Page 86 of Everything We Found

Nadia hurried back to the living room where Cammy had turned on the news. Word that the Hidalgos were methodically killing off people connected to Operation Eclipse had finally been picked up by the media. A former CEO of an import/export company in Arizona had been shot in his home. A retired DEA agent had been driven off the road in New Mexico sometime after midnight and was hospitalized in critical condition. Several names on some undisclosed list belonged to people who’d been reported missing in recent days, the news anchor emphasizing that inside sources had confirmed the Hidalgo Cartel, specifically Fernando Ruiz, was waging war against those who’d tried to take him down.

Nadia watched in stunned silence, the phone shaking in her trembling hand. Thomas was walking into that.

“Jesus,” Cammy muttered when the broadcast cut to a commercial.

“I can’t reach him.” Worry hung heavily on Nadia’s shoulders.

“Neither can I. My guy isn’t answering my calls either.”

“Is that bad?”

“Expected.” Cammy sighed. “Given what’s going on, the feds will be extra cautious about what information is getting out.”

“He really didn’t tell you anything?” she pressed, convinced Thomas must have shared something with Cammy when Nadia hadn’t been in the room. “Any calls or texts that came in while I took a shower last night?”

“Nothing, Nadia. I’m as in the dark as you are.” Cammy’s frustration was evident in the rough handling of her eyeglasses when she took them off and hooked them on her blouse. “Goddammit, I want to give him a good shake. I warned him notto do exactly this, run off and play the hero. I stressed for once he needed to sit and wait. Trust the process. It’s way too dangerous out there.”

“It’s not your fault.” Nadia didn’t blame her. But Cammy’s words only heightened her own fears.

Through the opened front door, they heard an approaching vehicle. For one impulsive moment, Nadia allowed herself to hope it was Thomas. He’d changed his mind, or he was returning from an errand. But even as the thought formed, she knew it wasn’t true.

Cammy reached into the drawer of the small table near the door and pulled out a handgun.

Nadia’s eyes bugged. “Shouldn’t that be locked up?”

“Not out here and not when it’s just me.” She checked the magazine and tucked the gun in her waistband.

They both stepped onto the porch and watched a blue sedan steadily make its way up the long drive, a cloud of dust in its wake. The car came to a stop beside the Ford and cut the engine.

“I take it we’re not expecting anyone,” Nadia said.

“No,” Cammy replied, her posture taut.

A woman in her early thirties wearing a charcoal gray pantsuit and white blouse emerged from the vehicle, her blond hair pulled back in a neat bun. She scanned the property behind blacked-out aviator sunglasses before making her way over to them.

“Camilla Navarro?” the woman called as she approached.

“Who’s asking?” Cammy spoke with a guarded tone.

“Deputy Kira Ross,” she said as she reached the bottom of the porch steps. “I’m with the U.S. Marshals Service.” She flashed a badge, the gold catching the morning light. “I’m here for Thomas Donato and Nadia Jacobs.” Her gaze shifted to Nadia. “I was told they’d be under your protection.”

“That’s right,” Cammy confirmed.

“Are you Nadia Jacobs?” Kira Ross asked directly.

Nadia grasped the porch rail to steady herself. “I am.”

“Got the papers I asked for?” Cammy interjected.

Kira produced a slim leather portfolio. “Ms. Jacobs, I have your documentation. Where is Mr. Donato?”

“He’s gone,” she said. “Left sometime during the night.”

Cammy placed a warning hand over Nadia’s, making her wonder if she’d revealed too much.

“When exactly did he leave?” Kira asked, studying Nadia carefully. “Did he say where he was going?”

“He’ll be back,” Cammy stated firmly.