Tijuana Nights (The Nights Series Book 1) (5 page)

“I’m heading over to the States today. There are two targets there that we need to hit,” Chase said to us over brunch the next day. His words reminded me that he and Gabe went out on a hit last night too. I thought about asking them how it went, but on reflection of my own night, I just really didn’t want to know.

I didn’t feel like eating, but I could feel River’s eyes on me, which forced me to have a few bites of my huevos con chorizo. Actually, it was delicious, but I just couldn’t stop thinking about Regina’s eyes on me as she died. I had dreamt about her all night, and when I wasn’t dreaming, I was awake analysing every moment of it.

“Who are they?” I asked Chase.

“Osiel Ramirez, the main US distributer, and his right hand man, Alicio Mendoza. They’re all going to be on high alert now that Regina has been eliminated as well. Alicio is a nasty piece of work. It’s going to take a couple of days to recon both jobs, and then get it done.”

“Aren’t they all nasty?”

Chase shrugged. “There are different levels of nastiness. Both Osiel and Alicio are very bad men. Alicio, in particular. He’s in charge of body disposal across the border. He has a huge team of people, and a million different ways to kill and hide the evidence.”

“Acid,” River mumbled between bites. “His favourite disposal method is acid.”

Acid? I wondered if he meant that he gets them high on LSD first or if he actually meant real acid. Chase burst into laughter at my expression. “What?”

“Years ago, before Alicio climbed the ranks of the El Diablo Cartel, he used to be known as the ‘acid-man’. He’s been on our radar for years…there was a time when I considered recruiting him into our operation. In the end I decided I probably couldn’t pay him enough.”

“Thank God.” River grimaced. “He’s a loose canon. We would have all been dead by lunchtime if he didn’t like the way we did things.”

Yeah… not exactly the polite conversation I was used to having over breakfast. But not exactly normal circumstances either. I didn’t want to think about bodies in acid any more than I wanted to think about Regina. I was already having a hard enough time talking to River this morning.

“So… Mack, how did you go last night?” Gabe asked.

I studied my cup of coffee for a moment or two before answering him. How did I go? I shrugged. “Me? I don’t know. River did all the work.”

River reached over and rested his hand on my forearm “She was brilliant, actually. Didn’t miss a beat.” I met his latte-coloured eyes, and he smiled. “She played her role perfectly. Even when she was diverted by one of Regina’s security guards she just played along. It was a stellar performance.” He patted my arm reassuringly. “She may need some more training climbing out bathroom windows though.”

“I was wearing high-heels!” I said indignantly. “For God’s sake, you should try it some time.”

Chase laughed. “Oh believe me – he has.”

“You what? Really?” I turned to River. “Are you for real? High-heels?”

Chase shook with laughter as River stared daggers at him.

“It was for a job,” he said through gritted teeth. “I was playing a transvestite to get to a mark who happened to have a little fetish for them.”

I actually felt my jaw drop, and River blushed. “You hooked up with a tranny?”

Gabe burst out laughing. “Oh yes he did. And then he garrotted him.”

Garrotted… “That’s what you did last night, wasn’t it?”

River nodded. “Yes. I was sorely tempted to shoot her, but I couldn’t do it. I didn’t want to use a gun because blood goes everywhere.  Garrotting is a much tidier way to kill. She got a bit personal with me.”

I raised my eyebrow. “Personal? I’ll say. Was that before or after you almost shagged her?”

Chase choked on his coffee with a splutter, and shook his head with amusement. “Boy do you have a lot to learn, cupcake,” he said. “We get close to our marks, and then we take them out. Long range kills have less risk, but there is always a chance that you could miss or fail to kill. Getting in closer to our marks ensures that we do our job properly… I guess it’s also a point of pride in our line of work. We’re contracted for jobs because they know that we get in close, use our skills, and get out. That is the nature of this business.”

“Sometimes we just shoot them long range though,” Gabe said with a hint of a smile. “I mean, I don’t, but they do.”

River lifted his napkin to his mouth, and then placed it down beside his plate. “Speaking of which… Mack. You and I are going to take out Filipo Olivas today.”

The name rang a bell from our planning session the other night. “He’s the finance guy, right?”

Chase nodded. “Yeah, that’s him. Shady fuck.” When Chase swore he sounded rather eloquent. I wanted to learn to swear with the same finesse.

Gabe brought up a photo of Filipo on his iPad, and slid it across the dining table to me.

For some reason I imagined that Filipo would be like any other finance person out there in the world. Suited up, narcissistic personality, you know, the usual type. After all, I had lived with Luke who was in Finance for seven years. But Filipo looked different. He was slick, in his thirties, but not only that – judging from the glint in his eye, he was dangerous. “He’s not a normal finance geek, is he?”

River shook his head. “Far from it. He wouldn’t be in the cartel if he was. But we better get cracking if we’re going to do this job today.” He pushed his chair out from the table. “I’m taking you downstairs.” He turned to Chase. “Keep me posted on the situation in the US. I imagine they’re going to start panicking soon with two members down already.”

* * *

River had a secret room in his house; completely enclosed in steel, with a spiral staircase that wound its way down into an artillery room. The stuff I never knew. There were guns and other weapons everywhere down there, in cabinets, behind steel mesh cupboards, and even though it was damn hot outside, all I felt was cold. This room was designed to house killing machines.

“So, this is how you put a sniper rifle together,” River said as he laid five different pieces on the steel topped table between us.

I was confused just looking at everything. I had no idea which bit went where, but I was thoroughly enthralled by the mechanical process of it.

"There are a number of things that you need to consider before taking a shot. Disturbance and wind speed are the two main ones you need to be aware of. Also, if the target is moving, that’s another consideration. You need to watch, analyse, and predict where they are going to be before you take the shot. We’ll do some target practice another day so you can get a feel for it.”

“What about gravity?”

River chuckled. “Yes, that too. Gravity has an effect on the shot, the further the distance the more you’ll need to adjust a little to account for that.” River looked a little distant for a moment. “You must not hesitate. Once you decide to take the shot, you’re in the moment for real. You also have to have a sure way to get out, just in case you’re spotted. You need to remember that every shot is a kill-shot. You can’t just take pot-shots at people. It doesn’t work like that. Being a sniper is an art-form.”

I swallowed. “Kill shot… right.” More killing. Again, I suddenly wondered how the hell I managed to get myself into these situations.

River reached out and grabbed my shoulder reassuringly. “You’re only watching at this stage, Mack. I’m preparing you for what may come with Carmen. You cannot let her have the upper hand with you. This training I’m giving you? It’s stuff that took me years to learn. So far, you’re handling it exceptionally well.”

I snorted. “Well, I’m pleased someone has faith… I haven’t tried to put one of those gun-thingees together yet.”

* * *

I may not have ever put a ‘gun-thingee’ together before, but down in that basement, River made me practice until my fingers went numb, and then when we got up to the rooftop across from Filipo’s office, he handed me the sniper case. With shaking hands, I pieced the weapon together while River watched my every move.

From the safety of the rooftop I watched Filipo leave his office through the sights. Filipo looked exactly like his photo. He walked with a self-assured gait, wore a sharp looking suit, with sunglasses on which were a lot like River’s aviator ones.  This guy was clean cut, tall, and suave. From the way he snapped at his phone, I was guessing he didn’t tolerate simple minds, and I couldn’t even hear what he was saying. His body language was saying it all for him.

We watched him walk towards the bank, the same run he did every single day at 4.30pm.

“Okay, now that we’re ready with the rifle, we need to make sure our timing is dead on.”

“No pun intended, right?” I smiled, gritting my teeth against the last heat of the day. We were technically in autumn at the moment, but since we had been here it had been warm and dry. An Indian summer. In half an hour the sun would go down, and we would be trying to do this in the dark if we didn’t get on with it now.

River smirked.  “No. No pun. Anyway, from Gabe’s intel, we know Filipo comes back to the office at 5.00pm each day, opens a bottle of wine, and waits for his mistress to arrive. That there is our window of opportunity, before the mistress arrives.”

“Before the mistress arrives…” I repeat as I lifted the binoculars to my eyes and looked into his office. It was pristine. An elegant dark wooden desk sat adjacent to the large window; bookcases lined the walls behind, with carefully placed ornaments, photos, and a few books on the shelves. I could see the leather arm of a chair or sofa on the other side of the office. It was an office that Luke would have loved. I cast the thought from my mind with a shake of my head. He was the last person I needed to think of right now.

“That’s right. And when we kill him, you and I are going to pack up as fast as we can, and get down that stairwell and back to the car before the authorities even know he’s dead. Okay?”

I nodded. Down on the street, I spied Filipo making his way back towards his office. “He’s coming,” I said in a hushed tone to River. I put the binoculars down, and wiped my hands on my pants. It was too freaking hot, sweat poured off me in buckets, and I started to feel like we were going to get caught.

That’s when I saw the woman walk into Filipo’s office. “Shit,” I muttered, lifting the binoculars. “We got company.” Filipo walked in close behind her, and threw her against the closed door to ravish her. “And it looks like he likes it rough,” I added. I heard River snort, and immediately blushed, refusing to believe those words had actually come out of my mouth. “I said that out loud, didn’t I?”

“Oh, yes you did,” he said beside me, his voice laced with quiet amusement. I heard him sigh, and ready the rifle. “Looks like we may have to take them both out. Then it won’t look so targeted, but more like a random kill.”

Surprise filled me, but I kept my eyes firmly planted against the binoculars. “I thought Chase said you guys weren’t savages.”

“Chase isn’t, but he can’t speak for me.” River chuckled. “I do what I need to get the job done quickly and effectively… I don’t leave witnesses.”

I looked over at him. “You don’t look too savage to me. Not today, anyway.” He flashed me a grin, and peered back through the scope. Witnesses. I was a witness to one of his kills. And he had let me live. I guess I should count myself damn lucky that he hadn’t taken me out at the time. I was about to remark on this sudden insight, when he nudged me, drawing my attention.

“I’m not quite as vicious as him,” he muttered, referring to Filipo. “Oh, here we go.”

I lifted the binoculars back to my eyes and peered over the parapet towards the office once more. “Jeepers. They are getting right into it, aren’t they?” And then River’s phone rang. “Ignore it?”

“No can do,” River answered. “It’s Gabe.”

I heard him answer, but kept my eyes on the couple. I felt sorry for the woman. She didn’t need to die in all this just because she was shagging the wrong man. I heard River swear softly, and turned to him. He had his eyes firmly fixed on me, and I felt my blood run cold. Something was wrong. He would tell me in due course, I was sure. I turned my binoculars back, trying to clear my head. I noticed that the woman was no longer in the room. I double-checked the room quickly to make sure she wasn’t on the floor somewhere, but I couldn’t see her anywhere. I reached out and slapped River on the arm to get his attention. “River, she’s gone,” I said in a loud whisper.

“Hold tight, Gabe,” he said down the phone as he placed it on the roof. He cocked the gun once again, eye to the scope. “Good work, Mack.” Then he took the shot.

I was astonished at how easy it was. One moment Filipo was standing there pouring wine into a glass, and then next he fell on the desk, a bullet to the head. Adrenaline thrashed through me. I could see blood seeping over the paperwork, and the wine bottle rolled and fell to the floor. With the amount of blood and everything else, I was sure that half of his head was probably scattered on the desk. It felt as though everything was happening in slow motion. I gripped the binoculars tightly, keeping my eye on the room. She was going to walk back in, I just knew it.

“Mack, we have to go.”

“Yep, just one moment.” I breathed, keeping my eyes securely on the door.

He grabbed my arm, pulling the binoculars away from me. “No. We need to go now. All hell is about to break lose, and we need to get out of here.”