Emmett must have told José what I explained in my interview; that after I got out of the Marines, I did some freelance work that included using physical force to get certain jobs done. Of course, this was a lie. But he doesn’t know that. And I think I’m about to find out if these “services” are going to be used today.
When you go undercover sometimes you have to do some unsavory shit. I’m just hoping he doesn’t ask me to kill the guy in the chair, otherwise, I’m going to have to come up with something on the spot.
“Bueno. Stand next to Mr. Rodríguez please.” He gestures to the man in the chair. I don’t hesitate and do as he asks. I haven’t seen the man’s face yet and when I slide up next to him, I notice that his eyes are almost swollen shut and multiple bruises are scattered across his face.
José speaks to Conner in hushed tones as Conner’s fingers fly across the keyboard. I have no idea what’s going on, but Conner is an accountant, and I can only assume money is involved.
“Mr. Rodríguez, please tell me the account number,” he says in rapid-fire Spanish.
The man in the chair moans and subtly shakes his head. “I don’t have it. I swear,” he responds back.
José looks at me. “Maybe you can show Mr. Rodríguez what happens when he doesn’t answer honestly.” His eyebrow raises in a challenge.
I’m not stupid. He wants me to hurt the man. I give myself a little time and stare at José as I remove my jacket and set it on the table in front of him. His smirk is grating on my nerves. I break eye contact as I turn around and start to roll up the sleeves on my button-down, mentally preparing myself for what I’m about to do.
I move myself behind the man, make eye contact with José, and in one swift move jerk the man's head back while I wrap my other arm around his throat and squeeze.
You see, the human body can take a lot of pain before it shuts down, but if the air supply is cut off, the real panic starts to set in and that’s when people break.
I move down to the man’s ear and whisper in Spanish, “Tell him what he wants to know, and this will all be over.” He thrashes around as much as his restraints will let him, trying to take a breath.
When his face starts to turn blue, I let go of his throat but keep a tight hold on his hair. He sputters out a cough as his lungs fill with air.
When I look back up at José, his face is blank but the tick in his jaw says he’s either annoyed or impressed. I can’t tell, but I keep my face neutral and wait.
The man mutters something none of us can hear, so I shake his head with the hand that’s pulling on his hair. “For the audience, please.” I’m really getting into character now.
“I don’t know anything.”
I raise a brow at José, and he nods once. I repeat the same action. Cutting off his air supply for a longer period this time.Conner hasn’t looked up from the computer and who can blame him? I’m barely stomaching having to do this myself, having to skirt the line between keeping the guy alive and killing him. One wrong move and I could end up a murderer.
I let go of the man's throat again and he gasps for air like he’s dying. “Don’t be stupid,” I tell him. “He’s going to get it out of you one way or another. You get to choose how long you’re tortured for.”
The man speaks once more, his voice hoarse now. “You promised me you wouldn’t hurt my family and you did. I’m not telling you anything,” he says to José.
That’s when Conner’s head snaps up. His face goes pale as he takes in the scene before him. A similar conversation between Emmett and him just a few short hours ago runs through my head, and I’m sure is running through his as well.
The whole time José has been running the show, Emmett has been looking between me and José like he’s not sure if he should stay or go. Emmett’s threats toward Conner in the car seem tame in comparison to what’s going on now. Conner is afraid, and even though I don’t know the complete context of this meeting, I would be afraid if I were him too.
José stands up and tells me to move aside and I do. He pulls a gun from the back of his waistband and points it at the man. “Don’t worry. I kept your wife alive. She’ll tell me,” he says in Spanish and then fires the gun.
The room goes eerily silent as we all take in the scene before us. José put a bullet right between the man’s eyes. I keep my mouth shut and send up a silent prayer for him because I’m pretty sure he didn’t deserve this fate. Finally, the sound of a chair sliding across the cement floor catches my attention, and Conner moves to vomit behind some boxes. I look over at Emmett and he looks a little green but holds it together.
“Good work.” José holds his hand out to shake mine. “You best remember what happens when I don’t get my way.” He turns towards Emmett then Conner, and then back to me. “We’re done here.” And he walks off like he didn’t just kill a man in cold blood and then leave him tied to a chair in front of us.
I grab my jacket off the table and Emmett stands and straightens his. “Let’s go.”
Conner and I fall in line silently behind him as we make our way back to the car. No one says anything the whole way home and when I drop Conner off at his house, he looks utterly defeated.
All I want to do is go home to Jordan and hold her close, but I can’t just yet.
When I drop Emmett off, he tells me, “You speak to anybody about today and you’re dead.” The threat falls on deaf ears because I know this already. I nod at him anyway and hold my hand out to shake his. He looks at it like it’s trash but takes it anyway. “Today never happened,” I say and give him a cocky smirk.
He seems to like that because he returns my smirk with one of his own and heads inside.
Once I’m back on the road, I pull off at a random exit and call Miller. I tell him what happened and everything that was said.
“I’ll have our guys keep looking into Garcia. There’s no way he’s not involved with the cartel. But for some reason, we can’t pinpoint who he is. If he’s killing people, you need to be careful, Lucas.”
