Page 60 of Raul
“Affirmative,” she said in her crispest pilot’s tone.
“Let’s go,” Raul said with a nod.
Mikel’s team filed out.
“They’ll get in position before you arrive,” Mikel said. “Señor, you will ride in your car, while Erica will come with me. I do not want to risk having you seen together.”
Raul pressed his lips together in obvious displeasure but said nothing.
She had thought she understood the constraints of his life based on what she had observed of her royal boss’s situation. However, she was beginning to see that Raul was confined by even more boundaries. His prominence was a liability to this operation, so he had to be kept hidden. She suspected that Mikel also wanted Raul away from the action for security’s sake. She could feel Raul’s frustration.
Pascal opened the door. “Señor, we are ready for you.”
Raul started to lean down toward her but stopped himself. Instead, he gave her a look that said to be careful. “I will see you afterward.”
She nodded, because the tension had returned to her throat. And then Raul crutched away with Pascal.
Mikel glanced at his watch. “We’ll wait a few minutes. Remember, this purchase isn’t life-or-death to you, and you’re giving Ricardo a lot of money, so he should be willing to put up with a slight delay.”
“Right. He approached me, and he’s lucky to have found a buyer for his eggshells.” She reminded herself of her role.
“That is exactly the right attitude,” Mikel said. “You’ll do fine.”
She smiled at him with gratitude, even as she wondered what he thought about her relationship with Raul. He would know how much time she had spent at the palace recently, because Raul’s bodyguards reported to Mikel. She studied his profile as he packed the unused listening devices into a black plastic case, finding it impossible to read anything in his expression. Of course, he had to be adept at keeping all kinds of secrets.
He checked his watch again. “Now it’s our turn.” He faced her. “You may reverse your decision to participate in this meeting at any time.”
“I’m good,” she said. “I’m only worried about screwing it up.”
“You are an honest, straightforward person. Acting a part can be difficult.”
She acted a part more than he knew, but she nodded and stood.
Twenty minutes later, she parked her car in a mostly empty lot on top of the high cliffs, which were part of a national park. “I’m getting out of my car now,” she said to her watch, although she knew Mikel was watching from some vantage point she couldn’t see. He had requested that she do one more sound check before starting the hike to the viewing deck. If the device had stopped working, he would call her cell phone to let her know, but her phone remained silent.
She slung on her crossbody bag and got out of the car. Somehow, the bag seemed heavy because of the amount of cash zipped into it. She hugged it against her body as though someone would try to rip it away from her while she strode along the gravel path that cut through the pale green cliff grass. The windmade the grass ripple and tugged strands of her hair out of its braid.
She loved being high on these cliffs. It reminded her of the rush of flying a small plane, riding the currents of the wind. As she got closer to the platform, she could hear the roar of the waves hitting the boulders at the bottom of the cliff. A handful of people stood at the wooden railings, while a few more strolled on the path that ran along the edge of the cliffs. She recognized Mikel’s team members but kept her gaze moving as she looked for Ricardo.
An odd sense of deflation hit her when she stepped onto the platform, scanned the half dozen sightseers, and discovered Ricardo was not there. For some reason, she had assumed he would arrive first and had geared herself up to face him. It was only a couple of minutes past nine, so she walked to the end of the platform, leaned on the railing, and stared down at the waves hurling themselves against the boulders far below.
Legend had it that two people had survived being thrown off Acantilado Alto during Queen Isabella’s reign. Both had been recaptured and tossed off a second time, which killed them. Watching the lash of sea against stone, Erica could not imagine living through the landing, even if you were lucky enough to hit the water. The idea of plunging into those enormous, powerful waves made her shudder with terror.
“Erica!” The wind and surf were so loud, it required a shout to be heard.
She jumped and turned to find Ricardo standing behind her. He wore jeans and a green windbreaker. Strands of his sandy hair had torn free from his ponytail and whipped around his face.
“Ricardo!” she shouted back and pressed her hand to her chest where her heart was racing. “You startled me. I wasimagining the prisoners being thrown to their deaths on the rocks.”
She noticed that he carried nothing in his hands, nor did he have a pack or satchel.
“You weren’t able to get the dragon eggshells?” She let her disappointment sound in her voice even as she made sure to name the items he was selling her.
“Oh, no, I have them, but let’s go to my car where it’s less windy.” He gestured in the direction of the parking lot. “You’ll want to inspect them, and I’ll want to count the money. No offense.” His smile was apologetic.
She hadn’t expected that, and her heart jumped again.
“Well, I’m not sure about…” It would be perfectly natural for her to be concerned about going off with a stranger and a lot of money, so she let her nerves show. “You’re in the main parking lot?”
