“What about the young man who delivered the package? Maybe …”
“I’m not going to tell you his name. That young man risked his life. He’s in enough danger already.”
“Please. We may still be able to help Erica and other girls.”
Another long pause, then Mr. Mirabiles says again, “I’m not going to tell you his name. All I can tell you is that he works for a commercial laundry place. You know, the kind that picks up and delivers linens to hotels. The business is called La Vaquita.”
Sara writes the name down. “Thank you, Mr. Mirabiles.” She is afraid to ask the next question, but then, she already knows the answer. “And Joselito?”
“Thursday, only a few minutes after Joselito got back from dropping off the envelope, three men showed up at the Renterías’ house in a brown car. Manuel, Rosa, and their two sons were home. They asked Manuel about the cell phone. At first he denied receiving anything, and then one of the men began to hit Manuel with his fists. When he still refused to talk, they tied Joselito’s hands behind his back and beat him on the legs and arms with a rubber tube, the kind that policemen carry. When they started to strike Joselito on the head, Manuel had no choice but to tell them that they had dropped the cell phone in El Sol’s mail slot earlier that evening … with your name on it.”
“Oh, God.”
“They asked Manuel if he knew the identity of the man who owned the cell phone. Manuel told them that he didn’t know. That was the truth. No one in the family has any idea who the phone belongs to.” Mr. Mirabiles can barely speak. “They told him that if he said anything else, they would come back and kill his wife, his other son, and him, in that order.”
Sara presses her thumb and index finger hard against her eyes.
Mr. Mirabiles continues, “Joselito is in a coma. We don’t think he’ll make it. The doctors say there’s bleeding in the brain. You say the envelope was taken deliberately from you?”
“Yes, it was taken deliberately.”
“If you didn’t get anything, how did you know to call me?
Sara explains how she found his name. “Mr. Mirabiles …”
“Listen, if you didn’t get the envelope, everyone thinks you don’t know anything. It would be better if you let this be. Stay out of this, for your own sake.”
“And Erica? And the other girls? There are good people who can help us. There are honest people in the police department and in the military.”
“Do you know the kind of people we’re dealing with?” His voice is sharp. “They beat a young man nearly to death and hit an old man. Doesn’t that tell you what kind of people they are? You and your family are in danger. So am I and my family, just by talking to you. I urge you to stop whatever you’re doing. Please.”
She can’t answer.
“Good-bye. God bless you.” Mr. Mirabiles hangs up.
Sara puts the phone down and holds her coffee mug in both hands, thinking, thinking. What is her best chance for saving Linda and keeping everyone safe? Everyone, including her mother and Emiliano. The owner of the cell phone and his people know that the envelope was addressed to her, but they also know it never reached her. They think the e-mail with Erica’s picture was deleted. If she doesn’t do anything more, there’s a possibility that the bad people will leave her and those she loves most in the world alone.
There is a line in front of her. One more step on behalf of Linda and her life will change forever. How does she decide between safety and the risk that comes from doing what her heart knows to be right?
A memory comes to Sara: Linda sticking her tongue out as the bus pulled away the day she disappeared. Other memories follow: Linda getting chased by Mr. Lozano’s tom turkey when they climbed into his yard to steal peaches. Linda playing “who makes the first sound” with Emiliano. Linda giving her instructions on how to kiss before her first date with Joel Cardenas.
“Just turn your head away for a second when you think Joel’s about to kiss you and moisten your lips with your tongue,” Linda said. “The kiss has to be a little wet, and make sure you open your mouth a bit like this.”
“You look like a fish. And where did you learn all this?” Sara asked.
“I don’t tell you everything.”
“Yes you do.”
“Okay, a girl at work loaned me her Cosmopolitan. Want to know the twenty things a woman most likes to have done to her?”
“No!”
Sara smiles at the memory and then feels very alone. She knows what lies ahead of her and it makes her want to find a source of strength somewhere. She needs to talk to Emiliano. If there is anyone in the world who would understand what she has to do, regardless of the risks involved, it is her little brother. She calls him but there’s no answer. She texts him to call her as soon as he can. Then she calls Ernesto, her friend and ally.
“Hey, what was all that with Elias last night?”
She ignores his question. “Ernesto, before I tell you what I’ve found out, you have to know that this is getting more and more dangerous for all of us, including you. You may want to bow out. It’s okay if you do.”
“Yeah, yeah. What do you have?” He sounds almost bored.
“Are you sure?”
“Sara, I don’t have much time here. I have two computers that crashed and Juana and Felipe are insisting I submit a budget for IT that’s fifty percent lower than last year’s. I’m thinking of sending them a piece of paper with the words Five typewriters.”
She tells Ernesto everything that Mr. Mirabiles told her.
“Bastards! I think the Jaqueros can figure out where these girls are being held,” he says.
“Really? How?”
“We’ll hack into La Vaquita’s computers and then look for any deliveries to places near the airport. La Vaquita is a big laundry outfit. Their trucks run all over the place. They probably have better IT than El Sol. I’ll call you back. What you have to do is figure out who in law enforcement can go out there and rescue the girls. It’s pathetic. I don’t know a single person in law enforcement I can trust. Do you?”
Sara remembers an American FBI agent from El Paso she met while reporting on the joint task force. He told her to call him with any leads. “Maybe. I think so.”
Ernesto’s tone changes, gets serious for once. “Listen. If things get real hot, I have places where I can disappear. But you need to start thinking about what you’re going to do when the caca hits the fan. This Hinojosa guy has a lot to lose if it gets out he’s involved with sex trafficking or slavery or whatever this is. He and whoever … are involved with that place will figure out who screwed them, and they will come after you and me. All right. You should go home. Call you soon. Let’s do this.”
“Yes,” she says, mustering all her courage, “let’s do this.”
Emiliano is standing in the middle of the soccer field as the two teams go through their pregame drills. He’s looking in the direction of the opposing team, the North El Paso High School Conquistadors, but his mind is preoccupied with the conversation he needs to have with Javier as soon as they get back to Juárez.