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As I stroll into the foyer, walking off my run, the doorbell rings. Housekeeping is busy preparing lunch so I call to Rosita that I’ll answer it. I open the door to a stranger in a black suit with a blue tie. “Hello, Mrs. Montez. Manuel told me it was okay to come up. Is your husband home?”
“Yes, please, come in.” I open the door wider, gesturing inside. “May I tell Eduardo who’s here to see him?”
“Mr. Guerra, and I’ll try not to be hurt that you don’t know who I am.”
His smile tells me he’s being playful. I smile in return. Mr. Guerra’s ego seems to be as large as my husband’s. His being here is curious but I don’t ask. “My apologies, Mr. Guerra. Of course I know the name, but I try to stay out of Eduardo’s business.”
“Ah, good woman, Mrs. Montez.”
I lead Mr. Guerra into the front room to wait. Eduardo’s on the phone as I enter his office.
I whisper, “Mr. Guerra is here to see you.”
“Really?” His puzzled expression alerts me to the fact the visit from Mr. Guerra is unexpected. He holds the phone to the side and I notice he appears worried. “Fix him a drink and tell him to give me fifteen minutes.”
I return to the front room to deliver the message. As I speak, I realize this is the opportunity Tug needs. This is the coincidence he’s been looking for to drop the bomb on Eduardo. What better time than an unplanned visit while my husband is preoccupied.
On wobbly legs, I make my way closer to the cartel leader, worried that Eduardo will appear before I can speak to him. If he finds out what I’m doing, it won’t end well. I’ll either be dead or he’ll take me and Javier far away and I’ll never see Tug again. I can’t think about it. This is the moment I’ve been waiting for to bring Eduardo down and cleanse him from my life for good. I must be strong.
Swallowing my fear, I grasp on to the love I have for Tug and say, “Mr. Guerra, I feel I need to tell you something and I hope you’ll understand.”
“I’ll do my best,” he says, his eyebrows lifting.
I glance at the office door, praying mercifully that it doesn’t open as I say, “My husband has only recently come to learn that he has a son. Do you have children?”
“No.”
His eyes are black, as if he knows what I’m about to say. The coldness in his gazes makes me shiver. I swallow, looking at the office door again. I’m so close. I can’t quit now. “Well, you see, a child changes you, as it has Eduardo. He wants a better life for our son, but he may have done something foolish to attain it.”
His eyes narrow as he takes a step closer to me. “What would that be?”
I breathe out slowly. This is it. There’s no going back now. “His intentions were good, but I can’t support him if it means we have to run our whole lives, which I know we’d need to do.”
“Why is that?”
“Promise you won’t hurt him.” I lay on the concerned wife act thick. “He meant well.”
“You’re trying my patience, Mrs. Montez. Tell me and I’ll consider what your husband’s motives were.”
My plan of betrayal is going over smoothly. Mr. Guerra buying every word gives me confidence. “He invested a large sum of money without telling the cartels. He was going to pay it back and use the profit for us to move away. I know it was wrong, but he did it for his family. Please go easy on him.”
“Go easy on a man who stole from me?”
His furious response works in my favor. My personal hell is almost over. “He thought it was for his family.”
His anger doesn’t diminish as he says, “Thank you for answering the question I came to ask your husband.”
He heads to the front door in a hurry and goes outside. Eduardo will never escape this. Tug’s plan was pure genius.
I run to Marco’s room with my limbs still shaking vigorously. A little from fear, but mostly excitement. I reach under the bed for the cell phone. It takes me a minute to find it and I send a text to let Tug know we succeeded.
M: I found your coincidence. The cartels know about the money Eduardo used.
T: What? How?
M: Mr. Guerra showed up here to speak with Eduardo. I played the concerned wife. He bought it.
T: Find Marco and Javier and get out of the house now.
