“Así es como sobrevive. Ese tipo es una maldita cucaracha”
Interesting. They were dissing Rodriguez, calling him a coward. Pointing out that he used everyone else as bait so he could survive.Cucaracha. Cockroach.That word she understood perfectly, and it truly summed up Rodriguez. Okay… There was trouble in paradise. She had to figure out a way to use this to her advantage. Maybe offer them money? It was a possibility.
There was a beat of silence before the second man spoke again, quieter this time. “¿Escuchaste lo que dijo el patrón del cartel? Si esto no sale bien, va a matar a Rodríguez. Solo para mandar un mensaje.”
Drew’s breath caught. Cartel boss? Her brain scrambled to keep up. Matar meant kill. Mensaje. Message. Was the cartel going to kill Rodriguez to send a message? She immediately felt ill. Did that mean as soon as they had the shipment, they would kill everyone there? She needed to get out of here and warn her brother.
“¿Quién? ¿El jefe? ¿Salvador?” the cigarette guy asked.
“Sí. Salvador Montoya. Está furioso. Dice que esto huele mal desde el principio.”
Salvador Montoya. The name stuck in her mind like a shard of glass. She hadn’t heard it before, but judging by the tone of their voices, he was someone to be afraid of. He had to be the head guy.
“Si esto no funciona esta noche,” the second man continued, “yo me largo. Tengo familia en Nueva York.”
Drew tried to calm down and focus. The first guy said something about having family in New York. Did that mean he’d run if things didn’t go well? Maybe offering them money was the way to go. Maybe at least this guy would take it.
“Yo me voy a California,” the other replied. “Pero no sin matar a la chica primero. No podemos dejar testigos.”
Drew’s heart pounded so loud, she was sure they could hear it from across the room.No podemos dejar testigos. We can’t leave witnesses.They meant her. They were going to kill her if things didn’t go well. And she couldn’t blame them. She’d seen too much, and she was inconvenient.
Her breath came faster. She tried to stay still, to keep from making noise, but her body betrayed her with a tremor that shook from the inside out. She gritted her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut, willing the panic back down her throat.Think, Drew. Think.There had to be a way out of this. There had to be.
But her fingers were numb, her ankles hurt, and her body screamed from sitting too long in one position. She was zip-tied and cornered, and her only allies were a maybe-mole and an ex-boyfriend who had no idea where she was. If he was even still alive. She was going to have to take the risk. She was looking at death either way. Maybe this was her only way out.
“Muchachos,” she said, her voice sounding weak to her own ears. She cleared her throat and started again. “I’m thinking you are a bit worried about Rodriguez and the cartel, yes? Maybe you’re looking for a bit of walking around money?” She offered them a smile.
The taller guy frowned, but the other guy said, “What are you talking about?”
Drew’s stomach unfurled just a tiny bit. At least they hadn’t shut her down outright. “Well, if I understood you correctly, you’re both worried that Rodriguez might not make it out alive tonight, and neither of you wants to hang around for the fallout. So maybe it wasn’t a bad thing to be left behind?” She offered them another smile.
The tall guy got up. “What the hell are you saying?” he growled.
“Just that maybe I could get you some money, you know, for your travels, if you let me go, that is.”
“You’re gonna pay us to let you go?” the second one confirmed.
Drew shrugged. “Maybe. It’s not like you’ve got anything to lose if you truly believe the cartel might kill Rodriguez no matter what happens tonight.” Not for a minute did she think they would let her live if she gave them money, but it would get her out of here and give her a chance to escape.
“So how much money are we talking about?” the second guy asked as he stood up.
There was a definite gleam in his eye. He was more interested than the tall guy. Drew turned to focus on him. “I don’t know exactly, but I could get maybe twenty grand.” It had to be enough to interest them but not so much that they didn’t believe her.
“How’s a littleputalike you going to get twenty grand?” the tall one asked.
Drew shrugged as best she could. “I have my ways.”
The tall guy grunted as if to dismiss her, but the other guy took a step toward her. “You could get twenty grand?”
She nodded.
“And you just want us to let you go?”
“Yes. I give you the money, and you let me go.” Drew tried not to get too excited by his interest.
“Where’s the money?” the guy asked.
Drew shook her head. “Nope. You can’t get it without me, so either you take me with you to get it or you don’t get it.”
