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

at the end of the street and we drive back the other way. We do this until the job’s done.”

“Anything you say. And afterwards?”

“Just drive away as fast as you can. I’ll tell you where to go.”

The driver nodded as he cruised down the strip. Cancun had become so clogged with traffic that getting up enough speed to do anything but cruise seemed impossible. Fernando rolled the window down and inspected each bar. A narco like Francisco wouldn’t be difficult to spot here.

Their car rolled down the street as Fernando did his best to not attract too much attention. The faces passed like flipping through a high school yearbook. All of them just ordinary people on vacation.

“You see anything?” asked Alex.

“Nothing.”

They turned around and made their way down the other side. Again, Fernando studied the faces but saw nobody resembling Francisco. For the sake of Vargas and the honour of their cartel, he would do this all night if he had to.

“We could be here for hours.” Alex reclined in the backseat. “This is a stupid plan.”

Fernando ignored him as the taxi conducted another couple of patrols up and down the street. Some new faces appeared to him, but none were faces he wanted to see. The more they drove the more Fernando started to doubt himself. Had Francisco already returned to Guanajuato?

“Pull up across the street from the Hotel Paradise. I want to see the doors.”

They left the offensive barrage of Reggaeton behind and stopped outside the Hotel Paradise. One of many new constructions from the boom period of Cancun, the glass and steel tower overwhelmed the skyline. When the sun caught it, the rays glinted off the windows like dying stars. Most of the population couldn’t afford to stay in a place like this, only gringos.

“Now, we wait,” said Fernando. “We know he has to come here sooner or later, then we’ll have him.”

“So you say. We should have killed him during the last two days when we had the chance. All this planning is going to make us lose him. We don’t even know when he’s due to leave Cancun. If that happens, you’ll have to be the one to tell Quezada.”

Fernando ground his teeth together as he shut Alex’s words out of his mind. His gut told him Francisco would be here tonight. He didn’t need facts or logic to tell him he would get his chance.

The taxi driver pulled his cap over his eyes and dozed in his seat as the clock continued to tick. The attire of the guests soon turned from sandals and shorts to smart shirts and elegant shoes. Still, no Francisco.

“Soon,” Fernando said under his breath. “Wake up.” He slapped the driver across the chest. “I think that’s him.”

Alex scrambled across the backseat to look through the window.

There Fernando pointed out a man thick with tattoos and the luxurious accessories of his trade.

“Is it him?” asked Fernando.

“I think so,” Alex replied. “Go.”

The driver wiped the sleep out of his eyes and pulled away from the curb. Francisco lingered at the door with his tart of the day on his arm. The assembled taxi rank kept blocking his view of Francisco.

Fernando held his gun to the side of his face, his eyes never leaving the man he knew could only be Francisco Seco.

As their car approached, Fernando looked down the iron sights and pulled the trigger. He fired multiple shots even when Francisco went down. The unfortunate tart fled. Fernando fired. Her dreams of one day becoming a narco bride shattered in a spray of blood.

The taxi screeched away in triumph. Quezada wasn’t beaten yet.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Yuriria, Guanajuato, Mexico

Blake Miller brought both good and bad to the table. The only thing nice James could think about the man was that he’d brought his own car, an Audi black saloon, a new model driven over from the United States. The journey from Guanajuato passed in near silence. Neither man had anything to say to the other.

“So, we’re looking for a red hacienda north of Yuriria,” said Blake.

“Yes.”

“Did you manage to extract any more details about the hacienda?”

“It’s run by one of Quezada’s aunts. There shouldn’t be much of a presence, considering it’s technically on La Familia’s territory.”

“Sounds like crap to me. The girl would have escaped by now if she’d tried hard enough.”

“She’s a woman who has never had anything to do with this business. I’d be surprised if she’d been in a fight in her life. One locked door with bars on the windows and you have a prisoner. We’re not talking about a soldier here.”

“I’m not buying it.”

“Suit yourself, Blake.”

James and Blake settled back into an uncomfortable silence as they entered Yuriria. The town offered little more than a white stone cathedral and a manicured lawn. Few tourists came here, and those who did, stayed only a few hours.

People on the street turned and stared at the Audi as it drove through town. Most of the locals likely had never encountered a car this expensive outside of photos. Some youths even pulled out their smartphones to snap a picture.

James cast a disgusted eye at Blake. “Did you have to drive down the central street of the town?”

“Let them stare.”

“If they take pictures it means they’ll get the license plate. What happens if they start posting it online? Quezada will have your license plate.”

Blake shook his head. “You need to kick back and relax.”

“I’m being careful. Even Diego would have understood the reasoning behind not driving his car through the middle of a small town. It’s not like driving in a city. We’re going to stick out here.”

Blake slowed the car down as they came to a red light. He turned to James for the first time since