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“Good. Maybe they’ll take it easy on an old man.” Bullshit, but I won’t tell him anything. I know that once he retires from the police department, he’ll be working with the family full time. To what extent, I don’t know, but he won’t be a cleaner or work on the docks. “But back to your predicament.” All traces of humor are gone as the phone vibrates in his hand.
Edgar goes through the information first, skimming it before handing the device over.
And right there on the screen is a picture of the siblings, maybe a few years back, at an event.
All of it comes back.
Why didn’t I recognize him sooner? “Shit.”
“What?” Jenny places our plates down, but I’ve lost my appetite. I feel stupid. How could I miss something so important? “Sweetheart, you’ve gone pale. You need me to call Ivan?”
“No.” Grabbing my soda, I take a sip and hope the caffeine helps give me a boost. My hands are shaking. “Just remembered something.”
“About the information I gave you?”
I nod. “I’ve met them before. Spoke to the younger one, in fact.”
“Where?”
Noticing our untouched food, Jenny brings over some to-go boxes. “In case you need to leave.”
“Thanks.” Taking the offered container, I quickly shove my food inside before pulling out my credit card. “Just charge everything here. We need to go.”
“Family doesn’t pay.”
“I’m not—”
“Just following orders, sweetie.” Jenny doesn’t stick around, and I’m left with Edgar, who looks at me strangely. As if he sees something I don’t.
“Where did you meet him, Amberlyn?”
“You don’t think that was a coincidence, do you?”
“Maybe. Maybe not, but either way, it’s suspicious.”
Taking in a deep breath, I let it out slowly. “It was at a city function my parents attended a few years ago. I was dragged along under the pretense of meeting officials and high-ranking officers whom I’d be doing business with. You know how it is. Everything is money and rubbing elbows and pretending to like each other for personal benefit.”
“I do understand that.”
“Well, as the future owner of Mariposa Bail Bonds, I needed to play the part. Get to know who my allies were.”
“And?”
“And they were there. Both walked up to my parents and introduced themselves as detectives, claiming to be appreciative of a fugitive we found by mistake.” I shake my head and take another sip of soda. “Dad picked up the wrong guy, but the man we turned in was also running from a double homicide charge. Our guy looked like him, down to the same bald head, but his criminal charges were all theft related.”
“Did you socialize with them at all? Something other than being polite?”
“Edgar, I couldn’t even muster more than a hello. Especially with the younger brother. He seemed too eager.”
“Hmmm.” Luna’s uncle goes quiet for a minute, pensive, before standing and offering me his hand. He grabs our food bags and then walks me out, all the while his eyes keep shifting around. For a second, he pauses right beside my car with his eyes toward a section of vehicles farther down. Whatever he finds isn’t a threat, but he nods at something or someone before looking at me again. “You were right to come to one of us, Amberlyn. Whatever those two want, it has to do with you and the De Leons, and I won’t let you be in danger. It’s time to speak with the family.”
“Call her. Let’s gauge her reaction,” Maritza says from her seat behind a large desk. We’re inside her office in the De Leon home while her husband left to grab his wife a drink from the kitchen. They’ve been calm while we explained, understanding of my concern, but I don’t miss the sympathetic looks she gives me here and there.
There has been no yelling or shouting orders.
No angry man with tattoos coming inside to grab and hide me away.
Where are you, Ivan? I need you.
