This whole thing was a nightmare. What if Matías found out? God, he’d hate her if he knew the secrets she was keeping, but she had to. Didn’t she? She was so confused and conflicted.
How could her grandpa have lied to her for so long? And Uncle Danny?
Raven was still reeling from the shock of their deception. Her family, who had flown for the DEA doing a good thing—had become money hungry. She didn’t know how long Grandpa Hokee and Uncle Danny had flown pot and coke in from Mexico without telling her. She didn’t think her cousins were in on it. Just the thought of their deception made her hands shake.
“Hey, boy, you going with us?” Matías knelt next to the kennel bolted behind her seat.
She smiled at the dachshund, who wiggled his whole body as Matías stuck his fingers between the wires.
“How do you say his name again?”
God, watching him with her dog melted her heart. Of course, the little dog loved everyone he met, so that wasn’t surprising, but Matías didn’t have to pay attention to him at all.
“Níłch’i?” she replied, the native Navajo rolling off her tongue.
“Yeah, that.”
“Neet-chi,” she said slowly.
“Netchi.”
Níłch’i’s ears perked up and he sat up on his haunches, balancing perfectly—front paws bent, floppy ears slightly perked and his big, expressive eyes telegraphing, Pet me, loud and clear.
“Damn, he’s cute. Does it mean something?”
“Benevolent spirit.” She’d had the dog since she was a pre-teen, and he’d stuck by her through some of her hardest years.
“We ready to go?” Matías scratched the dog’s nose.
“Yeah, almost.” Raven took a deep breath and squeezed her hands into fists to stop the tremors.
Good thing she’d already completed her pre-flight check. More than once. She’d gone through it several times over the last hour and a half. Flying the cargo plane to Mexico would be just like the little hops she’d been doing the last couple of months to cover flights for her uncle and grandfather.
She’d thought Hokee was just getting old, and that her uncle was dealing with it in his own way. It was the only reason she could come up with for why they would miss jobs like they had. Little did she know, they’d been useless and high. It pissed her off so much to think that she’d unknowingly enabled them—and now she was covering for them.
Why hadn’t she just packed up, left, and let them get caught?
Because the airport supported so many families on the reservation. Honest work was sometimes hard to find, and the people they employed might not be able to find equal pay anywhere else.
I’m not doing this for Hokee or Danny. I’m doing this for everyone who counts on us.
Raven hated lying to Matías. She…liked him. With those dark, brooding eyes, the neatly-trimmed hair and swanky suit, he was good enough to eat, one bite at a time. But he’d never given her any indication he was interested. Which was probably for the best, given her situation. It was one thing to lie to a friend and a whole other matter when it came to lying to a lover.
Right now, she needed to concentrate on the Cessna. Raven pushed the family drama out of her mind and focused on the controls. The hardest parts were the take-off and landing. Cruising wasn’t difficult.
Raven doubled back and closed the door, securing it for take-off. The exterior was already prepared. Once Eddie had seen the car with Matías pulling up, she’d scurried around to get everything else taken care of. The faster they got out, the better.
Matías sighed and unbuttoned his suit jacket. Next to him, she felt every grain of sand and sweat clinging to her body. When she’d gotten dressed this morning, she’d anticipated a day full of flying her crop duster. The demand for their services had sky-rocketed since switching to an all-organic, non-toxic form of pesticide. And then she’d surprised Hokee in his office, snorting coke. Hours before the DEA was supposed to be there. She’d panicked, and her grandfather casually admitted to transporting the drugs. The worst part was, she could believe it of Hokee and Danny. They’d always pushed for ways to make more money, and it had been her father who had been the voice of reason. Their consciences. Without him in the business anymore, there was no compass. No heart.
Raven needed a way out, and after this flight was over, she’d take her plane, her dog, and her truck somewhere else. Maybe set up shop for herself.
“Should I call you Matías or José?” Raven flicked the switches and the engines roared to life. A dose of adrenaline shot through her system, amping up her nerves. Once more, her hands shook. She’d wanted to fly cargo since forever, but the answer had always been no. It was reserved for her grandfather and uncle, despite the fact that her father had pushed to purchase the Cessna. But then he’d left two months after buying it.
Now she knew why.
“Let’s stick with José.” Matías pushed the armrest up and leaned toward her, elbows perched on his knees. “Hey, is something wrong?”
Oh God, no. Don’t ask. Don’t ask!
Because she wanted to tell him. To ask him what she should do. There was something about Matías that made her open up and tell him her secrets, stupid as they were.
“Nothing, really. I’ve just thought about these trips for so long, it’s a little crazy to finally get to go on one.” Her nerves were driving her to chat. She adjusted her headset and hoped her cousin was still up in the tower.
Matías didn’t reply immediately. She glanced at him, noting his pursed lips and wrinkled nose.
“What?” she asked.
“If you don’t want to do this, you don’t have to. I don’t want Eddie to pressure you into doing something you aren’t ready for.”
God, he was sweet. She could just kiss him, but that would only lead to more awkwardness.
“No, I’ll be fine. It’s my first trip into Mexico.” She glanced at him and smiled. At least that was a truth.
“You’ll do great. And the sky is the same, no matter where you go.” The corners of his mouth pulled up slightly. He never smiled much, but for some reason the expression seemed especially stiff.
Níłch’i yipped from his crate strapped to the bulkhead behind her. The little dog loved to fly. She blew out a breath and took the controls. Flying was in her blood. This part of the ruse, she could do. Carefully, she eased them away from the hanger and onto the runway.
“Easy, boy,” she called without thinking about it. Usually when she flew the little crop duster, Níłch’i sat in her lap. It wasn’t exactly regulation, but she’d flown for years without anyone licensing her. Just her dad teaching her to read the gauges and how to listen to the wind. It had been a simpler time.
“Is he going to bark the whole time?”
“No, just during take-off and landing. Otherwise he goes to sleep. I think it’s the pressure.” She gestured to her ears.
“Does he fly with you often?”
“All the time. Ever since I started flying at fourteen. Hold on.”
Raven radioed to the tower and got the go-ahead to get this show started.
One takeoff, and she could call this bullet officially dodged.
Uncle Danny had been so excited when the DEA approached them about working with an undercover agent. They’d seen dollar signs, convinced this would bring cash rolling in. She could still remember her father warning Uncle Danny and Grandpa Hokee that this wouldn’t be the solution to all their financial problems. But once the others had grabbed hold of her uncle’s dream, it was over.
Thoughts are like arrows, Raven. Once released, they strike their mark. Guard them well, or one day you may be your own victim.
Her father had seen the end before she’d known what was going on. She suspected the fight that had sent him packing was about the drugs. She’d been away that weekend. He’d called her, offering her one chance to go with him or stay. No explanations, because he wouldn’t want to reveal secrets, no matter how bad. At the time, she hadn’t unde
rstood. But now, looking back, she could see where his words bore fruit.
Somewhere along the line, Hokee had realized that the DEA wasn’t about to be their cash cow. Since she wasn’t part of the inner circle, she hadn’t seen how things spiraled until it was too late. Oh, she’d noticed the slack in the administration, the mistakes, but she’d chalked it up to the stress of her father leaving.
Working for the DEA was the worst thing that could have happened to her family. Instead of working with the agents to prevent drugs from coming into the country, her uncle and grandfather had become drug mules themselves. The very thing they’d started out helping the DEA stop.
It made her sick to her stomach. Was she doing the right thing? If she hadn’t covered for Hokee, they’d have shut the airport down today. Josh, their mechanic, had just seen kid number four born that week, and Angela, who did their books, was a newly-divorced, single mom. They needed their jobs. They needed her to lie. It didn’t rest well on her conscience.
“Hang on,” she said.
Matías muttered something under his breath the second before she pushed the throttle lever forward and the Cessna Cargomaster lumbered down the strip. It was a completely different feel from the crop dusters she normally flew, a bit heavier and slower at first, but once she got rolling, the power behind the engines was substantial. It built and built, vibrating the plane and rattling the clips fastened to rings in the floor and walls.
Raven sat forward, almost on the edge of her seat, as far as the seatbelt would let her go. She held her breath and pulled the control wheel toward her a bit more. The nose of the plane lifted and her stomach dropped. She could feel the vibrations abate as the front wheel came off the ground. She adjusted the throttle a bit more, watching her primary flight display for anything out of the ordinary.
The wheels left earth, and they were airborne. A thrill shot through her body as the earth rushed away from her. Níłch’i howled behind her, echoing her excitement. There was nothing more thrilling or empowering than putting a hunk of metal in the air.
She glanced at Matías. Some of the tension eased. They were airborne. This would be over soon. Why not enjoy it and the company?
“What is it we’re doing today? Getting a bad guy?”
“Something like that.”
She guided the plane to cruising altitude and engaged the auto-pilot.
It was a beautiful day for flying. Clear skies and hardly any wind. There wasn’t anything on the weather report would interfere with their path for the whole flight that.
Matías leaned back in his seat, hands crossed over his stomach in a resting pose.
Dang, if he wasn’t attractive. Throw in that he was a real secret agent, and it was a good thing she didn’t see him often. She might embarrass herself further by trying to flirt with him.
“Who taught you how to fly? Your dad or Hokee?” he asked.
“My daddy taught me. I’d sit on his lap while he dusted fields. Eventually, I was the one doing all the work.”
“It’s a family thing, then?”
“Yeah, my great-grandfather flew in WWII and passed it down. Before that, the family was farmers and ranchers, but competition outside of the reservation was too steep.”
“Damn. I can’t believe I never knew that. What did you grow?”
“No idea. Chilies? They sold the farmland and took the stretch on the edge of the reservation for the airstrip, back when my grandfather started to fly. They’ve been growing the business since.”
“I always liked the idea of family business.”
“Your mom would make a great spy. Just saying.” She chuckled. “How is she?”
Matías sighed. “No clue. I haven’t seen her in two years.”
Raven’s heart ached for him. Leave it to her to stick her foot in it.
“I thought you were going to go see her, spend Easter?” What had that been? A year ago? Dang. It was the longest stretch she’d ever gone without seeing him.
“It’s safer if I don’t contact her. I was…I was deep undercover for a long time. It was dangerous, and I didn’t want to put her at risk.” A dark shadow passed over his face. She had to wonder how bad it was that it would stick with him so long.
“But you’re getting out of the DEA now. That’s what Eddie said.”
“Damn. What does Eddie not tell you?”
She chuckled, relaxing even more. God, it had been well over a year since she’d seen him. How could she miss someone she saw so rarely?
“Do you at least talk to her? What’s she doing?”
“Whatever she wants, after working three jobs to raise me and my brothers. She cans peaches. Can you believe that?” Matías shook his head.
Be still my beating heart. Could Matías get any better?
“Why’s that so funny?” Raven glanced at him. “What’s wrong with canning peaches?” A woman who raised three sons on her own had to be one hell of a lady. Her father had just had her to worry about, and she’d given him plenty of gray hairs.
“I tell her, ‘Mamma, you can do whatever you want, just tell me. I’ll take care of it.’ She says me, ‘Mijo, I want a pallet of canning jars.’ Good grief. If I never have to eat another peach again, I’ll be fine. She sends them to our office and I give them away to anyone who will take them.”
“She sounds like a spunky lady.” Raven laughed and eased back into her seat.
“She had to be, with us around.”
“You gave her hell, didn’t you?”
“Believe it or not, I was actually the good kid.”
“You? No.”
“Yeah. Me. The good kid. I got a job at fifteen, and at sixteen, I started working as an informant for border patrol there in El Paso and turned it into a career.”
“That’s kind of amazing.” She’d had to drop out of high school to work, so she understood the kind of drive it took at that age to grow up.
He didn’t reply, but she could feel the mood change, as if they’d settled under a warm blanket together. It was always easy with Matías. Something about him…spoke to her. As if when he was near, her spirit stilled to hear him better.
Too bad she was practically lying to him, but if she’d been honest, Hokee and the whole business would have wound up in trouble.
Chapter Two
“They just landed, señor.”
Victor stared out at the airport from his vantage point of the second floor conference room. He flicked his hand and the office rat scurried out of sight.
He was taking a risk. A big one. But the business needed to change, and he wasn’t sure who he could trust. If this plan worked, he could build an empire the likes of which would throw shadows on The Corporation. To do that, he needed people he could control.
José Gonzalez was not the biggest buyer, nor the one with the best connections, but he was the client with the darkest secrets. It had taken months to ferret out José’s true self, but once Victor found the chink in the man’s armor, the rest of the plan was easy to unfold.
He would twist the man’s arm into working for him, once he was again certain José had nothing to hide, that he wasn’t suddenly working for the Americans. Then he’d make the man an offer he couldn’t refuse.
Matías stepped out of the plane, and the weight of the mission settled on his shoulders, as oppressive as ever. Somehow, he’d managed to forget what they were doing during the flight. Raven had handled the plane like a veteran pilot and given him nothing to worry about, but more than that, she’d reminded him of bits and pieces of himself. He wouldn’t mind spending more time with her. She was witty, honest and down to earth. He liked her, not that it mattered. Soon, Victor would pull up, they’d do this deal, and he’d never see another drug dealer or cargo plane again. He’d also never see Raven Benally after this, and that was a shame.
He glanced over his shoulder as she bent to shove wooden blocks on either side of the wheels. The ground crew, or whatever they were called, scurried around, helping her. Once more, h
e glimpsed that tiny bit of flesh at the curve of her ass.
Dark desires swirled in his mind. It would be all too easy to imagine the rest of her, nude, bent over his knee. She’d be fun to spank, though he doubted she would ever have a submissive urge. There was nothing of the submissive vibe to her, and though she might think it was fun for a night, he needed more. He needed a life.
She stood and turned toward him, catching his stare. One side of her mouth hitched up in a smile he might have called inviting. But they were friends. Had been for years.
“You almost done?” he asked.
“Almost. Hold your horses, all right?”
Matías cursed under his breath and paced back and forth in front of the hangar. Both of the doors were open and a hot wind swept through, scalding his skin and bringing with it the bite of sand.
Lazaro Cardenas was a small airport, with a few airstrips and a bustling staff. They had no idea what was going to transpire here today. Though, to be honest, the real action would happen at the port, once they were technically off Mexican land. The DEA hadn’t trusted the Mexican officials when they’d promised to cooperate with the bust. It was probably a miracle someone hadn’t already sold their secrets. But then again, Victor could always show up with a bunch of guys and guns to put a few holes in him and prove Matías wrong.
The minutes stretched on and before he knew it, almost an hour had passed. The airport staff had left their hanger alone, and true to her word, Raven was inside while he stared out at the landscape, waiting for something to happen.
When this was done, he could find a woman like her—but a submissive. Someone he could play with for more than a night or a weekend. A person he could be honest with. Learn to love. As rewarding a career as he’d had, it wasn’t everything. He needed more than the job. It was a truth several old timers had told him, back when he was starting out with the DEA, so full of fire and determination that they would end the so called War on Drugs. Now, he knew better. It was a never-ending war, with rules that kept changing.
Entrusted: A Drug of Desire Novel Page 2
