“My buddies are hungry, too.”
“Do they have information?”
“Maybe.”
“Not good enough.” Leanna gave Gabriel a snort. “I’m not buying lunch for nothing. I want to know everything you know about Carmelita, where Ana and Eduardo went, and why Belinda, who feeds Pancho, lied to me.”
“Buy me lunch, and I’ll get the guys to tell you,” Gabriel said. He placed his order for a super-sized plate of carne asada and went back to the three men sitting at the booth.
Leanna paid for the food. While waiting, she took a compact from her purse and dabbed her face, holding the mirror so she could observe them.
They looked to be early twenties, wearing baggy jeans and expensive sneakers. One had glossy, black hair, scabs on his face, and a scraggly goatee. He was dark-skinned with a scrawny build, much like Gabriel. The second one wore a gold chain around his neck, was light-skinned, and had an armful of blue skull tattoos. He also had a tattoo of a cross on each cheek, and his head was either shaved or bald. The third one was obese with a head of unruly curls and resembled a squat, pimply toad.
Leanna tried listening in as best she could, but they spoke in hushed voices with quick nods and an occasional glance her direction.
After the food was handed over the counter, the boy reappeared and grabbed the tray.
“Do they have information for me?” Leanna asked. “I’m not buying anyone a can of pop until they give me something useful.”
“They know the guys Carmelita took off with,” Gabriel said. “Polleros.”
“Poultry farmers?”
The kid snickered. “You really need to get educated. Human smugglers.”
Ice prickled Leanna’s skin, and fear snaked down her spine. “Why would Carmelita go with them? Did Ana and Eduardo not try and stop her?”
“They went after them.” Gabriel placed his tray of food on a counter near the register.
“Where? How long ago?”
Gabriel shrugged and held out his hand. “Give me twenty dollars.”
“Hey, buddy. I just paid for your lunch.”
He hooked a nod at the three men. “They know the answers. Twenty for me, or they won’t speak to you.”
“Who are they? Cartel?”
“You kidding me? Everyone stays away from the cartel. You want them to help you or not?”
“Fine.” Leanna slapped an Andrew Jackson onto the counter. She whirled around and marched to the corner booth. Crossing her arms, she stood over them, glowering at the three youths.
“Which one of you wants a job?”
The thin, dark-skinned one grinned, picking his teeth with his finger. “You’re Carmelita’s mom?”
The other two leered at her, their gazes focusing on her chest. Leanna wished she hadn’t worn a white blouse, but it was really hot, and she was sweating bullets as it was.
“I am interested in finding her,” she said. “If you know where she’s gone, I’m prepared to pay one of you to guide me.”
“She went and joined the caravan,” the pudgy guy said, wheezing and wiping sweat from his face.
“I thought Gabriel said she went with cartel guys,” Leanna said.
The guy with blue skulls on his arms snickered. “You don’t get it. There are the big dogs, and there are chihuahuas.”
“So, what did they do? Join up with a caravan to do what?” Leanna pulled out a chair and sat at the end of the booth.
