Thunder Storm

by Matt Lincoln

  “You’re right,” I acknowledged. “Even if he didn’t tell us anything, he’d call just to say he found something and urge us to stay away for a few hours.”

  “Exactly.” Holm looked up the street to see where Alejandra had wandered off to, but neither of us could see her in the crowd. “If we haven’t heard from him, we can conclude that he’s in the same boat we’re in.”

  “Yeah, except his boat’s a hell of a lot nicer,” I mumbled.

  “Yeah, your new toy is cool, but it isn’t Wraith.” Holm stopped short suddenly. “Hey, with all these budget cuts, do you think our pay will be affected?”

  I let out a frustrated sigh. “I hope not,” I muttered, “but things are slowly getting worse and worse. I’m sure it will impact our personal wallets soon enough.”

  Holm shook his head, and I could tell he was frustrated, too.

  “I can’t give you any details,” I reminded him, “and I know that you understand that. We are working on it, and we are making progress. I’m trying to figure this out before it impacts any of us, but it’s proving to be tough. For now, I’m just going to need you to trust me.”

  “You know I always do,” he admitted. Holm may not have been happy to be kept in the dark, and I couldn’t blame him, but I also knew that he had my back no matter what we were going through, and this situation would be no exception.

  I looked up the block again and was relieved to see a familiar head of hair bobbing through the crowds. “There she is,” I announced unnecessarily. One glance at Holm told me he had seen her, too.

  “I wonder what the phone call was about,” he replied.

  As she got closer to us, though, one thing quickly became apparent as we took in her pale face and her wide, fearful eyes. Whatever that phone call had been about, it wasn’t good.

  Chapter 15: Alejandra

  “Hello?” Alejandra answered the phone a bit confused. Her father had told her he’d be busy in meetings all day, so she hadn’t even expected a text message, let alone a phone call.

  “Alejandra, sweetheart, do you have a minute to talk to me alone?” His voice was kind, but his words were clipped. Whatever the reason was behind this phone call, it was serious.

  “Yes, hold on,” she murmured. She looked up at the Special Agents.

  “Excuse me,” she whispered, but she didn’t think they actually heard her over the din of the passing crowds. Regardless, they nodded their acknowledgment, and Alejandra slipped away up the block, her new book from Ethan tucked under her arm.

  “What’s going on? Did something happen?” She stepped off the curb to get around a large group of rowdy teenagers and kept walking, trying to get as far away from them as possible so that she could better hear this conversation.

  The silence on the other end of the line worried her. Alejandra’s father had always been a straight shooter, and he always knew just what to say. If he was hesitant to speak, things must be bad.

  “I received a note, hija,” he replied solemnly. “I felt confident that your brother was safe because they had not reached out to me. Well, now they have.”

  She heard the tremor in his voice, and her heart sank deep into the pit of her stomach.

  “What did it say?” her voice came out in a hush.

  “If we ever want to see Miguel again, I must step down.” His words hung over her head like a storm cloud.

  “Oh, no,” Alejandra whimpered as tears welled up in her eyes. “So, it’s true. They’re using him against us.”

  Her father cleared his throat. “I will step down,” he assured her, “but I am heartbroken. All of these years, I have worked so hard to improve things. We have made such progress bringing Hispaniola together and improving our economy. When I step down, the racism against our Haitian neighbors will increase, the economy will suffer, and I will have to watch my home crumble.”

  “Oh, papa, I am so, so sorry.” Alejandra looked up and realized how far she had walked. She turned and began heading back toward Ethan and Robbie, but she could not see them from how far back she was. “Listen, don’t do anything yet.”

  “What do you mean?” he cried, his voice tinged with anger. “Your brother’s life is in danger! I will step down to save my son!”

  Alejandra gritted her teeth together as she fought to remain calm. “Papa, we don’t know for sure that he is alive. We don’t know that they will keep their word. Look at all of the innocent people they have killed. We can’t trust them.”

  “So, I should do nothing?” His anger was palpable now, and she could hear his voice echoing within the room he was in. “I will never forgive myself if something happens to him!”

  “For now, yes.” She forced herself to remain calm. “We need to let MBLIS and your friend Jake know what is going on. They may be able to help.”

  “What can they do that will be any better?” he growled. “Unless they can save Miguel and keep me in office at the same time, I don’t want their help.”

  “Papa, what if they can?” She saw Ethan and Robbie nearby, wrapped up in conversation. “We need to utilize our resources, that you called for, before we move forward and undermine everything that they’re trying to do for us.”

  “Alejandra,” he snapped. “This note isn’t going to wait for me to decide. You talk to your new friends, but if you don’t give me a resolution soon, I will step down, whether you like it or not.”

  “I understand, papa. Just hold on. I will call you back soon.” Alejandra heard the click of the receiver on the other end which left her alone with her thoughts. She shoved her phone haphazardly into her pocket and looked up at the two men who were now patiently waiting for her. She swallowed her bundle of nerves and headed back over to them, but she knew her worries were etched plainly on her face.

  “Is everything alright?” Ethan approached her first, but she couldn’t convince her mouth to open. She opted instead for the briefest of nods and straightened up her posture.

  After a moment, she willed herself to speak but was still unwilling to divulge the details of her phone conversation. It took all the energy she had to resist collapsing into a puddle of tears right there on the narrow sidewalk.

  “It’s fine. Can we go back to the rooms?” She looked from Ethan to Robbie, but they both looked hesitant. She knew she looked worried, and she didn’t want to alarm them, not out here in public, anyway.

  “Of course.” Ethan rested his hand on her shoulder gently. She wasn’t sure if she should pull back or bury her face into his chest. She did neither, swallowing her emotions instead,

  “Come on, let’s go,” Robbie called out, leading the way back to the hotel. Ethan stayed beside her, close enough for comfort but not quite touching her. As they maneuvered their way through the crowds toward the hotel, Alejandra felt her nerves become increasingly on edge, and her legs began to feel like rubber. By the time they hit the lobby, she had about reached her limit.

  “Hey, I’m going to grab something from the coffee shop down here,” Robbie informed them, jabbing his thumb in the direction of the cozy booth along the far wall. “Do either of you want anything?”

  “I’ll take a cup,” Ethan requested, looking down at Alejandra. “She looks like a cup of tea would be more helpful.”

  Alejandra managed a curt nod.

  “Sure thing,” Robbie muttered softly. “I’ll meet you two upstairs?”

  Ethan agreed, resting his hand against the small of her back and guiding her to the elevator. The warmth of his hand broke through the hollowness she was feeling, and as soon as the doors slid shut and they were alone, her knees buckled, and she broke down into tears. Ethan scrambled to catch her, pulling her up against him in a comforting hug. She cried real, ugly tears into his shirt, which was surprisingly soft and warm against her cheek. It felt a bit ridiculous, leaning against this man she barely knew, but she felt completely alone over here without her family, and Ethan was right here supporting her.

  “You know,” he mumbled, his chin resting on the
top of her head, “you don’t have to tell us what that phone call was about, but it might help to get it off your chest.”

  Alejandra grimaced but did not move. “I do.”

  “What?” She felt his chin move as he pulled her slightly away from him to look into her eyes.

  Her voice came out weak and shaky. “I do have to tell you what the phone call was about. It’s related to the case.”

  “Okay,” he replied simply.

  The elevator doors opened, and Ethan guided her over to his hotel room. It sat adjacent to hers, but she was grateful to not have to be alone at this moment. He guided her over to the cream-colored sofa and sat beside her, his hand still resting on her shoulder. He sat back and waited patiently as she took deep breaths and regained her composure.

  “I’m sorry,” she muttered down at the patterned carpeting.

  “Sorry for what?” He dropped his hand and stood up, walking over to the glass double doors across the room and swinging them open. The fresh salt air blew through the room, coating her lungs, and giving her the courage she needed to be able to speak.

  “I’m sorry for breaking down like that,” she mumbled. “It’s not okay.”

  Ethan shook his head at her and rejoined her on the sofa. “It’s absolutely okay. Can you tell me what happened?”

  Alejandra heard the key card in the door and looked up to see Robbie come in with three paper cups in a carrying case. He took one look at her face and froze in place.

  “What’d I miss?” he asked sharply.

  Ethan gestured to the nearby matching chair. “Have a seat,” he offered, “Alejandra is about to let us know what’s going on.”

  Robbie set the carrying case down on the coffee table, a roughly cut slab of wood only treated on the top surface, and sat quietly down in the chair as he awaited the information. Alejandra felt both sets of eyes on her as she gathered her thoughts.

  “Okay,” she muttered, more to ensure she had found her voice than for the benefit of the two men before her. “My father received a ransom note.”

  “Oh, no,” Ethan muttered.

  Robbie leaned forward in his seat. “Is he alright?”

  She managed a nod. “He’s just distraught. The letter said what we thought it would say once it made its way to him. He needs to step down, or else they will kill his son.”

  Robbie exhaled sharply. “Well, we can’t say we didn’t see that coming.”

  “That’s true,” Ethan admitted. She saw them look over at each other, concern plain in their faces.

  “I told him not to step down until I spoke with you,” she confided, her voice cracking as she fought more tears. “You don’t understand. My father has worked for years to build the Dominican Republic up. The economy is flourishing, our relationship with the Haitian people have improved immensely, and I could not be more proud. If he steps down, everything he has been working toward for his entire career will go out the window, people’s livelihoods and quality of life will disintegrate, and…” She couldn’t contain them anymore, and the second wave of tears fell from her eyes as her words caught in her throat.

  Ethan slid in closer to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder while Robbie sank back into his chair.

  “I’m sorry,” he whispered, staring down at the ground.

  “Yeah, we both are,” Ethan muttered beside her. “We need time.”

  “Time for what?” she sputtered. “My brother doesn’t have time.”

  “I know,” he whispered helplessly.

  A shrill chime cut through the somber atmosphere, and Ethan pulled away from her to dig his phone out from within the pocket of his pants.

  “Well, this doesn’t surprise me, either,” he muttered as he answered the phone. “Header.”

  Alejandra's head shot up. Why was Jake calling something in right now? Did he already know?

  Ethan listened for a bit before responding. “Yeah, we just found out. Hold on.”

  He put the phone down on the coffee table beside the forgotten drinks and pushed a button. “Okay, Header, you have the room. I’m with Holm and Alejandra.”

  “Well,” Jake replied smoothly, “to recap, President García called me. He received the ransom note we were all concerned about, so that puts us on an accelerated timeline.”

  “I told him not to step down yet,” she informed him. “I didn’t know what else to tell him.”

  “That’s alright,” he assured her. “I told him the same thing.”

  “So, what do we do?” Robbie called out from the chair, propping himself up with his elbows on his knees.

  “We don’t do anything. I’m handling this.” Jake’s stern voice might have intimidated a lot of people into cooperating with him, but not Ethan or Robbie. They simply rolled their eyes.

  “That’s not possible,” Ethan reminded him gently. “We are down here to do our job. We won’t sit on the sidelines.”

  “I know that,” Jake acknowledged, “but I also don’t need anyone messing with the success of this operation. Get your own intel and handle it on your own if you must. I’m only calling to ensure that you don’t follow me.”

  “No promises,” Ethan admitted, shaking his head in frustration. “I’m going to do my damn job, even if that means interfering with your mission. I have to.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Jake sighed. “It was worth a shot.”

  Ethan chuckled, but the laughter didn’t reach his eyes.

  “Good luck,” Ethan muttered.

  “Yeah, you too,” Jake muttered in response before disconnecting the call.

  Alejandra looked between Ethan and Robbie. Now that the clock was officially ticking, someone needed to make a move.

  “We need to pursue this quickly,” Ethan muttered in Robbie’s general direction as he sat back and let out a breath. “If Header beats us to it, it could blow this whole case.”

  “Yeah,” Robbie agreed, “and since it’s pointless trying to convince Header to back down, we have to make sure we get the answers first.”

  Alejandra allowed herself to breathe a small sigh of relief. Regardless of the men’s motivations, moving this case along quickly was exactly what she needed them to do.

  Chapter 16: Ethan

  We had to microwave it to get it hot again, but Alejandra was now curled up on the sofa, wrapped under a scratchy hotel blanket, and gingerly sipping her tea. Holm had taken his cup over to the double doors that I had opened earlier, and he propped his elbows up onto the railing that overlooked the cobbled street below. He heard me come up from behind him and shifted over to make room. Last night, this had been a jarring view of oversized cruise ships that towered over our building, but now in their absence, the bay sprawled out before us, sparking under the oppressive sunlight.

  “We need a break,” Holm muttered.

  “We need Bonnie,” I corrected. “We need to find out what she knows.”

  Holm nodded, staring down into his coffee cup. “I wish there was more we could do,” he whispered, jerking his head toward Alejandra’s direction. She had her eyes closed, and her cup was hovering just beneath her nostrils. I wondered if she had been sleeping much at all since this case had started. I could see dark circles forming under her eyes, and my heart went out to her at that moment.

  “So do I,” I whispered in response. “I don’t like that she is involved with our side of the case. It hits too close to home for her. It was a bad call on President García’s part.”

  “That I agree with,” he muttered.

  We stood together in silence, watching the people down below walk by. Some walked with intent, carrying newspapers, paper bags of fast food, and the occasional briefcase. Others walked more slowly, as if trying to absorb everything around them. Their sundresses and fanny packs announced their visitor status as they dipped randomly in and out of the shops.

  Yesterday, across the street, there had been a long row of tables and pop-up canopies set up, with a variety of items being sold, from candy to home decor, all
catered to the cruise ship crowds. Today, in the absence of the ships, the sidewalk was mostly bare, and the foot traffic had diminished greatly. If there was ever a time to walk around and truly appreciate this city, it was now.

  The ringing from behind me caused me to spin around, and I saw my phone light up on the coffee table. It had jarred Alejandra out of her daze, and she looked up at me with tired eyes.

  “Sorry,” I muttered, rushing over to the phone. I set my cup down and picked up the phone, not slowing to look at the screen before answering it.

  “Marston,” I answered curtly.

  “Marston!” Bonnie’s excited voice filled my ear. “We found some more information we think you need to hear.”

  “I’m listening,” I insisted. I exchanged a look with Holm. This could be the break we needed.

  “Clyde looked into Angel Gonzalez,” she continued, her voice rushed and urgent. “As it turns out, he still has ties in the Dominican Republic. Not only that, but he also appears to be connected to one person in particular.”

  “Oh yeah? Who’s that?” I wasn’t one for dramatic pauses, but I knew Bonnie was too excited to care.

  “Carlos Abreu,” she spat out. I waited for an explanation as I tried to recall the name. Was I supposed to know who he was?

  “Carlos Abreu is one of the President’s trusted advisors. He is in the inner circle over there at the National Palace.” Bonnie’s tone implied that this was salacious news, and it was, in fact, intriguing.

  “So, let me get this straight,” I replied after lining up my thoughts. I met Holm’s gaze and was glad he was paying attention. Even Alejandra was now sitting upright, her tea temporarily forgotten in her hands. “Maria’s parents dislike her boyfriend. Maria’s father has connections to someone very close to her boyfriend’s father. Is there a connection there?”