Failed State (A James Winchester Thriller Book 1) (James Winchester Series) - James Samuel (top novels of all time .txt) 📗

me in the next election. In exchange, I give him some of the police to work for him. Yes, he said he was planning on kidnapping one of Montoya’s sisters. Jessi just happened to be the one he got first.”

James nodded. “Why would he want Jessi Montoya so much? Is it really because he wants to keep Montoya pinned back?”

“Partly.” Rosher stopped himself. “Look, I can’t help you. If he finds out I’ve talked, he’ll kill me.”

“Relax,” said James. “I can put you and your wife under our protection for as long as this lasts. But if you want me to protect you, you need to cooperate fully.”

“And it’s more than you deserve,” said Diego.

James’ eyelid twitched in annoyance.

“Quezada wants to marry Jessi, either to himself or one of his brothers. He has two brothers. That way, if the Quezada and Montoya families marry, Montoya will have to come to the negotiating table. Either that or risk splitting his own family.”

“Interesting. But why wouldn’t Montoya just ignore it? He has other sisters and Jessi isn’t part of the cartel. It wouldn’t be a loss to him.”

“Honour. Narcos will kill anyone, even children, but their families mean everything. Montoya wouldn’t touch Jessi. If she married one of Quezada’s brothers, it would force Montoya to back down and accept Quezada controlling much of the state. And the dishonour it would bring on Montoya. It would be the end of his reign. Someone would kill him. It would be too embarrassing for La Familia.”

James looked to Diego for confirmation. He didn’t understand the way of thinking or the culture of Mexico enough to know if Rosher’s story made sense.

“That’s how it works.” Diego folded his arms. “It wouldn’t make any sense to you, but cartel leaders have an image to uphold. Humiliate them and they become a target within their own cartels. Machismo is an important concept in Mexican culture.”

James nodded. He’d heard the term machismo before amongst Mexicans. It referred to a strong and aggressive masculine pride. Unfortunately, it usually meant pointless violence against both men and women.

“What would Quezada need to marry Jessi?” asked James. “Who said he hasn’t already done it?”

Diego ran a hand over his head. “You can’t drag a woman into a church here and force her to marry, even if you hold the priest at gunpoint. Quezada will keep her until she agrees. He’ll make all sorts of promises and torture her in the meantime. It’s only a matter of time before she gives in.”

“We would have heard already if it had happened,” said Rosher.

James considered the situation. He felt sorry for the girl, but the fall of La Familia Celaya and the union of both families would effectively end the brutal war between the two cartels. Like many other cartels that had taken over control of their smaller rivals, it would bring an end to the violence. Was stopping this the right thing to do?

“Where did he take her?” asked Diego.

“I don’t know. I knew it was going to happen, but I never met Quezada in person. I met his lieutenant, a man called Alex Parejo. He’s the man responsible for the assassination of Luna Carrea in Mexico City. A real nasty man.”

“And where would we find Parejo?” said James.

“He likes to spend time in León. At a restaurant called La Espadaña. Whenever the narcos walk in they shut the whole place down until they’re finished eating. It’s the only thing I know about him.”

“Thank you, Rosher.”

James turned and left the room to talk it over with Diego. Hostages would often say anything to get them out of a bad situation. They couldn’t risk Rosher sending them in the wrong direction. The longer Jessi remained a hostage the stronger Quezada’s position grew.

“What do you think?” said James to Diego.

Diego glanced in the direction of the Rosher’s room. “The logic is right. Whether I believe him, that’s another thing. It all depends on whether he’s more scared of us or more scared of Quezada. That was smart of you to offer him protection.”

“Sinclair could manage it without too many problems. He could even keep him here under the protection of Montoya.”

“Just as long as they never find out he cut a deal with Quezada. If they find that out, they’ll kill him and his wife on the spot. Speaking of his wife…”

“What about her?”

Diego nodded. “You know… she’s a loose end. She’s no use to us and she could talk. If she screams at the wrong time… she could cost us Rosher.”

James thought about it. What Diego said had merit, but he didn’t agree with killing women on a ‘just in case’ basis. Diego might not understand that sort of thinking, but James still had principles.

“Keep her alive,” said James. “I don’t want to give the governor a reason to think about betraying us. A desperate man doesn’t think straight.”

“Whatever you say, Winchester.”

Chapter Sixteen

Pompano Beach, Florida, United States of America

In the quiet town of Pompano Beach, George Black walked past the Atlantic Fountain, with its spitting streams of water. His security detail hung back searching for threats. Much of George’s support came from the northern areas of Florida. He wasn’t a popular man in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale districts. Nevertheless, he kept his head down outside of election years, so most people didn’t recognise him.

“Jack, has Romero done what we said?” asked George.

“As far as I know. The number of guns and drug shipments flowing through Florida’s ports has taken a hit. He seems to be cooperating.”

George flicked his eyebrows. “Surprising. I didn’t think Romero would cooperate with us. I was half expecting to have to get in touch with Rasgado and have him start up the contingency plan. Those beaners usually don’t know what’s good for them, especially this