Targeted (Firebrand Book 1) (10 page)

The men who’d attacked her last night had left no illusions that they meant what they said. It hadn’t been an empty threat. Because of what Ash had done in a remote area of the world, they intended not only to kill him but to wipe out the entire remaining DeHan family.

She clenched her fists at her side and glared at him. “Why should I believe you, Ash? You made promises to me in the past and broke them. I don’t expect it to be any different now.”

The muscle in his jaw flexed, and he bit down on his lip as if he was trying to keep from answering her. His dark eyes narrowed as his gaze drifted over her. Then after a few moments the hooded look in his eyes she’d known so well in the past returned to block out whatever emotion he was feeling. He exhaled, turned toward the pool house, and walked inside.

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Victor leaned back in the seat of the car he’d rented in Las Vegas and chuckled as he disconnected his call to Ash DeHan. He slipped the throw-away cell phone back in his pocket and wished he could catch a glimpse at what was going on at the house that DeHan thought he had so well guarded. Little did he know.

Still smiling, he turned the ignition and pulled out of the truck stop where he’d grabbed a bite to eat before continuing on his trip to meet his employer. As he turned on the highway and headed west, he let his gaze drift over the barren landscape that surrounded him. Yesterday he had been in Nevada experiencing a late-season snowstorm. Today the only thing in sight was the seemingly endless stretch of desert along I-40 that ended at Barstow, California.

The hope that his scheduled meeting with El Jefe would take place in Barstow in someplace with air conditioning had died when he’d been given his instructions. His destination wasn’t one he would have chosen, but the choice hadn’t been his. You didn’t disobey cartel orders. You followed them, or else.

He spotted the exit up ahead and slowed as he turned off the interstate onto the road that stretched north toward Ft. Erwin. He straightened in his seat, glanced down at the odometer, and repeated his instructions in his head. Turn off the interstate at the Ft. Erwin exit and drive twenty miles into the desert. Take a left on a road marked by a rusted, bullet-riddled mailbox sitting atop a post and drive to a dilapidated desert rat shack near the base of the mountains that loomed on the horizon. That was where they’d meet. In a remote area that was free of traffic and nosy neighbors who might later remember seeing strangers in the area.

As he drove through the desert, his gaze drifted over the scrub brush that dotted the landscape as far as he could see. There had to be living creatures out there somewhere, but none were visible today, not even a bird in the sky.

After thirty minutes he spotted the road he was to take and turned left onto the bumpy path that led him closer to the mountains. Tumbleweeds blew across his path, and he came to a complete stop several times before he rounded a corner and spotted a Jeep, its motor running, in front of the skeleton of a shack. The two bodyguards who always accompanied El Jefe when he crossed the border stood beside the car.

He pulled to a stop, turned off the engine, and stared at the ramshackle structure in front of him. It resembled a farm house that had probably been built to shelter a family. Now all that was left was a house with a sagging roof and  a piece of tattered cloth hanging over an opening where the front window had once been. 

Taking a last deep breath of the cool air inside the car, he opened the door and stepped into the sweltering heat. The two bodyguards studied him with apathetic stares as he walked toward them. When he stopped beside the car, one of them reached over and opened its back door. El Jefe stepped from the cool interior and faced him.

The somber expression of El Jefe’s dark, olive complexion matched that of his bodyguards as he regarded Victor. “How long have you been in the states?” Victor asked.

“We came through one of the tunnels last night, and there was a car waiting for us on the American side.”

“Are you staying until this job with DeHan is finished?”

El Jefe shook his head. “No. I go back tonight, but I want to be here when DeHan dies. Until then do you have good news to report?”

“I do. Last night went off without a hitch in North Carolina and in Colorado. DeHan is back home. I talked to him a while ago after the package was delivered. He didn’t have much to say, though.”

El Jefe laughed, and the sound echoed in the dry, desert air. “That’s because he’s getting a taste of what it’s like to have people you love in danger. Before this is over, he’ll wish he’d never  heard of my cartel.”

Victor hesitated a moment and inhaled. “
      
I don’t understand. Why are we going to such lengths to taunt DeHan?”

El Jefe’s eyes grew wide. “You are one of my most valuable hit men, but never forget you work for me. I don’t have to explain to you why I do things.”

      
Victor saw anger flash in his eyes, and swallowed the fear that swept over him. “I understand that, but I’m the best at what I do. I just wondered why we were participating in this elaborate scheme when we could have killed him and the woman and the boy and been finished with this job by now.”

El Jefe stared at him, and his lips curled down in a sneer. “As I said I don’t have to explain myself, but this time I will make an exception. I want him to suffer wondering how and when I’m going to strike. When I’m ready, I want his son to die just as mine did when he killed him. And I want to be there so he will know who made it happen.”

Victor tilted his head to one side and stared at El Jefe. “But you told me DeHan doesn’t know he has a son. How can you know that?”

      
“It doesn’t matter how I know it. What matters is that he learns how high the stakes are in this game. It isn’t just his nephew and brother’s wife he’s protecting. It’s his son and the mother of his child. When he sees them die, I want him to feel the pain that I do every day. You are being paid well to make that moment happen. Don’t disappoint me.”
      

The meaning of his words were clear to Victor. Failure wasn’t allowed in the cartel. If anything went wrong on this job, neither he nor Sophia would live to regret it. “You don’t have to worry. It will all go as planned.”

“Good. Now what about tomorrow?”

“Sophia is finishing up the arrangements today. It’s set to go off without a hitch.”

“Good. Once we have the boy, the rest should be easy. Just remember. He’s not to be hurt until we have DeHan in our hands, too. Understood?”

“Yes.”

Once again Victor studied the barren landscape and the deserted shack. How long had that dilapidated cabin weathered the harsh climate conditions out here? He shook his head at the thought that someone had once thought he might be able to live in this forsaken place. “I thought I might have trouble finding this place, but I didn’t. Your directions were spot on.”

“This is off the beaten path, but it’s private. We use this part of the desert a lot to bury things we don’t want found. There’s not much chance of our being seen out here.”

Victor nodded but didn’t say anything. He’d heard some of the cartel lieutenants talk about the cartel’s secret burial plots that were hidden among the sand dunes and Joshua trees that dotted the area. He just had to make sure he didn’t end up here as well.

El Jefe pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to Victor. “But I know this is what you really came for. The down payment. You can count it later. Just don’t disappoint me in this mission, Victor. I want Firebrand brought down.”

“I won’t.”

El Jefe took a deep breath. “It’s going to be a pleasure to see Firebrand and its leaders destroyed. Now I think we should get out of here before somebody spots us.”

He’d no sooner spoken the words than a pick-up truck with a roof-mounted American flag in the center of the vehicle rattled around the corner and pulled to a stop beside Victor’s rental car. A middle-aged man wearing jeans, a cotton shirt, and a cowboy hat climbed out of the truck. Dust caked the boots he wore.

Out of the corner of his eye Victor saw El Jefe’s two bodyguards take a few steps and come to a stop behind their boss. They each hooked a thumb in their belts, a move that gave them quick access to the guns holstered underneath their jackets.

The man grinned as he walked around the front of the truck toward them. “Hello, there. What you fellas doing out here today?”

Victor glanced at El Jefe before he smiled and stuck out his hand at the approaching stranger. “We’re staying out at Ft. Erwin for a few days and thought we’d come out here to look at some of the deserted cabins we’ve seen scattered across the desert.”

The man chuckled, pushed his hat back on his head, and shook Victor’s hand. “Yeah. They’re something else. Back in the early twentieth century some government hot shot decided it would be good to homestead this unoccupied land. Lots of these little cabins went up as folks moved out here. The only problem was nobody gave a thought to this being a desert and not fit for growing nothing. Now these old places ain’t nothing but an eyesore. We get lots of kids out here drinkin’ and doin’ drugs. When I saw the tire tracks where you’d turned off the main road, I thought I’d better check it out.”

“Well, as you can see, we’re not doing either one of those things. But it was mighty brave of you to come down here alone.  A lot of people would have been scared to do that. Do you live around here?”

The man nodded. “I have a little farm outside of Barstow, and I work part time at the commissary at Ft. Erwin.”

“Really? That must be interesting. You must meet a lot of soldiers and their families.”

“I do. Units come here from all over to train in desert warfare. But you have your regular army community who’s stationed here for a few years.”

“And sooner or later, I’ll bet you get to know them all.”

The farmer laughed. “Yeah. I enjoy talking with folks. I may not remember all their names, but I never forget a face.” He glanced at his watch. “I’d better get out of here or I’m going to be late for work. Let me give you a word of advice. Be careful if you decide to do any hiking. We get lost hikers all the time, and this ain’t a good place to lose your way. Glad you folks are okay.”

“No, we’re fine, but we appreciate your concern.”

“Have a good day.” The farmer touched the brim of his hat and turned to walk back to his truck.

Before the man had taken a step, Victor moved with the speed of a cheetah, wrapped his arms around the man’s throat, and began choking the life from him. His straw hat fell to the ground, and he struggled against the attack. But there was no way he could counter the attack of someone who’d been trained in the lethal tactics of an assassin. It took only a few minutes for the struggle to be over.

Victor released the man, and his lifeless body slumped to the ground. He stared down at the dead man at his feet for a moment before he he glanced up at El Jefe who nodded in approval. “Good work, Victor. That didn’t take long.”

Victor shrugged. “Years of experience. I was just following your orders. No witnesses, you said.”

El Jefe turned and stared at the mountains behind them and motioned to his two bodyguards who stood behind him. “Get rid of this body.”

The men nodded and stepped around their boss. They picked the body up and headed around the side of the shack. “Where are they going? Can’t we just bury him?” Victor asked.

El Jefe shook his head. “No, we’re in the desert. When the rains come, there will be a small flood come down that mountain. Anything buried around here will be uncovered.” He pointed up the mountain. “They have to carry him up there and find a hole where the coyotes have dug out, stuff him in there, and pile rocks over the opening. That way no one will ever find him.”

Victor nodded and stared at the truck for a moment. “I guess there’s not much we can do about that.”

El Jefe shook his head. “If the body’s not found, the man’s disappearance will just be another mystery of the desert.”

      
An hour later the men returned from their task. They gave a quick nod to signal that the job had been completed, and one of them opened the back door of the vehicle for El Jefe to climb inside.  “Let me know what happens tomorrow.”

“I will.”

“And remember to use a throwaway phone when you call me. Don’t leave any kind of trail to me.”

“I won’t.”

Victor watched as the Jeep turned and drove down the path that led back to the main road before he climbed into his car. He glanced up at the mountain once more and shook his head. The man was really only trying to be a good Samaritan, and it had ended up getting him killed. Too bad he didn’t just go on by like most people would have. He would still be alive if he had.

“Oh, well,” Victor said aloud as the car’s engine roared to life. He had other things to worry about today, and it all centered on Ash DeHan.

Smiling, Victor turned the car around and headed back toward the main road. As he drove, he glanced in the rearview mirror and laughed out loud. The last thing he saw before he turned the corner was the flag atop the pickup truck waving in the breeze.

Chapter 6

When Ash entered the kitchen the next morning, Casey was sitting at the kitchen table drinking a cup of coffee. She glanced up when he walked in and smiled. “Good morning, sleepyhead. I wondered if you were going to get up today.”