Hunted (FBI Heat Book 1) Read Free Page A

employee, I’m afraid you’d be the first to go.”
    * * *
    Ben glanced around the table at the five Mexican men. Their forlorn expressions and haggard appearance spoke of a grueling ordeal. He couldn’t wait to hear their story, but first, he needed to gain their trust.
    “Let’s take off the cuffs and get them some water,” he suggested to one of the two ICE agents in the room.
    “But—”
    “Hell, they’re not going anywhere. They asked for this meeting.”
    The agent reluctantly removed their restraints and then left the room to get the water.
    “I’m FBI Special Agent Ben Alfren,” he said, reaching across the table to shake hands with each of them. “I don’t condone your coming into our country illegally, but I’m willing to listen to your story.”
    “My name is Pedro Casas,” one said. “My English is not so good, but I speak the best.”
    The man appeared to be in his late teens. Despite his youth, he exuded confidence. But Ben also detected a hint of panic in his eyes. Pedro had lost someone very dear to him, and he was desperate to get her back. This would definitely be the person to deal with, and not just because of his language skills.
    “That’s great, Pedro.” Ben made eye contact with the other four. “Do you all
understand
English? If not, I can get an interpreter.”
    Each man nodded. One mumbled, “We are good.”
    “All right. If you want to add anything to what Pedro tells us, just speak up, and he’ll translate for me.” He grinned and patted his chest. “
Comprendo muy poco de español
.”
    The Mexicans chuckled.
    He turned his attention back to Pedro. “Start at the beginning.”
    The young man told a harrowing tale of dealing with a ruthless coyote who used the nickname Loco and told everyone he worked for the vicious drug lord Enrique Hermosillo. Pedro described riding in a large truck, a semi, and a van. He explained how the armed guards had separated the men from the women, and how he’d been knocked out.
    “What happened when you came to?” Ben asked.
    “Came to what?”
    “It means ‘woke up.’”
    “Ah,
sí
. I woke in the white van with the other men and the guards. They take us to a house to wait until night to go more north.”
    “Where was the house?”
    Pedro shrugged. “It was with a few others but not in a town.”
    The ICE agent returned with five bottles of water and set them on the table. The Mexicans grabbed them immediately.
    “Did you see a house number or a street name?” Ben asked.
    Pedro frowned as he concentrated. “I do not remember.”
    The others shook their heads.
    “No problem. We’ll work on that later. Then what happened?”
    “They tell us to sleep on the mattresses on the floor, but we are too angry.” He glanced at his companions. “After they lock us in a room, we talk. We do not trust Loco.” Pedro drew a deep breath. “When it is dark, they open the door, let us out of the room. The blue van comes. There are only three women. Five are missing. My Maria is gone.”

Chapter 2
    “The kid was crushed,” Special Agent Ben Alfren said. He had returned from the San Ysidro facility an hour ago and sat in his boss’s office giving him an update.
    “Wouldn’t you be?” Rex asked.
    Ben instantly thought of his ex-girlfriend, Marissa Panuska, and nodded his agreement. “Yeah. I probably would’ve taken someone’s head off.”
    “Except these ‘someones’ would’ve had guns trained on you. Not a smart move.”
    “True. These five guys were smart though. They bided their time.”
    Rex nodded. “How did they get to San Ysidro?”
    “The fifteen immigrants and the guards put on blue coveralls over their regular clothes. The uniforms had the logo of a fake cleaning company. They were also given baseball caps with the same branding. When they were taken outside, plastic decals of the logo had been stuck to the sides of the blue and white vans. There were vacuums, buckets, mops, and cleaning supplies inside as props.