Page 64 of Prisoner of War
“This Peña—he was a mere captain,” Torrez pointed out.
“The rank was inconsequential,” Zalaya said dismissively. “Through the American woman, Peñabecame first a friend and then a trusted officer to Nicolás Escobedo. They worked side by side until the beginning of the war. He arrived at a position of trust through friendship.” He speared Torrez with one of his unrelenting gazes. “Much like you, Captain Torrez.”
Torrez grinned.
Zalaya got to his feet and reached for the cane. “Regardless of rank or authority, the fact is the woman we haveis important to Escobedo. She is known to him. We can use that. Now, if you gentlemen will excuse me, I have much to do this day. General.” He inclined his head toward Serrano, tucked the files up under one arm and worked his way to the door.
“That bullet did not spare you much, did it, Bruno?” Torrez murmured.
Zalaya stopped level with him. “It spared my life. That is enough for now. The restwill come.” He considered his words and grinned. “It will come, or I will take it.” He nodded at Torrez and left the room, letting the door swing shut behind him.
Torrez sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. “He has a woman tucked away in his rooms?”
“He always has something tucked away. You know him better than I, Torrez. You really need to ask?”
Torrez frowned. “Something about thisone bothers you,” he said.
Serrano forced air through his teeth in a quiet hiss. “This one is becoming an obsession,” he admitted.
“Obsessions can be dangerous,” Torrez returned.
“They can also be considered a weakness,” Serrano pointed out. “Weaknesses can be exploited.”
* * * * *
When the door opened and Zalaya slipped through, Minnie was still sitting in his chair, watching the monitors.Now, more than ever, she was mortally aware of the roles they must play for the cameras and those who watched.
She scrambled to her feet, the extended chain tugging at her wrist, as Zalaya shut the door behind him. His gaze went from her to the screens and back.
“You fucking bastard!” she cried. “You knew. You knew all along!”
Both his hands came to rest on the top of the cane. The pose waseerily like the top-hatted gentlemen of the Victorian era. “Until this morning I did not know your soldier was the one in the hospital. How could I?”
“You killed him!”
Zalaya shrugged. “He was the enemy.”
“He was wounded!”
“So was I.”
She clawed the top of the file cabinets behind her and felt something solid and heavy come under her hand. She lifted it and heaved it at him. He swayed andthe paper punch whizzed past his thigh to smash into the door behind him. It fell apart and paper confetti scattered across the floor.
“That achieves nothing,” he told her.
“Like hell.” As he took another step toward her, Minnie grabbed for another blunt object. “Don’t you dare come any closer!” she screamed.
He took another step, as if she had not spoken.
She threw the stapler at him. Itwas a big, industrial-strength one and only missed him because he dodged sideways again, ducking. She was out of ammunition. She backed up into the bedroom, searching for more missiles. She found the tray that had carried the food she had eaten. The plates and heavy-based water glass still sat on it. As soon as he appeared in the doorway, she let fly. This time she took the time to aim properly. Allthe plates and the tray missed him, but the missiles were too close together and she adjusted her aim as he reacted. As a result, the heavy water glass smashed into his shoulder, tearing a gash in his shirt and the shoulder beneath. The shirt instantly turned red with blood.
“¡Mierda!” he muttered and pulled a pistol from his pocket. He brought it up and fired off two shots at her.
Minnie screamedand threw herself to the floor, covering her head.
Another three shots thudded into the carpet by her head. The sound of the pistol in that enclosed space was like a volley of thunderclaps.
“Get up,” Zalaya said with a snap. “I aimed to miss, or you would not be still breathing.”
