Courting Death - Carol Stephenson [62]
Lucia looked straight at me, and I saw the anger in her eyes. “They took both of his kidneys and paid him nothing. There was no money in his pockets. Guadalupe lost his life for nothing.” She buried her head in her child’s hair.
After a while, when her shoulders had stopped shaking, I reached out and touched her arm. “Did you know either the man who left your husband that night or who he spoke with at the clinic?”
“Sí,” she said when Gabe translated. “One man. His name is Danny Lopez.”
With an intent expression Sam leaned forward. “Does Danny live here in Belle Glade?”
“He used to, but his mother told me he moved to the city because he was making so much money. He certainly loved to show off by driving around in that shiny truck on those big wheels.” She gestured to indicate the large size of the tires.
“Did you confront anyone at the clinic?” Sam continued to question her.
Lucia shook her head. “No, the clinic has been closed. The nurses are local and were told the doctor who ran it left the state. He ran out without paying their salary for the last month.”
“Have you ever heard of or met a man named Joe Poellinger?”
“No.”
“What about a company called OraGen?”
“No.”
In terms of the Whitman case or the threat to my family, the Belle Glade connection was not critical. It simply was another link that might lead back to OraGen, another opportunity for Sam to bring down the black market. I let him continue asking Lucia more questions.
Yet, when I met Gabe’s intense gaze as he continued to interpret, I knew why he’d thought my meeting Lucia had been important. She’d been robbed of her husband, but it wasn’t right she should also be robbed of the money he died for. The Cabrera family needed legal help.
I rose and moved away from the table to make a call. When I returned, Sam wrapped up his interview and raised a brow. I pointed to my phone. “Lucia, I’ve called an attorney.”
Alarm appeared in her eyes. “I don’t want any trouble with the law.”
“You’re not going to be in any trouble. This attorney is with the migrant workers’ assistance office. She’s going to guide you to resources to help you through the loss of your husband. You said others here have done this, sold a kidney?”
“Yes.”
“Then there could be others who haven’t been paid. When Sam catches whoever is responsible—” I touched his shoulder, “—claims for damages could be made against the company. This attorney could bring a lawsuit on behalf of everyone here who has been harmed. She might be able to get money for you.”
“Thank you, Ms. Sterling.”
Margarita sensing the change in her mother blew me a kiss.
After getting Lucia to agree to make a formal statement, we left. Not wanting to ride in the back alone, I sat squeezed between the solid, reassuring presence of both men.
Sam stared out the window as we made our way through the streets. “Thanks, Gabe, for finding Lucia and getting her to talk. We knew the operation included more than desecrating corpses but this community is tight-lipped. Many are illegal and don’t want to be within a country-mile of anyone wearing a badge.”
“You’re welcome. I knew this wouldn’t help Nicole’s legal case, but I couldn’t let it go.”
Gabe turned onto the two-lane highway and sped up. Sam reached over and laced his fingers with mine. We rode in silence for a while. As we came out of a sweeping turn, we saw blue lights flashing ahead and a long line of traffic backed up.
Since it was obvious we wouldn’t be going anywhere soon, Gabe switched off the engine. “I’ll walk up and find out what’s going on.”
Sam also got out and then held up his hands. I scrambled down. Sam leaned against the front fender, drew me against him and wrapped his arm across my chest. The sun rested low in the sky, casting a haze across the land. A canal that ran along the highway glimmered like a gold ribbon.
Sam lowered his head and lazily nibbled at my ear. All he had to do was touch me and I was primed and ready. “How about I grill us a couple of steaks when we get back to my place?”
“Sounds good.”
“Then maybe we could sit outside and