“You’ll be on the run then,” I told him. “You’ll have to change your name. Your appearance.”
“That’s if I live that long, patron.” He shrugged. “I will use them while I can, while they have used me. And they have used me. You know, they prey on the weak, that’s the difference between you and them. You, Javier, you prey on the strong. The government preys on the weak, the ones without much choice. The ones like me. Then they mold you to be their little toy soldier. You live your short life fighting their battles without really knowing what you’re fighting for.” His eyes scanned the distant peaks as the mist lifted off. “The cartels have caused so much violence in this country but that’s nothing new. Mexico is a country built on violence and corruption. You know how Cortes founded the country?”
I nodded. I didn’t remember much from school. I dropped out when I was young, after my father died, having to work in his business and take care of my mother and sisters. But that didn’t stop me from seeking knowledge on my own and the inception of Mexico was something larger than life.
“Well,” Evaristo went on, “then you know that barbaric violence and a shitty class system has been our way from the very start. Those at the top feed off of each other. Those at the bottom suffer endlessly. The cartels rule because the government allows them to. Because it benefits them both.”
“And thank god for that,” I added.
“Yes, thank god. Or the devil. Whichever one you choose.”
Paolo came over to Evaristo. “Sir, we have confirmation that Esteban Mendoza is there right now.”
I knew one hell of a wicked grin was spreading across my face. I’m pretty sure it stayed on the whole time as we quickly loaded into the SUVs and were taken down the rocky, steep road that was nothing more than a deer trail all the way down into the valley. It was still so early that we hoped we wouldn’t be detected.
We eventually reached the bottom in one piece and raced down the one dirt road through the middle of the village.
The few villagers that were up saw us and started yelling but we zoomed past them, heading all the way to the house and the barn. We piled out, weapons in our hands as the dust rose above us. The bigger men went in through the front door, kicking it down with their heavy boots and breaking windows.
Evaristo and I went around the back, .45 pistols drawn, ready to shoot. I had to remind myself over and over again that I wasn’t shooting to kill, just to maim. From the way I was gripping my gun, I was afraid that I might just kill him on the spot.
Suddenly the promise I made to Luisa was gone and all I could think about was just putting the bullets through his head repeatedly. It would take away the fun but it would feel oh so fucking good. Just to see him caught. See the fear of death. I wanted to smell it off of him.
At the last minute I shoved Evaristo out of the way and entered the back of the house first, not giving a damn if he was the one properly trained for this or not. I’d done okay so far.
The house was empty though. There was no one there and not a single sign of them being there at all. Floorboards were ripped up, looking for tunnels that were never found, and the place was swept for leftover communication, anything to point to Esteban, but there was nothing.
Nothing, but still, I knew he had been here. I knew we had been close.
Too close.
I turned to Evaristo. “Burn the place down,” I said.
“The house?”
“The village. They know he was here. They know he left. Interrogate them all. If they can’t give us answer, then we burn it.”
Evaristo frowned, hesitating. The good and evil he was just discussing was now battling in his head. “This isn’t even Mexico, Javier.”
“So,” I said simply. “Word will still get back to him. Burn it all.”
He put his hand on my shoulder. “Listen, there is a fine line between revenge and lunacy. Concentrate on him, not on those he may or may not have involved.”
“Burn it to the fucking ground!” I screamed in his face, my skin growing red hot, spittle flying out of my mouth and onto his cheek.
He slowly wiped it away but nodded. “Yes, patron.”
Evaristo still gave the frightened villagers a chance to live. They walked into the mountains, staring back at their homes as they burned and burned, the smoking rise high above the valley floor.
I felt absolutely nothing as I watched it all disappear behind us, the SUV climbing into the hills. I thought the destruction, the flames, would at least burn off some of the debilitating frustration I felt at having lost him once again, but it didn’t.
It just made things worse.
And with the way things were, I wasn’t sure how much worse it would get before it finally got better.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Luisa