Deadly Games - Cate Noble [58]
Chapter Twenty-One
Monterrey, Mexico
October 5, 5:30 P.M.
Gena tried to eavesdrop on Rocco’s phone conversation but learned little. Since they were in a public place, the Monterrey airport, he was being especially quiet. It was difficult to guess the conversation on the other end when Rocco largely listened and only gave monosyllabic answers.
She knew he was concerned about the abduction of his friend’s fiancée, Erin. Gena had never met Erin but sympathized with her. And Gena didn’t think she’d met Max Duncan, though she might have during her marriage to Harry Gambrel.
Harry’s insistence that Gena accompany him to social gatherings had eventually faded as she’d slipped further into the bottle. There was much about her marriage to Harry she didn’t remember, thanks to her drinking. And the parts she did remember, she wished she could either forget or recall in entirety. Blackouts blocked a lot of those memories.
She did clearly remember her premarriage days of working at the Agency. The close-knit bond the operatives formed was amazing. Gena had met Dante Johnson and had liked him. Rocco and Dante had grown up together and were like brothers, so it wasn’t hard to imagine that Rocco’s friendship with Max was similar.
Gena glanced around the airport, scanning faces, staying alert, but no one seemed to give them more than a casual glance. No one threatening, that is. She’d caught more than one woman giving Rocco a second glance. And who could blame them? The man was gorgeous.
Back when they’d dated, Gena had often experienced bouts of jealousy. Maybe on some level she’d sensed Rocco’s unfaithfulness even before they’d broken up. Don’t go there.
The fact was, she and Rocco had been apart four years. Twice as long as they’d been together. What had once seemed magical between them was water under the bridge. She’d made peace with his mistakes and her own; had chalked them up to poor judgment.
So why had she melted when Rocco kissed her this morning?
If the motel phone hadn’t rung, they would have gone all the way. She and Rocco had left the motel without really discussing it, which was oddly reminiscent of their past. There had never been time to talk about the important stuff. Rocco was always racing off to join another mission—or another woman, as she later learned.
Irritated with her errant thoughts, Gena stood and pointed to the restroom. Rocco nodded in acknowledgment.
There was a line inside the ladies’ room. She stretched while waiting, grateful that she felt better today. She was still sore from leaping from the truck yesterday, but her backache was mostly from spending all day in the car.
Thanks to some new drug interdiction program, it had taken nearly four hours to clear customs and cross the border. The drive to Monterrey had been only three hours, but once they arrived they’d mostly driven around while waiting for Rocco’s contact to finalize plans.
Rocco had offered to get another motel room, which Gena had refused, not wanting to risk a repeat of the morning. They had also done a little shopping, which meant she now had pajamas and a few items to help disguise her looks, like sunglasses and a straw hat.
When she came out of the restroom, Rocco was off the phone. He’d left his cell phone on more frequently once they’d crossed the border since it was harder to triangulate locations in foreign countries. He also needed to remain available for his INTERPOL connection, who apparently was acting as a go-between, hooking up Rocco with someone named Clay.
“Any news?” she asked Rocco.
“Max and Dante have managed to trace part of Taz and Erin’s route. Max hopes to close in on them soon. And my nephew is back with my sister. I think he understands the seriousness of the situation, even if he doesn’t know all the specifics.”
“Are they being relocated?”
“Yes. And speaking of that, our contact has been held up due to weather delays, but should be here in an hour and a half. I suggest we get something to eat before