“Miranda Chase.”
He glanced at Taz, whose memory was a steel trap for each detail of everyone who flowed past him. Stumped, she shook her head.
“Interesting. Colonel Taz Cortez remembers everyone.”
Jeremy finished his pizza and started crunching loudly on his Italian breadsticks. “If you haven’t dealt with plane crashes, then you wouldn’t know about her. She’s the best crash investigator the NTSB has ever had. Drake calls us in on all the really tricky ones. It only took her about an hour to figure out that your AC-130H crash was a fake.”
“Jeremy!” Mike admonished him, but the boy was on a roll.
“And I’ll bet she’s solved the Catalina crash already.”
That was information he’d like to possess. That crash was causing an inordinate amount of trouble, including their present situation of desperately needing Jeremy’s aid. However, JJ was not about to open up communications to anyone at this time. There wasn’t a single military person on this flight or at his operating base who wouldn’t be court-martialed the moment they were caught.
“She was talking to the weapons officer and she doesn’t do interviews until she already knows what’s happened. That’s the last step in her investigation process,” Mike agreed.
“But that doesn’t make sense,” Taz cut in while JJ was thinking how much he’d like to throttle Rosa Cruz for betraying them. “If she told your boss about this, why didn’t she stop our flight?”
“He,” Mike spoke up. “Miranda was with a male weapons officer.”
“Oh.” Taz glanced up but she shook her head. Not one of theirs.
“And she’s probably trying to stop you right now. So, who are you about to have an illegal war with?” Jeremy asked as he dipped another breadstick into the cheese spread. He patted the control console like a favorite pet. “I mean, this baby specializes in area denial. You want to take out a tightly clustered group of weapons or people with extreme prejudice. You’re also banking that they don’t have the fighter jets to take you on, because as dangerous as the Ghostrider is, it’s big, slow, and does its best work below ten thousand feet. Or do you have a couple of escort jets of your own?”
Mike was watching his companion intently. So, this was all the young investigator’s conjecture.
JJ considered. Taz’s nod concurred with his own thoughts that frankness seemed appropriate.
“We’re going after people who have wronged every single person on this plane.” And JJ could feel the fury deep in his gut as he did every time. That had been his leverage for recruiting each member of this team for his final mission.
Jeremy nodded, then leaned forward enough to pull on a hat that had been between his shoulders and the seat back. It was brilliantly garish, even in the dim combat lighting.
“Put it on, Mike. The Three Amigos! Well, the Two Amigos.” Jeremy began popping cookies into his mouth.
“Why?” But Mike did as he was told.
“Because we’re going to Mexico.”
“And our chances of ever coming back?” Mike asked the astute question.
Jeremy looked at him blankly for a long moment, then choked on his cookies, and ended up coughing crumbs in every direction as Mike pounded on his back.
47
“Mexico?”
Rosa nodded, “But that’s all I know. I think only Tang—” She made a strangling sound.
Miranda decided it was a good thing they were still in the hospital, seated at one of the VA hospital Patriot Café’s tables. If Rosa needed a doctor—
But she cleared her throat, though she was far paler than a moment before, then continued, “I think only one of the pilots on the Ghostrider that crashed in Avalon knew where we were supposed to go.”
“But you had agreed to leave the Air Force to do this. Whatever this was!” Despite sitting in a quiet back corner booth with an untouched milkshake in front of her, Holly seemed poised for battle. There was no hint at all of her Strine accent.
“I grew up in a super-close family. But my aunt and uncle died while trying to cross the border. They were seasonal pickers and went home each winter. One year the cartels kidnapped their daughter to force them to be drug mules. None of them survived.”
Miranda finally saw the pattern and wondered why it had taken her so long. “Rosa Cruz, Mark Torres, Ron Gutierrez, Taz Cortez, JJ Martinez, Luis Hernandez, Danny—”
“Luis?” Rosa leaned forward and Pierre flinched.
She turned to him. “No, he was just a friend. His mother got sold into the sex-trafficking trade when she crossed the border. He was a good man.”
“Well, now he’s a dead man.” Miranda continued.
Rosa spun back to face her.
“It appears his parachute failed after setting up the crash in Colorado.” She pulled out her phone and called Jon.
He answered immediately.
“Are you still with Lizzy?”
“Yes. Miranda. I’m so sorry—”
“You said that already. There’s no point in repeating it. Everyone JJ recruited appears to be Mexican. Or perhaps from Latin America. It would seem that every single person he recruited had a reason to hate some particular group or groups in Mexico. Traffickers and the like. Find out who.”
“Wait. General Martinez is using a stolen Ghostrider to declare war on Mexico?”
“Our government managed to alienate the Mexican government enough that they’ve turned down our subsequent offer to send military assistance against the cartels. Drake said that JJ was an extreme patriot. It is therefore simple logic that JJ decided he’d had enough of politics and was going to defend his country.”
“Against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” Pierre said it softly.
Rosa nodded. “His exact words.”
Jon must have overheard. “The USAF officer’s oath. Shit! I’m on it.”
“The problem we have is how to stop him.”
“Find him and shoot him down!” Pierre snarled.
Holly almost attacked him across the table. Probably would have if Miranda wasn’t in the way.
Miranda placed a hand on Holly’s arm and could feel it shaking. “That won’t work, Pierre. Mike and Jeremy are on board.”
“Then how the hell do we stop them? They’re going to murder people and start a war.”
There was a long tense silence.
“What we need,” Rosa finally broke the silence, “is the third Ghostrider from Eglin. The laser doesn’t have to be used on full power. It can also dazzle their plane’s optics. If we’re quick, we could damage any ability to deliver on a target without damaging the aircraft.”
At that, Holly smiled.
If Miranda were to label her look with an emoji, it would have a devil’s horns and tail.
“Now that’s aces!”
48
“I’ve watched my people,” JJ thumped his chest hard enough to hurt and it felt good. “I’ve watched them be decimated for too long by the drugs and the traffickers who see hardship and pain as opportunity. I’ve stood by as my own country has marginalized and attacked those in greatest need while allowing the users to thrive beyond reason. Mexico fights, but it is powerless.” JJ had spent his whole career combating that desperate dichotomy.