“Bullshit!”
“Devora, don’t give me that. I know you haven’t spent time with your brother in a long time.”
I cross my arms. “Oh, spying on me now. Well, that’s one way to get on my good side. So why are you spying on me?”
“Your brother is mixed up with the Russian mob. We had to be sure you’re not involved.”
I shake my head at him. “First of all: fuck you. Second of all: Wow, you’re ridiculous. You make up shit about my brother, so I’ll come back to you as an Agent. Nice to know shit hasn’t changed with you,” I say, blowing smoke in his face.
He swats away the smoke. “Bartender, another glass!” He rests his elbows on the table. “Listen, I know you’re going to Miami tomorrow. After your brother’s concert. Come visit me at the field office, and I’ll give you all the proof you need.”
My jaw tightens as I think about slugging him in the nose, but my gut is telling me to at least indulge him.
He leans back, sipping his drink. “Ask yourself this, Lobos. How did your brother get famous so damn quick? Compare that to your other big rock artists out there.”
Now that he mentions it, my brother pretty much skyrocketed to fame. Granted, my brother is a talented artist, but he’s no Bowie or Osbourne.
He beams a sly grin. “Got those gears a turning, yeah? Come by my office tomorrow after your brother’s concert.”
I take a puff from my cigarette, narrowing my eyes. “Alright. I’ll play along, but I’m going to kick the shit out of you if this turns into a waste of my time.”
“It’s not. This photo should give you an idea of how far your brother has fallen,” he says, sliding a file across the table. I open the file, it’s my brother shaking hands with a man in a suit while standing in the middle of a warehouse with suitcases of money and bags of glass.”
“Here is another photo of him last seen with Special Agent Miranda Milton.” The photo shows him with his arms around a brunette in a black skirt; they both are gazing into each other’s eyes.
My bother seems to be in love with her, so the odds of him killing her is low, but then again, I never suspected he would end up in the Russian mob.
Goddamn, first, I deal with all the bullshit with Drake only to have more peeking around the corner.
“Was my brother in love with Agent Milton?”
“We don’t know he may have just been manipulating her.”
I take a sip of my drink, wiping my lips on my sleeve. “Who’s the shit-bag he’s shaking hands with?”
“Radomir Volkov. Big-time drug trafficker, human trafficker, illegal arms dealer, and rumors of Black market organ trade… a world-class piece of shit.”
I take another sip of my drink, staring down at the table, still not wanting to believe this bullshit.
Tanner leans forward. “I’m sorry about your brother, I really am.”
I lower the file and scowl. “Don’t be. It’s his own goddamn fault. I thought he was done with all this drug shit, and now here he is back in it.”
He picks up one of my smokes, lighting it. “He’s still your brother, Lobos. Surely you’re not willing to let him walk off a cliff.”
“No, of course not because I’m the good sister. However, there is a conflict of interest of which I am sure you are aware of. A judge and prosecutor will shoot down any evidence to prove my brother’s innocence in court.”
“Already covered. I have another agent specifically investigating your brother, but what I need from you is to persuade him to cooperate with us, persuade not strong arm. Now, first things first, we need to make you an agent again to make this official.”
“I told you I was done with the DEA!” I say, exhaling smoke.
“Look after all this is over you can quit again, and go back to hovering over corpses in alleyways, but this is me helping your brother. Help me shut down Radomir, and I will do everything I can to help your brother out of this mess.”
“So what happens to my brother if I say no?”
He shrugs. “Then I leave your brother’s fate to the natural order of things.”
“I drop my smoke into his drink and cross my arms. “Fine, I’ll come back to the DEA, but after this, I am done.”
He smiles, throwing his hands out. “Welcome back
to the fold, Special Agent Lobos.” He takes a puff from his cigarette. “Second thing, what I’ve told you about your brother is just the icing on the cake. I have more in-depth stuff back in Miami.” He flicks his cigarette in the ashtray. “I’ll be at my office till midnight tomorrow, come directly to me after the concert. And, Lobos, act normal around him he has some of Radomir’s men protecting him.”
“I been undercover before, so I think I know how to bullshit and play it cool.”
“Yeah, I remember, you got too cool.”
I shrug. “First of all, that shit was your fault because you failed to mention it was a CIA black op that gave me a license to kill.”
He puts out his smoke and gives a quick nod. “I wasn’t judging. I know that operation was a cluster fuck.” He nods. “See you tomorrow, Lobos. And congrats on the Moonlight Case.” He stands up and strolls out of the bar.
This is all too much for me to process, I can’t believe this my own brother mixing with mobsters and narcotics trafficking. Granted
