“RPG!”
Traveling at close to three hundred yards per second, it took the high-explosive round less than a second to reach the lead Suburban. The warhead went through the windshield and exploded inside the SUV, killing all its occupants instantly. The explosion momentarily blinded Hunt, and a millisecond later he felt the Suburban ram the rear of the lead SUV. Fortunately, the driver of the Suburban providing rear security was able to brake in time and was initiating an evasive maneuver. He didn’t get far, as scared motorists on the road were leaving their cars and running in all directions. The US marshal in the passenger seat was already on the radio calling in the ambush and requesting immediate assistance. A second RPG hit a car to their left, flipping it to its side. The deflagration rocked the Suburban.
“Everybody okay?” Robbins shouted.
Hunt looked to his right at Zorita to check whether the Mexican chief inspector was all right. His head was slumped over his chest.
“Zorita?” Hunt said, unbuckling his seat belt so he could reach the injured man.
Zorita raised his head and slammed his left elbow into Hunt’s face. Hunt was flung backward. Through his blurred vision, he saw Zorita pull out his pistol, aiming it at Garcia’s head. Hunt shouted a warning and lunged at Zorita just as he pulled the trigger.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Hallandale Beach, Florida
Leila DeGray couldn’t stop thinking about her father. She knew he wanted back in her life, but after what he’d done to her mother, how could she let him in? Still, it couldn’t hurt to see him for a few hours every second Saturday, right? He wasn’t a bad man per se, just different. He didn’t live the same kind of life she did. His was filled with violence and pain, hers with nonalcoholic pi?a coladas and days at the beach with her friends. And homework. Tons of homework.
Maybe one day she’d open up to him, but for now, she was happy she didn’t share the same last name.
She would have loved to have a father like Sophia’s. He was the nicest guy ever. For her fifteenth birthday, Sophia’s dad had bought her a monkey. How cool was that? A monkey! And he had drivers and bodyguards and really, really expensive cars. But Sophia didn’t have a mother. Which was sad. Sophia’s mom had died in a freak skiing accident many years ago.
Truth was, Leila couldn’t complain too much. Since her mom had moved in with Chris five years ago, she was living the high life too. She attended the best private school money could buy, she vacationed in the most exotic spots on the planet—her favorite was Tahiti—and Chris had even bought her a WaveRunner for Christmas. So yeah, she had it good.
Chris had dropped her at Sophia’s for lunch. Since Monday was a day off from school, the plan was to pick her up again tomorrow right after breakfast. Leila loved sleepovers, especially at Sophia’s colossal mansion. Plus, Tony, Sophia’s dad, was a great cook, and he had promised the girls he’d bake them fresh blueberry muffins. But for now, it was movie time.
“What are you thinking about?” Sophia asked her, bringing her back to reality.
“Nothing,” Leila replied. “I’m just looking forward to watching that movie.”
“Me too! And the popcorn. Don’t forget the popcorn!”
“With a ton of butter,” Leila added.
“You bet, girl! Are you gonna have popcorn too, Charlie?” Sophia asked her bodyguard, who was seated in the front passenger seat of the huge Mercedes SUV.
Even though Leila had only recently become close friends with Sophia, she’d been around her long enough to know she was only teasing him. Charlie was a new guy, but Leila was pretty sure he’d say no. Sophia’s previous bodyguard had once explained his job was to protect her, and in order to do so to the best of his ability, he needed to have his hands free. Leila loved traveling with Sophia and her bodyguards. It made her feel important, especially when people tried to take pictures of them.
Charlie twisted in his seat to look at Sophia. “Of course I will. But no butter for me,” he said without a hint of a smile. Then he asked the driver. “What about you, Antonio?”
“Same thing.”
Sophia looked puzzled. By Charlie’s tone of voice, Leila knew he was joking, but Sophia had no idea her leg was being pulled.
“I’m joking, kiddo,” Charlie said, this time with a smile.
A quick look outside the SUV told Leila they were less than five minutes away from the theater. The traffic light in front of them turned red, and the driver stopped just behind a silver Hummer H2. To their left and right, two identical Dodge Caravans abruptly stopped, even though they both had room to move forward another three car lengths.
Leila saw Antonio take a look in the rearview mirror. Charlie wasn’t smiling anymore.
“What the hell?” Antonio said.
Leila turned around. There was another black Dodge Caravan. It was so close to the Mercedes’s rear bumper that Leila couldn’t see its headlights.