“Everybody dies, not everybody has a crib like this. Damn, Henry, loosen up. You’ve hit the lottery. Kagan will give you anything you want.”
“Except my freedom,” Henry said.
Kagan was having breakfast on a large stone patio that overlooked one of the pools. There was also a garden below. He wore chinos again with a matching polo shirt. Today’s color was a deep green.
Several of the harem girls were in the pool dressed in bikinis. Three were doing laps in the water while the others sat on the edge of the pool with their feet dangling in. Their silence seemed odd to Henry. Girls at poolside usually talked to one another or laughed over jokes. He guessed that the women found it best to remain quiet and had little to laugh about.
The table was big enough to seat ten and was laden with food. There were several kinds of fresh fruit, different types of bread, sausage, ham, bacon, and even steak. It looked like enough to feed a dozen or more. Three men in white jackets and matching gloves stood by. A fourth man was closer to Kagan’s chair and held a carafe of coffee, ready to refill Kagan’s cup if asked to.
Kagan saw Henry and Jax approaching with the guards and welcomed them with a smile.
“I’m guessing you’re both hungry, yeah?”
“Starving,” Jax said, “And tired too. I couldn’t get enough of those girls.”
Kagan smirked at Henry. “Did you enjoy my gift?”
Henry smiled. He couldn’t let Kagan know that nothing had happened between him and Faye.
“Faye was a nice surprise.”
“She’s yours for as long as you want her, but remember, variety is the spice of life.”
Jax had grabbed a sausage link and bit into it. “Can I get some scrambled eggs, Kagan?”
“Yes, they’ll make them for you fresh.” Kagan gestured toward one of the men in the white jackets and spoke to him in Spanish. He then asked Henry if he wanted eggs too.
“Yes, I’ll have two scrambled eggs, please.”
“Give me three,” Jax said.
The food was prepared in front of them after a wheeled cart was brought closer to the table. It was an electric griddle and the eggs were scrambled in melted butter as they watched.
Henry thanked the man when his plate was handed to him. The server nodded but wouldn’t meet his eyes.
“You don’t have to thank them or say please, Henry. They are here to serve you, period.”
Henry stared at Kagan. “My grandmother taught me manners.”
“It was bad manners for her to turn your mother against me and then not to tell you about me. You grew up thinking I had abandoned you on purpose, that I didn’t care about you.”
“Grandma was trying to protect me.”
“From me? Did she really think that I would harm my own son?”
“Why don’t we call her and ask?”
“I told you: no phone calls and no computers. Laura doesn’t need to know anything. I spent years not knowing where you were, now it’s her turn.”
Vasquez came out onto the patio. He was still limping, but it was barely perceptible. He was reading a book; when he placed it on the table, Henry saw that it was a biography of someone named Antonio López de Santa Anna. Whoever he was, the picture on the book jacket made him look like Napoleon.
“Good morning. I see our young heroes are up and about already.”
Jax laughed. “I barely slept. Kagan let me have three women.”
“Three? You’re a stud. And what about you, Henry?”
Kagan answered. “Henry spent time with Faye.”
“Really? You have good taste, but I’m not shocked. I saw the way you were looking at her yesterday,” Vasquez said, then he leaned closer to Kagan and spoke quietly in Spanish. Henry ate his food while pretending not to listen. He couldn’t hear much of what was said anyway. Whatever Vasquez told his father surprised Kagan and he spoke louder, while still speaking Spanish.
“That needs to be corrected,” Kagan said.
“It will be. Remember, we still have someone in place there.”
“Good. Let me know when they say it’s done.”
“There’s more news, although it’s no surprise. Dante Cardoso was behind the attack yesterday. One of the dead men was arrested with Cardoso over twenty years ago for a minor crime.”
“Cardoso is becoming more than a pest. It’s time to swat him like the fly he is.”
“We’ll need a plan. He’s well-protected inside that fortress of his.”
“It didn’t help Alvarado stay alive.”
“Then maybe we should hire the American, Tanner. He killed Alvarado, maybe he’ll kill Cardoso too.”
Henry twitched at the mention of Tanner. Fortunately, neither Kagan nor Vasquez noticed.
Faye approached the table. She was dressed in a green business suit that had slacks instead of a skirt. There was another woman with her, a blonde. She was Faye’s age and nearly as attractive. No one introduced her.
Faye smiled in greeting and her grin lingered as she looked at Henry. She took the empty seat between Henry and his father. The woman shadowing her stood behind Faye’s chair.
Faye asked Kagan if he was ready to hear his schedule for the day.
“Cancel anything that isn’t urgent. I want to spend time with my son.”
“Yes sir, you have several pressing issues to discuss with the associates. After that, your day should be free.”
“Good, Henry, in the meantime, you and Jax can wander around the villa. Just don’t try to leave.”
Jax laughed. “Why would anyone want to leave heaven?”
Kagan considered Jax with a wistful expression. Henry figured Kagan was wishing Jax were his son instead of him. Henry wished the same.
After everyone but the blonde woman had eaten, Kagan left for his meeting with Vasquez and Faye at his side. Faye’s new shadow followed. Henry wondered who she was and why she was trailing behind Faye.
Faye glanced over her shoulder as she was leaving. Henry saw the worry in her eyes. He mouthed the words, “It’s okay,” and sent her a nod.
Jax patted his stomach after having finished his meal. “I still can’t believe this place. Your father has everything. Look at those girls down there in the pool; he can have any of them any damn time he wants.”
“There’s more to life than sex, Jax.”
“I know, there’s money and power, and he’s got those too.”
Henry leaned in to whisper to him. “I meant what I said when I told you that someone was coming for us. I don’t know when that will happen, but be ready to move when I tell you.”
Jax laughed. “Dude, I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to ask your father if I can work for him. I figured since I saved his life, he won’t give me some flunky job. Maybe I can work with Vasquez.”
“Are you serious, Jax? Vasquez kidnapped you then almost slit your throat open. And you could have been shot yesterday inside a filthy airport bathroom.”
Jax made a gesture in the air, as if to disperse Henry’s words. “Vasquez is cool once you get to know him, and hey, man. I could die in a car accident. I ain’t got a rich daddy like you, Henry. If I went back to America all I could do would be to work hard like I did on Cody’s ranch. Here, life is sweet. And if I die in a shootout, I’ll still have had a better life than I would back in the U.S.”
“What kind of work do you plan to do for Kagan?”
“It’s the drug trade, right? He’ll need guys killed when they get out of line or steal from him. I can do that. I want to do that. Killing those guys yesterday was almost as much fun as being with those girls last night. It’s a high, man, to kill someone. Didn’t you feel that too? You killed two or three of those guys.”
“I didn’t enjoy it; I just did it because I had to.”
“I enjoyed it. The look on that guy’s face when he died. I took everything from him, every damn thing. Just bam, and no more life. Umm, the power in that. Yeah, I’ll kill again, but next time I’ll get paid to do it.�
�
Henry didn’t know what to say. He also wanted to be a paid killer. No, that was wrong. He wanted to be a trained assassin, a Tanner, not a thug who worked for another thug and killed anyone he was pointed at. Maybe there wasn’t much difference between himself and Jax, but what difference existed was meaningful.
Jax stood and walked over to the stone balustrade to look down at the pool which was about fifteen feet below them. He waved. “Hello, ladies.”
The women saw him and waved back. Each one wore the same fake smile. Jax took off his shirt and shorts to reveal a pair of black boxer briefs. He then climbed onto the railing, did a Tarzan yell, and jumped off and into the pool.
One of the women below squealed as she was hit by the splash Jax’s leap had caused, and the two guards pointed and laughed.
Henry sighed. Jax should have been Kagan’s son. Everyone would be better off all the way around.
18
Now It’s Personal
Kagan had learned from Vasquez that Laura and Monte had both survived their wounds. He ordered that Laura be killed inside the hospital. Monte could wait. Once he was in jail it would be easy to pay an inmate to kill him. Kagan wanted Laura dead as soon as possible.
Knowing what his friend’s reaction would be, Vasquez had already ordered Laura’s death.
Chris Monte wasn’t the only spy Kagan had placed in Stark. He hadn’t trusted Monte and had someone keeping an eye on him; that person, a female, was also given another task. Now, they were being asked to kill.
Laura’s death would look as if she had developed complications due to her injuries. The doctors were concerned about her heart because the bullet they removed had caused slight damage to it. Had the slug been lodged two millimeters to the right it would have ruptured the organ.
The person sent to assassinate her would add a substance to her IV drip that would cause her to go into cardiac arrest. The true cause of death should go undetected even if an autopsy were performed.
The assassin entered through the hospital lobby dressed like a nurse and flashed an employee badge at the guard on duty. He barely glanced at it and continued the conversation he was having on the phone. The badge was real and belonged to a nurse who was in the parking lot. That woman had been struck on the back of her head while she was getting out of her car. She’d never gotten a look at who had harmed her. In the meantime, Kagan’s spy used her ID badge to roam freely through the hospital’s corridors.
She knew her destination was Room 541 on the fifth floor thanks to calling patient information to ask about visiting hours. She was wise enough to check for signs that her target was being protected by the police. She stepped off the elevator on the fourth floor and made her way to the stairwell at the other end of the building.
After walking one flight up she peered through a small window set in the door. The glass had wire mesh, but it was easy enough to see the police officer who was leaning on the nurses’ station. His back was to her as he flirted with a blonde RN. The woman was smiling back at him.
Room 541 was visible from the stairwell. There was a chair by the door and a newspaper resting on it. The cop had been placed there to guard Laura Knight. The assassin was trying to think of some way to lure the cop away when the nurse came around the desk and took him by the hand. After looking around like kids about to steal cookies, the couple slipped inside what must have been an unoccupied room. It looked like the cop was about to score a quickie while on duty.
The assassin eased opened the door and stepped into the hallway. She was aware that there were cameras in the hallways and reminded herself not to act suspicious. She moved toward Room 541 and entered it as if she had every right to do so.
The woman lying in the bed smiled at her. She was not the target. The assassin gave her a confused look.
“I’m sorry. I was looking for a different patient.”
“Laura Knight?”
“Um, yes.” The assassin looked around. There was only one bed in the room. She had thought that perhaps Laura Knight was sharing the room with someone.
A second cop stepped out of the closet. He was chubby and holding a gun.
“Police! Put your hands up.”
The “patient” removed her phony bandage from her head and pulled back the covers to reveal that she was dressed and holding a gun. She also flashed her FBI credentials.
“I want a lawyer,” said the assassin. Chief Mendez appeared in the doorway. Behind him was the cop and the nurse who played the amorous couple. The nurse smiled at the assassin and held up her credentials. She too was an FBI agent. The cameras in the hallways were visible; there were also hidden cameras in the stairwell. A guard in the security room had given the alert when he saw an unfamiliar woman dressed in a nurse’s uniform climbing the stairs to the fifth floor.
“You must have bad luck, lady. We set up this trap less than half an hour ago,” Mendez said. He cocked his head as he stared at the would-be killer. Next, he reached out and pulled off the fake dark wig she wore.
“Son of a bitch. I know you.”
It was Mrs. Kent, Cody and Sara’s new housekeeper. Kagan had placed her inside their home to learn more about Cody and Henry’s relationship.
When the ID badge was identified as being genuine a search was on for the real nurse and she was found in her car. She had a serious concussion and was bleeding from a cut on the back of her head. She would spend the night as a patient in her own hospital.
Cody was about to enter Matamoros, Mexico, when he received a text from Mendez telling him about Mrs. Kent. He read it while stopped in traffic.
It looks like Kagan had more than one person keeping an eye on Henry. It was your new housekeeper, Mrs. Kent. She attempted to kill Laura and we stopped her. She refuses to talk, but we have her on an assault she committed on a nurse. Laura is fine and so are Sara and Lucas.
Cody texted him back.
Good work. Henry and I will see you soon.
As he began moving again, Cody realized that he was gripping his steering wheel too hard and relaxed his hands. It was bad enough when Kagan had come onto his land and attempted to kill someone, now he knew that Kagan had also placed a potential assassin in his home, near his pregnant wife and child. If he hadn’t taken things personally before, he was now. Cody Parker drove out of the United States and Tanner entered Mexico.
19
I Want To Kill For You
Joaquin Zavala was one of those rare men who was both feared and loved.
He was feared because he was a prominent member of a cartel and loved because he used a portion of his illegal wealth to better his community.
A young man of only twenty-four, Joaquin was married and the father of two girls, ages three and four. His wife was his childhood sweetheart and he remained faithful to her.
It was business and not desire that had brought him to a high-class gentlemen’s club in Mexico City. Joaquin met there one night each week with several other members of the cartel to discuss business in private. He limited himself to one beer and never stayed to watch the entertainment, even though he was always the last one to leave. He left last because he had to talk in private to the owner of the club when no one else was around and they could speak candidly. He and his employer respected the man’s opinion and wanted to know his impressions about how the meeting went.
His comments mirrored Joaquin’s own thoughts. Their failed attempt to kill Kagan Andreas would be met with retaliation. What had been smatterings of violent action between the two rival groups was now headed toward all-out war.
Joaquin was also the last one to arrive at the club, because he rarely missed his daughters’ bedtime and enjoyed reading to them. It worked out well for the other men, they got a chance to ogle the club’s dancers before the meeting commenced.
Joaquin left the club through a rear exit. His limo was there along with the driver who was also his bodyguard. The man had been listening to the radio but leapt from the vehicle as he saw his boss approac
h so that he could open the rear door for him.
Joaquin thanked the man and climbed in the back. The driver let out a grunt as he was struck from behind and rendered unconscious. Joaquin rarely carried a gun anymore and tonight was no exception. His heartbeat tripled as he wondered if he were about to be killed. There was a gun pointed at him and it had a sound suppressor attached. The man behind the weapon raised a hand and spoke calmly in Spanish.
“I’m not here to hurt you, Joaquin. I’m here to ask for help.”
Joaquin took his gaze off the gun and looked at the man holding it. It was someone he knew and had never expected to see again.
“Tanner?”
Six years earlier, Joaquin had been a teenager and one of Alonso Alvarado’s legion of guards. After realizing what a monster Alvarado was, Joaquin had decided to help Dante Cardoso aid Tanner in killing the cartel leader. Joaquin had been integral in Tanner’s success. When Dante took over the cartel, Joaquin became his most trusted man.
Joaquin’s fear lessened as resentment flared. He was wondering if Tanner had agreed to work for their enemy.
“Were you hired by Kagan Andreas?”
“No. I have a reason to want Kagan dead. It makes sense for Dante and me to work together. I want you to set up a meeting between us.”
Joaquin looked down at his bodyguard. “Is he dead?”
“I didn’t hit him that hard,” Tanner said, as he removed a gun from the bodyguard’s holster. The beefy man moaned but never opened his eyes.
“If Dante agrees to meet with you, how do we know that you won’t try to kill him?”
“Why would I? Dante and I have no problems with each other, you know that.”
“Kagan might have hired you to kill Dante and you want to use me to get to him.”
“Think about it, Joaquin. You know my reputation. If I wanted to kill Dante do you think I couldn’t have done it already?”
Flesh and Blood (A Tanner Novel Book 35) Page 11
