Page 30 of Fast Vengeance

“If it was him,” Brock pointed out.

“Right. But whoever it was went to a whole hell of a lot of trouble to cover his tracks, so it was someone from the cartel. And judging by the look of the estate, they weren’t hurting for cash, so they were high up in the organization.”

“Nieto?”

“Maybe. They’ve got another possible lead to follow up on, but this time they want the DEA’s assistance when they execute the search warrant.”

Brock’s eyebrows went up. “Damn, they must be desperate if they’re finally allowing us down there.” The only reason the U.S. government had caught Carlos Ruiz in its net was because of a tip they believed had come directly from el Escorpion. The only way to get the head of the cartel, Nieto, or even that sadistic son of a bitch Montoya, was to go into Mexico and get boots on the ground. Something the Mexican government had never allowed until now.

“We likely won’t be kicking in any doors down there,” Taggart said dryly.

“Yeah, no. That would be too much to hope for.”

His commander’s aqua eyes twinkled. “At any rate, they want FAST Bravo down there to advise and support them in this upcoming op. Command’s given us the green light.”

Oh yeah. FAST Bravo could only operate down there with the Mexican government’s permission, and it had to be a joint mission with Mexican forces. No FAST team could operate unilaterally in a foreign country. “When do we head out?”

“I’m arranging a flight for 05:00 tomorrow.”

The turn of events stunned him, but they’d been wanting into Mexico for freaking ever, so he wasn’t complaining, except it meant his time with Tori would be cut short. Damn. He’d have to find a way to fix that. Although no amount of time with her would be enough. “What about Rodriguez? He won’t be back until next week. Probably late next week.”

“I don’t want to find a replacement for him just yet. I’d rather get down there, get a feel for what’s happening and make sure they’re serious and not dicking us around before we think about going operational. I’ll make the call then.”

Good enough. “All right. I’ll alert the boys.”

After calling the team he stared at his phone, debating what to do about Tori. He would likely have to report to base by 04:00, which meant the leisurely morning he’d planned for them to spend together in bed with room service wasn’t going to happen. It sucked, and though he wished like hell he could have those hours with her, Fate wasn’t cooperating.

She was such a bitch sometimes.

He dialed Tori’s cell, and the sound of her voice when she answered hit him square in the heart. “Hey, been thinking about you,” she said, a smile in her words.

“Yeah? I’m glad to hear that, because I’ve been thinking about you nonstop since the other day.”

“Well that’s nice to hear. You at home?”

“No, the office.”

“It’s Saturday and you guys just got back from deployment. They couldn’t give you the weekend off?” she asked wryly.

“Nah, they like to keep us busy. Get their money’s worth out of us.” He leaned back in his chair, tapped his fingers on his desk. “Any chance you can talk to your security detail and meet me earlier tonight?” They had arranged for her to arrive at seven.

“Maybe. Why, did something come up?”

“Yes. I can’t go into detail, but we’re wheels up at 05:00 tomorrow.”

“Oh.”

That was definitely disappointment in her voice, and maybe he was a bad person for admitting it but he was glad to hear it. “I want as much time with you as I can get. I thought we could add a couple hours on the front end instead to make up the difference.”

“I’ll make it happen. Can you be there by four?”

He smiled. “I’ll be there. Text me once you get confirmation?”

“I will. See you soon. And Brock?”

“Yeah?”

“I can’t wait to see you.” She hung up.

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