Guilty Pleasures (21 page)

“A slice of the pie.”

 

15

Stan hung up his office phone. Satisfied. He wiped perspiration from his brow with a white handkerchief, which he then tucked back in his breast pocket. He'd never gone against Lenora. Everything she'd ever wanted he'd done without question, no matter how he felt about it.

He knew what she planned to do. He'd gotten into her computer files at home.
Hmph,
and she thought
he
was a fool. But he had plenty of free time at his job to master the computer and had become quite the hack.

This was his way out, and she wasn't going to deprive him of it. He would get out of his loveless marriage and his dead-end job, and he would start a new life.

That night in the hotel with Leslie, or Eva Kelly, rather, was a blessing in disguise. He knew from the moment he dumped those photos on the coffee table that Lenora would spring into action. All he had to do was play the role of the hapless husband, which he'd gotten down to an art. For the first time in years he saw light at the end of his tunnel, and Lenora was going to get him there.

*   *   *

Lenora stood in front of the team she'd recruited for the Task Force on Border Smuggling, and was issuing their assignments. At first she thought of the detail as yet another albatross around her neck. But maybe she could make it work to her advantage.

“As you all know, Congress is establishing a panel to review smuggling across the U.S. borders. We've been assigned the task of providing the most current information, including names, shipments, and time frames.” She looked into the eyes of the three faces: Virginia Holmes, Mike Fuller, and Eric Borden. Eric was a decent-enough fellow; at least he treated her with a degree of respect. Virginia, as much as Lenora disliked her ass-kissing ways, was a whiz with research, and Mike had previous experience on task forces and knew their importance. A motley crew if there ever was one, she thought. But this was what she had to work with. Everyone else in the department was tied up in other projects.

“Virginia, you will handle the research. Go through all our data and pull up everything we have. Mike and Eric, you two work together on any chatter. Then we can compare what you find to what Virginia is able to pull up. Also, Eric check with our people at the Mexican border. Get updates.”

They all scribbled furiously. Virginia looked up from her notes.

“And what will you be doing
”

Lenora put her hand on her waist. “Coordinating,” she said with a smug look of superiority on her chiseled face.

Mike chuckled and ducked his head.

“Am I missing something
” Eric asked.

“Nothing of importance, I assure you,” Lenora said. “If there are no more questions, we can get started. I'll expect daily updates and a full report each week.”

They groaned as they got up from their seats. Mike lagged behind after the other two left.

“Yes, Mike
Problem
”

“I just wanted to say that I'm glad to finally be working with you.”

Her suspicion alert went to code red. “Why
”

He shuffled the papers in his hands. “As much as I may razz you, I know you're good at what you do.”

She wasn't sure how to take it and was waiting for the sexist punch line.

“Anyway, that's all I wanted to say.” He turned and left the room.

Lenora stood there for a few minutes, not sure what to make of Mike's admission. She picked up her file folder and tucked it under her arm. Bottom line: she didn't trust anyone. Her goal for the time being was to keep them so busy, they wouldn't have time to pay any attention to what she was doing.

*   *   *

The crew landed in Rio de Janeiro and went to the motel Jinx had scoped out. It was located on the outskirts of the city, in the poorest section. The slums and ghettos of New York had nothing on this place.

Eva cringed when she walked into the shabby lobby of the motel. The heat was unbearable. Flies and mosquitoes apparently ran the joint, and the air reeked of sweat, poor sanitary conditions, old food, and who knew what else. On a hard wooden bench perched precariously against the wall, two derelicts slept.

“You can't be serious about this place
” she whispered to Jake as they approached the front desk.

“I know it's not much, babe, but we need to be as low-key as possible until it's time to board the ship.”

She swatted a mosquito away from her neck. “You owe me, Jake, big time,” she said from between her teeth.

Rita stepped up to the clerk, who dozed noisily behind the desk.

“Excuse me.” She leaned in close, got a whiff of his unwashed body, and quickly stepped back.

In almost slow motion, he opened bleary bloodshot eyes. Sweat ran in a steady stream from his bald head. His shirt was so stained, the original color was lost.

“Olá.”
He grinned, exhibiting a missing front tooth.

“We need two rooms,
por favor.
”

“Sim, sim.”
He rolled off his high stool and wobbled over to a row of keys behind him. He took two sets of keys from the hook and handed them to Rita.

“Obrigada,”
Rita thanked him in Portuguese. She looked at the keys.

“You pay now,” he stated more than asked.

Jake stepped up, confirmed the price, and paid him in U.S. dollars. The clerk grinned in snaggletoothed delight.

“Paolo, he take you,” he said with a thick accent. “Paolo! Paolo!”

One of the men asleep on the bench stirred.

The clerk shouted something at him in Portuguese. Paolo pulled himself to his feet and shuffled toward them. Rita held out the keys at arm's length. He took the keys without a word and walked outside. Reluctantly the crew followed. Eva punched Jake in the arm.

They followed Paolo across what was once a courtyard and up a flight of weatherbeaten stairs that creaked and groaned under their weight. On the upper level were rows of rooms. Paolo walked halfway down, stopped in front of one, checked the room key, and opened the door.

A cool breeze blew out to greet them. Paolo turned on the light, and a small but immaculately clean room greeted them. A mosquito net hung over a queen-size bed. A ceiling fan whirred silently.

Eva stepped inside and looked around. She walked toward the bathroom and found that to be just as spotless, with relatively modern fixtures, a stack of clean towels, and even those miniature soaps and shampoos they supply at big hotels.

She stepped back out, and Jake was grinning like he'd won something. He pulled their bags inside. He turned to Paolo and handed him five dollars in American money. His eyes brightened, and he muttered his thanks over and over as he backed out the door to take Rita and Jinx to the next room.

“Maybe Jinx isn't such a screwup after all,” Eva conceded, sitting down to test out the bed.

“This is one of the hidden treasures. No one with any good intentions or good sense would think twice about stopping here from the look on the outside. If you don't want to be found but still need some creature comforts, this is where you come.”

“So I see.” She smiled up at her husband and reached for him. He crossed the room, took her hand, and sat beside her. “I'm sorry for being such a bitch lately.”

He stroked her hair. “We're all under a lot of strain. It's okay.”

“I just want you to know that I'm sorry.”

He kissed her lightly on the lips.

“Jake…”

“Yeah, baby.”

“I need you to tell me the truth.”

“Sure.”

“Have you figured out the security system for the safe
”