Brady knew Tate could find trouble all on his own, and he was known for being willful but smart. “Well, there’s no chance he can come with us, so I really didn’t have a choice. But I told him I’d be back. And I got to believe he understood that.”
“And you will.”
Enemario’s words hit Brady cold, and his guts nearly dropped down to his toes. All of a sudden, his resolve was waning, as if a shadow had crossed over his grave. He shrugged it off as pre-op jitters—only brought on because it had been several years since he’d been on one.
It was a long, boring trip back to the Central Valley, and Brady was already tiring of the scenery. They passed several miles of once-green and lush fruit-producing orchards that were now paper-dry with leaves brown and curled. The whole area looked blighted. Rows of once prosperous orchards now went fallow. The lack of water in the Central Valley put many farmers in bankruptcy. And then there were others, mostly foreign investors, who came in, scooped up the land at a good price, made their private deals with the water district, got the water they needed, and replanted.
It was the same age-old story, the cycle of famine and failure, boom and bust, farmers everywhere had to contend with. Added to the mix was the political fallout from forces in the cities—namely Los Angeles and large population centers in Southern California—and the needs of rural California, the Central Valley. Somehow, in this mixed-up world, more priority was given to the populations of sun worshipers in Southern California than was given to farmers in the bread basket of the West. Hell, it was the bread basket of California and the west too.
But that wasn’t Brady’s problem. On top of everything else the communities in the Central Valley had to deal with, they had a monster living in their village. And that monster was going to be removed—by force, if he had to.
“We take them one step at a time, don’t we, Enemario?” mumbled Brady.
“Roger that, Chief.”
John drove the old camper Brady had purchased, which was the lead vehicle, since it had to amble at a pace not to exceed 55 miles an hour. The dang thing smoked too. That left Carter riding alone in his Mercedes, since Riley chose to ride with John.
They arrived in Fresno late. The group had stopped along the way at a famous steakhouse, savoring the luscious beef dinners and oversized portions of potatoes and corn bread. By the time they reached Fresno, everybody was trying desperately to stay awake. They checked into an inexpensive motel with three rooms side by side. Brady bunked with Riley. John offered to share a room with Carter, but Carter turned him down.
“I’m going to go stay at the Marriott down the street. Since I’m supposed to be a billionaire, I think that’s where I would stay. You room with Enemario. And thanks for asking, but I’ll be just fine.” Carter winked, got the okay from Brady, then took off in search of nicer digs.
The remaining four members of the team crashed for the night, agreeing to meet downstairs for breakfast in the morning.
Over pancakes, Brady gave Carter the phone number to the charity so that he could be entered in the auction. The fundraising dinner was this evening, so Brady instructed Carter to get himself hooked up, wander around the ballroom, and pretend to be interested in bidding on several of the auction items. He even suggested he donate his time to help with the setup.
“I just want you noticed, okay?”
“I got it,” Carter answered as he stuffed a fresh biscuit in his mouth.
“So, Brady, we’re going over to the house or the ranch?” asked Riley.
“We’ll check out what’s going on at the house first, just verify that Rojas is there. Maybe we’ll talk to our little waitress again?” Brady answered. “Then we’ll head over to the warehouse and see if there’s any new activity going on. I want to see if we can maybe get in tonight and look at what’s in those containers while Rojas is distracted with the events of this evening.”
They said their goodbyes to Carter, who asked Brady quietly on the side if making a donation would somehow implicate him in the foundation or turn into something he’d regret.
“Carter, you could give him whatever you can afford to, a few thousand dollars maybe? Sort of buy your way in, so to speak? But it is up to you. I’m not requiring that you do so, but it would help with your cover. Just do what you can to get noticed and gain entry. I’ll try to get you reimbursement for the funds you advance. You want one of us as backup?”
Carter shook his head. “No, I got this. You guys go check out his house and the ranch. I know how to do this. I doubt I’ll get myself into anything that I can’t get out of.”
Because the green monster truck was so visible, Riley, John, Brady, and Enemario all rode in the camper van. They patrolled up and down the prune yard district, Riley and Brady pointing out the guard tower located in the palm tree, the wiring, the cameras, and the armed guards who wandered in and out of the garden area by the blue fountain. The back entrance of the estate was wide open, and delivery trucks transported catering supplies, wine, and flowers to the house in a steady stream over that hour-long surveillance they did. When the gate closed, everyone exited the van. Brady pointed out the locations once more of the cameras and reminded everyone to avoid detection. They split up into two groups, and Enemario went with John to see if he could gain entry to the rear. Riley and Brady returned to the van and monitored their comms.
As the two members were allowed inside the courtyard, Brady heard Enemario speaking Spanish to someone inside the kitchen. The woman was apparently a cook, because he heard references to produce that had somehow not been delivered. Brady’s Spanish was so limited he wasn’t quite sure what he was hearing, but it appeared to be a story about them not wanting to lose business of the master at the house. The cook or housekeeper was speaking very rapidly, giving the two men an earful.
The comms went quiet as Enemario and John returned to the van, and Enemario suggested they drive away.
“They are gathering things for the party tonight, and I guess there is to be a little reception at the house. They’re going to be showing some of the foundation’s children, who will be serving. It’s all designed to solicit donations, as a fundraiser. But the orphans are going to be serving the party. I just can’t believe this guy. He’s exposing his awful crime to a whole room full of innocent people. I can’t wait to get him off the streets,” Enemario said with attitude.
“When does the party start at the house? Did she tell you?”
John stepped up to the plate. “I heard 10 o’clock, is that right?” he asked, looking at Enemario.
“Yes. 10 o’clock. It’s the after-party. The dancing and the auction go on at the ballroom, but then this smaller group will come to the house. These are the select donors, and I’m hoping, Carter will ingratiate himself, to be invited.”
“So we’ll nab him tonight then,” said Brady. “We’ll get that son of a bitch. I’ll see if I can get hold of our liaison and wrap this op up tonight.”
“Amen to that,” Riley added.
While Brady called Carter to give him an update on the after-party, John drove over to the warehouse.
A large semi-truck hauling a double trailer pulled in through the gates just ahead of them. The team continued past the entryway, parking near the entrance to an abandoned big box store. The afternoon sun was beginning to heat up, and in the next hour or two, the temperature closed in on 100, so they stayed in the shadows underneath the shade of trees. The group found an unguarded entrance on one of the chain-link sections. There had been a padlock and chain at one time, but all that remained was the chain. The padlock was missing. They quickly entered the compound while several workers began unloading one of the trailers. They had boxes of supplies, appearing to be a combination of produce, lumber, and appliances in large cartons. The trailer was disconnected, and the semi brought the other trailer next to it. Workers began offloading its supplies, loading them on forklifts and taking them inside the warehouse.