Red Angel

Martinez removed his earphones and dropped them in his lap. Devlin did the same. He was seated across from the major, and he took time to study his face. The man did not look pleased. Not like a cop who had just busted a major case. You son of a bitch, Devlin thought, certain now that this was what Martinez had been after all along, the game he had been using them to play.

“I’d expect you to look happier,” he said.

Martinez raised his eyes and expelled a long breath. “Hearing that your government has agreed to play the whore to criminals is not pleasant news, my friend.”

Devlin stared him down. “What about using innocent tourists and a bereaved young woman? How does that play for you, Major?”

Martinez placed his hands on the arms of his chair and pushed himself up. “It is time to go now, my friend. We have an endgame to conduct before our chess match is finished.”

“And what exactly do you have in mind?”

Martinez started toward the door, followed by Devlin and Pitts. “Before he reaches the comfort of his car, our deputy minister. Senor Sauri, will be taken into custody by my men. He will be placed under house arrest in his own home until I have presented our evidence to his superiors. Other of my men will arrest Colonel Cabrera. He, too, will be taken to his home, where I will interrogate him. It is an action which I invite you to attend. Perhaps we will learn more about the Red Angel’s disappearance.”

“What about that scumbag DeForio?” Pitts asked.

“He will be placed in one of our detention cells, the same place were Senor Cipriani is now housed.” He gave them his Cuban shrug. “Unfortunately, in time, we must avail him of the right to contact the American Interests Section at the Swiss embassy. But I doubt he will be treated sympathetically.”

“And then?” Devlin asked.

“Then we will attend to Senor Rossi.”

Devlin took the major’s arm, stopping him. “It’s nice to see you know his name.”

Martinez gave Devlin a wistful look. “Si, senor. I know his name. I have always known his name. But let us delay your questions until this endgame is finished.”

20

Juan Domingo Argudin, the Abakua who had accepted Rossi’s contract, smiled as he watched Devlin leave the Capri Hotel. The old man had been right. The man he wanted killed had been found just as he had said-by following this Cuban major who had been helping him from the start.

It had not been easy. This major was no fool, but the old man’s plan had been a good one. He and his fellow Abakua had used three cars, and they had abandoned their customary white clothing. Then fate had intervened as well. Something had happened, and the major and his men had suddenly begun rushing about, all precautions abandoned. Now, he was certain, they would take this American to a place where the kill could be accomplished in a way that would permit his own escape.

Argudin signaled to his men in the second car. One of them had just been released by the police. He had driven the truck in their first attempt to kill the Americans, and Argudin had promised him he could kill the big American who had beaten him outside Plante Firme’s home. He knew the man would do everything in his power not to lose them.

Following in his own car, Argudin thought about the money he would be paid. It was more than he had ever dreamed of having at one time. Enough to take him to Miami, where friends who had been part of Castro’s Mariel Boatlift were now growing rich in the Cuban-American underworld. He momentarily wondered if his men, who would actually do the killing, would escape as well. He decided it did not matter. He had no intention of sharing the money with them. Once it was done, he alone would get the ten thousand U.S. dollars. And he would be one step closer to a new and prosperous life in Miami.

They returned to the Red Angel’s house, where Martinez busied himself on the telephone.

Devlin took Adrianna aside and explained what had happened. As she listened he watched her face darken and her hands close into tight fists.

“I’m snuggling to give him the benefit of the doubt,” she said. “I’m struggling, but it is so hard.”

Devlin stroked her arm. “Martinez says he’ll explain everything-even answer our questions for a change-just as soon as this thing is wrapped up.” He inclined his head toward the room where Martinez was using the telephone. “That includes interrogating Cabrera about your aunt, and nailing Rossi at this change-of-heads ceremony. I think he’s setting those things up now. He’s still positive we’ll end up with your aunt’s body after we do those things.”

Adrianna looked away. “Or what’s left of it,” she said.

“I don’t think we can hang that one on Martinez.”

Adrianna’s head snapped up. “Are you sure? After all this, don’t you think it’s possible he let them take the body so they’d lead him to the rest of it?”

Devlin stroked her arm again, trying to soothe away the anger. “No, I don’t,” he said. “Oh, he played us into it very neatly. There’s no question about that. And he shouldn’t have done it, because it put us at risk. But I saw the setup at the hotel. He had the business part of this thing cold, with us or without us. I think he needed us to help prove that Cabrera had your aunt killed, either because she had found out what he was up to, or because the colonel had cut a little side deal with John the Boss.”

Adrianna stared at him. “You think Rossi might have set this up? Just to get you here?”

“To get us here,” Devlin said. He placed his hands on both of her arms. “Look, I can’t prove it. Maybe I’ll never be able to prove it. If John the Boss set this up, it’s something he’d play very close. Even his Mafia partners wouldn’t know the real reasons behind what he was doing. He wouldn’t tell anybody he didn’t have to. It’s the way he operates. But if it’s true, it was very clever, exactly the way Rossi’s twisted mind works.”

He tried to soften his next words. “It’s no secret that old bastard wants me dead. You were there the first time he tried. But he knows he can’t try again. At least not in New York. If he did, the NYPD would bring the world down on his head.” He looked away, wondering how she’d take what he was about to tell her. “I saw Rossi before we left. I didn’t tell you about it because it was just a routine thing. Then, later, we got all wrapped up with what happened to your aunt.” He gave her a cold, mirthless smile. “It happened the day before we left, and the old bastard was cocky as hell. He told me he knew everything about me.” He shook his head in grudging admiration. “You know what? I believe it. I think he’s made it his business to find out everything he could-everything about me that makes me vulnerable. And that means finding out about the people I love.”

“So you think he found out about my aunt, and how close we were.”

“It wouldn’t be hard. You’re a well-known artist, babe, and your Cuban ancestry has been written about pretty extensively. Your aunt was also a well-known figure in Cuba.”

“And it would make sense that I’d come here if anything happened to her.”

“Yes, it would,” Devlin said. “Especially if you were told she was hurt and dying. And that old bastard was right. He knows me. He knows I wouldn’t let you waltz into Cuba alone, or slip in illegally through Canada or Mexico. Not with all the hoopla the U.S. government spreads about it being unsafe to travel here.”

“And you think Martinez found all that out?”

“At least some of it. And when he realized that Rossi was trying to set me up, I think he decided to get us both here and use us to force DeForio’s hand. And Cabrera’s. Remember, Cabrera’s supposed to be the head of the secret police, as well as the number two guy in State Security. He’s got a lot more power than a major in the national police. But Martinez has us. Suddenly we’re here, and Cabrera can’t get to us, and neither can Rossi, and now we’re involved in the investigation of your aunt’s disappearance. That had to put pressure on Cabrera. But more importantly, it had to make DeForio think that things were starting to unravel. It made the whole thing a threat to what he was trying to do, and all because of your aunt and Rossi, and this crazy change-of-heads ritual.”

“That is a very good theory, and very close to the truth.”