Chapter Sixteen
April glanced in her rearview mirror for the hundredth time since leaving Paradiso. With her gun resting on the seat beside her, she felt safe enough but she wanted to be ready in case someone came at her like last night. Because she didn’t know who had ambushed her and Clay.
It could’ve been the big man from yesterday, making his move to kidnap her and force Adam to give up the flash drive. She snorted. As if that would ever happen.
Or it could’ve been her silent tormenter who’d seen her out with Clay and wanted to give her a little reminder of what would happen to Clay if she didn’t stay away from him. Just like the reminder she’d gotten loud and clear two years ago when she’d called off the wedding to him.
Meeting Adam in Phoenix could kill two birds with one stone—she could get Las Moscas off her back by getting Adam to give them the flash drive and she could convince Adam to do that by helping him look for their father—and if he were this Gringo Viejo character, maybe she could get to the bottom of this plan to keep her away from Clay. It all had to be connected in some way.
She loosened her death grip on the steering wheel. She’d hated tricking Clay, drugging him, but he’d never have allowed her to leave on her own. He’d understand someday.
She’d make him understand. Her explanation would go a lot further if she could also hand Clay that flash drive with the locations of Las Moscas’ tunnels.
She’d left Tucson behind her about forty minutes ago, and barring any traffic jams going into the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, she should be there with time to spare before Adam’s plane landed.
If Adam believed El Gringo Viejo could set him up in business, he might be willing to give up that flash drive. He didn’t have the personnel to take over business from Las Moscas, like Jimmy did, even with a map to all their tunnels. He had to understand the foolishness of that plan.
She wished she could make Adam see the foolishness in all of it—using drugs, dealing drugs, being hooked into that whole lifestyle—but she’d never been able to talk any sense to Adam. Her brother hadn’t been a bad kid, but he never viewed the world through the same lens of right and wrong as everyone else did.
Sometimes she felt as if she were the only person standing between him and total destruction. If she let go, like Clay had wanted her to so many times, where would Adam be now? Prison? Dead?
She flexed her fingers. She couldn’t allow that. He was the only family she had left. She owed him that. She’d tried to be the parent Adam had never had. For some reason, her parents never could seem to love Adam the same way they loved her. She never understood it, but when she tried to ask Mom about it, her mother had shut her down.
Forty-five minutes later, April rolled into the metropolitan Phoenix area, the shiny new buildings rising from the desert floor just like their city’s namesake. Phoenix was Tucson’s brasher, more modern cousin.
An hour early for Adam’s flight from Albuquerque, April pulled into a short-term parking structure and swiped her debit card at the meter.
She located Adam’s gate and took a seat with her strawberry-banana smoothie and a paperback snatched from the shelves at the souvenir shop—not that she needed to read a murder mystery at this point.
The book turned out to be the right choice, as delving into someone else’s problems made hers seem almost tame in comparison. She jerked her head up from the book at the garbled announcement for Adam’s flight. All she heard from the loudspeaker was Albuquerque, but that was good enough.
She shoved the book in her purse and pinned her gaze on the gate, now open for business.
She didn’t realize she’d been holding her breath until she released it when Adam’s shaggy blond head appeared among the disembarking passengers.
She raised her hand, but he’d already spotted her, a big grin splitting his face. At least someone found it easy to keep his spirits up.
She hugged him as his backpack slid down his arm and he patted her back. “Good to see you under better circumstances than last time.”
“Are they better?” She cocked her head, taking in his new shiner. “I told you that goon from Las Moscas made contact with me in the middle of the day, and then someone was taking potshots at Clay’s truck last night—almost killed us.”
“But Clay saved the day.” He hoisted his pack back onto his shoulders. “It’s gonna be okay.”
She touched the abrasion on his scruffy chin, which she’d missed before. “Have you recovered from your injuries already?”
“Kenzie’s a good nurse.”
“Do you have any idea if the detective from Pima County Sheriff’s found Gilbert, formerly known as Jesus? As of yesterday, they hadn’t.”
“I don’t have a clue. Nobody ever contacted me—sheriffs or drug dealers. I did see a few articles online about Jimmy’s death.” He lifted his narrow shoulders. “They chalked it up to the drug trade. Imagine that.”
“Let’s get out of here.” She prodded his arm. “Do you have anything to pick up at baggage claim?”
He punched the pack on his back. “I have everything I need right here.”
“I came early. My car’s in the parking structure.”
He ducked his head and tugged on a lock of her hair. “You’ve changed your mind, haven’t you? You’re going to help me look for Dad down in Mexico.”
She whipped her head back, her hair slipping from his fingers. “How’d you know that?”
“You’re my sister, April. I know you better than I know anyone.”
She murmured under her breath, “I wish I could say the
