Uneven Exchange (14 page)

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

DRUGGED

Later the following evening, Alexandra sat in front of Daniela’s vanity and withdrew the lipstick tube from her purse. With the uncomfortable feeling of being watched, she hunched over to shield her movements while cautiously turning the base. Slowly, the wine-colored spear rose to its full extent. Alexandra was fumbling to detach the tube when a knock reverberated on her bedroom door.

“Yes?” Alexandra called out, rushing to finish.

“Are you coming?” Santiago asked.

Alarmed by the nearness of his voice, Alexandra instantly jerked her head toward the door. Santiago stood beneath her doorframe. “Mago,” she exclaimed. While staring, she recklessly hastened to secure the lipstick. “You startled me.”

“I thought you said come in,” Santiago replied.

Alexandra suspected his was lying but decided not to question his motives. Instead, she smiled wanly at his fixed glare and offered, “You know you’re always welcome.”

“What are you doing?” His eyes narrowed suspiciously.

A lighted torch would have felt less conspicuous than the tiny tube she continued to clutch. Forcing herself to sound casual, she said, “Just freshening up a bit.”

“For Rico?” he asked slyly.

“Just maybe, but I’ll never tell,” she replied, jumping on the plausible excuse his suggestion provided.

“You must have had an interesting day, then. After the way you acted last night, I figured it was over between the two of you.”

“You’re wrong. I didn’t even see Rico today.”

“Then if you still have a thing for him, what set you off last night?” Santiago asked.

Alexandra stood. “I don’t like surprises,” she announced.

“Spoken like a true Santiago,” he boasted. “No one surprises our family.”

She held Santiago’s arm as they passed through her doorway and into the wide corridor. Having already closed the lipstick, she nonchalantly slipped the tube into the side pocket of her silk lounging pajamas. But Santiago’s interference had prevented her from removing the vial. She would have to find a way.

He guided her through his next-door suite, then onto the ground-floor veranda. “Come, my little sister. You look delicious. Rico is a lucky man.”

“Hold on. I said I
might
see him, and, if I do, it will only be to talk.”

“You should marry the poor man and release him from his misery.”

“
I
should get married? What about you?”

“Not a chance.”

“Please enlighten me. Why is that?”

“Because there isn’t a woman alive who would understand.”

“Mago, you are not that difficult to understand.”

“That is not what I mean. No woman would understand my need for more than one woman.”

Surprised, but not shocked, and not knowing what to say, she elected not to respond.

Santiago led Alexandra through the beveled glass doors, then outside into the moonlit night. “The wine is opened and breathing just for you,” he said, gesturing to an uncorked bottle.

By his congenial attitude, Alexandra suspected he had downed an entire bottle prior to her arrival. She shrugged it off by lowering herself into a wide, leather equipale chair. She looked up at a multitude of stars dancing brightly in the unclouded sky, then inhaled a warm breath of air, instantly detecting the fragrant aroma of tropical moisture. “This is nice.”

With her eyes fixed on Daniela’s brother, Alexandra watched him lean in to fill their thick glasses. Each hand-blown balloon goblet was finished with a rim of clear, cobalt-blue. Miguel Santiago undoubtedly had style, from his furnishing to his clothes. Tonight, he wore a loose-fitting, long-sleeved, white shirt and richly tailored charcoal pants. The high-quality material fell gracefully along his trim form and barely brushed the top of his expensive loafers. These were made from black eel skin and worn without socks. Alexandra also noticed the pattern of Santiago’s thin belt matched his shoes. She sensed both were custom made.

Alexandra, dressed in Daniela’s clothes, was draped in a cream, two-piece lounging suit. The sleeveless, crossover top formed a
V
in front and tied at the waist. She wore her hair loose and flowing. Together, Miguel and Alexandra presented an imposing duo.

“
Salud
,” Santiago spoke as he raised his goblet for a toast.

“
¡Salud!
” Alexandra replied. “Here’s to the
Huachinango
.”

In one constant swallow, Santiago emptied his glass of wine, then sighed. “
¡Delicioso!
” he exclaimed, rapidly pouring another.

“It is very good,” she agreed before barely sipping.
At the rate he’s going I may not need the drug
, she nervously thought. Alexandra also realized her time was limited. Once Santiago had stopped drinking, her opportunity would vanish. Forming a sudden plan of action, she placed her goblet onto the low leather table and stood.

“Where are you going?” Santiago demanded, his speech slightly slurred.

“I’m going to my room so I can get the blueprints. I want to go over them with you.”

“Business,” he moaned. “Forget the blueprints. Just tell me how much money you need.” He leaned back to reach into the front pocket of his slacks. He withdrew a silver money clip, slid off a stack of folded bills, and then peeled through the smaller denominations to reach the larger ones. He counted out five, one thousand dollar bills and held them like a fan for her to take. “Is this enough?”

Alexandra remained standing.

“Mago, put your money away,” she insisted. “I won’t do it this way.”

“I trust you, Daniela. You don’t need to explain every tiny detail.” He waved the money. “Here, take it.”

She pushed his hand away. “No, I said. We’re going to do this right. Let’s keep our business matters professional.”

“Okay, okay.” He stood to reposition the money in his pants pocket while gently nudging her shoulder with his body. “You sit down, and I’ll go. Where are they?”

“In the closet,” she answered with forced cheer while straining to mask her frustration. “Thanks, Mago,” she called out casually. As he walked away, she fumbled in her pocket for the lipstick tube.

Alexandra had hoped to separate the lipstick back in her room. She had even considered removing the vial earlier in the afternoon and hiding the drug crystals somewhere in Daniela’s room. But instinct told her not to take the chance. Instead, she had waited and waited until the last possible second. Perhaps she had waited too long.

As she again raced to detach the lipstick from its base, the clear sound of footsteps echoed down the hall. As she fumbled with the tube, nervousness caused her hands to tremble, making her task next to impossible.

“I don’t see any plans,” Santiago said. He stood directly behind her.

Alexandra immediately cupped her hands over the fully extended lipstick and tried to conceal it in the silky folds of her lounging pajamas. She prayed the vibrant color would not leave a conspicuous mark. “Didn’t you look in the closet?” she asked while glancing over her shoulder.

“Of course I did. But I only saw your suitcases.”

“No, Mago. The blueprints are up on the shelf.”

Fortunately, he left again, finally giving her enough time to remove the glass container. She dropped it into her lap, closed the lipstick, and had barely slid the tube into her pocket when he returned.

“Here you go.” Santiago extended the rolled-up plans.

Alexandra accepted them and struggled to appear relaxed. “Thank you,” she said, with a strain in her voice. Fortunately, Santiago’s fascination remained with the wine, and he did not seem to notice how distracted she was.

She balanced the banded paper roll on her lap and probed the seat for the tiny glass vial. She had initially dropped it in her lap and had not been able to move it. Then, after securing it awkwardly with her index and middle finger, Alexandra managed to guide the cylinder into her sticky palm. She leaned forward to retrieve her wine goblet and simultaneously dropped the vial into her cleavage. With one minor task completed, Alexandra still had to find a way to release the contents into Santiago’s glass.

Santiago relaxed by leaning back in his leather chair and propping his feet on the table, one crossed over the other. He waved at the blueprints. “What are you waiting for?”

“First let me finish this glass.” Alexandra stalled, looking anxiously at the bottle. There was barely enough for one more glass.

“Then why did you have me go get them?” he whined.

Fortunately, one of the passing guards, a man by the name of Gordo, walked out onto the veranda. Drawing Santiago’s attention, he wished them good evening.

“
Buenas noches
,
Señorita Santiago
.” He tipped his hat. “
Buenas noches
,
Señor
.”

“
Buenas noches, Gordo
,” Alexandra said, focusing on the semiautomatic rifle he held. Just seeing the weapon caused her heart to pound wildly.

Santiago nodded to the guard while he drained the bottle by pouring the remaining wine into his goblet.

To gain her composure, Alexandra took steady and deliberate breaths. She pretended to enjoy the stillness of the evening as she waited for an opportunity to strike. But from the corner of her eye, she watched the wine slowly recede in Santiago’s glass. His gulps had been replaced by sips, and Alexandra feared he was finished drinking for the night. With a mere trace left inside, he finally lowered his goblet.

Immediately, she jumped at the chance to retrieve more. With her wineglass in hand, she stood and leaned to pick up his glass while saying, “I’ll get you some more.”

“I think I’m through for the night,” he said, gently blocking her hand. “But you go ahead. The last bottle is in my room.”

“Okay,” Alexandra replied, returning her glass to the table. She smiled weakly at Santiago as she left to get the wine. Yet in the sanctuary of the darkened room, she stood motionless, pressing her eyelids tightly together. With each passing moment, she could feel her chances dwindling.
Help me!
Alexandra cried mentally to the Lord.
Please help me.

Alexandra opened her eyes, grabbed the wine bottle, turned toward the veranda, and ran headfirst into Santiago. She shrieked and drew back. “You scared the daylights out of me! What are you doing?” she demanded.

“I need to take a leak! Why, do I need a ticket first?” he taunted, staggering. Before she could answer, Santiago scurried past, obviously in a hurry.

Alexandra rushed to take full advantage of her time alone by opening the new bottle of wine. While on the lookout for the roaming guards, she popped open the vial and poured the narcotic into Santiago’s empty glass. Quickly, she began covering the white crystals with the crimson liquid. The sound of footsteps announced Santiago’s return as Alexandra moved from his glass to hers.

“I poured you another glass just in case you changed your mind,” Alexandra offered sweetly, hoping he would take the bait.

“After a good piss maybe I will,” he muttered while reaching for his goblet.

Alexandra finished pouring her wine and then raised her goblet for another toast. In order to free her other hand, she casually searched for the side pocket of her pants while clinking her glass softly against his. But while mistaking a fold of the loose material for her actual pocket, Alexandra released the minute tube, expecting it to drop inside. Instead, it pinged as it landed on the adobe tile. Santiago looked down.

“What was that?” he mumbled.

“Oh, it was only the back to one of my earrings.” Alexandra hoped that in his drunken stupor, Santiago would not realize she was wearing hoops. “I’ll get it.” She crouched to pick up the tube and anxiously felt around the cool tile but was unable to locate the container. She decided to leave it, not wanting to solicit Santiago’s help.

“All set!” Alexandra stood and pretended to fix her earring. Santiago slumped into his chair and sipped halfheartedly at his wine. He had completely forgotten about viewing the blueprints.

Drink it
, Alexandra screamed inwardly, trying to mentally compel him to finish. While waiting, she silently rehearsed for her next performance.

Santiago finally drank his entire glass, then leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

“Mago?” Alexandra asked.

“What?” he mumbled.

She waited another few minutes, then called out to him again. When he failed to reply, Alexandra got up and looked into his face. She tapped it gently, but he didn’t move. She instantly panicked when she was unable to find a pulse.

“Help, help! Hurry, please help! Something is wrong with my brother,” Alexandra screamed.