chapter 84
JULIO AND GUILLERMO Googled West Point, Mississippi, before leaving Tennessee and quickly determined that the nicest place to stay was the Old Waverly Golf Club. Julio called and made reservations for them in a lake-view cottage. They had long since realized that they attracted much less attention staying in finer accommodations than they did in budget hotels. They needed to get in and out of town without rousing any suspicions, so for the next few days, he and Guillermo became Mexican cheese importers looking for new outlets in the Golden Triangle. Everybody knew there had been a recent sharp rise in the Hispanic population in the area.
Several hours later, once they checked in, they paid the lodging attendant with a black American Express card. The attendant later asked her boss if he had ever seen one. His eyes lit up in anticipation, and he nodded. He knew that these men could charge anything they wanted, even a house, a lot, or a lifetime club membership. The word quickly spread through the staff that high rollers were staying in cottage number three.
Guillermo used the Wi-Fi to check the location of the money. The locator hidden inside the bag placed it at the local police station. Guillermo switched the tracking device’s identification numbers to find the ankle unit on the redneck. It appeared to be in the parking lot of a government housing project in Aberdeen.
“What do you want to do, Julio?”
Julio was looking out the window at several mallard ducks swimming on Lake Waverly. He said, “The clubhouse is closed today, so let’s first go into town to eat. Then we ride by the address to confirm the money is at a police station, and then we go find Mr. Pie. Me gustaría mucho que hablar con él.”
Guillermo drilled down further into both addresses and wondered if Bing maps had any bird’s-eye views. While he was searching, he heard Julio work the tight action of his small pistol.
“¿Guillermo, si le robaron nueve mil millones de dólares, qué haría?” Julio asked.
Guillermo leaned back in his chair. He sat silent for a long moment, thinking. Finally he said, “If I had stolen the money, I would leave town quietly, never to be seen again. If I could not run—if I had to stay—I would claim someone else stole it.”
“Lo que causaría que usted permanezca?”
“Children, wife, parents, maybe even a girlfriend, would cause me to stay.”
“Sí, these things are important to you. But most drug runners are cold-blooded. They know the risks. They don’t get attached to any place or person. You can’t.”
Julio paused for a long while and then said, “This behavior doesn’t make sense.”