The Rules of Silence Read online

  From the clifftop homes above, the bass boat hadn't been visible at all for the last half hour.

  The boat hugged its shady bower for nearly twenty-five minutes. The ski boats continued to plow liquid furrows in the lake, only to have them dissipate in swells that headed slowly for the shores in a lugubrious flight from the boats that had created them.

  Finally the anglers had had enough. Slowly the boat emerged from overhanging vegetation under the high cliffs and moved out into the lake. After crossing to the other side, it turned southward and picked up speed as it headed downriver toward the main part of the city. Soon the boat was clipping along, wasting no time. It was too far from shore and moving too fast for anyone to see clearly under the deep shade of its canvas canopy. But anyone who had had the opportunity, or cared enough to follow closely the boat's progress up, and now down, the river, would have made the curious observation that there seemed to be only one angler in the bass boat now.

  When the telephone rang, Rita picked it up in Titus's office, where she was still making calls about Carla.

  “May I please speak to Mr. Cain? ”a man asked.

  Rita froze. He had a Spanish accent. All of the planning, all of the tactical maneuverings, were taking place over secure transmissions. What was this? Was it unrelated? She threw a look at Janet, who was standing at the window.

  “May I tell him who's calling?”

  “He's expecting me.”

  Another alarm bell.

  “Just a second, ”she said, “I'll have to connect you to his phone. ”She punched the hold button and spoke to Janet. “This is someone asking for Titus. Mexican accent. Won't leave his name.”

  “Just put him through, ”she said, and then she turned aside and spoke softly into her mike.

  Herrin was tapping away on the laptop found in the orchard, with Titus and Cline looking over his shoulders. Cline, who was wearing headphones and a mike on a long cord, was the communications hub for everyone. He heard all transmissions among the bodyguards and all the phone calls.

  “Uhhh … , ”Herrin said.

  The three of them were looking at a picture of Rita just about as naked as anyone could be and still be wearing clothes. She was beautiful.

  “Son of a bitch, ”Titus said. “How many of those are there?”

  “Uhh … one other, ”Herrin said, closing the image.

  “Let's see it, ”Titus said, and Herrin hit the keys.

  Unbelievable.

  “Delete it, ”Titus said, “and keep going. ”Jesus Christ. He was furious, and uneasy with the creepy feeling that came over him as an image popped into his head of some guy crouching behind the stone wall taking nearly nude pictures of Rita.

  Herrin's fingers snapped over the keys in double time, as if to get the hell away from those images as fast as possible. Then he hit the ones he was looking for. Five shots. He went through them quickly, slowing on the last two. He threw them both on the screen at the same time. The three of them stared at the photos.

  “I just don't see how you could identify him from those,” Titus said.

  “I guess that depends on what kind of software they're going to use, ”Herrin said.

  “Yeah, I guess so, ”Titus agreed. “But, right off the bat, I don't see how this is any great revelation for them.”

  The phone rang on the coffee table in front of the sofa. Surprised, Titus saw that it was coming from his office. He went over and picked it up. He glanced at Cline, who seemed to be listening to some other communication.

  “Titus, ”Rita said, “this is some guy with a Spanish accent for you. Wouldn't give his name.”

  “Did he say what he wanted?”

  “He said you were expecting the call.”

  Titus turned to Cline, who was already nodding at him and heading for the digital trace-and-record setup sitting on folding tables against one wall.

  “Titus, I'm coming over, ”Rita said. “I want to hear this.”

  Before he could object she disconnected, and he glanced at Cline.

  “She can use those headphones over there, ”Cline said, pointing at the other end of the table. “We're good to go.”

  Titus punched the button on the phone.

  “This is Titus.”

  “My name is Jorge Macias. I believe you know about me already.”

  Titus, stunned, said nothing.

  “I think you do, ”Macias said. “I want you to know that I am taking a deadly risk by making this call to you. I have to meet with you, Mr. Cain. We have to talk.”

  Another pause. Titus didn't know what to say. The cottage door flung open and Rita and Janet came in. Herrin caught them, cautioned them to be quiet, and guided Rita to the headphones across the room.

  “I don't know who you are, ”Titus said. “What's this about?”

  “Listen to me, ”Macias said. “There is no time to play games here. Your situation is critical. Things … out of my control, are happening. Things that were not anticipated. We are now in a situation that is getting very close to being all or nothing—for both of us. And if we don't talk, we are both going to regret that we didn't.”

  “And I'm supposed to believe this?”

  “Believe it. All I have to do when I hang up here is push one button on my cell phone and everything on this end of this situation disappears. ”Pause. “But, Mr. Cain, I think you know by now that that will not be the end of it for you. And, believe me, you have no idea how much worse it can get.”

  Silence.

  “Does that mean anything to you? ”Macias asked.

  Long pause. Titus saw no use in pretending any further.

  “Yeah, ”he said, “it means something to me. Tell me, though, what's happened … what's changed that makes you want to talk to me?”

  “I have to tell you that in private. Only you and I can make the decisions we have to make. We have to understand each other very clearly.”

  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 Luquín? 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 García 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 Luquín'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.”

  “García'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.

  Chapter 43

  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 Bogotá, 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. Luquín 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 Luquín 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, ”García said, “Jorge Macias crossed the Rubicon. That's the great risk he referred to. He's going to burn Luquín. 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 allée 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.

  “This is too much, ”she said through her hands. He could see her chest moving, searching for air. He looked at the top of her head, her thick buttery hair parted in the middle and pulled back. “The damned tension, ”she said, and took her hands down and looked at him with red eyes. “Titus, I'm so afraid.”

  He went over to her and gently put his arms around her. He felt her simply fold herself into his embrace, a rare moment for Rita as she completely gave in to the vulnerability that she could no longer overcome. It was an emotion that she had conquered again and again throughout her life, a conquest that had earned her the reputation for being a strong, rock-solid woman. But this time she just couldn't do it.

  “It's going to be all right, ”he said. “I'm afraid, too, no doubt about it. But we both know that I've got to do this. And I want to do it. I've never wanted to do anything in my life more than I want to do this.”

  Chapter 44

  When Macias started back into the house from the shade around the pool where he'd been on the phone, he saw Luquín through the tinted glass walls, looking at him. Luquín was wearing sunglasses because he was looking outside, and he was watching Macias as if he were watching a fish in an aquarium. But Macias feared there was more on Luquín's mind than idle curiosity.

  Macias closed the door behind him, walked over to the sofa, and flopped down where he'd left a soft drink in a glass of ice on the coffee table. The nine-foot television screen was flickering with a movie that Roque had been watching, sitting in an armchair like a cruel imbecile with his headphones on. Luquín didn't like the damn television, but he let Roque watch it because it was one of the few things the guy liked to do besides reading the sepia-toned adult comic books that he devoured.

  “So, what's going on? ”Luquín asked when Macias picked up his soft drink.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You been on the phone a lot.”

  “I don't want any screwups, ”Macias said. “If we can believe what we heard Cain tell his wife, things are going to start heating
up. So far it's been fairly smooth. I want it to stay that way.”

  Luquín took off his sunglasses and put his hands in his pocket. He looked down and walked from one side of the glass wall to the other, thinking. Macias glanced at the movie. He didn't recognize it. He looked at Luquín. He had to admit that Luquín's pensive mood made him uncomfortable.

  And it should have. In the last hour Macias had initiated steps that, if followed through, would change the rest of his life no matter what happened. Actually, even if he didn't follow through, that call would change the rest of his life. If the people working with Cain were smart, they would know that by simply contacting them for a meeting, Macias had ended his relationship with Luquín. They could use that phone call—again, if they were smart, they would have recorded it—to blow things apart.

  Did Luquín suspect any of this? You had to always fear that Luquín suspected everything. He was uncanny about this sort of treachery within his ranks. And sometimes—Macias had seen it more than a few times—he even wiped out completely loyal men because he suspected them, wrongly.

  Macias had one thing in his favor: He was Luquín's número uno. So far Luquín had never turned on anyone that high. It was the bane of a tyrant that at some point he had to trust someone. He had to. But not forever.

  “I've been thinking— ”Luquín suddenly interrupted himself and turned from the windows where he'd been standing, jingling the American nickels and dimes in his pocket. “You started the thing on Cain's wife yet?”

  “Yeah, ”Macias lied, trying to sound on top of it. Luquín took it for granted that if Macias said a certain thing was in the works, then it was in the works, and it would be done. He was getting complacent in his middle age. He relied on others to take care of the details for him.

  “I've been thinking, ”Luquín continued, picking up where he had interrupted himself. “I want that to be one special hit. It's got to be an accident, you know, like the rest of them so he'll know what happened—but even so, you know, a special accident. Something so that, when it happens it brings shame on her, public shame, so that he can't cover it up.”