Without conscious thought, Antonia decided what she’d do: follow them at a safe distance wherever they were going. If Franco planned to interrogate the guy, she wanted to watch and learn how to do it.
“I’ve got the girl,” Nathan said. “She’s at the southwest corner of the post office. Slowly angle to the west side of the street. We want her to recognize Estefan.”
Harv clicked his radio and jabbed Estefan in the back with the flash suppressor — hard. “Keep moving, you low-life scumbag,” he said, loud enough for Antonia to hear.
“Asshole,” Estefan whispered. “That damned thing better be on safety.”
“It has a safety?” Harv asked.
“You’re a real riot, you know that?”
Nathan watched Antonia advance up the street to the tavern. “We’re in business; she’s following you. She’s behind the tavern. Keep going at your current pace.”
Harv stepped closer to Estefan. “I’m glad you’re in front in case this doesn’t work.”
“You’re a double asshole.”
“Don’t worry. It’s going to work.”
“It better.”
The motel’s office appeared dark. The owner had probably gone back to bed after reporting Estefan’s presence. The street looked nearly pitch-black. High, thin clouds reflected a tiny amount of moonlight.
If the third gunman was still at the gas station, he should be able to see them by now.
Keeping the assault rifle level with his left hand, Harv felt for the laser’s tiny power switch on the base of his Sig’s handle and moved it to the “on” position. He’d turned it off when he tucked the gun into his belt at the small of his back. The beam would remain dark until he pressed the activation button on the Sig’s grip. Adding to the ruse, he gave Estefan a shove forward. At the same time, he diverted his hand to the radio. “Nathan, stand by.”
Doing his best imitation of what he’d heard down at the river, he issued the high-pitched whistle.
Nothing happened.
“Let’s go a little farther,” Harv whispered.
Estefan kept his hands where they were, maintaining the deception they were bound behind his back.
Harv repeated the whistle. Louder. “Let’s slow our pace. If G3 doesn’t show up in the next few seconds, we’ll go to plan B and divert over to the motel room.”
“He might’ve relocated without Nathan seeing him. He could be anywhere.”
“I’ll tell Nathan that unless we see our guy in the next few seconds, we’re going to plan B. Wait, I see motion. I think he’s behind the gas pumps. Nathan, we’ve got G3. Do you have eyes on Antonia?”
“Affirm. She’s watching from the tavern.”
From twenty paces away, Harv watched G3 step away from the pumps. The guy waved.
Harv waved back and gave Estefan another shove forward.
Holding his rifle in one hand, the gunman kept coming. “You got him,” he said in Spanish.
The guy took two more steps and stopped. His body language tensed.
“Jaime? Where’s Tomas?”
Estefan moved to his left to screen Harv from the gunman’s view, but it was too late.
Something had already spooked the guy.
In an aggressive move, the gunman grabbed the assault rifle with his other hand.
Estefan ducked.
Harv reacted before G3 could bring his weapon to bear. He dropped the rifle, pulled his Sig, and activated its laser.
He centered the red dot on the man’s chest and fired a two-round burst.
The result wasn’t glorious.
Twice punched by an invisible fist, the gunman’s body shuddered as the subsonic slugs tore through his heart. He dropped his weapon and stood motionless. When reality hit home, he fell to his knees and crossed himself.
Harv rushed forward, but the guy had already slumped sideways onto his shoulder.
“Grab the rifles,” Harv told Estefan.
As quickly as possible, Harv dragged G3 across the street to the motel. Estefan reached the room first and opened the door.
Antonia waited until Franco’s man walked Tobias’s son well past the tavern before following. She still felt uneasy about the way the two men were acting. She’d heard them whispering again.
Staying out of their line of sight, she crept along the back of the post office where she’d hidden herself in the recycle bin. She peered around the corner and saw the two men continuing up the street. Confident she wouldn’t be seen, she ran north to the tavern. From there, she’d have a good view of the motel and gas station.
Franco’s man slowed and whistled. A few seconds later, he did it again, only louder. She wondered who he was signaling. Her answer arrived when she saw a third man appear from behind the gas pumps. Carrying a rifle in one hand, he waved and stepped away from the pumps.
Something was wrong. The third guy suddenly stopped and brought his rifle up with both hands. Was he going to shoot them?
The next few seconds became surreal.
Estefan crouched and Franco’s man grabbed a handgun from behind his back.
His gun flashed twice, but it wasn’t very loud.
Antonia covered her mouth as the man from the gas pumps fell to his knees.
This whole thing was a trick. Estefan wasn’t a prisoner at all. His hands weren’t even tied.
For the second time tonight, Antonia felt fear, raw and deep. She needed to get out of here. Something terrible was happening, and she no longer knew who was who.
She pivoted to her right and found herself face-to-face with the biggest man she’d ever seen, his face painted like Tobias’s son’s.
“It’s nice to meet you, Antonia.”
She inhaled to scream, but the guy moved faster than she’d thought possible. She had a brief sense of feeling weightless before landing on her chest. The impact drove all the air from her lungs. She felt the man’s weight lift off her back a little, which allowed her to suck in a labored breath. Completely pinned with her face jammed into the dirt, she couldn’t move at all.
CHAPTER 26
“You’re in a world of trouble, young lady,” Nathan said in Spanish. “If you scream or try to fight, I’ll hurt you. Are we clear on that?”
No response.
Nathan added some weight to his knee.
The girl grunted and nodded tightly.
“Good. I’m not planning to hurt you unless you try something stupid. If you scream, I’ll make you regret it. We’re going across the street. We can do it the easy way or the hard way. I never hit women, but I’m willing to make an exception in your case.”
“Who are you?”
“I’m the guy asking the questions. Now would you like to walk or be dragged?”
“Walk.”
“Good choice.”
Nathan hauled her upright and forced her wrist behind her back. He walked behind and slightly to her left. He knew she was right-footed from watching her earlier.
“Hey, you’re hurting me.”
“Keep moving. The discomfort’s a reminder to behave yourself. Don’t worry. We aren’t going to rape you, so you can put that out of your mind.”
At hearing that, she seemed to relax a little.
Across the street, the motel room went dark just before Estefan and Harv disappeared inside.
If Antonia was going to make a move, it would happen within the next five steps or so. Nathan knew she’d have to pivot to her left to free her left arm, so he drove it higher and tighter to her body. She cried out but not loudly.