Page 58 of Blood Ties
"No. Not even close. A tracker was placed on his car and earlier this morning he took us to where he's been staying. Some run down trailer on a farm forty-five minutes from here. I thought we'd go there and show him a new way to feed the animals."
Isaiah cocks his head, his lips stretching into an evil grin. "Tell me when and we'll be on our way."
I glance down at Miguel, tracing the healing wounds on his face before meeting Isaiah's eyes again. "When."
Isaiah calls for Able to get the car ready and without question he does as asked. Carlos and Joey are waiting for us outside, standing in front of their vehicle. "Let's get this over with." Carlos opens the back door and gets in after Joey does. Isaiah gets into the front seat of the other vehicle, and I climb in the back. Cesar and Germo stay behind with Miguel, along with Trenton. Mateo and Gabriel are on their way and would be here soon, so I don't have to worry about Miguel being alone.
We pull up in front of the house, not too close to get noticed, but enough to see how many men Del Rae had standing outside. Not enough. Able steps out of the car and walks into a wooded area across from the house, getting lost in the trees. A few firebombs go off from further down the road, getting the guards to look the opposite way we are coming from. One rushes toward the explosions and the other walks into the woods. We don't get out of the cars until they are out of sight. Another man with a gun emerges from the house and Isaiah aims his AR15 and shoots the guy in the head. Del Rae never steps out and the door is locked when Joey enters. Carlos breaks the door down and Able is right behind us after taking care of the other men.
The front of the house is empty. Heavy breathing and footsteps lead us to a basement. I gesture for Carlos to check outside for any back doorways. He nods, rushing in the direction we'd come from. Able checks the rest of the house while Isaiah and Joey follow me into the basement. We walk down the non-sturdy, partially broken steps. The room is dark and none of the light switches seem to work. Joey turns on a flashlight attached to his gun, and we are surrounded by old pieces of furniture. I pause when a table wobbles. Smiling wide, I sing, "Rock a byebaby, on the treetop…” Pulling out a lighter, I move closer to the rattling noise.
“When the wind blows the cradle will rock.”
Del Ray’s loud breathing leads me closer to him. “When the bough breaks the cradle will fall…"
I flip the table over and Del Rae is crouched over on the ground holding a gun, his eyes are moving frantically from me to the other guns pointed his way.
I continue singing. "And down will come baby, cradle and all." I cock my revolver and Del Rae drops his weapon knowing he has no way out. He swallows hard, lifting his hands in the air. "What do you want?"
"Oh I think you know," Isaiah says from beside me.
"I don't know what you think you'll accomplish, but if you kill me—"
"What? Your wife and lover will forge an army for justice for your death." I laugh, twisting my lips. "Not likely."
"People will come looking for me."
"Oh we're counting on it," Joey spits. "In fact we will make it very easy for them to find your head." Joey grabs a machete from the wall. Del Rae's eyes grow wide as Joey lifts him by his hair and slams him face down over a large piece of wood from the broken table. He lifts up the weapon and brings it down to Del Rae's neck in one hard blow, only cutting halfway through the flesh and cartilage. Del Rae's body convulses, his arms flailing. Joey lifts the blade again and brings it back down a few more times until the head is separated from the rest of the body. "Wrap the head in a bag and make sure it makes it into his lover's trunk."
Isaiah lifts up the head, and blood drips, adding to the puddle on the floor. "What about the rest of the body?"
My lips twist. "We'll see if the pigs and chickens have been fed yet."
Joey starts hacking the body into pieces. "I'll see that there's enough to go around."
"Good. I'd hate for anyone to miss out on the special of the day."
I help Joey toss the remains into the animal pens and judging by the way they waste no time biting into each piece of flesh, it's obvious it's been a while since anyone's fed them. Likely Del Rae had killed the real owners of the property and was using the house to stay hidden. He didn't do a good enough job. I take off my gloves, throwing them into one of the fires caused by one of the bombs. Del Rae had caused an explosion and in the end was the one who got burned.
I get in the car with Able and this time Isaiah rides home with his men. The only thing I can think about is getting back to Miguel. “Miguel isn’t going back to Mexico is he?”
“I don’t know.” I shrug, not meeting Able's eyes.
“Mateo doesn't seem to think so.”
“Did he?” I glance out the window, tapping my fingers on my leg, hating how fast my heart is beating. “I don’t think any of us speak for Miguel.”
“No, but you know as well as I do, Miguel will do anything you ask him.”
I don’t want Miguel to stay for only me. I want it to be for him too. “Miguel will be the one to decide in the end what he does, and I will support him even if his choice doesn’t involve me.” My throat tightens and the restlessness inside me feels like it's ripping at my skin.
“Ah, I was ready to leave Mexico anyway. What I want is closer to here.”
“What’s that?”
“More like who, let's just hope I’m as convincing as Miguel was with you.”
I laugh. “I think he knew he never had to try too hard to get me back in his arms. I liked watching him put forth the effort anyway.”
