“Taminango,” Triumph offered, pointing at his tablet. Steel flashed him a look, and Midas began a search on his end of the call. “It’s between the two. Small mountain town. Not far off the highway. Would the cartel think to look there?”
“Probably not. They’d likely predict we’d try to hide somewhere larger. It’s a good suggestion,” Steel praised. “Thoughts, Midas?”
“Lots of farms on the outskirts. Let me see what I can find as far as contacts nearby. Back in a few.”
True to his word, Midas was back online with them in under ten minutes, but he wasn’t alone. With him were Wes King and a new man.
Wes greeted him with a nod. “Triumph.”
Midas jumped into the introductions. “Before we get to Wes, I’ve got someone to meet you in Taminango. Jhon Zambrano. He and his wife run a small family hotel. No name, so it’s more of just a rooms-to-let situation for locals, but he’s empty right now.” He rattled off an address. “He’s already been paid, and he’ll ask no questions. You can park the vehicle on the side of the building, near the outdoor stairs. Second floor. Each has awindow that faces the street in case you need to see unwelcome visitors. The boys also have a side window.”
“Got it,” Steel confirmed.
“He’ll have a hot meal waiting for you and be watching for your truck. Once you’re settled, he’ll bring it up and leave it by the door.”
“Thanks. Glennon could use it,” Triumph said.
Steel smirked but didn’t comment.
“What?”
“Nada, hermano.”
Triumph scowled. She did need real food. And real rest. Wasn’t that the point of this stop, which they didn’t really have time for and wasn’t safe? And why was it such a big deal that he was concerned?
Better to shift the subject before anyone else fed into Steel’s good humor. “What’s going on, Wes?”
“This is a fellow Ranger, Daxton Chambers. He came up with a great idea. A few of us are going to take a well-deserved guys’ fishing trip to Cancún. We’ll leave from here in the next day or two, once he’s got everything in gear, stay a few days in Mexico, get some sun, drink some beer, and shoot the shit. When it’s time to leave, no one will notice two more passengers joining us for the ride home.”
Triumph congratulated him. “Losing ourselves in a tourist area. As long as we can get there in one piece, it’s brilliant.”
“We thought so,” Daxton said with a smile. “We can smooth over the re-entry into the country. And Conor, one of our Texas Parks guys, has a contact to a fishing charter service. I’ve got a number for you to call when you hit Mexico. Ready?” He rattled it off, and Triumph committed it to memory. “Your escorts will be able to hook you up with a boat ride from Turbo.”
“How did you manage that?”
There was a pause. “That one is courtesy of Cruz.”
Irritation rose inside him. “FBI. Let me guess. It comes with strings.”
“It does. He tried to avoid questions, but it didn’t work. Chief Hammerling apparently misses nothing.”
“Now she’s at risk.”
“He claims no one else is aware of the situation, and Francesca vouches for him. Says the man is tighter than a constrictor knot.” Under his breath, he said, “Not sure I want to know why she knows that.”
Triumph chuckled. “Probably not. Let’s just say it’s the tightest knot possible. Most difficult to get out of.”
“I don’t want to know why you know that either, do I?”
Triumph gave an amused shrug as he pursed his lips. “Stop by Elysium some night when this is all over.”
Wes winced. “Look, truth is, we’re probably going to need the extra backup if something goes badly. The price is low. He just asks that when she gets back, they have coffee.”
“Coffee, my ass. It’ll be an interrogation. She’s been through enough.”
“Francesca offered to sit in on the meeting. Promised it would be off the books and not on government property.”
“It’s up to Glennon,” he said grumpily. “No one’s going to make her ‘have coffee’ if she doesn’t want to.”
