Page 35 of Casey's Hero

Casey shot a desperate glance toward Jacob. “We’re not any of those things.”

“If your time is money…here.” Jacob pulled a couple of twenties out of his wallet. “Please, take this. We’re here because a good friend of ours is in trouble. We’re just looking for any information that can help us find him.”

Mina looked at the money Jacob held out and propped her hands on her hips. “I won’t take your money unless I’m workingfor it.” She jerked her head toward a chair. “One of you sit. If one of my less reputable relatives sees me talking to someone without doing hair, they might drag me back to Mexico and make an example out of me.”

Casey hurriedly sat in the stylist’s chair. “We don’t mean to cause you any trouble. We’re worried about our friend. You see, he’s supposed to be getting married tomorrow. We think your cousin Camila is trying to sabotage his wedding by stealing the groom.”

“Madre de Dios,” Mina muttered. She pulled the ponytail out of Casey’s hair and ran a brush through the long strands. “That woman ismuy loco.”

“I believe it,” Jacob said. “She showed up at the bachelor party last night to tell our friend he couldn’t get married tomorrow because he loved her, not his fiancée.”

“I’m sure he doesn’t.” Mina shook her head. “I think Camila has been smoking some whacky weed.” She sighed. “Every other month, she’s in love with someone new. And it never fails that they break up with her. I’d be suspicious of them if they didn’t. I’m speaking the truth. That woman is batshit crazy. I should know. I moved here recently from San Diego just to get away from her kind of crazy.”

“Is she crazy enough to have two burly men load up a man in a delivery truck and abscond with him on a boat?” Casey asked, meeting Mina’s gaze in the mirror.

Mina’s hand paused in mid-stroke. “Are you sure that’s what happened?

Jacob and Casey nodded at the same time.

“We have video from the hotel and images of the same van parked outside a pier,” Jacob said.

“Madre de Dios.” Mina grabbed the curling iron, tested it for heat and grabbed a strand of Casey’s hair. “Why would they do that?”

“I don’t know if it means anything,” Casey said, “but they took our friend’s tuxedo he was supposed to wear for the wedding.”

Mina twisted another strand of hair into the iron. “They stole the groomandthe tux?” She shook her head, released the strand of hair, gathered another in her hand and wrapped it around the iron barrel. “That has Camila written all over it.”

Casey stared at the stylist in the mirror. “What do you mean? Has she done this before?”

“Not exactly. She had her brothers pick up a man she liked and bring him to a villa she frequents on a beach in Los Cabos, Mexico.

“The brothers got him there but couldn’t make him stay. He eventually escaped from them and headed back to the US. When he tried to cross the border, he didn’t have his passport. The border patrol gave him hell until he had a family member bring it to him.” Mina shook her head. “The woman is insane. Her brothers are even more insane for encouraging her.”

“Do you have any idea where they might have taken him?”

Mina shrugged. “Maybe they took him to the villa she uses in Los Cabos.”

Casey’s heart sank to her knees. “They’d take him that far? In a boat?”

Mina frowned. “Probably not. My uncle’s boat isn’t that big. I think he only uses it to travel between the islands.”

“Do your relatives on Hawaii have a house or compound closer where they might hole up until they move him again?”

Mina turned her chair away from the mirror and twisted another strand of hair around the iron. “I really have no idea. I do know that they visit ourabuela, grandmother, on a regular basis. She lives on Kauai in a nice cabaña purchased with money she suspects is drug-related. She doesn’t ask. They don’t tell.”

Casey cringed. “I would hate to ask, but would she know where they would have taken our friend?”

Mina shook her head. “No. But one of the cousins might visit and then return to their compound. It’s not much to go on.”

“At this point,” Jacob said, “anything would be better than nothing.”

“If you promise not to disturbmi abuela, I’ll give you her address. You could stake out the house, wait for someone to visit and let them lead you back to their hideout.” She shrugged. “I wish I could help you more, but I stay blissfully ignorant. It keeps me out of trouble—for the most part.”

Casey touched her arm. “We appreciate anything you can do.”

When Mina turned her back to face the mirror, she said, “You have beautiful hair. It’s nice to find someone who has her own natural hair color. It’s so soft and undamaged.” She stood behind Casey and fluffed the loose spiral curls she’d crafted around Casey’s head.

“Wow. I’ve never seen my hair look this good. How much do I owe you?” Casey dug in her purse for her wallet.

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