Border Crossings: A Catherine James Thriller by Michael L. Weems Page B

them up.  “I’m Miss Lydia,” she told them.  “I run things here.  You behave and do like you’re told, and we’ll get along and things will be good for you.  But if you don’t,” she wagged her finger at them, “things won’t be good for you.”
    She stopped in front of Silvia and stared at her.  Silvia felt very uncomfortable and looked to Yesenia for support, but Yesenia kept her head down.  Suddenly the old woman grabbed one of Silvia’s breasts.  She was so shocked she didn’t have the nerve to pull away.  She stood at attention like a soldier while the old woman felt her up.  “How old are you?” asked the woman as she squeezed and pressed on Silvia’s body.  She moved her hand from Silvia’s breast down to her hip and pinched her love handles.
    “Um, eighteen,” Silvia answered nervously.
    “Huh,” said the woman.  “A little chubby, aren’t ya.”  It wasn’t a question.  “Well, we’ll fix that.”
    She moved in front of Yesenia and tried to repeat the process, but when she grabbed her breast Yesenia pulled away.  The old woman hit her on the head and yanked Yesenia back in place.  “Stand still,” she told her, and continued her examination.  Yesenia complied, her jaw clenched in anger.  “Don’t be such a prude,” said the woman.  She pressed, pinched, and squeezed while Yesenia fumed in humiliation.  “You’re not so bad,” the woman finally said.  Then she addressed both girls again, “Now, Arnulfo will show you where you sleep.  The other girls will explain the rules to you.  You’d better learn them fast, or else you’ll learn the hard way.  The first rule is you behave and do as you’re told.  And don’t get it in your head you’re going to run off somewhere.  There’s nowhere to go and my dogs let me know if anyone is coming or going that shouldn’t be.  Now, off with you.”
    The man with the sharkskin boots told the girls to follow him and led them to one of the mobile homes.  It was an odd pink that had become weatherworn to a dreary color, like a red that’d been washed too many times.
    “You’ll be staying here,” said the man as he opened the door.
    “Here?” asked Silvia.  “You mean this is it?”
    “Of course here,” said the man.  “Where did you think you were going?”
    “But this is the middle of nowhere.”
    “That’s how Miss Lydia likes it.  The girls will explain things.  Just do what you’re told and you’ll be fine.”

Chapter 14
    Catherine shifted uncomfortably in her seat.  The first flight she could catch ended up being early in the morning and she was already dreading the hours lost.  She knew enough about kidnappings to know that the first hours were the most important.  Still, it had been the best she could do under the circumstances.  It seemed Cancun was suddenly on a lot of people’s travel plans, either going to for the media or coming back by the hordes of early departing vacationers.
    It wasn’t a very long plane ride but she hated the blackout of information.  There would be no CNN on this flight, which she’d been glued to the whole night before, and she was still woefully ignorant of what steps had already been taken, having only what she got from the news last night and what Jim told her on the phone the day before.  Her clients weren’t going to like her suddenly dropping everything, but she didn’t care.  This wasn’t the type of request where you tell a friend you’re too busy.  That poor girl, she thought.  And poor Jim.   She could only imagine what he and Amy were going through right now.  She looked down at her watch and groaned to herself.  Every minute ticking away was precious lost time.  She thought about the one time she’d met Taylor Woodall.  It was around the time of her own great tragedy.  Her fiancé, David, had been good friends with Jim, which is how she became friends with him.  David and Jim were both avid cyclists and rode on the same team