Against the Edge (The Raines of Wind Can - By Kat Martin Page 0,24
lowlifes any better than you do, but keep in mind this is how Johnnie and I make our living. We can do a lot more good, help more people, if we keep our information channels open.”
Ben flicked a glance toward the bar, thought of the boy, thought Brodie was about half-right about taking these assholes out. “I’ll try to restrain myself.”
“Just so you know, Gonzales is pretty low on the food chain. He deals, but he isn’t into trafficking...at least not that I know of. You got the money?”
Ben tapped the envelope stuffed into the back pocket of his jeans. “They get it if they’ve got my kid.”
Following Brodie, he made his way in through the front door. La Fiesta was a restaurant as well as a bar and the place was busy with the lunch crowd. The smell of tortillas, meat and cheese made Ben’s stomach growl. Bagels and cream cheese wasn’t bacon and eggs.
Mexican pop music played in the background. Ty slowed as a beefy Hispanic with stringy black hair down to his shoulders approached them.
“This way, amigos.”
There was no one in the bar except more of Gonzales’s men. They didn’t come forward to pat them down, didn’t need to, since it looked like all of them were armed.
Ben’s conceal carry wasn’t valid in California. At the moment, he didn’t care.
The others moved a little away, leaving their leader to handle the exchange.
“Señor Brodie. I see you have brought your friend.” Rueben Gonzales was lean and hard, his skin as brown as old oak. A scar ran from the corner of his mouth to his ear, making him look like one badass son of a bitch.
“Where’s the boy?” Ty asked.
Gonzales tipped his head toward a door at the rear of the bar and an instant later, in walked a short, fat banger pushing a black-haired boy in front of him.
For several heartbeats, Ben stood frozen. Then the kid stepped into the light and looked at Ben, and he knew the boy wasn’t his son.
Ty said nothing, just stood there waiting for Ben’s decision. Ben kept staring at the kid. He was older than nine, maybe ten or eleven. There was a bruise on his cheek and his lip was split. He had a shiner that was turning purple. His blue eyes looked resigned and yet there was a spark of defiance there.
The fat man moved forward and tipped the kid’s chin up so Ben could get a better look. The fat guy grinned. “This one—he is a virgin. He is too much trouble so you get him cheap.”
Ben’s stomach knotted. He looked at the kid and blind rage struck him. His jaw turned to steel and he exploded, throwing a punch that landed so hard against the fat man’s jaw it sent him flying backward over the bar. Beer glasses slid the length of the counter and catapulted into the air. A woman screamed as the guy crashed to the floor, breaking more glasses and heavy bottles of booze, groaning but not getting up.
Ben heard the unmistakable ratcheting of pistol slides. When he turned, he saw four semi-autos pointed in his direction. Ty Brodie pointed his M-9 at Gonzales.
“The price just went to twenty-five hundred,” Gonzales said calmly.
Ben pulled the envelope out of his pocket and tossed it on the table. “Two thousand. That’s all I brought. I’ll take the kid off your hands and he won’t give you any more trouble.”
Gonzales gestured to his men, who put away their weapons. Ty reholstered his pistol. Gonzales picked up the envelope, opened it and thumbed through the hundred-dollar bills. “This is your lucky day, amigo. Take the boy and go.”
The kid didn’t resist when Ben put a hand on his shoulder and guided him out of the bar, wove through the restaurant, then outside to the Honda Accord. Ty walked a few feet behind him.
“I’m glad you got your son back,” Brodie said once they were back to their vehicles. “For a minute there it was kind of touch-and-go.”
“He’s not my son.”
Ty’s dark brown eyebrows went up as Ben opened the door and settled the boy in the passenger seat, clicked the seat belt into place across his chest. “He’s not mine, but he’s someone’s. I couldn’t just leave him there. I’ll take him to Claire. She’ll know how to handle it.”
Brodie clapped Ben on the back. “I’ll keep looking. I’ll let you know if anything turns up.”
“Thanks. You’re a good man, Brodie. You can watch my back anytime.”