Thanksgiving Protector, page 11
Austin pointed to the computer screen. “This is what the owner of this computer was researching.”
Kylie stared at the map Austin brought up of Southside El Paso. He zoomed in. Missouri Street. The street where Mercedes was being kept.
He showed her the Google Earth image of the safe house.
Kylie’s knees buckled. “We need to get over there right now.”
* * *
Austin whizzed through noonday traffic. He was having a hard time getting a deep breath. It felt like an elephant was sitting on his chest.
He gripped the wheel and watched the signs on the freeway.
Kylie sat beside him, her hands laced together in her lap. All the color had drained from her face, and her mouth formed a tight hard line. For the third time, she picked up the phone and dialed George’s cell number.
Still no answer.
Austin zoomed around several cars, gaining speed as the off-ramp to the subdivision came up. He took the exit, slowing only slightly as he entered the residential neighborhood. The houses out here were far apart and most of them were surrounded by trees and hedges, ideal for a safe house to keep prying neighbors from noticing things. All the same, he didn’t want to call attention to the house by having half a dozen rangers barreling through the neighborhood at top speed. Colt and Brent had stayed behind to help Forensics process the house and question the teenager.
After ending the call, Kylie gripped the collar of her shirt and stared straight ahead.
He wanted to tell her that everything would be okay. But he knew that might be a lie. “We’re almost there.”
She nodded.
He turned up the winding driveway surrounded by trees and stopped in front of the two-story brick house. As usual, the curtains were drawn and the place looked quiet.
“Should...I...go around the back?” Kylie could not hide the fear in her voice. He didn’t expect her to.
That was their usual method. Austin was having a hard time thinking straight. His mind was clouded with the memory of Mercedes, the sound of her laughter, how it had felt to hold her that night in the church. The way she had looked up at him, her eyes so filled with trust. The softness of her fingers touching his skin. All of it made him feel weak in the knees.
“That makes the most sense.” He prayed for Mercedes’s safety. Maybe they weren’t too late. There were a dozen reasons why someone wouldn’t answer their phone. “Just in case.”
Kylie jumped out and disappeared around the corner of the house. Austin approached the front door with caution. There had been plenty of time for Ibarra to get back across the border or to give the order that someone else storm the house.
Austin peered through a tiny slit between the curtains. He thought he saw movement. A noise to his side caused him to whirl around.
Kylie stood shaking her head. “I can’t get in. It’s locked up tight.”
He approached the front door and turned the handle. Locked, as well. Kylie pressed her back against the wall next to the door, ready to exchange fire if needed. He knocked on the door and stood against the wall on the other side of it.
The seconds seemed to drone on.
He lifted his head. Cameras were installed above them that would have shown who they were to whoever was inside.
The door swung open. Officer George Frank stood with his hand on his gun. Relief flooded through Austin. Now he could get a deep breath.
Kylie stepped across the threshold. “Where’s Mercedes?”
“She’s upstairs sleeping.”
Kylie raced up the stairs.
Austin stepped inside to find Julie, George’s wife and fellow officer, in the kitchen standing by the sink. “What’s going on?” She grabbed a towel and dried her hands.
“This location has been compromised,” Austin said. “We need to get that baby out of here.”
George’s forehead wrinkled in confusion. “What? How could that happen?”
The same question had plagued Austin ever since he’d seen the image of this house on that computer. How had Ibarra gotten that information unless there was a snitch inside the rangers or with border patrol?
“Do they have a new safe house set up?” Julie stepped into the living room and stood beside her husband.
“No, we’ll deal with that later. I just know we need to get her out of here now.” Austin paced the floor.
“I don’t know if we can do that. It’s totally against protocol,” George said.
Their resistance made him suspicious. Maybe they were the ones who had divulged the location.
“Kylie is going to be Mercedes’s mother once the adoption is complete.” Austin shifted his weight. “I think she’s the final authority here.”
“I’ll need to call my supervisor.” George moved toward the coffee table. “Where’s my phone? I had it this morning.”
“Didn’t you take that call from Kylie outside?” Julie asked.
At least that explained why they hadn’t answered when Kylie called them.
Austin tensed. They were wasting precious minutes. “Let’s focus on getting Mercedes to a safe place.” He glanced toward the stairs, wondering why Kylie hadn’t come downstairs with Mercedes. Kylie understood that it was important they leave quickly.
“And I’m saying we need to clear this first,” said George. He moved as though to go to the back door, probably to get his phone.
Austin frowned, not knowing what was wrong but feeling that something was off. A thudding noise from upstairs sent his heartbeat to rev up into high gear. He raced toward the stairs.
TWELVE
Kylie had gathered Mercedes in her arms and stepped out into the hallway when she noticed the ladder propped against an open second-story window that led to the expansive landing at the top of the stairs—a ladder that hadn’t been there minutes before when she’d checked the back of the house. She saw a man while his back was to her. He must have climbed up the ladder and was searching for Mercedes.
She couldn’t get downstairs without being seen. Still holding Mercedes, she slipped into the bathroom and climbed into the tub, crouching and hiding behind the curtain.
She laid the baby down in the tub, thanking God that Mercedes was still asleep. Kylie pulled her weapon from the holster and waited by the door.
The intruder had probably walked past the bathroom by now and was checking the nursery and other bedrooms.
She heard a scuffle and then gunfire. It sounded like it came from downstairs.
Her heart raced. Would anyone be able to come up to help her?
Seconds ticked by. She adjusted her grip on the gun. She eased the door open and stared out into the empty hallway and the open area of the landing. She looked down the sight of her gun and stepped out.
Austin stood on the landing, staring at something behind her as his eyes filled with fear. “Kylie, hit the floor.”
She didn’t have time to react.
An arm went around her neck as cold steel touched her head.
Kylie squeezed her eyes shut. At least Mercedes was still safely hidden in the tub. Where were Julie and George? Did the noise downstairs mean more thugs had entered the house?
Austin edged closer to the man, demanding that he put down the gun.
The assailant’s response was to tighten his grip on Kylie.
“You don’t want to do this.” Kylie purged her voice of the terror she felt. She repeated the same phrase in Spanish. No response.
Austin took a step toward them. The man pressed the barrel of the gun harder against Kylie’s face.
She took in quick, shallow breaths resting her gaze on Austin who continued to hold his gun on the man. He couldn’t get a clean shot without risking her life.
Knowing she needed to act, Kylie took a risk and elbowed the man in the stomach. The weight on her temple lifted. Austin moved in and hit the man on the back of the head with his gun. The man collapsed to the floor.
Austin grabbed her hand. “Where is she?”
Kylie pointed toward the bathroom. “Shouldn’t we call for backup?”
“I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.” Austin hurried toward the bathroom with Kylie right behind him. He gathered the little girl in his arms.
Austin must be thinking the same thing she was. How could Ibarra get the address of the safe house and send this henchman unless he had an inside man or woman?
“I heard gunfire,” she said.
“There are others downstairs. George and Julie must be in a standoff with them or they would have come up here to help us by now.” He glanced toward the window where the top the ladder was visible. “Get down the ladder. I’ll be right behind you,” Austin said.
Fear sparked fresh for Kylie. “Holding the baby?”
“We don’t have a choice.” Austin drew Mercedes to his chest. “George and Julie can’t hold off the ones downstairs for long. We need to hurry.”
She trusted Austin’s strength and balance more than her own. Still, climbing down a ladder one-handed was risky. “You go down first with her.”
Shouting rose up from downstairs. Kylie’s heart pounded. She pushed aside the encroaching fear.
Kylie took Mercedes so Austin could climb out the window. Once he was on the ladder, he reached up for the bundle that was Mercedes. The baby was wide-awake and looking around. Her arms reached toward Austin.
More noises erupted downstairs. It went against the grain to leave without trying to help the others, but Kylie knew that George and Julie could handle themselves. Her priority needed to be with keeping the baby safe.
Austin was halfway down the ladder when she heard footsteps on the stairs, another man coming up to get at them. The man they had knocked out stirred and groaned. Knowing she couldn’t wait any longer, she put her foot through the open window.
She looked down just as Austin’s feet hit the ground. “Take her to the car,” she told him. “I’ll meet you there.”
She heard heavy footsteps above her and more shouting. Not George’s or Julie’s voice. Were they tied up? Shot?
Austin rounded the corner as Kylie got to the bottom of the ladder. A shot was fired at her from above. It hit the nearby ceramic birdbath, shattering it into hundreds of pieces. Dodging the flying debris, Kylie caught up with Austin. She gently took Mercedes and climbed into the back seat. She crouched low just as she watched a man run out of the front door and another come around the side of the house.
She put her body over Mercedes, stroking her pink cheeks and talking soothingly to her.
Austin backed the car out and swung it around with the smoothness of a race car driver. He took the winding driveway at a high rate of speed, barely slowing as he pulled out onto the street. He checked the rearview mirror.
Kylie dared not raise her head. “Are they coming after us?”
“There were no cars in the driveway. They must have parked out here on the street or in the trees behind the house.”
“I hope George and Julie are all right,” Kylie said.
Austin sped up. She lifted her head to see the skyscrapers of downtown El Paso. Austin worked his way through traffic. She sat up with a glance out the back window.
She gathered Mercedes close to her chest, patting her back and swaying. “What do we do now?”
“We need to get another safe house set up, but limit who might have knowledge of it this time. Who do you trust on your end?”
She filed through the other border patrol agents she knew. In the years she’d worked border patrol, she’d seen two men turn to aiding cartels and criminals. Both men she had at one time trusted. “I’m not sure.”
“I’m in the same boat. I trust my supervisor, Thomas. This time only he will have knowledge of the safe house, nothing in the computer system. That might be the way the snitch is accessing information.”
Mercedes wiggled in her arms. “She’s probably hungry after her nap. We need to stop and get some supplies.”
He glanced over his shoulder and then looked straight ahead. “I think there’s a grocery store around here somewhere.” He took several more turns and pulled into the lot.
The radio glitched.
“Unit two. This is Colt Blackthorn. Just heard on the police ban there was tussle at the safe house. Are you out of danger?”
“Yes,” Austin said. “George and Julie must have phoned it in once all the thugs went after us.”
“It sounded like they were a little scuffed up trying to keep them from getting to the baby,” Colt said. “But they are okay.”
Relief flooded through Kylie. At least that was some good news.
“Look, they want me to bring you in.” Colt’s voice came across through the static.
Austin looked over at Kylie before drawing the radio to his mouth. “Can you give us some time? I don’t want to disclose our location just yet.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line before Colt spoke in a halting voice. “Sure. Whatever you need.”
Austin might be thinking the same thing she was. The smart thing to do right now was to trust no one. Austin clicked off the radio and stared at Kylie.
Now they suspected everyone. They had to if they were going to keep Mercedes safe. Right now, they could only trust each other. “Let’s go get some stuff for this little one,” Kylie said.
The grocery store was a mom-and-pop operation with only a few aisles of merchandise. Thanksgiving decorations hung from the ceiling and large signs advertised sweet potatoes and turkeys on sale. Kylie hadn’t even had time to think about the holiday. With both her parents gone and her navy SEAL brother out of contact most of the time, friends from church usually invited her over. The holiday would feel empty if she couldn’t be with Mercedes. This baby was her family now.
Kylie hurried to the baby section and stared at the items. She couldn’t even think what they needed to get. The baby formula she was staring at blurred. She hadn’t meant to cry.
Austin stood beside her. “Let me hold her.”
After he took Mercedes, Kylie swiped at her eyes.
“Kylie, it’s all right. It’s a lot to deal with.” His voice swelled with compassion.
She tugged on Mercedes’s bootee. “I’m just so afraid for her.”
He adjusted Mercedes against his side. “Me too.” His voice filled with emotion. “We’re going to get these guys so Mercedes can have all the opportunities she deserves.”
While she appreciated his determination, it did nothing to quell her fear. Mercedes could have died back at the safe house.
Austin shifted Mercedes so he was holding her in one arm. He reached up and brushed Kylie’s tears off her cheek.
Mercedes wiggled. “She’s hard to hold,” Austin commented. “She keeps sliding around.”
Kylie let out a laugh. Her spirits lifted. They were cute together, big tough ranger and squirming little baby. “You don’t have the hips for it. Let me hold her.”
After handing off the baby again, Austin turned to face the wall of baby stuff. “So tell me what we need here.”
Kylie focused on the baby food. “She likes bananas.”
He ran his finger along the baby food jars until he found the bananas.
Kylie let out a breath and stared at the wall. “And we need bottles and the formula with the blue label. And diapers and wipes. That will get us through the next few hours.”
Austin gathered the items and then offered her a soft smile. Mercedes reached out her hand toward him, wrapping her tiny hand around one of his fingers.
Kylie could feel the anxiety and the fear fading away. Something about having Austin close made her have faith that everything was going to be okay.
They got back into the car. Austin drove around until he found a park with a bench that was surrounded by trees to provide them with some seclusion. He held Mercedes while she got water from a drinking fountain and mixed the formula.
Mercedes took the bottle eagerly. The noonday sun warmed Kylie’s skin. She closed her eyes and listened to the contented sucking sounds Mercedes made.
She thanked God for the warm sunny day. If she kept her eyes closed, she could almost believe they were safe—that they were just a little family enjoying an afternoon in the park. That was probably what they looked like to the world.
But when she opened her eyes, the illusion was shattered. Austin paced vigilantly, watching each sector of the park. The strap on his holster was unsnapped, so he could pull his weapon if he had to. Though she thought she’d caught glimpses of the Austin that was so deeply buried, the one who could love and care about Mercedes, he was still all about his job.
Her heart ached as she stared down at Mercedes who closed her eyes while she sucked on her bottle. That’s all it was, wishful thinking. They weren’t a family, and they weren’t safe.
THIRTEEN
Austin felt a sense of relief as they left the city limits headed toward the new safe house. It had taken some convincing, but Thomas had agreed to have this one set up off the books. Though Austin had a gut feeling the rat was either a ranger or with border patrol, Thomas had told George and Julie to tell no one in the police department, either. Austin had suspected them of being affiliated with Garcia’s cartel for a moment, but their conduct at the first safe house told him that they weren’t involved.
It had taken most of the day to get the safe house arranged. The sun hung low in a sky that glowed orange and pink.
Mercedes sat in the back seat in the car seat they’d gotten for her.
Kylie hadn’t said anything since he told her of the new arrangement. When he glanced over at her, she looked tired. All of this was taking a toll on her. He wished there was something he could do for her.
