Black Ops Chronicles: Dead Run (4 page)

“We’re
out
of time,” Nick shouted, masking his fear with anger. He put the car in gear and headed back to town. “I want that bitch found.
Now
.”

***

Levi stood at the window of his office and watched Nick’s Porsche drive away. Something wasn’t right. He sensed it. Even though Jonas hadn’t confided his reasons for summoning the worthless punk this morning, Levi’s “the-shit’s-hitting-the-fan” antennae were twitching, making him wonder what he’d have to do to protect his friend and employer from whatever Nick was up to this time.

He respected Jonas. He might be the head of a crime family, but, damn it, the old man played fair, restricting the McKenzie Family’s illegal activities to gambling, prostitution, and the smuggling of alcohol and tobacco: things Jonas considered “crimes between consenting adults.”

And while Levi didn’t agree with what the law called them—was there really any such thing as a
victimless
crime?—at least there wasn’t much collateral damage.

He didn’t give a rat’s ass about thugs, criminals, or crime family hooligans. But innocent bystanders and law enforcement personnel should be strictly off limits. And not only did Jonas insist that no one in his organization could harm those people, he also forbade participation in extortion, loan sharking, and protection rackets. Levi knew this strictly enforced code of behavior was how Jonas reconciled his religious beliefs with his need to guide and protect the family organization his father and grandfather had left in his care. The code was also the only reason Levi had agreed to work for him.

But he’d come to care about Jonas and hated watching Nick break the old man’s heart time and time again. Levi had no use for the little shit and wouldn’t mind seeing him drummed out of the family, right along with Tony. In fact, if it wasn’t for Tess—

The intercom buzzed. He turned back to his desk. “Yes?”

“Mr. McKenzie would like to see you ASAP, sir,” the butler told him.

“On my way.” So his instincts had been right. With a sigh, he headed out of his office and down the hall to the study.

His first thought on entering the room was,
Bloody hell
.
The trouble must be bad
.

Jonas sat at his desk, his sixty-year-old face strained and ghost white, his eyes bleak. Concerned that his friend might be going into shock, Levi crossed to the hutch and poured a glass of Napoleon. “Here, old man, drink this. And talk to me.”

When Jonas didn’t respond, Levi set the brandy on the desk. “I can’t fix it until I know what’s wrong,” he said, hearing the lilt that reflected his Northwest London roots become more pronounced—as it always did under stress. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to relax and nudged the glass closer to Jonas. “Drink it, and tell me how I can help.”

“I’m not sure.” Jonas’s voice had a disheartened ring to it, an unusual tone for him. “My grandson’s up to something, and I don’t think I’ll like it when I find out what it is.” He rubbed his eyes then ran his hands over his face. “And Tess has vanished.”

Pain slammed into Levi like a fist. “Vanished? When?”

“According to Nick, she disappeared some months ago. He says it’s because he cheated on her, but I don’t buy it. She left without saying goodbye, and Tess isn’t like that.” Jonas picked up the brandy, drank it, and seemed to steady a bit. “Was she in some kind of trouble?”

“How should I know?” Frustration, anger, and bitterness competed for dominance in Levi’s heart. And assaulted his stomach. “Bloody hell, Jonas, I backed off from her even before she left town.”

Consumed with emotion, he raked his hands through his hair and got up to pace. “I didn’t have much contact with her after she started dating Nick. He didn’t like her having other male friends, if you remember. So I stayed away.”

“This is my fault,” Jonas muttered. “Not yours.”

“How do you figure that?”

“I should’ve done something about my suspicions months ago, when I first became concerned that she hadn’t contacted me in a while. But I was afraid she was having second thoughts, and I didn’t want to pressure her.”

“Second thoughts? About what? Nick?”

Jonas sighed. “No, not exactly. It wasn’t long after I told her that she and I were related that she left town. So I thought perhaps—” He grimaced. “I was afraid she’d decided I wasn’t someone she wanted to be related to.”

Stunned, Levi stopped pacing and stared at him. “That’s nonsense, old man. Don’t even go there. Tess loves you. I know she does. You gave her the only family she’s ever had. I doubt she even considered the crime syndicate part of it.”

Guilt joined the cocktail of emotions churning inside him. “Which makes this more my fault than yours. I should’ve known something was wrong when her shop was sold. But I was actually relieved when I heard she’d gone to Chicago.” He shoved his balled fists into his pockets so he couldn’t slam them into the wall. “I should’ve kept in touch with her, but it just hurt too damn much knowing she was in love with Nick.”

“Christ, Levi. I told her the family would help and protect her if she ever needed it. And the first time she does, we both let her down.”

“Yeah, we did.”

“Then we’ll make it up to her now,” Jonas declared, the light of battle brightening his eyes. “Find out where she is and what’s going on. I want her back. Safe. And find out what Nick did to make her run away.”

Levi headed for the door. “I’m on it. And try not to worry. I’ll get her back safe.”
Unless it’s already too late
.

He clenched his jaw, locking out his emotions so he could concentrate on the mission. But one thought refused to back down: if Nick and Tony had hurt Tess, even being members of the family wouldn’t save them.

***

11:51 a.m., Baja California Sur
:

Tess didn’t know anyone who would come to her
front
door, so the knocking filled her with dread. Her landlord showed up occasionally but always at her back door. Pablo and his family used that one as well.

The visitor
had
to be a stranger.

Her knees quaking, her pulse roaring in her ears, she pulled the gun from her backpack, dropped to the floor, and slithered on her stomach to the living room window. Holding her breath, she peeked through a slit in the curtains.

A dark-skinned, dark-haired man stood on her porch. Not Mexican. His features were too sharp and angular to be Hispanic. He wasn’t one of Nick’s men either. Nick was a bigot and only worked with Whites—although, she couldn’t be sure whom he and Tony might’ve recruited if they’d gotten desperate.

Since the man wouldn’t have seen the cottage at all if he hadn’t been looking for it, he must’ve intended to come here. But why?
If he’s looking for me and thinks I’ll answer the door, he’s brain dead
.

He knocked again then rattled the doorknob. Tess cocked the revolver and braced herself, thankful she’d locked up last night. Not that a lock would stop an assassin—if that’s what he was.

But the man didn’t attempt to break the lock. Or pick it. Instead, he turned and strode to a Chevy truck. She heard him say something to a companion waiting in the pickup, but she didn’t understand the language.

When they drove away, she sank to the floor, shaking with relief and the giddy aftereffects of fading fear.

Good thing it’s almost noon
. Between Griffin’s peanut-butter-surprise and strange men showing up in the cove, she’d had quite enough excitement for one morning. Steadying herself on the wall, she got to her feet and went to check on Max.

Still out cold.

He gasped softly a couple of times, but other than that he didn’t stir. Would he be okay on his own for a while? She didn’t know and hated to leave him alone. What if he woke up?
Well, it can’t be helped, and I won’t be gone any longer than I have to
. Retrieving her sneakers from under the bed, she slipped from the room to put them on.

“Now, behave yourself,” she told Griffin when he followed her to the back door. “I have to go call Karl. And buy more peanut butter.”

She grabbed her backpack, left the house, and headed off at a brisk walk down the narrow dirt road toward the village. Afraid her dark-skinned visitors might drive by, she stayed alert, ready to dart for cover at any sign of an approaching car.

Venturing out to phone Karl, right now, might not be the wisest move, but with the time difference, she
feared if she didn’t call early, she wouldn’t catch him
.

Without a phone in her cottage, she had to trek the two miles into El Nopal to make a call. The village market had the only public phone in the area.

A fresh influx of worry seared her stomach. God, the consequences this call to Karl could have. With Jonas the head of organized crime in Utah, Nick would have no trouble tapping Karl’s phone. So it paid to assume he had.

She and Karl never mentioned any place by name and used a code for boat names and marinas. Still, she worried. A careless word, however innocent, could pinpoint her location. Yet without replenishing her funds, she couldn’t survive. Or continue to run. She’d just have to make sure she was long gone before anyone from Utah could get here.

As she entered El Nopal, she felt more vulnerable than ever. Her shoes sent up little wakes of dust as she hurried past the quaint, ramshackle houses lining the dirt streets of the village. Huddled close together with nothing but stick fences and tiny, bare-dirt yards between them, the small, sand-colored adobe structures looked rather sad.

But then most everything here was dull and drab. Other than the bundles of chilies suspended from the eaves of some of the buildings, the only bright spots of color in town were a few scattered bougainvilleas and the laundry hung out to dry in the sun.
Not much color in Baja, period
, she mused. Aside from her little cove and an oasis or two, most of the peninsula was barren and brown. She sighed. It wasn’t quite as nice as she remembered from her visit when she was a child, and now the lack of greenery depressed her. Maybe once she got back to the mainland, she should head north again.

A couple of young children, playing in one of the postage-stamp yards, called out to her. She waved and quickened her pace. Except for Pablo and his family, she had tried not to become too well acquainted with the people in the area, figuring the less they knew, the less they could tell anyone who might come looking for her. The children’s greeting reminded her she was becoming a familiar sight.

It was definitely time to move on.

Crossing the street, she saw a dark blue Jeep raising a cloud of dust as it passed the village square. Thank God the market was on this side of the plaza and she could avoid most of the dust.

Pausing in the open doorway of the store, she waited until her eyes adjusted to the dim interior light before stepping inside. As her mind filled with worst-case scenarios, she gritted her teeth and gave Karl’s name and number to the elderly Mexican woman behind the counter. She slid her hand inside her backpack and brushed her fingers over the gun for comfort while she waited for the call to be placed.

Outside, the Jeep she’d seen earlier sped by, throwing a shower of dirt and dust through the open door. She moved farther inside.

The old woman pushed a button on her phone, transferring the call, and motioned Tess to the one mounted on the wall by the bathroom. She picked up the receiver and heard Karl’s anxious voice.

“Tess? How are you?”

“I’m hanging on,” she said. “What’s new?”

Karl hesitated. “Ah, both the FBI and the CIA are looking for you now.”

“
What
? Why?”

“You know why. At least you know why the FBI’s looking for you. The CIA man wouldn’t say. Anyway, he stopped by my office last week. Apparently, the FBI told the CIA you’re ‘down there,’ but none of them know exactly where. I told him I didn’t know either.”

“Oh, God. If the FBI knows I’m here, Nick does, too.”
Shit
! Uneasy, she shifted the phone to her other ear. “What’s the bad news?” She meant it as a joke, but her sarcasm was wasted on Karl.

“The bad news is that Jonas’s getting suspicious. Levi came by this morning while I was at court. Apparently, he’s asking questions. That means Nick’s going to come after you harder than ever.”

Levi
.
God, I miss him
.
He tried to warn me about Nick, but I wouldn’t listen
. With her free hand she massaged her forehead, trying to stave off the headache forming behind her eyes. “What am I going to do?”

“Why don’t we try talking to Jonas?” he suggested. “I can’t believe he’d let anyone hurt you. After all you’re a member of the family. Besides, I know Levi would protect you. And I’m sure he’ll come back since he didn’t get me this morning. I could talk to him for you.”

“No! Don’t you dare.” She immediately regretted the harshness in her tone. Taking her frustration out on Karl wouldn’t help. “Look,” she continued in a calmer voice, “I may be a distant cousin, but Nick is Jonas’s direct descendent. And his only heir. And though I know he wouldn’t approve of what the bastard did, it’s ridiculous to think he’d take my side. You’re forgetting
Omerta
, their vow of silence. I did go to the FBI.”