her crutch. Do you want a beer or something?

  “I wouldn’t turn one down.” Before I could argue about her going, she brushed off my objections.

  I need the exercise. But I think she had seen the way Eve and I were eyeing one another and wanted to give us some privacy.

  I looked around at the room to see what was going on as Rosa slipped out the door that Doc and I had come in. Doc had taken a seat at the table with his back to the fish so that he could see the rest of the room.

  “I take it, from the complete lack of information having come my way, that the Arik situation has changed greatly.” I directed this toward anyone willing to answer me.

  Doc nodded, looking up from his phone, which was an odd change of pace for him. “It’s thrown all of us a few curves. Mia has been indispensable in the amount of intel on their kidnappers and motives.”

  “I noticed that you said ‘their kidnappers.’ Guess that means this is still an abductee case?” I had been wondering about that, with all the ambiguous messages and refusal on their parts to say much.

  “It is,” Doc chewed on his words, “but we’re thinking now that it’s more than just that.” He held up his hand. “Just hang tight a few minutes, Header. Once they all get in here, we’ll be able to explain it in detail for all of us to hear.”

  So, I sat down next to Eve on the couch, which wasn’t a bad thing.

  “How have you been doing this whole time?” I asked her, dropping my voice to focus on her. “I hated having to be out of contact like that, especially with you only being here to help us.”

  She smiled and touched my hand briefly. “It was a tad bit unnerving, not knowing what was going on, but I survived.” She was looking good today, in a tan tank, and a shirt over it that showed off her shoulders. She had moved in a little closer, so I met her halfway.

  “That’s the best news I’ve heard so far.” I tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. “I still owe you dinner. Maybe after this… conference?”

  “I was thinking the same thing. I understand that you know Miami pretty well. At least, that’s what your team has told me.” She leaned her head closer to mine, resting it on the couch cushion as she spoke.

  “They told you right.” This was not the best place for this, but it was nice to focus on something good for a change. However, before either one of us could make the next move, Rosa pushed a beer into my face. I hastily took the tumbler. “Thank you.”

  While Eve and I had been… flirting… Kippy and George had joined us. He sat at the table with Doc, and they immediately started chatting about something. Doc raised his injured hand, so I presumed that it was medical-related.

  This was the first time I’d noticed what Doc was wearing. He looked like he could have blown off any beach in the area, with khakis and a local eating establishment’s logoed tee. He looked relaxed, as much as he ever did, and that was good to see. After that night on the boat, I wasn’t sure how anything like this was going to go.

  Having to watch Rosa, Xavier, and Doc fly away, injured, and without knowing when I’d see them again, was… tough. It was something I hoped to never have to go through again, not for a long time, anyway.

  I took a sip from the tumbler that Rosa had handed me and got a bombshell. This was not the kind of beer I’d been expecting. George shifted his attention to me and nodded. “Don’t swallow it down first thing. Allow it to linger.”

  I did as he suggested and took it in. It was… different, but I did my best to enjoy it. George watched me the entire time, and I didn’t want to make any disrespectful facial expressions about it. From his seat at the table, he continued explaining things. “It’s my own brew. A Scottish inspired blend. The only kind you’ll find in this house for now, so I apologize if it doesn’t hold to your usual standard.”

  “It’s unexpected but good. You make it yourself?” I took another drink so as not to offend him, and because I knew that everyone was watching us now.

  “I do. I don’t spend all my time patching up the weak and forlorn.” He tossed a glance at Kippy, but she only shook her head at him. That was a story I’d like to hear. “I have to keep a rather low profile at times, in my work, so long hours of refining and perfecting that recipe has become my outlet. That, and a few other things, of course.”

  Doc knew when to change the subject. “A man of many talents and experiences, Header. You two should get along well.” He got up and stretched. “Did Xavier get lost or something?” He looked toward the door expectantly.

  “If he did, Mia did as well.” These were the first words I’d heard Kippy say this whole time. She was starting to look sullen over there in the corner all by herself. She was leaning into the corner with her arms folded across her chest. She was wearing jeans and another tropical club shirt, this one with tribal suns and moons on it.

  Sure enough, though, Xavier and Mia entered the room together. They looked friendly and being the two youngest people present, that was probably just natural. Xavier was carrying his laptop, wearing orange baggy basketball shorts and a color-blocked yellow and white tee. It was good to see him.

  I guessed that during my time in my relaxation cell, someone had found the time to go shopping. No doubt, in a city as wide and broad-minded as Miami was, they could have ordered online or over the phone, and a less conspicuous person like George could have gone to pick it up. For all I knew, the new wardrobes had been delivered to the front door.

  Whatever the case, everyone seemed to have a fresh change of clothes and other necessities that came with travel. Of course, I’d brought all the stuff from the place in the Azores along with Wraith. I didn’t know if they’d gone to retrieve any of it or if Xavier had packed it up when he came to get me that night. I was just glad that someone had been keeping an eye out for the everyday stuff.

  Mia was a new person altogether. I had seen her in photos, as well as during the incident at the boat where she was terrified, bloodied, bruised, and filthy. But this was the first time I’d seen her as who she was, a young woman with sun-bleached dark hair, brown eyes, and a shy type of smile.

  She was a little shorter than the other women present, and she had a round, happy face, which was, I noted, beaming up at Xavier. She had on a sundress with fruit and leaves, making it look like a multi-colored tangle instead of a pattern or print. Her hair was pulled over to one side and covered her right shoulder. I was relieved that she was alright.

  Xavier and Mia headed for the table to join Doc. They turned their chairs to face the couch and the rest of the room. That left Kippy in the corner and Eve, Rosa, and me on the couch.

  “Gang’s all here? So, you can start telling me what I’ve been missing, huh?” I was a little more than anxious to get filled in.

  Rosa nodded at Xavier, and he began. “I’ve been going off of what Mia’s been telling me about the kidnappers and how they moved around the Azores to keep them hidden. She told me that they spoke a lot of French, Portuguese, and Spanish. There’s not a lot of international trafficking rings that would have a reason to target a US Federal Judge’s son, so I took the international aspect out of it.”

  Xavier was still typing on his laptop, but he took more time to look at us and focus on faces. “From Eve’s info and all the stuff that Judge Fu has been letting us look at, it fits into the category of the kidnappings bein
g personally motivated.” He nodded as though he knew what we were going to say. “Yeah, old news, I know that. But someone wanted the Judge to rule one way over another, right?”

  That had been true. We had email proof that she was being threatened with the safety of her son to “offer considerations” on future cases that she might preside over.

  “Blackmail,” I said aloud. Not that we hadn’t been working that angle, anyway.

  “Yes,” Xavier continued. “So, that narrowed it down. I took a massive look at the kinds of cases that Judge Fu has ruled on, consulted on, written about, all of it. Thank you, Eve.” He nodded at her. “Then I got into the newer stuff and the cases that she’s scheduled to be on or to be influencing. That…” he paused, “opened up everything.”

  Xavier tapped on the keyboard and then looked directly at me. “She’s the Judicial head of a DEA Task Force centered right here in Miami.”

  “Come again?” I leaned forward and caught Rosa, Doc, and Kippy, also taking strong notes, even if they had heard this before.

  “Yeah. Judge Fu has some serious connections to a drug task force monitoring the shipment and sale of substances into and out of Miami to, guess where?” Xavier was actually grinning now. “Island nations in the Atlantic.”

  Eve cleared her throat and spoke up. “The Judge has been the headliner in trying to curb the export and import of designer drugs. She’s created a lot of enemies by trying to flip dealers here locally and by enforcing all types of new coastal based enforcement techniques.”

  That could make her dozens of new friends and just as many opponents and rivals, Rosa added.

  “Exactly.” Eve began to shake a little as she spoke, and I reached out to take her hand for support. Some of this must have come as a surprise to her, as well. “It sounds good from the outside, but there have been stupid risks in being so openly against illegal drugs and now…” She faltered a bit. “The next phase is legal drugs. Pharmaceutical and prescription.”