With more deftness, Leo moved past Maggie and Jeannie, settling into position right behind Carson. Continuing forward, they made their way through the tunnel, picking a speed that would allow them to catch up to the carriers while not leaving Jeannie and Maggie too far behind. Soon, noise ahead had them slow their pace.
He’d radioed signals to LSI, Dave, and Adam, letting them know they had the women and were on their way to the American side. Adam would keep guard on the Mexican side then, when given the signal, head back across the border and rendezvous with them there, and if all went as planned, Dave would have the Garzas taking possession of the drugs. If all goes as planned. He’d never had a woman he loved needing protection while on a mission. Love? His foot stumbled slightly, but he quickly recovered. Refocusing his mind, he glanced over his shoulder, seeing Jeannie with her arm around Maggie as they crouch-hustled along. Yeah… love.
Half an hour later, he threw his hand up, halting their progress. Up ahead, the carriers had reached the door leading to the warehouse. Light and fresh air poured through the opening. The two boys with the boxes were breathing heavily as they moved through the doorway, and several others stepped forward to haul the boxes into the warehouse. Carson hurried forward to stop the door from closing, but the boys left it open. Inhaling deeply, he let it out slowly, anticipation building.
He felt Leo’s presence directly behind him and knew Jeannie would take care of Maggie. Gaze forward, he inched toward the opening. Boxes and crates as well as a truck were nearby, giving him and Leo enough cover to slip out of the tunnel and around to the side. The sound of raised voices had him halt.
“I just got a call from the other side,” a female voice barked.
Peering between two large crates, Carson could see Maria and Juan standing near a black car, Maria’s face flushed as she spat out her anger. “They’re not there yet!”
“It takes a while to get through the tunnel,” Juan argued. “Especially with the old lady.”
“This elaborate way to get rid of them is costing us time,” Maria argued.
“Stop making this so difficult,” Juan said. “Cheryl can go to her place and all they’ll know is that Maggie’s simply gone.”
“And what about security cameras?”
Carson watched as Juan said nothing but his body jerked slightly.
Maria’s eyes narrowed. “You didn’t even think about that, did you?”
“I’m sure Maggie’s place doesn’t have cameras.”
“Her parking lot might,” Maria said, each word spoken sharply.
“Ms. Garza?” At the sound of the man approaching, Maria ignored Juan and turned. “Everything is out of the tunnel.”
“I’ll inspect it now.” Maria followed the man over to the back of an old, beat-up truck filled with baskets of vegetables. On the lowered tailgate were the boxes that had been brought through the tunnel. Juan followed, peering into the boxes, but Maria continued to ignore him. With a knife, she pulled a few samples of powder from the brick packages. She used a handheld narcotics analyzer, and Carson wasn’t surprised to see that she was testing the cocaine to make sure what came through was what was supposed to. No honor among thieves.
“Well?” Juan asked, his impatience showing.
“I’ll be done when I’m done,” Maria said. “You can go on back home. It’s not like you’re needed here anyway.”
Tired of watching the siblings bicker, Carson glanced to the side toward Leo, ready to take them out but knowing they needed to wait for the DEA agents to enter.
Suddenly, a commotion to the side had his head swivel in time to see a man coming from the other side of the crates, his gaze locked on the open door. Juan and Maria hurried forward just as the man had Jeannie by the arm, pulling her away.
“How did they escape?” Maria screamed, her face contorted with rage. She turned toward Juan. “Take care of them now!”
“Fuck!” Juan said, reaching out toward Jeannie.
No longer waiting, Carson and Leo leaped from their hiding place, weapons drawn. Firing shots toward the closest men in the warehouse, he shouted, “Get down!” In his peripheral vision, he witnessed Jeannie pushing Maggie to the floor, covering her with her body.
Leo fired off two more shots toward more workers scrambling for weapons, and Dave, along with agents wearing DEA emblazoned on their jackets, rushed through the front door. Carson raced after Juan, who’d decided to run, easily tackling him. Rearing back, he gained satisfaction, punching Juan into submission.
A DEA agent rushed forward, and Carson stood, hauling the sniveling Juan with him, shoving him toward the agent. “Get her!” another agent shouted, and Carson whipped his head around, seeing Maria rush toward the tunnel door, looking for an escape. If she made it through, she could disappear from American justice unless Adam got to her as she entered Mexico.
Jeannie had covered Maggie as best she could, shielding her from the gunfire and chaos that surrounded them. When it seemed to pause, she took to her feet, still crouched but looking for Carson, needing to see that he was safe. A man’s voice called out, “Get her!”, and she jerked around to see Maria racing toward the tunnel entrance. A flash of the tiny, filthy tunnel flew through her mind. If she gets to Mexico, she’ll escape!
Leaping in front of the tunnel doorway to block Maria’s path, the woman kept running toward her. Jeannie’s face contorted into a hard sneer, and anger flooded her being. She slammed into Maria, tackling her, catching her by surprise. Rolling them over, Jeannie straddled the other woman, pinning her to the floor. Maria bared her claw-like fingernails and tried to fight, but Jeannie had no problem staying on top. Fury turned her vision red, and she reared back, throwing a punch, snapping Maria’s head to the side. “You bitch!” Jeannie screamed, ignoring the pain in her hand as her chest heaved.
Suddenly lifted off Maria, she started to fight until Carson whispered, “I’ve got you. I’ve got you, babe,” and clutched her in his arms. Her body shook both with adrenaline and shock. “Christ, babe,” he said, “remind me not to piss you off.”
She clung to him for a moment, reveling that she was in his embrace, and never wanted their connection to end. Finally, she leaned back, clutched his jaws, and kissed him. He tightened his arms and took over the kiss, devouring her.
“Well, it seems as though I’m being left out again.”
They separated and turned in unison to see Maggie standing nearby with Leo’s arm around her, providing support. Leo winked, then bent to kiss Maggie’s cheek. The older woman beamed.
Jeannie wiggled to get down, and Carson slowly allowed her feet to settle on the floor again. She rushed to Maggie. “Are you okay?”
Maggie, still leaning heavily on Leo, nodded. “A kiss from a handsome protector has quite a restorative power. Plus, it seems that I’m a tough old broad… hard to get rid of!”
Jeannie barked out a laugh before a hiccup-sob erupted, the events of the day pressing down on her. “Oh, Maggie… what about Cheryl?”
Maggie’s face hardened as she swallowed deeply. “I don’t know. If she knew about this… then she’ll have to deal with whatever comes. And if she didn’t… then I’ll help her pick up the pieces when her husband’s business ruins him.”