Titus looked at the young man. This was the guy who had taken the pictures of Rita? Macias must've been reading his mind, because he again jabbed the automatic into his kidney, telling him to keep his mouth shut. Titus's lower back was getting sore from his repeated jabbing.
Macias pulled the Navigator keys out of his pocket and tossed them to the young man.
“In the shopping center over there, there's a Lincoln Navigator parked in front of the supermarket. Dark blue. I want you to go over there and get it and drive it to San Marcos. Watch for the first Texaco station on your right as you come into town. Exit off there and go to the station. You'll find another Navigator just like the one you're driving. Your money's in the glove box. Drive off. You're through.”
Elias Loza stared at him. “Why am I doing that all of a sudden? That wasn't in the deal. ”He glanced at Titus. “It looks to me like shit's coming apart here. There was no driving a car in the deal. If this… if shit's coming apart here-”
“Nothing's coming apart, ”Macias said. “We're just staying flexible. You gotta be flexible, too.”
“I don't want flexible. I want the rest of my money.”
“Well, your money's flexible… it's not here. It's in the other car… in San Marcos.”
Loza stared at Macias. Titus could see him thinking: Either the money's in the other car or… this son of a bitch could shoot me right here.
“That's it, then?”
“Yeah, that's it.”
Disgusted, but more scared than anything, Loza bent down and got his camera bag. When he straightened up he looked at Titus and then back at Macias.
“I don't know what's going down here, ”Loza said, “but, me doing this, it doesn't feel right. And I don't have a gun, nothing…”
Macias swore. Titus guessed he'd love to just shoot the guy and get the hell out of here, but he wanted the tag that he thought was on the Navigator to be headed out of the city. Suddenly he lifted his shirt and pulled the automatic from the waist of his trousers. He tossed it to a surprised Loza, who caught it against his stomach with his free hand.
“Get the hell out of here, ”Macias said.
Loza looked at the gun, then at Macias, and cut a glance at Titus. For a brief, sweet moment, Titus thought Loza was going to shoot Macias. But it was a fool's moment, and Loza turned and walked out of the garage.
Chapter 58
Romo Calo found the Navigator in a cluster of other cars in front of the supermarket. Rather than trying to work at a distance, he decided to barge in close and go for broke. He parked three cars away from the Navigator so that he was on the opposite side of it from the grocery cart storage rack.
Walking away from his car, he fiddled with his keys as he passed the Navigator on the way to the cart storage. He saw nothing. He pulled out a cart, pretended he forgot something in the car, and walked past the back of the Navigator again. Still he saw nothing. At his car, he opened the door and pretended to get something and then once again walked toward the Navigator on the way to the cart he'd left at the storage rack.
Still seeing nothing that made him suspicious, he got even with the back of the Navigator, left the cart, and slipped in between the cars and looked in. Nothing. Quickly he went to the cart again and headed toward the front of the supermarket as he pulled out his cell phone.
“The car's empty, ”Calo said to the van. “Nada.”
“Keep your eyes on it, ”Burden said. “We'll get back to you.”
As Calo closed the phone, he glanced back just in time to see a man walking toward the Navigator through the aisles of cars. He was looking around, pausing, looking, and coming on. Finally his attention focused on the Navigator, and he headed straight for it. Quickly, Calo reversed his direction, pushing his cart. The guy glanced around and saw Calo, but disregarded him.
Calo watched the guy as he began checking out the Navigator as if he were unfamiliar with it. The guy looked up and looked around. What was this? Was he going to steal it? Then the guy walked up to the door and pointed his remote key lock at it; the Navigator squeaked, and the guy opened the door.
He still had one leg outside on the pavement when Calo moved around the rear bumper of the Navigator and blocked the door just as the guy tried to swing it closed. Instantly Calo's automatic was in his face.
“Don't breathe, ”Calo said. “Are you alone?”
The guy nodded yes.
“Who are you?”
“Elias Loza.”
Calo moved the barrel of his automatic to Loza's mouth, touching his lips. Now he saw that Loza had been carrying a bag, and it was sitting in the seat with him.
“What's in the bag?”
“Camera.”
“Armed?”
The guy nodded yes.
“Where?”
Loza looked down. “Right here.”
Calo moved the barrel between Loza's eyes and reached in and found the automatic in the front waistband of his pants. He was surprised to see it was the same gun he'd jammed down between the car seats for Titus. He hit the clip release, but it was empty.
“Where the fuck'd you get this?”
Loza didn't even have to guess if the name would have any meaning. “Jorge Macias.”
“Where is he?”
“Look, I don't have anything-”
“Where!?”
“Over there… other side of the shopping center… one of those houses…”
“What are you doing here?”
Loza told him.
“What's the address over there?”
Calo was already pulling out his phone as Loza gave him the address.
“Another man with him? ”Calo asked.
“Yeah.”
“Anybody else?”
“No.”
“Where're they headed?”
“I don't know.”
Calo hit Loza in the mouth with his gun so fast, the barrel was already back between his eyes by the time Loza could react.
“No no no…, ”he pleaded, blood pouring from a busted lip and a tooth knocked out of his gums. “Oh, oh, shit, ohhh… really, no no no
… I don't know where the hell they're going. I don't… I don't know anything about this…”
With his eyes focused on Loza's eyes, the barrel of his automatic still pressed between Loza's eyebrows, Calo spoke fast to Burden and told him everything.
“And the bad news, ”Calo said. “I'm holding the damn gun with the mole on it.”
“Check the gun, ”Burden said. “Is the mole still there?”
“What's your signal say?”
“Says it's about five hundred meters west of you.”
“Really? ”Calo shoved Loza over and told him to curl up on the floor. Loza did as he was told, moaning, moaning, and Calo held the gun up to the interior light. It took him almost a minute of searching to decide it wasn't
