“With that?” I nodded toward the pistol he still held.
He shook his head. “A scoped Weatherby.”
“Had he followed us, the way you did?”
Mondragón shook his head. “He might have been tracking Rainy’s cell phone.”
I understood now why it had been left behind in the bloodied grass.
“What did you do with the body?”
“I dropped it in the burial ground of the great Arizona desert, where the vultures and coyotes and ants will reduce it very quickly to nothing but bone.”
“Who was it?”
“No identification. That’s how it’s done. I’m sure it was one of Rodriguez’s men.”
Grudgingly I said, “Thanks.”
“I love her, too, Cork.” Then he smiled and shrugged. “Mother of my children.”
“What do you know about the Rodriguezes?”
“Jackals,” he said. “They operate crudely. In the grand scheme, they’re nothing. They like to believe that they control this area of the border and what crosses over it. The larger, more powerful interests allow them to go about their business here, but at a price.”
“Larger, more powerful interests? Other cartels?”
“Think of it as a feudal system, Cork. There are those who operate below the cartels but only with their blessing. Like the Rodriguezes. And below that are those who live on the scraps the Rodriguezes throw them.”
“What about your family?”
“We need no one’s blessing, and we live on no one’s scraps.”
The candle was burning low. It was becoming more and more difficult to breathe in the hot, dead air of the sanctuary.
“You came alone?” I said.
“This is my business. My family—my family in Mexico—have no interest in my family here. In fact, if they knew what my son was up to, they might add to the bounty the Rodriguezes have already placed on his head. I didn’t know anything about Peter’s involvement in the Desert Angels until Rainy called me last night. Had I known earlier, I would have put an end to it myself.”
“He’s helping people who need help,” Rainy said.
“He’s interfering with a number of enterprises.”
“I remember a time when you would have applauded what he’s doing. Probably you would have helped.”
“That time is long past, querida.”
“So what now?” I said.
“It’s safest that Rainy stay with me. Those buitres will try again if they know she’s still alive.”
“What about Peter?” Rainy said.
“Until Peter makes his presence known, there’s nothing we can do.”
“Where will you go?” I asked.
“Best you don’t know, don’t you think?” Mondragón said. “They may still come after you to get to her. If nothing is what you know, nothing is what you can tell them.”
“Why do they want me?” Rainy said.
“I thought at first it was just pure revenge. That car bomb this morning. But I believe they understand now that you would make a good bargaining chip. They might be able to use you to lure Peter into the open.”
“What is it about Peter that’s so threatening to them?” Rainy said.
Mondragón shook his head. “I don’t know. But the fact that they’re still after you is an encouraging sign that he’s alive and probably in hiding. Let’s go, querida.”
“I’m not leaving Cork,” Rainy said.
“Think about it,” Mondragón said. “You stay with him, he continues to be a target. Is that what you want? If you remain missing, along with that pendejo I shot, I think it will take them a while to decide what to do next. So we’ve bought some time.”
“If what everyone says about the Rodriguezes is true, they’ll kill Cork just because he was with me.”
“They may try.” Mondragón gave me and the Winchester at my side a frank look of appraisal. “But I think Cork is a man who can take care of himself.”
“I’m not going,” Rainy said. “Not without Cork.”
I hated the thought of putting her into the keeping of Mondragón, but he was right. It was safest for her. Still, I knew it would be a hard sell.
“I can’t stay with you and help Peter, too,” I argued gently. “If I’m not worried about you, it will be easier for me to do what I have to do.”
“And what exactly is that, Cork?” she said, clearly not convinced.
Mondragón laughed. “Corazón, this man is a detective. He will detect.” His eyes nailed me. “And he will share with us what he discovers in his detection, yes?”
“What seems appropriate,” I agreed. “Rainy, this really is the best way.”
She looked at me, then at Mondragón, who said, “For our son, querida.”
Finally, she gave a grudging nod.
“A suggestion, Cork,” Mondragón said. “Get rid of your cell phone. They may be tracking you, too.”
“I’ll disable the location services. That should do it.”
“I’d prefer to be absolutely certain,” Mondragón said.
“How do you suggest we communicate?”
“An antiquated system. Let’s leave notes.”
“Where?”
“Why not here?”
“The door’s always locked. You don’t have a key.”
He laughed again. “It’s an old lock. It opens with a skeleton key. No problem at all.”
“Where do we leave the notes?”
He got up from the rail and went to the small altar. He lifted the cross, which was heavy and looked gold but was probably just brass.
“How about under here?” he said.
“All right. And how do we know when a note’s been left?”
“The angel statue out front. We’ll tie a little ribbon on her uplifted finger. It will be easy enough to see. We remove the ribbon to signal that we’ve received the message.”
“Might be a little conspicuous, tying that ribbon.”
“It’ll take all of three seconds. And this isn’t exactly a busy neighborhood.”
“All right. For now.”
“We should go, querida.”
I stood and Rainy with me. She stepped into my arms and laid her head against my chest. “You be safe.”
I kissed her hair. “You, too.”
I glanced at Mondragón for assurance. The best he could do was give me a nod.
CHAPTER 16
* * *
I lay in bed in the cool of the parsonage, the weight of history once again pressing down on me. I have often felt deeply alone in my life. After my father died. After my mother died. After Jo died. There are always people around me, family and friends, but I tend to isolate myself, at least for a while. It’s how I deal with hard things. Although Rainy wasn’t gone in the same way, I still felt alone. As if I’d lost something as essential as my heart.