Option to Kill (Nathan McBride 3) (22 page)

When he thought back to the GPS coordinates, the way they were listed on the piece of paper wasn’t initially obvious, but they also weren’t concealed all that well. Nathan was reasonably sure the reverse order was a simple stopgap measure to disguise the coordinates from prying eyes, nothing more. Guys like Voda often didn’t trust their own people. Betrayal from within was always a concern.

Nathan had no idea what awaited them in Tecate. The columns of numbers could mean anything. But what if the numbers weren’t columns? What if they were rows? Thinking about them as line items made more sense. If that were the case, he could reasonably expect to find ten objects at the coordinates. Ten objects covered a lot of ground. They could be anything from trash bags full of illegal drugs to who knows what. Depending on what Nathan found, he might be able to use it as leverage against Voda.

He also couldn’t dismiss the idea that the GPS numbers could already be disguised with a mathematical cipher. They could be chasing a proverbial wild goose and find nothing at all. Even though Google Earth pointed them toward their current destination, he knew accuracy could be an issue. The coordinates on the paper might take them to a completely different destination than Google Earth indicated. He should’ve confirmed that before leaving the house.

“Lauren, do you know how to access the Internet on an iPhone?”

“Well, yeah.”

“Okay, I want you to check something for me.” He handed her his phone. Type ‘Wikipedia dot org’ — that’s
o-r-g
— into the address bar.” He had to spell ‘Wikipedia’ for her. “Then type ‘Tecate, California,’ into the Wikipedia search box.” He also gave her Tecate’s spelling.

“Okay…hang on. It’s loading.”

“Let me know if you see any GPS coordinates. There should be a little map.”

“It’s still loading. Okay, it shows a picture…I see the map.”

“Does it list coordinates?”

“Yes.”

He handed her the pad. “Do the degrees and minutes match?”

“Yes, but the last numbers aren’t the same.”

“Don’t worry about that.” At least this confirmed they were going to Tecate’s general locale. “Now, open a new Safari page and type this into the search box: ‘Google Earth a-c-c.’ You should get a dropdown line that says ‘Google Earth accuracy.’ Start there and check out a few entries. Let me know what you find.”

“Okay.”

That ought to keep her busy for a few minutes. He wanted to know the general margin of error. He glanced in her direction and saw she had the phone about twelve inches from her face. Give it thirty years, he thought, and she’ll be holding it at arm’s length.

If the general location was a motel, as Google Earth indicated, the coordinates on the paper would most likely lead to a specific room. It made sense. Nathan tapped his knowledge of GPS. At the equator, one second of longitude was just over one hundred feet in length, so, at their current latitude of thirty-two minutes, one second of longitude ought to be around sixty feet, which meant one-hundredth of a second would be just over half a foot. Having coordinates showing hundredths of a second should take them to a specific motel-room door. He wouldn’t know with certainty until they arrived. A drive by the motel would tell him if he had the right building, but he’d need to determine the precise coordinates on foot.

He had to consider the strong possibility that the room was already under surveillance by either good guys or bad guys — or possibly even both. If he was wrong about the piece of paper being the only copy, all bets were off. There could be a small army of Voda’s thugs waiting to ambush him, or a squad of federal agents waiting to intercept him.

“Okay, it says accuracy can vary a lot, depending on a bunch of stuff.”

“I figured as much.”

“It can be really accurate down to one meter, or it could be way off by, like, a hundred meters or more.”

“Good work.”

“Your phone’s vibrating. It’s Harvey Fontana.” She handed it to him.

“Harv.”

“I’m boarding a nonstop flight in thirty minutes. It’s the fastest way to get there.” Harv’s tone lightened. “I booked a business-class seat. If I’m going to be miserable, I may as well be miserable in style.”

“Well said.”

“What’s your status?”

“We’re on our way to Tecate. The piece of paper Lauren had contained GPS coordinates.”

“I saw them too. That’s why I’m calling.”

He told Harv about the note from Jin attached to Grant’s collar.

“Do I need to say it?”

“We’ll be careful, but this definitely confirms your suspicion about Jin. She knows where I live. Not only that, she managed to staple a note to Grant’s collar.”

“That’s no easy trick without knowing the stand-down command. You do practice with your dogs in the yard. It’s possible she got it that way.”

“That’s the most reasonable explanation.”

“Are we on speaker?” Harv asked.

“No.”

“We have to be concerned about something else as well. She said she’s going after Voda. If he bags her, she could give us up under torture.”

“Yeah, I thought of that, but there’s nothing we can do about it right now.”

“She hasn’t called you back?”

“No.”

“Then he might already have her.”

“You’re raining on my parade again.”

“What are friends for? How’s Lauren doing? Has she been asking about her mom?”

“Not too much, which is a little surprising.”

“What do you think?”

He glanced at Lauren and winked. “Lauren said her mom disappears for days at a time, so our current situation isn’t especially alarming to her.”

“It should be alarming to
you
. I also feel compelled to remind you you’re heading to a Mexican border town in the middle of the night with no backup, and Holly said Voda has known ties with coyotes.”

“Why doesn’t that make me feel good?”

“Nate, this is serious. You need me for this operation.”

“There is no operation. I’m just gonna have a look around.”

“Like you did at the warehouse? I seem to recall you mentioning being shot at.
Again
.”

“I appreciate your concern.”

“I’m seriously considering pulling executive override.”

“Harv, don’t do that.” Executive override was a blood oath between them. If either of them ever felt what they were doing was downright reckless, he could use executive override to call things off. To date, neither of them had ever invoked it.

“Give me a good reason.”

“Every minute Voda’s loose, innocent lives are at stake. He might already have his next victim.”

“Then again, he might not.”

“Suppose it was Lucas or Dillon?”

“I can’t believe you just said that.”

He didn’t respond. Didn’t need to. Harv was a father and knew the score.

“Dammit, Nate.”

“I promise, no unnecessary risks.”

“If you get your ass killed, I’m going to kill you again in heaven.”

“I stopped by the office and grabbed a vest, if that makes you feel better.”

“It doesn’t. What’s your ETA to Tecate?”

“About an hour.”

“At least I have the exact coordinates of where you’re going. I’ll be able to tell the authorities where to collect your bodies.”

“You sure know how to boost a guy’s confidence.”

“Use the radios. Lauren can keep on eye on your back.”

“I was planning to. Thanks for not pulling EO. I would’ve honored it.”

“Don’t make me regret this decision for the rest of my life. I expect to hear your cheerful voice again right after you
look
around at the motel. No firefights.”

Nathan signed off and tucked his phone away.

“He really cares about you,” Lauren said.

“He cares about both of us.”

“I don’t have any friends like that.”

“Some friendships take a lifetime to develop. Others can happen in a few hours.” He smiled. “Try to get some sleep.”

An hour later, they arrived on the outskirts of Tecate. Harv was right. Without bona fide backup, reconnoitering the motel was dangerous. If he didn’t see any bad guys before they saw him, the situation could get ugly in a big hurry. He’d have to play this cat-and-mouse game carefully. If anything happened to him, Lauren’s fate would fall into someone else’s hands — not acceptable. Until he had a better idea of what was going on, he’d move cautiously at the motel and thoroughly assess the situation before taking any action.

But first things first. He needed to determine where the GPS coordinates led. If Holly’s people had also discovered the coordinates, this might be over already. There could be FBI or ICE agents in play, which added a layer of complexity and brought the potential for friendly fire into the equation. A quick call to Holly could remove that variable, but it would also tip his hand. He decided to call
after
conducting a reconnaissance.

He didn’t know a lot about coyotes but knew they weren’t model citizens. The very nature of what they did made them human traffickers, and their core motivation was the pursuit of money. Human rights meant nothing to them, and that made them fair game in Nathan’s eyes. Anyone willing to sell human beings or aid in that practice was morally bankrupt at best, downright evil at worst.

“Lauren?”

She blinked a couple of times.

“We’re coming into Tecate. I need to go over some stuff with you.”

“How long was I asleep?”

“About forty-five minutes. I’m going to show you how to work the radio and the handheld thermal imager. They’re both easy to use. I’ll handle the GPS reader. According to Google Earth, our coordinates should be on the left side of the road.”

Before driving into Tecate, Nathan pulled to the shoulder. The city lights on the south side of the border were clearly defined by a straight line — the international boundary. He gave Lauren a quick lesson with the radio and HHTI. “To talk, all you do is press this button. Press it to talk, then let go. Don’t say anything unless you see something I should know about. If I say something to you but don’t ask a question, press the button and let go. I’ll hear a click, which means you heard me. It’s called an acknowledgment click.”

“What am I looking for?”

“We’ll go over that in a little bit.”

Nathan held the GPS reader in his left hand and continued south along the road. He slowed to a crawl at the motel and confirmed this was the location. It was an L-shaped, single-story building with a small office on the corner near the road. The neon sign indicated vacancy. He kept going south, turned onto a side street, and made a U-turn. No traffic was present — a double-edged sword. He liked the lack of activity, but if anyone were watching the motel, he couldn’t cruise past more than twice without raising suspicion. He scanned for a place to park where Lauren would have a clear view of the motel’s parking lot. A good tactical location looked to be across the street on a vacant lot. He could park among several unconnected semi trailers. It also allowed for a quick exit, should it become necessary.

He turned left and went far enough down a side street to make a U-turn without being seen from the motel. He turned off the lights, crept into the vacant lot to avoid raising dust, and killed the engine. This was a good spot, but it had drawbacks. The disconnected trailers offered them visual cover laterally but also prevented them from seeing laterally. They had a clear view forward and behind, but not sideways. Nathan decided it was a good trade-off.

He reached into the backseat and grabbed the case. Inside was a bowl-shaped device with a handle, similar to a radar gun.

“What is that?”

“Parabolic microphone for eavesdropping. It reflects and focuses sound waves from very narrow angles. At this distance, I can isolate a single motel window or door. If anyone’s inside talking, I should be able to hear them, but I need to know which room. The only way to do that is on foot with the coordinate reader. I need you sit tight while I conduct a foot reconnaissance. We’ll be able to communicate using the radios, but the same rule applies as it did at the warehouse. Don’t talk to me unless you see a vehicle or person approach the motel. Keep the doors locked. I’m leaving the key in the ignition. If someone sees you or approaches the car, let me know by radio. If that doesn’t work, turn the key and honk the horn. I’ll be here in no time.”