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Remy glanced at Shelby. She waved her hand, urging him to answer. “No. She can’t remember anything about either incident or anything that has happened for as far back as almost a month.”
“Nothing,” she confirmed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Not a damned thing.”
“I spoke with Sheriff Bergeron,” Hank said. “He accompanied J.D. LaRue and an investigator from the Louisiana Crime Investigation Division out to where J.D. found Shelby. Her boat was still there, but there was no sign of the craft that hit her. They’re keeping an eye out for any watercraft that looks like it was used as a battering ram. They searched a wide area around the location for anything that might indicate illegal activity that Miss Taylor might’ve witnessed. Something severe enough that would make them want to hush any witnesses.”
“And?” Remy prompted.
“The sheriff said Miss Taylor was looking for a drug cartel drop. She was supposed to note anything suspicious and get out.”
“In other words, do not engage,” Shelby said. “So, I was looking for a drug drop.”
“Any of this jogging a memory?” Remy asked.
She shook her head. “No.”
“They found some impressions in the moss on one of the islands,” Hank said. “Someone had placed what appeared to be heavy boxes on the ground at some point. The moss was spongy, and most of the tracks had recovered by the time they got to that island. They might not have seen it if the moss hadn’t been ripped up in some places.”
“Sheriff Bergeron said Louisiana’s CID is investigating the case and is in touch with the Drug Enforcement Agency to assist,” Swede said.
“Great,” Shelby said. “CID and DEA will muck around and get nowhere. They don’t know the bayou like we do.”
“The DEA has been following the Equis Cartel based out of Colombia, with connections in Miami, Atlanta and New York City,” Swede said. “They’ve been leaning heavily on those locations over the past six months, spearheading several million-dollar busts. They think the cartel might have shifted their operations to New Orleans and surrounding areas.”
“What better place to get lost in than the bayou?” Shelby said. “But they’d have to connect with locals to find their way around. Find their local connection, and you’ll find the runners or drop locations.”
“But that doesn’t stop the supply chain completely,” Hank said.
“No. It just plugs one hole,” Swede said. “Another will spring up somewhere else. That’s why the DEA wants in. They want to chase the chain all the way to Colombia and eliminate the source.”
“Wow,” Shelby said. “Someone in the DEA told you all that?”
“No,” Swede said. “No one told me anything.”
Remy’s gaze met Shelby’s. “Swede has special talents.”
“Is mind reading one of them?” Shelby asked.
Hank chuckled. “He knows things.”
Shelby frowned. “If what Swede’s saying is accurate, and Equis is moving operations to New Orleans, the DEA should be all up in our business in Bayou Mambaloa.”
“If Equis has set up shop in Bayou Mambaloa, you and the entire community could be in a whole lot of trouble,” Hank said.
“The cartel is named after the Equis Snake, the deadliest snake in Colombia,” Swede said. “Its venom is loaded with protein-degrading enzymes that can cause a variety of health issues, most notably necrosis. And they like to hang out where humans live.”
“The snake is greatly feared by Colombians, as is the Equis Cartel,” Hank said. “The cartel is known for being ruthless. Anyone who gets in their way is eliminated, sometimes in horrible ways to convince others not to cross them.”
“Like ramming a boat and then trying to drown the person who was in it?” Remy asked, his stomach knotting.
“Quite possibly,” Swede said. “And they didn’t hesitate to make another attempt while she was in the hospital.”
“If Equis is behind the attacks,” Shelby said, “they won’t leave me alone until I’m no longer a threat.”
Remy reached for Shelby’s hand. She let him take it and curled her fingers around his.
“That’s why Gerard and Remy are there,” Hank said. “The rest of Remy’s team is packing up. They’ll head out in the morning.”
Shelby’s eyes rounded. “There are more of you coming?”
