Page 94 of Breached
“Oh, shoot, I’m sorry!” Nicole stood in the doorway, her hands on her cheeks. I nodded to Grim that everything was fine. “I’m really sorry for interrupting, but can I borrow a power cord? Mine seems to be missing, and I can’t find another.”
“Of course. Check the drawers over there.” I pointed, and she slipped into the room, closing the door behind her. “You’re good to go, Grim.”
He hesitated but started in. “They found Talya’s body.” I froze.
“Where?” I barely got the words out.
“Tangled in a fisherman’s net a mere twenty yards from the Aquarium of Veracruz.”
Nicole fumbled the charger she held, and it hit the floor. She stood there stunned and her gaze moved to mine. I knew it wasn’t the fact that she made a noise that had rattled her. It was something else.
“Was she shot?” I asked Grim, not looking at the screen.
As Grim said no, Nicole shook her head.
“Nicole,” my voice was low “I think you’d better join us.”
She made her way over and pulled out a chair, lowering herself slowly into Grim’s view.
“Miss Winter,” he greeted her, “do you know something?”
She shifted directly into work mode. “Sully Sanchez called me last night to check in. He’s concerned that he hasn’t been able to locate Rafael Cruz. He says Rafael owes him. He’s quite angry.”
“What?” Grim asked.
“Sully complained he was the one who discovered the boy existed. He was at that aquarium. I wasn’t paying attention to him at the time, but I did catch that. Now you’re saying Talya’s body was found there?” She leaned back in her chair and shook her head. “I can’t believe it. I was dealing with a frigging snake all along.”
“Explain,” I prompted. I wanted to know everything.
“Bruno always needed all the glory. He led us all to believe he killed Talya. Now I realize it was Sully who orchestrated the entire thing to get on top, and I fell for it all. Shit, we all did.”
“So, she wasn’t shot.” I shook my head in disbelief as I tried to get my head around it all. “How did she die?”
“She drowned.” Grim didn’t soften it.
“That son of a bitch,” Nicole hissed. “We removed all the players on the chessboard for him. Bruno’s dead, the Canos family lost their daughter, and for all intents and purposes their heir. Now Rafael Cruz is gone, along with the Ruizes, Martin Castillo, Esmeralda’s tunnel, and the tunnel in Rosarita. We were the ones who cleared him a path from the far back corner all the way to the queen. Check-fucking-mate.”
“None of us saw that coming,” I muttered as my heart broke for Talya all over again.
Grim snapped his knuckles then doubled tapped his nose with his thumb, clearly trying to contain his temper. “He’ll be dead by the end of the day.”
“No.” I shook my head, and Grim’s face twisted into something dangerous. “Sully thinks he’s got Nicole as an ally—someone he can use. I think we turn that to our advantage. We’ve destroyed a major part of the Mexican Cartel, but there’s still more to take down. Let’s use Sully for intel, and when we’re ready, we’ll toss him under the bus and let them take him down. Keeps our hands clean as the Cartels turn on each other. I’m sure you can work your IT magic and point the Canos’ missing money at him?”
A dark twinkle flickered in Grim’s eyes, and I knew I had him. “I’ve been known to point things in many directions. I’ll add that to my list.”
“Good,” I nodded, “we’ll keep you in the loop.”
“Do that.” Grim nodded then held up a hand. “Talya was a friend of mine as well, Paul.
“I know.” I nodded. “Sully will pay when the time is right.”
Grim picked up a sheet of paper. “Hunter was able to access Bruno’s phone off and on while he worked at the compound. He downloaded some of the messages whenever he had the opportunity. Bits and pieces, but they were useful, especially some of the earlier ones.”
“Oh?” That was risky.
“I’m sorry, gentlemen, but I need to get back to my office,” Nicole said. “I’ll leave you to your meeting. It was nice seeing you again, Mr. Gates.”
“Thanks for the information, Miss Winter, and congratulations.” He pointed at his own wedding ring. Grim never missed a thing.
