David Lindsey - The Rules of Silence

Titus glanced at Rita, whose eyes were wide open as she shook her head no.

“You understand, don't you, ”Titus said, “that if something happens to me-”

“Mr. Cain, you're missing the point. Nothing's going to happen to you. In fact, now that I've made this call I can't afford for anything to happen to you. You're wasting time. When can you meet?”

Titus's antennae were vibrating. You didn't have to be an expert in intelligence tradecraft to see that this could be a major shift in the momentum of this ordeal. Was it possible that Macias was thinking of compromising Luquin? Titus's gut told him this could be a crucial turning point.

Or it could be a trap.

“I'll have to get back to you.”

“In twenty minutes I will call you again, ”Macias said, and the line went dead.

Rita whipped off the headphones. “You can't be considering this, ”she said, and the mixture of anger and fear in her face was painful to see.

“Damn right I am, ”Titus said, and Rita shot a look at Janet as if seeking help. Janet met her gaze stoically, saying nothing.

Titus looked at Herrin and Cline. “Get Garcia on the line and play that conversation to him. Then I'll talk to him.”

While they were doing that, Titus turned back to Rita.

“I'm not going to do anything stupid, ”he said. “If this really is a new development, not a part of Luquin's plans, if this really is an unexpected opportunity for us to end this thing quickly, then I've got to do it.”

“But why you? You've got two professionals right out there”-she gestured outside-“who can handle this kind of thing.”

“Didn't you hear what he said? It's got to be me. In private.”

“Sure, he's going to say that.”

“Rita, what if this is legit-”

“Oh, Titus! ”Tears of frustration were glistening in her eyes. “What? Were you going to say ‘legitimate'? That word has no meaning with these people.”

“Garcia's getting ready to call you, ”Cline said.

Titus nodded at Cline and then looked at Rita. “Let's just take it one step at a time, ”he said. “Okay?”

The expression on her face passed from incredulity to a fearful resignation as they stared at each other. Then she nodded.

“Yeah, ”she said, “okay. ”She was sucking it up. Rita knew how to do that. When the time came that they needed her to do that, she would do it.

This time it was clear that Burden was riding in a boat. He had to speak into the cell phone with a raised voice, and the surrounding thrum was drowning out any other ambient noise.

“No, this isn't a trap, ”Burden said. “That isn't the way these two men work.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“A trap is risky; it's messy. A trap in Bogota, Rio, fine. Anything goes wrong there, they shoot their way out and disappear. But it's a different story here. Here what they want is quiet. Silence. And, as you can see with our own situation, that places a hell of a constraint on them.”

“Then what's the deal here?”

“Macias is breaking his own rules. Luquin trusts Macias as much as he's capable of trusting anybody. He's comfortable that at the first sign of something suspicious Macias will give the signal, and they'll all vanish. And that's exactly what should have happened. But it looks like the only guy in the world who's capable of mortally betraying Tano Luquin is thinking about doing just that.”

“Then this is it, isn't it, ”Titus said, aware of the amazement in his own voice even as he said it. “This is our big break.”

“With that one phone call, ”Garcia said, “Jorge Macias crossed the Rubicon. That's the great risk he referred to. He's going to burn Luquin. Maybe.”

“Maybe? What's the matter? You think he recognized you, then?”

“I don't know, but he didn't really have to. He saw the armed bodyguards. He saw an unknown somebody walking off into the woods talking on a cell phone. That was enough right there to cause him to abort this thing.”

“But that's not the way it's coming down, is it, ”Titus said. This was deal-making. This was something Titus could understand. He knew an ass-saving maneuver when he saw one. “He's trying to work something out, find a way of cutting his losses without losing the whole thing. Shit! We've got to move fast on this. Don't give him time to reconsider. He's got to be strung out, knowing he's risking everything. That's a good negotiating position for us.”

“Hold on, Titus. I've already set the wheels in motion on this end. We need to make sure we don't start something with Macias that's going to cross up what's already under way. I don't want to let any of these guys get away from us. Any of them. ”Pause. “Let me check some stuff. Just a second.”

Titus held on to the encrypted cell phone as though it were a lifeline. He wanted to do this. He was surprised at how badly he wanted to do it. This was his chance to transform himself from the victim into the pursuer, and he didn't want to lose it.

“Now listen, Titus, ”Burden said, back on the line. “Go ahead and arrange the meeting, but make it as late as you can. No earlier than ten-thirty. And even after that if you can. The later the better. I need time to get my people in place. I want every single one of his people covered, and that's going to take some fast and careful planning. This is where all that stuff from last night's going to pay off.”

“What about the location?”

“He's going to insist on picking that. But stick with your late hour. Negotiate. Have a good reason why it can't be earlier.”

“How do you want me to handle his proposal?”

“Just hear him out and do the best you can. Do this, though: Make him happy. Bargain with him, but let him think he's getting away with something, that he's cutting the best deal that he can.”

“What if he wants me to agree to something that'll put you at a disadvantage later down the road? How will I know that?”

“Well, you can't ask for more time to think it over. That'll make it even more obvious that you're not the last word here, that someone else is running the negotiations. That could kill this thing. Macias may be willing to stick his neck out, but he's not going to leave it out there long enough for you to cut his throat. He's going to be paying attention to every word, every nuance. He's the one who's going to be looking for the trap.”

“Is there anything I absolutely shouldn't do at that meeting so I don't screw up things for you afterward?”

There was a long silence at the other end. Again Titus was left to interpret the reason for that.

“Listen, Titus, ”Burden said. “There's not going to be any afterward for these guys. This is it. We're going to use this meeting to close them down.”

Titus couldn't believe it.

“It doesn't matter what you promise the guy, ”Burden said. “Whatever you promise him, it's not ever going to happen.”

Titus glanced at Rita. Her eyes were riveted on him.

“So, this is it, ”he said. “This is it.”

Before he got off the phone, Burden wanted to talk to Janet. Titus handed the phone to her, and then he and Rita walked out to the patio behind the cottage. The patio walls were covered with moneda vines, and star jasmine crawled up trellises in the corners. A window in the patio's walls, covered with decorative wrought iron, looked out toward the end of the laurel allee and the valley beyond.

Titus told her about the conversation, and when he came to the end, to Burden's remark, she gasped.

“Yeah, ”he said. “That was a shocker to me, too.”

She had been standing in front of the jasmine, which was in full bloom. It was late in the day, and the patio was cooling in deep shade now. To his surprise, she seemed to wilt. She unfolded her arms and buried her face in her hands. The vine's tiny, star-shaped bursts of white blossoms were a dazzling backdrop for her. Nearly perfectly framed behind her head was the grilled window through which he could see in the distance the last of the sun on the tops of the hills across the valley.