Texas Hold 'Em (Smokin' ACES) - By Kay David Page 0,34
was exactly what they wanted them to think.
But she wasn’t Rose. The other night refused to leave his mind, the memory of her lips pressing against his, the feel of her body as he’d pulled her to him, the pain she’d shared with him. Why couldn’t he get it out of his mind, dammit?
He put his arm around Jessie’s waist and buried his face in her hair, halfway wishing another woman could satisfy him. “What’s up?”
“It’s Dickie.” She let out a moan then pulled back and grabbed him by the hand. “Come outside, and I’ll tell you.”
Until a few months ago, Dickie Barclay had been a houseguest of the State of Texas in El Paso for possession of a controlled substance, mainly crystal meth. When his jail time was over, he’d headed straight back to Rio County. He was a skinny, obnoxious biker who belonged to a peripheral club. No one liked him and no one wanted to be around him, but somehow he always managed to know the latest gossip. Every time he saw Jessie, he made a beeline for her. She’d put up with him so far, hoping one day her patience might pay off. Santos felt a flicker of hope at her words. Maybe Dickie had finally come through with something that mattered.
They slipped out of the beer joint and walked over to Jessie’s Harley. Leaning on the bike’s leather seat, he faced one direction and she faced the other. “Dickie has a video clip on a phone he wanted me to see this morning,” Jessie said without preamble. “I thought I should tell you about it. It could be nothing or not. I’m not sure.”
“Tell me.”
“It showed two women talking. They were standing on a riverbank, or maybe next to some water, I couldn’t tell exactly. One was older, a bleached blonde, kinda heavy-set.”
“And the other one?”
“Short, maybe 5’2”, brunette with hair to her shoulders, jeans, and a T-shirt. Hispanic.” She paused, her expression troubled. “The blonde’s hands were behind her. They might have been tied, or she could have just been holding them that way. I couldn’t tell if it was Lilith or not.”
None of them actually knew her; all they’d seen was a picture. He felt his whole body go cold. “What were they doing?”
“Just talking. The brunette was waving her hands around, but the other one never moved. The clip is short, less than 10 seconds.”
“Why did Dickie show this to you?”
“I don’t think I was supposed to see it,” she answered. “What he wanted to show me was something a little more…exotic.”
“Exotic as in…?”
“Two women, three men, a dog collar, whips, high heels. Should I keep going and be more specific?”
“I get the idea.”
“He was trying to find that masterpiece when I spotted this clip and stopped him. When I asked him about it, all I could get out of him was that ‘somebody big’ had ‘done something bad to a woman,’ and I didn’t need to worry about it. I got the impression he didn’t have anything to do with it.”
“No idea who this someone big might be?”
“Not a hint.”
“Did he mention Tony Barra?”
ACES had done the protection run for the smuggler and his chapter but had gotten no more information. The Dos y Tres members weren’t happy about the ACES’s appearance in Rio County, or the ride along, and had made that clear. Santos had heard several of the riders laughing behind his back at the brick that had hit his Harley.
“Nope. But if Dickie had been aware of Lilith, and especially if he’d known she’s a C.I., he would have said so. He’d want the bragging rights on that one for sure.”
“Ortega didn’t get to where he is by being stupid. She was getting too close and learning too much. She even warned me she was going to press her chances.” ACES had had this discussion a hundred times already and his control began to slip. “Damn it to hell, this whole thing is turning to shit. What about the other woman? Did you recognize her?”
Jessie shook her head, her red hair catching the sun. “Don’t have a clue.”
“Anyone else in the clip?”
“Just the two of them.”
“Vehicles?”
“None that I could see.”
“Did you recognize anything at all about the location?”
“Nothing, but it was definitely around here. The landscape was empty and brown, except near the water’s edge.”
“Is there any way you could get me a copy of the video? Maybe steal the phone?”