Page 32 of Deadly Target
Good thing both Roman and Victor had pull. They were already working on the necessary red tape to allow the members of Roman’s DTT team to follow through.
Thomas was working on the Suarez members Agent Marin had given him before he was killed. Because both were in the San Diego area, and local PD was friendly with the SCVC Taskforce, having worked with them on many cases before, so they were much more cooperative about bringing the men in. First, however, SDPD had to track them down.
While they waited, Victor and Thomas dug into the cases Cooper thought might be relevant. There were several that had peripheral connections to the Kings, but then at least sixty percent of the drug running in Southern California had some link back to the gang. Victor started putting together a list of names to crosscheck against the Fifty-seven Gang and Gino DeStefano.
The Italian mafia was heavily concentrated out East. The five most notable families operated in the upper East Coast and several had crews in other areas, especially southern Florida. There were a few more scattered throughout different states in the Midwest and South. In the West, there were fewer still. Las Vegas was open territory for all of the crime families, but outside of there, the only one that had not gone defunct worked Los Angeles. A few others had tried to infiltrate areas along the California coast, but none had gotten a toehold that could survive. Now, Gino DeStefano, with his Chicago ties, was attempting to give the Los Angeles mobsters some competition, and it seemed like he might just pull it off, especially if he and Molina could remove the Suarez Kings but keep their infrastructures in place.
Needing to give his eyes a break, Victor rose from the kitchen table and went to the refrigerator for an energy drink. He’d been staring at a computer screen for hours, checking databases, talking to the lead detectives in each of the cases, checking in on Cooper and Celina, and trying to keep his mind off where he really wanted to be—back home with Liv and Taz. Even a few hours with them would be nice to clear his head and get some sleep.
As if he’d conjured her, his phone buzzed with a text. It was nearing midnight, but he wasn’t surprised Liv was still up and working.
Trying to track down an old girlfriend of Frankie Molina’s. Might have info about the DEA agent hit. I have her name and address. Want to go with me tomorrow to check her out?
He quickly typed back,yes.
After her call earlier, he’d alerted the head of the DEA, in case Cooper had not been the target Olivia’s mafia insider told her about. Victor’s gut told him there was something off about the whole situation, he just couldn’t put his finger on it. He needed more details about Olivia’s informant—he was worried the guy was leading her on in an attempt to further his own causes. Not that she wouldn’t see it, but it happened to the best of agents. Victor wanted to be sure the informant was legit.
Tracking down the ex-girlfriend of Frankie Molina might not be the best use of his time, but any reason to see Liv was a good one, especially since he wanted more details about this informant she was protecting.
Roman stood and stretched, yawning. He rubbed his eyes and checked his watch. “I’m heading home for a shower and a few hours of sleep. I’ll pick this up again in the morning and be in touch.”
He said goodbye to Thomas and Ronni, both looking as tired as Victor felt. There wasn’t much they could do now overnight, so maybe he should leave too.
“Same for me, guys,” Victor said. “I have an unusual lead to check out with Olivia in the morning. It’s a long shot, but it’s worth looking into. I’ll contact you after I’m done there. If anything comes up in the meantime, call me.”
Thomas walked him and Roman to the door. “No one else has had an attempt on their life?” he asked Victor. “None of the agents on your other taskforces in LA, correct?”
“None, and let’s hope it stays that way.”
“Then it has to be tied to us.” He shook his head wearily. “I don’t get it. We may have caused the Suarez Kings a few problems along the way, but nothing that warrants this type of strike, and we’ve never put the screws to the Fifty-seven Gang.”
Victor could see something brewing behind Thomas’s eyes. “What are you thinking?”
“That it doesn’t have a damn thing to do with any of these cases we keep going over. It’s not revenge. It’s something else.”
Thomas was smart and his sixth sense when it came to criminals was excellent. “I agree. If they’re going after a high-level DEA agent out of revenge or to get him out of the way, there are others much more detrimental to their gang than Cooper has been. The Kings haven’t been the direct focus of any of our investigations, only outliers when we’ve taken out certain supply channels or Mexican cartels. They may have suffered a temporary interference on occasion, but we’ve never been able to shut them down.”
“This connection with the mafia seems weak to me,” Thomas said.
Roman bobbed his head in agreement. “It seems forced, doesn’t it? If the Kings and the mob are clashing over who’s going to run this territory, it seems like they’d be taking each other out, not focusing time and energy on you guys.”
“Could there be another player?” Victor asked.
A long, tired sigh came from Roman. “Either that, or these DTOs are throwing up a diversion to keep us from the real issue.”
DTOs—drug trafficking organizations—were constantly in flux, whether they were a Colombian based cartel or a mafia family. Those in power were constantly getting killed off by those trying to take over, even within their own organizations. While they were well-versed in deceiving law enforcement, they rarely had the resources to pull off elaborate sting operations to keep the justice system looking the other way. “Any idea what thisrealissue is?”
“No, but I have the feeling we’re only seeing a small part of this picture. We need to think outside the box.”
Victor had the same feeling, and hoped Roman’s new, temporary taskforce could help fill in the missing pieces. “All right, let’s get a fresh start in the morning.”
Down the block in his car, Victor sat for moment debating his options. The drive to Olivia’s was a lot shorter than to his house. Plus, if he stayed at her place, he would be there in the morning for them to get an early start.
He laughed at himself as he started the car. As if he would drive all the way home, even if it made more sense. But it was nice when logic and wisdom agreed with his libido. He texted her before he took off.
Are you up for another houseguest?
Her reply came seconds later.Thought you’d never ask. How soon can you be here?
He gave her his ETA before heading for the freeway, smiling at the peace seeing her brought. She was everything he’d ever wanted in a woman and more. Someone he could share work and anything else with.
Hell, she even loves my dog.
If things continued the way they were, he could finally settle down and build the family he’d always wanted. As he drove through the night, his mind spun out what his next move would be. He had the house, he had the dog. All he needed was a fantastic woman to share his life with.
First, he had to solve this case. Second he had to get his house in better shape. But after all that was done, he was going to ask Liv to move in with him.
The thought of that scared and thrilled him at the same time. All these years, all the searching for someone who could accept him the way he was, he’d finally found her.
And one thing was for certain, he wasn’t letting her get away.
