Terms Of Attraction

Antonio raised his glass in a silent salute. “I will wish you luck, then, Mr. McCabe, since your success may mean my survival.”

Sibbits drew duty outside de la Reyes’s quarters that night, so the rest of the crew gathered in a conference room on the first floor of the palace. While Benton and Cael swept it for electronic bugs, Ava mentally calculated the last time she’d gotten a full night’s sleep. Since the answer was too dismal to contemplate, she dismissed it. It didn’t appear to be changing any time in the near future.

Finally, everyone settled into a chair around the table. She was reminded of the briefing that had taken place after the shooting…was it only two days ago? Two and a half?

Cael made introductions. “Mike Reynolds and Luis Perez have made some inroads since they got here two days ago. I’ll let them bring you up to date.”

Ava turned her attention to the two men he indicated, the ones who’d had the vehicles and weapons waiting for them at the airport.

Both were swarthy and dark complexioned, although Reynolds was taller and leaner than the stocky Perez. She knew instinctively that McCabe had chosen them for their ability to blend in with the San Baltes residents. If they were fluent in Spanish, they wouldn’t raise suspicion mingling in the markets and cantinas ferreting out information.

Reynolds lost no time. “De la Reyes is highly unpopular with some factions.” He stood, handing out thick files to each of them. “Especially by those who support the deposed dictator, Alberto Martinez. But we don’t think Martinez is the threat. For one thing, he’s been in exile in Brazil for three years. His supporters don’t look good for the assassination attempt. We couldn’t find any indication that they have the organization to move in once de la Reyes is out of the way.”

He stopped, and Perez took over. “It’s more likely that the attempt was financed by this man.” He held up a picture. “Enrico Ramirez. He’s the leader of a very powerful drug cartel that operated out of San Baltes for two decades, apparently with Martinez’s knowledge and approval. Like most of the drug lords in the South American countries, he runs his drugs down the river systems in the jungle. De la Reyes has been cracking down on criminal elements in the country, and although he hasn’t managed to catch Ramirez, his efforts have seriously curtailed the man’s activities, and profits. He’s had forensic accountants secretly going through the banks’ records for months, hoping to find those Ramirez is funneling his money through.”

Ava studied the man in the picture. Plump and avuncular, he looked more like a favorite uncle than a ruthless drug dealer.

“Ramirez went into hiding two years ago, but it’s believed that he’s financing the rebel contingent that has been causing such unrest in the country for the last eighteen months.”

“He’s using them to get rid of de la Reyes so he can go back to business as usual,” Cael surmised aloud. “Does he want Martinez back in control?”

“We don’t think so.” Reynolds spoke for the two of them. “Apparently Martinez got too greedy. It’s more likely that Ramirez will just install a puppet president that will do his bidding while he gets his drug trade moving freely again.”

“So if this attempt wasn’t politically motivated,” Ava said, “that means Cabrerra’s betrayal was bought and paid for by Ramirez. That doesn’t help us protect de la Reyes, but it might make it easier to determine if anyone else in his government is prepared to turn on him.”

Cael nodded. “We follow the money. Did anything come up on the rest of de la Reyes’s security contingent he brought with him to the States?”

Perez shook his head. “No. But that doesn’t mean they’re in the clear yet.”

“Follow up on them, then. Also the pilot of the presidential jet.” Cael gave them the man’s name and Reynolds jotted it down. “Find out who was working the control tower today. Any one of them could have accessed the flight plan and alerted a third party.”

Sibbits spoke up. “Did you get any information from the occupants in the Jeep today?”

McCabe shook his head grimly. “Ava took out the driver and Perez got the passenger in the front seat. The two in the back were trapped inside the vehicle. Identification of the bodies will be difficult.”

Remembering the flames that had engulfed the Jeep, Ava felt a quick shudder. It would have been a grisly death. But she wasn’t going to waste sympathy on the unknown assailants. Not when she knew their intent.

“De la Reyes will elicit the cooperation of the banks in the country. A little forensic accounting will tell us if anyone working in his government is sitting on some unexplained piles of cash. That will help us eliminate people quickly.”

He slid a gaze around the table. “Sibbits, Carter and Benton will take turns protecting de la Reyes, in eight-hour shifts. You’ll be backed up by his guard detail, but don’t trust any of them until they’ve been cleared. When you’re not on duty, you’ll be at my side assisting in the investigation. De la Reyes will be changing his schedule of public appearances and conducting business out of the palace until further notice.

“Reynolds and Perez will follow up on the pilot and the airport tower personnel. Stay on top of the local police. We need IDs on the occupants in that Jeep.”

“There’s one more thing.”

All eyes turned to Reynolds. “Perez and I have both heard talk about the rebels’ jungle camp. I think if enough money changed hands, we might be able to get its location.”

Cael thought for a moment. “How reliable is this information?”

The two operatives looked at each other. “We both heard the same rumors,” Reynolds said. “The guy who claims he’s been there…” The man lifted one shoulder. “I’d make sure he showed me sort of proof before I gave him any cash.”

“How much?”

He named a price that seemed ridiculously low to Ava. But, she reminded herself, she was in a country with a per capita income of three thousand American dollars a year. Where allegiance could be bought if pockets were deep enough.

And where lives could be snuffed out for the price of a week’s groceries.

“If you can verify the location and the function of the camp, go for it. These places tend to be portable, though. Find out if he knows other sites they’ve maintained.” Seemingly finished, Cael looked at each of them in turn. “I don’t have to remind you to be careful. Our mission is to keep de la Reyes alive long enough to find out who he can trust. After that he can better protect himself. But if we can point him in Ramirez’s direction before we leave…” He gave a ruthless smile. “That will be gravy. Maybe he’ll be able to clean up the country for good.”

Cael had insisted on accompanying Ava to her room. And after her initial protest—one that had done very little good—she gave in. She still hadn’t gotten her bearings. The place looked more like an estate than a palace, but the interior was certainly lavish enough to qualify as palatial.

“We’re on the second floor, in the back of the building,” he told her. She heard weariness in his voice, although there were no visible signs of it. His shoulders were still straight, his gaze alert as he assessed their surroundings. “Our quarters are directly above the kitchen area.”

“Where are we located from the president’s quarters?”

“He has the entire floor above us. Not ideal, but at least we don’t have to fear infiltration through the windows. If someone wants to get to him at night, they’d have to get through several layers of security.”

“Security that we can’t trust,” she reminded him. The precariousness of their situation was disquieting. If Cabrerra had been acting alone, de la Reyes was as safe in his palace as he could be anywhere. But if his superior was involved…“If Gonzalez turns out to be dirty, the entire presidential guard is suspect.” And if the drug dealer Ramirez had gotten to two individuals so close to the San Baltes president, it was a wonder de la Reyes had survived this long.

She made a mental note to mention the drug dealer’s name to Samuelson when she returned. If Ramirez was intent in keeping the region unstable, he might not be above financing terrorists acts toward that end. Not for the first time, she wondered how much the DHS agent already knew. He hadn’t told her all the details in his possession. She could figure that much.

“We assume nothing,” Cael agreed. He stopped before a door and reached to open it for her. “But I thought the attempt today by the men in the Jeep was encouraging.”

Ignoring the opulent bedroom before her, she stared hard at him. “Encouraging. The way an earthquake is encouraging? A train wreck?”

He didn’t smile, but his face lightened a fraction. Leaning a shoulder against the doorjamb, he folded his arms. “Poor choice of words, maybe. But the fact that another attempt was made before de la Reyes made it to the palace makes me think this place isn’t seen as vulnerable. Either Ramirez doesn’t have anyone else with easy access to de la Reyes, or the president’s security makes an attempt here seem high risk. Either would be good news for us. Even if Gonzalez is involved, perhaps Cabrerra was his only accomplice.”

Although she didn’t share his optimism, she didn’t contradict him. “I’m assuming you’ve taken precautions with the guard personnel since we haven’t cleared any of them yet.”

He stifled a yawn. The gesture made him seem a bit more human. Up until now, she’d been half convinced the man was part machine. “Gonzalez is bound and confined to quarters. One of us will have to be posted outside until the evidence condemns or clears him. We’ve got nationals at every entrance of the palace, stationed three deep every twelve feet. If someone got past the outer perimeter of security, he’d have to get past a slug of armed guards. The chances are minimal that every one of the guards stationed at a given entrance is corrupt. I feel good about our security for the short term.”

She looked at him with renewed respect. “You’ve had some experience with this sort of thing.”

Cael crossed one booted foot over the other. “Five years.”

“And before that.” She didn’t know what made her continue to press. “Navy SEALs or Marine Recon?” There was a flicker in his eyes, his only reaction. “Could be Rangers, I suppose, although you don’t strike me as the army type.”