Storm Season by Erica Spindler Page B
Authors: Erica Spindler
slowly it crested over a swell, heaved a sigh and began tipping in the other direction.
Diego had exchanged his RPG for an automatic handgun. Maggie felt it in the small of her back as he prodded her forward, at times almost pushing her into Liz. Felipe led them through the narrow hallway. Polished cherry wood rose from floor to ceiling, broken up only by the living room’s bookcases and bar, and the kitchen’s stainless-steel appliances and granite countertops. No cost had been spared. And although glassware rattled and wine bottles clinked against each other, everything appeared to be staying in place despite the motion.
As they passed closed doors Maggie tried to listen for sounds of life. They’d been told there were six on board including the Senator’s teenage daughter, her eight-year old son and her husband. If this was an abduction, they had to be here somewhere. Hopefully unharmed.
Perhaps Felipe read her mind. At the next door he stopped. He grinned back at Diego and said something Maggie didn’t understand. Their Spanish was different somehow. Not what she was used to.
Diego laughed and Felipe pushed the door open, making sure it swung wide enough for them to see inside. He gestured for Liz to take a look, but he was showing off, not asking for them to go into the room. Maggie saw Liz’s shoulders drop, but she managed to mask her emotions.
Then it was time for Maggie’s sneak peek. And Felipe was anxious, the grin never leaving his face. Inside the laundry room, three bodies were sprawled out on top of each other, purposely stacked to accommodate the small space. At the top of the heap, a woman laid with her back arched, flopped over the other two. Her head and shoulders faced the doorway, and she stared wide-eyed at them from upside down. The bullet hole in her forehead still oozed.
So here was the crew. And Maggie understood clearly what Felipe was telling her and Liz. He wasn’t just showing off their handiwork. He was telling Maggie and Liz that they would soon be joining the pile.
Chapter 9
TULLY HAD INSTRUCTED SENATOR Delanor-Ramos to go back and stay in the SUV. To his surprise, she had obeyed without argument or discussion. Despite how tough the woman was, he knew the scene inside Ricardo’s house was not something she had ever experienced before. And although she had been withholding information and dealing it out piecemeal to Tully since the minute they met, he also knew that she had not expected or even suspected this.
The most frustrating part for Tully was that not fifteen minutes after finding Ricardo, the Senator’s political instinct kicked into gear. As soon as Tully jumped back into the SUV she was insisting they leave.
“A patrol unit is on the way,” Tully explained.
“I can’t be here when they arrive.”
He looked over at her, but she was staring ahead through the blurred windshield. The streetlights cast her face in shadow.
“Are you suggesting I leave the scene?”
“You’ve reported it, correct? It’s not like we can tell them anything.”
Which wasn’t entirely true. He knew there was plenty the Senator could tell the local law enforcement about Ricardo that they might never know.
“I’ve already called Raymond.” And she said this as though she was pulling rank on him. “He understands the situation. He told me he’d take care of things.”
Tully saw that she had her cell phone clutched tightly in her hand. The faceplate was still lit. For a woman who was careful and deliberate about her every move and concerned about her actions being recorded and accounted for, he knew that her call to the FBI assistant director had been an added risk.
“Where do you suggest we go from here?”
“Back to the beach.”
“Another business associate?”
“No,” she said, but she winced as though his sarcasm had struck a nerve. “A friend.”
It took them forever to backtrack. More branches were down. The water rushed across streets, in places so high
Diego had exchanged his RPG for an automatic handgun. Maggie felt it in the small of her back as he prodded her forward, at times almost pushing her into Liz. Felipe led them through the narrow hallway. Polished cherry wood rose from floor to ceiling, broken up only by the living room’s bookcases and bar, and the kitchen’s stainless-steel appliances and granite countertops. No cost had been spared. And although glassware rattled and wine bottles clinked against each other, everything appeared to be staying in place despite the motion.
As they passed closed doors Maggie tried to listen for sounds of life. They’d been told there were six on board including the Senator’s teenage daughter, her eight-year old son and her husband. If this was an abduction, they had to be here somewhere. Hopefully unharmed.
Perhaps Felipe read her mind. At the next door he stopped. He grinned back at Diego and said something Maggie didn’t understand. Their Spanish was different somehow. Not what she was used to.
Diego laughed and Felipe pushed the door open, making sure it swung wide enough for them to see inside. He gestured for Liz to take a look, but he was showing off, not asking for them to go into the room. Maggie saw Liz’s shoulders drop, but she managed to mask her emotions.
Then it was time for Maggie’s sneak peek. And Felipe was anxious, the grin never leaving his face. Inside the laundry room, three bodies were sprawled out on top of each other, purposely stacked to accommodate the small space. At the top of the heap, a woman laid with her back arched, flopped over the other two. Her head and shoulders faced the doorway, and she stared wide-eyed at them from upside down. The bullet hole in her forehead still oozed.
So here was the crew. And Maggie understood clearly what Felipe was telling her and Liz. He wasn’t just showing off their handiwork. He was telling Maggie and Liz that they would soon be joining the pile.
Chapter 9
TULLY HAD INSTRUCTED SENATOR Delanor-Ramos to go back and stay in the SUV. To his surprise, she had obeyed without argument or discussion. Despite how tough the woman was, he knew the scene inside Ricardo’s house was not something she had ever experienced before. And although she had been withholding information and dealing it out piecemeal to Tully since the minute they met, he also knew that she had not expected or even suspected this.
The most frustrating part for Tully was that not fifteen minutes after finding Ricardo, the Senator’s political instinct kicked into gear. As soon as Tully jumped back into the SUV she was insisting they leave.
“A patrol unit is on the way,” Tully explained.
“I can’t be here when they arrive.”
He looked over at her, but she was staring ahead through the blurred windshield. The streetlights cast her face in shadow.
“Are you suggesting I leave the scene?”
“You’ve reported it, correct? It’s not like we can tell them anything.”
Which wasn’t entirely true. He knew there was plenty the Senator could tell the local law enforcement about Ricardo that they might never know.
“I’ve already called Raymond.” And she said this as though she was pulling rank on him. “He understands the situation. He told me he’d take care of things.”
Tully saw that she had her cell phone clutched tightly in her hand. The faceplate was still lit. For a woman who was careful and deliberate about her every move and concerned about her actions being recorded and accounted for, he knew that her call to the FBI assistant director had been an added risk.
“Where do you suggest we go from here?”
“Back to the beach.”
“Another business associate?”
“No,” she said, but she winced as though his sarcasm had struck a nerve. “A friend.”
It took them forever to backtrack. More branches were down. The water rushed across streets, in places so high