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“He swears he did not, but nothing else makes sense.”
“Would it be possible for me to have my phone? There’s something I’d like to show you.”
Esteban gave Maria one more penetrating look before nodding at one of his brothers. The younger man slipped out of the room.
“Can I get you anything? Water?” Esteban asked graciously.
The guy had manners and class. She’d give him that. Probably kept them up right until the moment he put a bullet in someone’s head. Hopefully, he wouldn’t feel threatened enough to take such rash action with her. A girl could hope.
“No, thank you,” she replied politely.
They sat in silence until Emilio del Fuego returned, depositing Maria’s phone into Esteban’s hands, and returning to his post by the door.
Maria knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that if what she was about to do ever got back to the police, they wouldn’t be pleased. She wasn’t sure if Cam would be pleased either, but she was going with her gut, and her gut said she needed to offer something concrete to Esteban del Fuego to earn his genuine cooperation. So when Esteban handed her the phone, she pulled up a picture.
“Teag sat with a police sketch artist, and this is the guy,” Maria said, handing the phone back to Esteban.
His eyes widened with a flash of surprise, and then he took the phone. His brothers abruptly left their posts at the door to have a look. The three stared at the photo.
“This is the man who killed our sister and cousin,” Esteban said. Maria heard both the agonizing grief and the chilling threat in his words. He looked at each of his brothers in turn, and then dismissed them from the room.
“You know him?” Maria asked, when the door shut snugly behind the younger del Fuego brothers.
“While I have never seen him, I believe I know who he is, yes.”
Maria waited expectantly. Esteban tapped a finger on the phone’s screen, pointing at the ink on the suspect’s neck. He blew out a long breath. “Maxim Ivanovich. An assassin for hire, employed regularly, but not exclusively, by the Russian bratva.”
It was Maria’s turn to look surprised. “Do you think Russians hired him?”
She could tell Esteban was weighing his words, deciding just how much to tell her, and she knew the moment he came to a decision.
“There is a particular bratva group who wishes to do business here in Miami. They are not welcome.”
Esteban’s declaration backed up the intel Cam had received from Mike Flynn and the FBI.
Maria’s mind raced ahead. “Would the Suarez family welcome them?”
If Esteban was surprised by Maria’s question, he didn’t show it. Instead, he shrugged. “Part of our desire to unite our families and become allies was to keep the Russians out of our business dealings. Suarez swears he had nothing to do with Cristina’s death, but he could have joined with the Russians and turned on us instead.”
“You think Javier Suarez, or someone in his family, would destroy your alliance and have the women murdered because Cristina was sowing her wild oats?”
In the heat of the moment, Maria knew men were capable of terrible and violent things, but a calculated murder for hire, one that would cause a bloody war between two prominent families, seemed extreme. The look on Esteban’s face said he had his doubts as well.
“It seems unlikely, but the Suarez family is not known for their rational behavior.”
Esteban opened a desk drawer and retrieved an item, handing it off to Maria. She looked from the burner phone to Esteban and back again with a question on her face.
“You have given me a valuable piece of the puzzle. If I learn anything that will clarify the situation or help you protect your man, I will be in touch. Likewise, if you learn anything new, I expect the same courtesy.”
Maria swallowed hard. A direct line of communication to one of the most lethal cartel bosses in the area wasn’t what she’d expected out of this meeting, but she nodded.
“May I give you a word of advice?” he asked politely.
“Of course,” Maria answered.
“Hide this witness. Ivanovich is a professional killer, and he won’t leave a loose end like this dangling.”
A chill ran up Maria’s spine at Esteban’s warning, and at the deadly serious expression on his face.
