The Infinity Tattoo (24 page)
Read The Infinity Tattoo Online
Authors: Eliza McCullen
Then in August, local news reported a major drug bust:
August 24 (Phoenix, Az)
— A number of arrests have occurred in a major federal investigation into drug trafficking throughout the country, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Clark W. Hammond and United States Attorney Peter N. Summers announced.
During the investigation, agents seized approximately 3 tons of marijuana, 30 pounds of methamphetamine drugs, 9 pounds of cocaine, and $2.4 million dollars in cash.
According to the criminal complaints, the DEA-led investigation uncovered a network of drug distributors of the Sinaloa cartel, working out of Phoenix, one of the many drug-trafficking centers of America.
With a formidable authority south of the border, the Sinaloa cartel, one of Mexico's most dominant and brutal drug syndicates, uses Phoenix as a starting point for their North American activities.
Police reported tip-offs of possible drop houses in Tempe leading to the discovery by detectives with state and federal law enforcement agencies.
Meg showed the article to Julio. When he’d finished reading it, she looked at him expectantly.
“What?” Julio asked.
“Did you have something to do with those tip-offs?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“I think you do,” Meg said.
“Well, I might have convinced a certain nephew of mine to give the police a call. It was the least he could do after all the misery he caused.”
Meg had been home four months and had been working since the day after her arrival. She, Julio, and Manny had slogged through the hottest months of the year and then through the onslaught of the monsoons. As September rolled around, the rains had stopped temporarily, and the summer heat returned. Then, the previous evening, black clouds had filled the sky. Lightening flashed, unleashing a torrent of rain. Meg watched from her deck as sheets of water filled the air and landed on the dry earth, collecting in the trenches her father had made long ago to direct the overflow into the creek.
Today, following last night’s rain, Meg and her crew had begun an overhaul of the landscaping at a house recently purchased by a retiree. The new owner wanted to make the place more eco-friendly. At the moment, the yard had an extensive carpet of grass and a very large rose garden, both of which required far too much water.
Last night’s rain had proven to be a blessing for this job, soaking into the sunbaked turf and softening it just enough to work with. They started by carefully removing the sod and rolling it up; it had already been sold to one of the golf courses in the area. It was a big job, which took the whole day, and would take most of tomorrow as well. Because the conditions were perfect, they had worked right up until five.
Meg stood under the shower and washed away the sweat and dirt from another hard but satisfying day’s work. Fresh from her shower, she toweled off and donned a pair of faded jeans and a T-shirt. She grabbed a bottle of wine and a glass, and was about to head out to her deck when she heard a car pull into the driveway. She glanced out the window.
It was a jeep that she had never seen before. Putting her wine down, she went to greet her visitor. Just then, the driver stepped out of the vehicle. Meg couldn’t believe her eyes.
“Jack?” she cried. “Is it really you?”
“In the flesh,” he said with a grin.
Meg ran to him and jumped into his arms, nearly knocking him off his feet.
“What are you doing here? Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”
“I wanted to surprise you.”
“Well, you certainly did that,” she said pulling him into another embrace.
“So, are you going to invite me in?”
“Of course. Come on,” she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the house. “Would you like a beer?”
“That would be great.”
They settled on the deck in the back, Meg with her wine and Jack with an ice cold Dos Equis.
Looking out over the creek and the red rocks that peaked above the tree line in the distance, Jack said, “I missed this place.”
“Yeah, I couldn’t wait to get back after our little adventure in Latin America.” Meg said. The sun was just starting to set, painting the sky with pinks and oranges and gold.
“It’s a lot cooler here than Phoenix.”
“Yes, well, we just had a break in a heatwave that didn’t want to let go. But last night it rained and brought in this wonderful fresh air,” Meg said. She lapsed into silence. She looked at Jack and found herself at a loss for words. He was so quiet. She had this feeling that he had something to tell her, so she waited.
“Well,” he said after several large gulps of beer, “I guess I never told you that there was a new assignment waiting for me when I got back.”
“No, you didn’t. Where?”
“They’re sending me to Iraq.”
“Really? But I thought we were drawing down our troops there.”
“We are. But the embassy is growing in size. They need engineers to help build the facilities.”
“Oh, I see. Well are you happy about this new assignment?”
“Hell no. You could say this new assignment is a slap on the wrist. It’s what they do when they’re not happy with someone, send them to some god-forsaken place. I mean, let’s face it, no one likes a whistleblower.
“Anyway, I’d been thinking a lot about my career even before this whole incident with my commanding officer. I think, in a sense, I just outgrew the military. It’s fine when you’re young and footloose. You get to travel all over the place on Uncle Sam’s dime. But now I want something else out of life. I want a life that I have some control over. So I resigned my commission.”
“What?”
“I resigned.”
“You mean, no more military?”
“That’s right.”
“What are you going to do now?”
“Well, I have some options. There are several engineering consulting firms that are interested in me. They work out of Phoenix, but the jobs are all over the state.”
“And then there’s this landscaping company I know of in Sedona. With an engineer on their staff, they could do a lot of consulting work. Plus, this particular engineer is pretty handy fixing up equipment.”
“Jack, are you applying for a job with me?” Meg said. She had barely had time to digest the fact that he had left the military. Now he was asking her . . . what, exactly.
“You might call it that. I was thinking more along the lines of a long, slow courtship, you know, to see if we can find a good fit. Landscaping and engineering. You and me.”
“I see. And did you have a particular place in mind where you were going to live during this long, slow courtship?”
“Well, if I were to live here, I could spend time fixing this old place up. It has so much potential.”
“I see.”
“And then, maybe, if things work out, we could think about something more permanent. Maybe a couple of babies and a dog.”
“Oh, Jack,” Meg said, tears springing to her eyes. “You drive a hard bargain.”
“So is it a deal?”
“It’s a deal.”
THE END
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