Chapter Thirty
Moon
She's driving me mad. “Madison, you don’t need to go back to EE to train Cori,” I say with more anger than I should. She won’t stop complaining about staying in the house even though safety should be the most important thought in her head. It’s taxing on all of us, but we’re safe. My men are doing everything they can and anyone with a family has sent them away until Fernandez is dead and the cartel is no longer a threat. Most of my day is spent in the control room or conference room organizing the men and making sure they have the latest information. It’s fucking bullshit, but Alex and I agree we need to be with the women.
When I look at my wife, I see her fatigue. Worry eats at me. She isn’t sleeping, and she may not know it, but I’m fully aware that night terrors are keeping her awake. I’ve tried to give her space to sort out her head and now I regret it.
Her eyes plead with me before she even opens her mouth. “I need to feel normal. It’s been over a week and we don’t know if Fernandez is even in Arizona. Melina and Austin need to return to California, they have a life. Austin has a crime syndicate to run if you forgot.” Her attempt at humor doesn’t work.
“No, I haven’t forgotten. There’s been no sign of Fernandez in California. He’s here, I can feel him. Austin knows it too. His man Andreas is keeping his territory running smoothly. If there are fires to put out, Austin can leave. He’s decided Melina is safer here, so she will stay.”
Madison refuses to listen. “I’ll have guards. If we traveled to New Mexico, maybe I wouldn’t feel this stir-crazy.” She stands up, walks three feet, and enters my arms, which I spread when I see her intent. “I’m sorry I said that. I understand why we aren’t traveling and even agree with you. The agency is different, though. Fernandez got to me because I was stupid. I should have called you immediately when he took Cori. It won’t happen again. She’s nervous about handling the service on her own and she needs me.”
My wife is lying. This Madison might be damaged mentally, but she will always rush into danger, especially if someone she loves is threatened. Blue cop blood will always run through her veins.
“Moon,” she says and looks up at me. I see the worry in her expression and the dark circles under her eyes. She’s aged these last weeks. Even so, this sudden push to help Cori at the service pisses me off. I want her at my side every second until Fernandez is dead.
“I’m going back to work,” she whispers into my chest and I know there’s nothing I can do to stop her. Damn stubborn woman. This will take men away from the house and spread us even thinner. Telling her that might change her mind, but her eyes light up after she’s made her decision and I love seeing that spark again. It’s fucked up that her strong will trumps safety.
I give her a tight squeeze and then leave her standing there. She won and the worry eating at me makes me a sore loser. I head downstairs and enter the control room. Alex looks up and removes the headphones he’s wearing. “Nothing,” he says.
We’ve made contact with someone inside the Frontera Cartel and we’ve been waiting for his call. Money has a way of turning people and this guy couldn’t make a deal fast enough when we mentioned what we were willing to pay. I don’t feel like small talk, so I leave Alex and head to the kitchen. Maybe a snack will put me in a better mood.
“You know to stay out of here,” Gabriella chastises Two Dogs in Spanish. The dog is bilingual, but he likes to play dumb when Gabriella is involved. I hide my grin and walk to the refrigerator.
“No, you will ruin your dinner.”
She still thinks I’m five years old. “I’m hungry. All you do is tell me to eat. Now I want to eat and you’re stopping me?” I raise my eyebrows.
She grumbles beneath her breath before giving in. “I will make you something small and it will hold you over. It is your woman who must eat more.” She doesn’t ask me what I feel like eating and I’m unwilling to push it. The last thing I need is Gabriella in an uproar. The last time it happened Madison and I took off for Flagstaff to give Gabriella room until she cooled down. We don’t have that luxury right now.
I’m two bites into my peanut butter and jelly sandwich—Gabriella’s form of revenge—when Alex walks into the kitchen. “The call came through. The team will strike tonight.”
The Frontera Cartel operates across the border. They are surrounded by people who respect my organization. Those people are willing to fight for their lives. After the unsuccessful hit on Alex, the cartel made new rules for the people who are pressed to work for them and refuse. It’s not pretty. They’ve forced women into processing their drugs and they’re establishing a route that bypasses working with me. That’s not happening. Their product will be dangerous and it will find its way into juvenile hands. Up until now, Frontera has only treated the people well at my insistence. It was part of our deal. The reason I didn’t take out Frontera before is that another cartel would take its place. As long as Mexico is run by greed, this won’t change. The president tries to gain control, but even his men are in the pockets of the cartels. When your family has little to no food, you’re willing to do almost anything. It will cause us bigger problems to keep another cartel out, but Frontera is at an end and they’ll wish they never fucked with me. My gut actually aches to be a part of this. I’ve never left something like this to others and sitting behind safe walls feels wrong. Madison is more important though, and I’ll do anything to keep her safe including others doing the dirty work for me.
“Call me to the control room before it goes down. We’ll keep a tight watch on the outcome.”
“Got it, boss.”
“Asshole,” I respond at his use of “boss” and Alex smiles. He’s guessed all is not well with Madison. “She wants to go back to the agency and help get Cori settled in her new role as manager,” I tell him.
Gabriella breaks into a litany of Spanish with a few chosen words about my “estupido” wife, which I ignore because it’s not worth the hassle to tangle with her. She loves Madison and has gone out of her way to not rustle her feathers since she escaped Fernandez. Alex grins and rolls his eyes. He won’t take on Gabriella either. I look down at my sandwich and hand half to him. He takes it with an even bigger grin and sinks his teeth into the bread. Peanut butter and jelly is perfect for two men with no balls when it comes to the kitchen witch.
∞∞∞
That evening, seven of us sit in the control room, which makes it a fairly tight fit. Madison is returning to work with Cori tomorrow. Much sooner than I hoped. I refuse to stay angry at my wife. She’s been through enough and I’ll deal with her being in danger like I always do—prepare for the worst and pray for the best.
The com line is on. Static fills the speaker before the sounds of gunfire overtake the radio. My fists are clenched as are those of every man in this room. They want to be part of what’s going down as much as I do. We’re men of action and sitting still while good people risk their lives is nearly impossible. The people on our side are hardworking and have families. They’ve trained for this and I need to trust that their training will pay off tonight. But, when it comes down to it, they are mostly farmers. Violence is not their way and I should be there.
I take Madison’s hand and her grip tightens as screams and more gunshots drown the cries out. It’s an impossibly long two hours later before our side declares victory. Lopez, the leader of the Frontera Cartel, is dead along with most of his men. The others cleared out with only what they could carry. The farmers have casualties too and even knowing the probable outcome of losing those lives, they fought hard for their freedom. In this case, to keep their families safe, it literally took the village.
It’s left to me to be sure another organization doesn’t move in and replace Frontera. I’ve agreed to supply arms and other needed extras to keep the farmers and their families safe. They have also agreed to help the other community I’m supplying arms to. Between the two villages, we’re moving in the right direction.
I direct my next comment to Cal. “Wire enough money to the families who lost men to get them through the next five years. When things are settled here, I’ll go there and assess further needs.”
Madison places her hand against my back in support. She knows Alex and I wanted in on this fight. We also knew if we went, it would play right into Fernandez’s plan. That won’t be happening.