“Hmmmmm,” she tried to play it cool, but she was totally attracted to him and electricity shot through her from his touch, “Ok, but after we get this one solved.” He felt like he was on cloud nine, that is of course, until he realized he’d not been with a woman in a few years and had no idea what the dating scene was like. He smiled and they headed down the hall.
They walked into Dix’s room and saw him on his cell phone, “Yes Baby, I’m fine. Hug the little ones for me. They’re going to release me tomorrow and I’ll fly home as soon as possible.” Dix looked over at them, smiled, and continued, “I love you too. Don’t worry. Honey, I promise I’ll be home tomorrow.” He hung up and looked at Petersen and Sullivan like he hadn’t seen them in ages.
Petersen broke the silence, “Well, they managed to keep your arm and shoulder attached to your body.”
Dix started to laugh and said, “Seems that way asshole. Stop making me laugh, it hurts like hell.” He grimaced while he chuckled. Sullivan enjoyed watching them jab each other. It reminded her how she used to be with Romero, a long time ago…before he changed. She thought it was another woman, turned out he was a cartel member. Who would have thought?
Dix looked at Sullivan, “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay. A little shaky for awhile, but better now.”
“That’s good. How’s Doug doing?” The look in her eyes said it all. He knew the man was dead without them answering.
“He didn’t make it,” said Petersen finally, “Sorry about that.”
“Given everything, I still feel bad for how he went out and what his family went through, deep down he was a good man. His wife and child should know he went out a hero, not shrouded in speculation,” said Dix. He wondered how Homeland Security Investigations’ administration would play out his death, as a hero or spin it to include Kovach’s involvement in the crazy story the media would likely report for the case.
Petersen informed Dix, “Speaking of Kovach’s family, Jim heard where you were and sends his best wishes. They have Mrs. Kovach and her daughter in protective custody until they hear from you.” Dix was happy to have such amazing friends and couldn’t believe how lucky it was that they rescued the two of them.
“Man that’s great, I’ll give him a buzz in a minute.” He noticed Sullivan seemed like she wanted to say something, like she wanted to be somewhere else.
“Sullivan, what’s up? You got a hot date or something?”
Sullivan turned a little red in the face and replied, “Can’t get anything passed you,” she looked at Petersen and down to his pocket, “You got a key from Kovach, which the doctor gave to Steve. We think it’s for a locker at the airport.”
Dix recalled the last words Kovach spoke to him, about the key, and he was very interested to learn what the key would open. However, he couldn’t leave his room because he was groggy from coming down from the pain medications and the doctor ordered him to stay in bed.
“Well, seems to me the final piece of this case will be connected to whatever the key opens. Take ‘Steve-O’ with you and go finish this one up,” said Dix with a smile.
“You sure? This is just as much your case as it is mine.” He felt like he was sending a trainee on her own for the first time, proud and nervous.
“Sullivan, when you get old like me, it becomes less about the accolades and more about just getting home to your loved ones. I took a hit for this case, and I have a chance to go home tomorrow. Quite frankly, I’m done.”
Sullivan looked at Petersen who looked at Dix. He gave Petersen a quick nod and they both smiled and hurried out of his room. He truly wanted to be with them and finish the case out, but he was tired and all he could think about was his family. His body and muscles began to flex as if he was trying to get out of the bed, but the pain was unbearable. He decided to remain in bed and wait anxiously for an update. He also wondered if the two would make it to the airport or stop at her place or Petersen’s hotel room. It was obvious they wanted each other, and it made Dix happy to see Petersen finally moving on.
Petersen noticed Dix trying to get up, “Bill, for once in your life listen to the doctors. We got this.” Petersen helped him back down slowly into the bed and hustled to catch up with Sullivan.
Chapter 54
* * *
Sullivan parked the car right in front of the Southwest Gate carrousel. She and Petersen exited and headed directly to the locker area near the ticketing gates. Petersen threw the key over to Sullivan. She caught it and they moved quickly to the lockers she thought it would open. They got to the bank of lockers and stopped. Petersen estimated there were easily a hundred lockers, and the key had no number or letter associated to it.
Without hesitation Sullivan started from the top and worked her way through the lockers. She continued until a little more than a third of the way in when she heard the sound of the lock disengaging. Before she opened it, she waved Petersen over who was on his cell phone watching her.
Petersen hung up and said sarcastically, “You actually got it?”
“I sure did, ready to see what we found?”
“I’m not sure I am, but let’s get this over with.”
Sullivan opened the locker and could immediately see stacks of money, various passports, a file marked CONFIDENTIAL, miscellaneous paperwork, a digital recorder, and a compact disc. Sullivan recognized the folder as one used by HSI for sensitive case files. She looked at Petersen with the now-what look.
“The locker belonged to Kovach; he gave us the key, which supports the fact that he wanted us to find this stuff and we don’t need a search warrant for a dead man’s locker. This is probably everything he was working on to identify the cartel boss and organization. Let’s clear it out and head back to your office to examine it.”
They grabbed the contents of the locker and noticed the passports were for Kovach, his wife, and his daughter. Sullivan estimated there was probably a quarter million in cash. They put all the stuff in a cardboard box and sped back to her office.
She secured the cash and called her boss to meet them. Petersen started laying out the contents of the locker on the large table in one of the conference rooms. He began trying to make sense of the information and tried to wrap his mind around what Kovach had accumulated. Once Sullivan was done, she joined him.
The contents of the CONFIDENTIAL folder were a gold mine. Within thirty minutes, it was obvious Doug Kovach was systematically identifying every single member of the cartel. His handwritten notes labeled the cartel as a “Spinoff from Knights of Templar and Millennium Cartel.” Sullivan recognized both groups as among the largest cartels in Mexico.
One by one, the photographs and everything Kovach had learned about each individual was paper-clipped together. From there, Kovach worked on the hierarchy of the group. Sullivan wasn’t completely sure, but she was beginning to believe Kovach did what he thought he must to stop the group he had spent years identifying. It made her question what involvement the man had with the group.
Significant drug busts along the border, murders, and other high profile cases in the last two or three years were associated with people identified by Kovach. Sullivan would see someone in the files she recognized and explain to Petersen what the person had done. However, even she was shocked to see some of the people in his investigation. School teachers, politicians, judges, athletes, utilities providers, cops, all tied into Kovach’s cartel matrix. The information was all verified through previous cases, current cases, arrested individuals, police reports, surveillance, traffic stops, and other investigative techniques. It was a masterpiece; one Kovach died before being able to reveal.
Sullivan grabbed the CONFIDENTIAL file and opened
it. Both she and Petersen saw the picture of a Hispanic male adult wearing a Customs and Border Patrol uniform. In big red letters across the top of the color photo was written, “EL HEFE?”
Petersen said to Sullivan, “What does El Hefe mean?”
“The Boss. And now I see i
t written all over Kovach’s cartel matrix. This must be the guy running the whole thing.” Petersen looked at her in disbelief.
“A law enforcement guy? As the leader?” Petersen was floored and just couldn’t believe Kovach’s conclusion. How could this happen, he thought.
“Steve, can you deny all this evidence? I don’t want to believe it either, but you saw the same stuff I saw. And don’t forget Romero’s involvement. Is it possible we missed something?”
Petersen’s mind raced and he was wondering what Dix would do right now. He knew Dix would take the case to its appropriate conclusion, so he had to continue.
Petersen let out a long heavy sigh, “Let’s go over the stuff one more time. If we see the same thing twice,” he pointed to the picture of Customs and Border Patrol Agent Jesus Garcia, “Then we pick this guy up discreetly and try to make sense of all this.”
Sullivan considered what Petersen said. “I agree, but this is going to be tricky. The guy is brilliant, a true mastermind. He senses anything, and he’s gone.”
“Yeah you’re right. Let’s go over the evidence then make a decent plan.”
They combed through the evidence to ensure there were no cracks. They both agreed taking a law enforcement member into custody tied into this case would surely cause a stir. If they also labeled him as a cartel leader, they better be sure they were correct. This case would receive international attention. Those associated to it especially at the top, would be looking at capital punishment. Neither Sullivan nor Petersen wanted to risk their careers and the life-long scrutiny they would receive by arresting a law enforcement member and being wrong based solely on Kovach’s work, but the paperwork, research, and evidence was simply flawless. Ultimately, they both agreed they needed to apprehend Customs and Border Patrol Agent Jesus Garcia, but not before calling Bill Dix.
*****
Customs and Border Patrol Agent Jesus Garcia pressed his magnetic key card to the reader at the gate for law enforcement parking at the US Customs building. The green light illuminated signaling the gate would open. The gate finished opening, but before he drove in, Garcia scanned the area and tried to get a read on the guard’s face. He wanted to make sure no one knew his true identity before driving inside. If anything were to happen, he would have little chance of making it out of the facility alive once inside the secure area. Satisfied it seemed the situation was normal, he drove in and parked.
Before stepping out of his vehicle, he made a call to his nephew working as a janitor at the Homeland Security Investigations building.
“Any updates?”
“Kovach is dead. Calderon is dying. The Florida cop is fine, as is the HSI agent. Sounds like the case is closed with Romero’s death,” replied Garcia’s nephew, “Several people have mentioned ‘enough is enough.’”
Garcia thought a moment. He reflected on the fact that he didn’t get to where he was with loose ends. He also never played all his cards.
“The boss wants Calderon dead, no loose ends. I’ll meet you at the same spot I did last week at 7 p.m.” Garcia opened the back of the phone and removed the SIM card and put it in his pocket. He grabbed a second SIM card from the ashtray of his car and put it in his phone and powered it
on again.
Near as he could tell, no one knew anything beyond Romero’s involvement. And since he was dead, Garcia felt safe. He grabbed his duty belt and ballistic vest as he exited the car. That sense of security left his body as his heart sank and he froze.
His immediate supervisor, the district supervisor, and three fellow officers were walking right toward him. Play it cool, he thought as he looked inside his car at the full auto rifle sitting between the passenger seat and counsel area. He was freaking out! He assumed they’d figured out who he really was and it was time to flee. But, those who learned of his true identity were dead; accept Jose Calderon, who was near death. He thought it odd such powerful bosses were walking toward him. He scratched his head trying to make sense of everything. He decided he’d shoot his way out and run regardless of what they knew. He flung his driver door open to retrieve his rifle.
As he ducked to go inside his car his boss slapped him on the back and said, “Jesus Garcia, when did you get that sweet rifle?” Garcia was shocked and could barely talk. Then he realized he’d over reacted and they knew nothing otherwise he’d be handcuffed by now.
“Well, I, um got it a few days ago, it’s not full auto boss,” said Garcia. He regained control of himself and calmed down quickly. Wow, I need a vacation, he thought.
“Damn, that thing is nice, anyway we’re heading out to stir up some trouble down near the river, I need you, too, per the big boss,” said the supervisor.
“Okay boss, let me grab some gear out of my locker and I’ll meet you guys back at the Humvees.” He gathered his composure and walked into the main building. He walked toward the locker room feeling pretty confident the day would end like most days, with no excitement. Several of his friends made little comments to him as he walked through the building. Since the boss needed him for an operation, he told them he couldn’t talk too long.
After he unlocked his locker and grabbed his duty weapon and gear for policing the border, he checked his phone. No messages or missed phone calls.
He worked his way back to the rear of the building to join the team. He saw them and the other two teams in three separate groups standing near the vehicles. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He walked toward them with the typical arrogance he normally had.
As he got closer, his boss yelled out while pointing at a new vehicle arrival to the fleet and said, “We’re in that new one. We’ll be right there. Keys are in it. Get the AC going it’s hotter than hell out here.” Garcia chuckled and mocked the other guys because he was getting the new vehicle.
“All right let’s get the show on the road. I have a hot date tonight.” Garcia loaded his gear in the truck, got inside, and shut the door. He checked his phone again. He had one new text message. Before clicking the screen to access the message, Garcia looked up to make sure no one was around. He noticed agents were moving toward him in several diamond formations. That’s weird, he thought, maybe they’re just practicing or showing off for the big boss. He pressed the phone screen to access the text message. “Shit!” he said out loud.
The message read, “They think they have the main guy identified. You better lay low.”
Garcia looked up quickly and noticed his vehicle was surrounded. Three teams he had worked with for seven years had their weapons trained on him. In the time between reading the message and the information sinking in, he did not notice the door locking mechanism automatically lock when he started the car to get the AC going. He tested the door handle and it didn’t open. He was trapped and felt like a caged animal with nowhere to run.
None of the people pointing weapons at him said a word. The looks on their faces demonstrated he was in real trouble. He tried to figure out what to do next, but he was fixated on how they had figured him out and how they now had him trapped. He thought about his deceased mother and father. They were the ones who raised him to be the next leader. He retraced every step he had done since he was six years old and was completely dumbfounded how it all fell apart so quickly. He knew if he was caught, he would not be tortured or maimed like he would if he was on Mexican soil, but he would be psychologically broken down until he cracked. He would rather be dead than give up information. Most importantly, he had failed his mother and father, and this shook him up inside. The disgrace he felt was crushing his spirit with each passing second. Garcia did not realize he was tapping his duty weapon handle over and over. It donned on him that he could use it to kill as many people possible before ultimately taking his own life.
He contemplated his next move. He recognized one of the Florida cops and HSI Agent Sullivan from the collision at the border the day prior walking toward his location. He noticed their weapons were in holsters. Big mistake, he thought. He would wait until they were clos
er and kill them before he ended his own life.
They walked toward him and walked right up to the vehicle. They stood there looking at him and he assumed they had no idea what was about to happen next. He slipped his duty weapon out, took aim at HSI Agent Sullivan and pulled the trigger expecting the window and her head to explode. Nothing happened and he pulled the trigger again and again. Still nothing happened. He expected to be fired upon, but nothing happened. He placed the gun to his temple and pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. He tapped and racked the slide and repeated the process. Nothing happened again. He looked out the window and saw Sullivan smiling.
“Go to hell you dumb bitch!” he screamed. His mind was spinning. He’d run out of ideas and moves.
Sullivan smiled and replied, “Goodnight ‘El Hefe.’” She looked over to someone to her left and nodded. She looked back to El Hefe and watched as white smoke filled the cabin of the vehicle. He clawed at the door handle and window desperately trying to get out. Eventually, he was subdued by the incapacitating agent. The teams worked quickly to pull him out of the car, hand cuff and shackle him, and transport him to a secure location.
Chapter 55
* * *
Later at a local sushi restaurant, Petersen and Sullivan recounted the entire story about Jesus Garcia to Dix. He was dumbfounded. He took another bite of sushi and shrugged. The last seven days were a blur to him, but this topped off the shenanigans.
“You guys make a great team. So is the guy talking?” Dix asked.
Sullivan looked at Petersen and the jovial atmosphere disappeared. Uh oh, thought Dix.
“We haven’t been able to get a word out of him. I’m pretty sure he knows Kovach and Calderon are dead and thinks he’s in the clear,” Petersen answered.
“Have the Feds brought out any of their top-notch interrogators?” asked Dix. He was praying they didn’t ask him to help. He was done, period, end of discussion.
The Cartel Enforcers (The Bill Dix Detective Series Book 2) Page 23
