wilted streets: a novella & stories Page 8

  She looked up at me with no shame or regret on her face. “I’ve sort of gone off the reservation during all this. As you can see I kept all my gear and have been wandering the streets at night keeping my skills sharp. You would not believe how many of us there are roaming the Phoenix streets. Believe me, I have no self pity but the dead and physically wounded aren’t the only victims of our little undeclared wars. So maybe you can see why doing what I’ve done today is no big deal for me.”

  My head was spinning. I just stared at Annie, not knowing what to say. I felt totally unmoored from any reality I had known. The adrenaline that had been my fuel for the last two days was dissipating and I felt drained. Everything was moving so fast that I just wanted to go to sleep somewhere and wake up with this nightmare over. I was awash in conflicting emotions. I felt lust, fear and a desire to hold her. I had a strong magnetic force pulling me towards her and a deep uncertainty rooted in anxiety. Well, no turning back now, I thought. I pulled a bottle off the rack and broke the neck. I poured some of the dark red wine into two glasses. I handed her one and lifted my glass in her direction.

  “All for one and one for all,” I said. “Lead on, McDuff.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  We once again found rags and just like at the safe house we went around and wiped everything we had touched. We left Sergiu where he was and headed to the garage. I saw Cotrubas crumpled in the corner in a pool of blood. I looked at Annie and she just shrugged. We piled into her SUV and left the garage. We passed through the gate without passing any other cars. Annie headed back down the 101. It was a hot silent ride. My mind was racing but I could not think of anything to say. We pulled up behind our building and Annie shut off the engine. Immediately the heat and humidity enveloped us.

  “I have to stop back at my place for more equipment. I hope the cops won’t have heard anything yet. I’ll only be a few minutes. You stay in the car with the money.”

  I nodded. I was not sure what to say. I was in her hands now. I hoped she knew what she was doing because I was all out of ideas. Luckily I had my bag with my laptop and all my manuscripts. I wondered if my writing career was over.

  I waited while Annie went through back streets to the building. She was back in 15 minutes. She was carrying two large suitcases.

  “I didn’t see anyone around the place. I think we are safe for now.”

  I turned to her. “Annie, what are we going to do? If we run where are we going to run to?”

  “The first thing we have to do is get to Las Vegas. I have to talk to someone there and set up our getaway.”

  She started the car and we headed back up the 101. I had a million questions but I knew she would tell me everything when she was ready.

  We drove until we hit the 17 and turned north. We stopped at a diner in Rock Springs. Despite all the fear I felt racing through my system I was ready for some food. When we were seated and had ordered our cheeseburgers Annie began to fill me in on her plan.

  “When I was at Quantico I got a detail training some Peruvian officers. Two of them were females and we got really friendly. They were assigned to a secret unit that was fighting what was left of the Sendero Luminoso. It means Shining Path. They were a left-wing terrorist group. They specialized in setting off bombs and robbing banks. They branched into the coca business but were mostly all dead by then. The female officers tried to recruit me to come down there and take a consulting job with the Peruvian military. At the time I wasn’t interested but we kept in touch and they told me I could come anytime.”

  We finished our food and she continued with her story. “I’m pretty sure that if I get in contact with them they will hide us in Peru. Before they left for home they gave me the name and location of someone who could reach them in an emergency. At the time I was a little surprised at this. I later came to realize that the military in South America was just a little different than ours. It has a lot of political power and rules things in a way our military doesn’t. Meanwhile the winds of power often change direction down there and people have a tendency to up and disappear. That is why I have to check if my friends are still in favor.”

  I was having trouble taking this all in. I was now in the middle of a B-movie. All I needed was Arnold and Jason Bourne to show up.

  She read the look of disbelief in my face. “Yes, I know it sounds crazy but I think it will work. It’s not like we have a lot of choices. Let’s go. We have to hurry. It’s only a matter of time before they realize those agents are not going to be showing up for work.”

  We paid our bill with cash and got back on the road. As we ascended up the Mogollon Rim the awful heat of the Valley began to fade and a slight coolness filled the car. We hit Highway 40 and turned left towards Kingman. The roads were clear and we made good time. I was wrapped in my own thoughts. I refrained from asking the million questions I had. I was probably better off not knowing what I was getting into.

  We stopped at a crummy motel on the outskirts of Las Vegas and rented a room as a married couple using the name Sobieski. I thought we would be noticed less this way. Annie went out to a mini-mart and got a couple of pre-paid cell-phones and some food. When she came back she told me she had contacted the person who would help us.

  We sat at a small table with some bottled water between us. “What did he say,” I asked.

  “He said he had to make a few calls and make arrangements. He wants fifty thousand dollars. I told him he will get his money but not until I speak to one of my friends. I gave him a few names and he told me to wait until I got a call. He said we should stay inside. I paid the motel clerk to let me put the car in a garage in back. There is always the chance they will link me to you. We are just going to have to lay low until I hear from my Colonel pal.”

  We ate in silence. After dinner Annie said she wanted to take a shower and get some sleep. She told me that we might have to run on a moment’s notice and to get all the rest we could.

  I sat in a stupor. I was still having trouble absorbing all that had happened. In a few short days I had gone from a quiet life of reading and writing to murder and international mayhem. My brain was stuffed with misgivings. I heard the water start and my head filled with images of Annie naked in the shower. Without thinking I stripped off my clothes and entered the bathroom.

  Annie must have felt the cold air rush in as I opened the door. She pulled aside the shower curtain. She had a huge grin on her face.

  “Well, it’s about time, Billy. Step right in and let me soap you up.”

  123

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN The phone woke us at four AM. Annie answered it and began speaking in rapid Spanish. I was not fluent in the language but knew enough to catch a few words. She listened for a long time and then hung up. She rolled over and took my head in her strong hands. She kissed me and sat up.

  “That was Jorge. He contacted my friends. A Peruvian government contingent will be arriving in 2 days at Nellis Air base to ostensibly study casino gambling for tourism in Peru. Someone will contact us and we will be flown out of the country to Lima. This will cost us plenty but we should still have enough to get by and I can always take them up on the training offer. Meantime we have to stay out of sight until we hear from them. Looks like we are going to have to amuse ourselves for a few days.” With that she climbed on top of me and we began the amusements.

  In the morning, after we ate something, we set about cleaning all our weapons. While Annie felt she could trust Jorge she still wanted to be prepared for all eventualities. We watched some

  124 TV, I wrote some notes and we read the papers looking for any news from Phoenix. We saw nothing. I wanted to call Ridley or our friend Ron but Annie said no. She told me in no uncertain terms that the life I once had was now over. To pass the time she taught me self-defense moves and hand-to-hand combat. She was in superb physical condition with toned muscles and a rock hard abdomen. We did crunches and push-ups three times a day. With Roxanne I was smitten with lust. With Annie I was falling in love. Fo
r the first time I was really seeing her. What she saw in me I still did not understand but was grateful that she saw anything.

  On the third day we were packed and armed. Late in the morning the phone rang. Again she began speaking in Spanish and nodding her head.

  “A car will be here in an hour. It looks like the Inca Express is coming through.”

  She looked at me with questioning eyes. “Are you down with this, Billy? Our lives will never be the same now. We will have to get new identities and most likely we will never be able to go back home. I want us to be together but I will understand if you don’t want that.”

  “It is a lot to take in but I want to be with you, Annie. For the first time in my life I realize it isn’t all about me. I don’t really know what love is but this is close enough for me.”

  I stood and took her in my arms. “I was sick of Arizona anyway. I was in Peru on vacation many years ago and liked it just fine. Hell, I can write from anywhere. I’ll just publish under another name and maybe even learn to write in Spanish.” I kissed her hard.

  We were picked up by three large Peruvian men in dark suits. One took Annie’s car keys and left in her vehicle with the 50 thousand in bribe money. We were driven out to the air base by the other two. We had to lay covered behind the back seat of the huge SUV with our weapons and baggage until we were through the gate. I could not help but think of that poor sap Cotrubas and all the time he spent in the same situation. I just hoped our trip undercover would have a different ending than his. We drove across a tarmac and pulled into a hangar where a large Lear jet sat. After a short time a female officer came to the car and opened the door. Annie leapt out and hugged the woman. They began chattering away and laughing.

  Annie motioned me out of the car. “Billy, this is Colonel Magdelena Ortiz. She is one of the officers I trained that I told you about.”

  I took her hand. “Pleased to meet you,” I said.

  Her hand was soft and warm. “The pleasure is all mine,” She said in fluent English. “I hope you will enjoy our country. You will find much to write about in Peru. And we will keep Annie very busy. Now we must get aboard. There will be other people on the plane but I want you to not speak until we land. This is a very delicate operation and we must be careful not to offend anyone or alert our American friends as to what is happening.”

  We were herded aboard the plane and led to the rear and placed in the last two seats. Our weapons and luggage had been taken from us. Annie kept the carry-all with the money in her lap. We watched as six other men and the colonel followed us aboard. All eyes were on us but nothing was said.

  The jet was towed out of the hanger and the engines began to roar. I had a moment of panic and wondered if I was doing the right thing. It was hard to believe that just a few days ago all I wanted was a beer and to get laid. From that simple desire I was now on my way to a new life in a foreign country. I had found love, money and the knowledge that I was a far different person than I thought I was. I still was not sure if I was happy at this revelation or scared shitless.

  Annie squeezed my hand and I looked deep into her luminous brown eyes. I knew that this is where I wanted to be and yet doubt still clutched at my heart. I thought of Roxanne and wondered what she would do when she never heard from me. Ridley was probably scared to death and afraid of losing his law practice. My pal Ron, who I had completely forgot about in the past days of craziness was probably trying to call me now. I was not sure if I would ever see or speak to any of them again.

  I had lived for 30 years in an American dream. I had only thought of myself for all that time. I had been shallow and self-indulgent. That time was over. The jet roared down the runway and there was little I could do now. Annie held me tight as I felt the small jet lift off the runway. I watched the fantasy strip of Vegas hotels and casino’s fade from view. Despite my doubts I felt a smile spread across my face and the heart-beat of anticipation pound at my temples. I said a silent farewell to the USA.

  THE END DICKIE I awoke parched and disoriented. All I could remember was the constant rounds of tequila, music, noise and laughter. My crotch was a tangled mass of dried body fluids. My eyelids felt heavy and I had no idea where I was. I guess I got lucky last night. I tried to raise my head but a flash of pain pushed me back down. Where the hell am I?

  The room was dim and I could not see much through my encrusted eyelids. I needed aspirin, coffee and to take a leak. I forced myself up on my elbows and was plotting a strategy to move myself out of bed when I heard the door open. In walked a slim guy in a towel carrying a tray of breakfast goodies.

  “Hi, sleepyhead,” he whispered. “In case you forgot, I’m Dickie, you luscious hunk.”

  “Oh shit.” I muttered as I fell back into the pillows.

  MOIRA

  5 years, 3 months and 7 days. I had done my time the best way possible. I stayed away from the Mexicans, the Blacks and the white power bunch. I was big enough and mean looking enough to keep them from bothering me. I was polite to everyone and helped all that I could. I respected the guard’s authority and did whatever was asked of me.

  I had ratted out no one and in a few hours I would be free. I took the fall; kept Blackie and Tony out of it. I did the nickel knowing Moira and the money would be waiting. They thought the take had all burned up with the car. I fought against dwelling on the scenes that kept coming to me as I lay awake in my bed. I saw us in a hammock in Belize, a country I had researched in the prison library. It would be just Moira and me on the beach. I could feel the sun, hear the surf and taste the margaritas; both of us without a care in the world.

  I was in my bunk unable to sleep, just waiting for dawn and my release. I heard a scraping outside my cell.

  “Hey, short timer, you awake?” I did not recognize the voice.

  “Yeah, what you want?”

  “I got a message for you from Blackie and Tony.”

  My stomach clenched and my breath caught in my chest.

  “They said to tell you that fucking Moira and spending the loot has been a real treat.”

  I squeezed my eyes tight as I smelled the gasoline splashing into my cell and heard the match strike and ignite.

  THE HAND

  The noise in the saloon was tempered tonight. The drinkers were at the bar quietly sipping their whiskey. The piano man was tinkling away and the card tables were empty. Except the one I sat at playing five card draw. I had just been dealt 5 worthless cards. I kept the 8 and the ace and threw the other three back in. I got my new cards and took a peak; a 7, an 8, and an Ace.

  “You in or out, Bill?” Jemson asked.

  I reached for a chip when I heard the hammer being cocked.

  CHEGO Chego stood in the filthy room, the smell of dried blood everywhere. Another day of pain and death awaited him. He had been aroused from a fitful sleep by word from El Jefe that another victim needed to be taught a lesson. Chego gazed at the four corners of his private hell and felt only misery. Was this a life, he thought? He closed his eyes and pictures of all the past tortures and deaths he had partaken in flooded his mind. He felt revulsion and nausea. Was it the mole’ from last night or the cheap mescal? Or was it something else?

  Chego ran to the bathroom and vomited. He was on his knees with his head spinning when he heard the screams and laughter from the main room or the “Casa de Infierno” as it was known. He drew himself up and splashed some water on his face. When he entered the chamber he saw a young girl, skinny and naked tied to a chair in the middle of the room. Her mouth was taped and her legs were tied to the chair exposing her sex. She looked no more than 16 or 17. Three of El Jefe’s soldiers were standing around her

  135 laughing while they took turns pissing all over her. Her eyes were expanded in fear and she shook as if freezing while throwing her head back and forth, trying to avoid all the piss.

  “Chego, oye!” Martin said. “Look what we brought you, Chego. She was caught stuffing coca up her pussy in the packing room. El Jefe wants her to be a
lesson for the others. He wants everyone at the packing house to see what happens when you try to rip off the cartel. He said you should do your magic and we will deliver what is left of her back to the packing room. El Jefe wants everyone to watch her rot away.”

  Chego looked at the men waving their dicks in the girls face. He looked at the girl. She seemed so small, so frightened. He clamped his mouth shut, trying to keep the bile at bay. He was sick. He was sad. He was tired beyond tiredness.

  Chego moved so fast that he was a blur. He took Martin around the neck and broke it in a simple snap. As Martin slid down his body he pulled the pistol from the dead mans holster and shot the other two as they stood with their mouths agape. He untied the girl and pulled the tape from her mouth. She was too weak and frightened to stand. He carried her to the bathroom and stood her in the primitive shower and let the water wash the urine from her body. She cried the whole time. He brought her the clothes that had been ripped from her body. While she dressed he told her she had to run as far and as fast as she could. He went back to the men and knelt down to gather up their belongings while thinking of what to do with the bodies. He heard her come up behind him. As he turned to her he felt the knife slice deep into his throat. As his carotid artery exploded in a geyser of blood, he heard her say, “Pendejo, fuck you.”