Sealed with courage, p.18
Sealed With Courage, page 18
Please, Lord, save Lucas!
The silent prayer gave him a sense of calm, much like he’d experienced when going into hostile and dangerous situations. Was it possible God had always been there for him, even back then? Mason believed He was.
For now, he focused on the present. “How can I trust you not to hurt the boy?” he called, slowly straightening.
A harsh laugh echoed from the room. “You can’t trust me, as you should know by now.”
The voice wasn’t familiar. So likely not one of the men from the Blue Devils he’d interacted with over the past two days.
El jefe himself? Maybe. His quick glance hadn’t caught much other than the area was set up as living space. He’d only caught a glimpse of one man and a boy. If the man was el jefe, he was surprised there were only two guards.
Unless he’d somehow taken the guy by surprise by showing up at all. For all he knew, there could be dozens of Blue Devils on the way there, ready to pounce as they wasted time chitchatting.
Not a comforting thought.
“Let the kid go and no one has to get hurt,” Mason said loudly. “I don’t care what the Diablos Azules criminal enterprise entails, I’m only here for the boy.”
A flash of movement caught the corner of his eye. He swallowed a curse when he realized Aubrey hadn’t left the warehouse.
He drilled her with a narrow look and jerked his head toward the doorway they’d come through. She used sign language to explain why she was still here. I heard Lucas, he’s being held close by. Are you hurt?
Maybe that was the noise he’d heard, but she wasn’t telling him something he didn’t already know. He signed in response. Fine, go back, get help.
Russo is on his way.
“Come out now!” the voice barked.
A grunting, keening noise followed, and Mason understood Lucas was crying out in pain.
“Okay, I’m coming.” Mason lifted his hands up so that his Sig Sauer was pointed at the ceiling. “Don’t hurt Lucas, he’s no risk to you.”
“So you think,” the voice replied with a sneer. “Drop the gun and kick it away.”
Mason couldn’t see the face of the man talking. It appeared the man was sitting in a chair, holding Lucas in front of him. The boy’s eyes were wide with terror, his cheeks damp with tears. Mason felt bad for the boy, but he was equally thankful he was alive.
At least, for now.
Taking his sweet time, Mason slowly bent and dropped his Sig Sauer on the floor. Then he used his foot to kick it away, toward the left side of the room. If things went south, Aubrey might be able to get her hands on it. He straightened and lifted his hands in the air, palms facing forward. He kept his gaze on the dark shadow behind Lucas. “Okay, I’m not armed. Now what?”
“Step closer,” the man invited.
Mason did so, still trying to distinguish the man’s facial features mostly hidden behind Lucas’s head. He wanted very badly to use sign language to reassure the boy but didn’t dare move his hands. He didn’t trust Mr. Happy-Trigger-Finger not to shoot.
Then he noticed the boy’s gaze track to Mason’s left. Imperceptibly, the boy relaxed and didn’t look nearly as afraid. Mason hid a smile, realizing Aubrey must have used sign language to reassure the boy.
“You have caused me a lot of manpower,” the stranger continued. “Injured and dead men, and for what? Nothing!”
Lucas continued glancing over to Mason’s left. The way the man had him positioned in front of him, basically using the kid as a human shield, meant that he didn’t know where Lucas was looking. Which was a good thing or the idiot would likely shoot in that direction, just to make a point.
Despite his early annoyance with Aubrey, he was glad to have her hiding in the shadows now. Anything to help put the boy at ease even for a few minutes.
Mason still had his MK 3 knife, but he needed a way to get Lucas away from the man holding him. “I wouldn’t consider Lucas nothing,” he countered wryly.
“He’s useless to me,” the man snarled. “His mother lied!. He’s completely useless!” The way his voice rose in anger worried Mason. The guy was on the edge of losing control.
“Tell me, Benito Gonzales, do you plan to kill both of us?”
The man jerked involuntarily, making Lucas wince.
“You are also known as el jefe, I believe,” Mason went on, stalling for time. Russo had to get here sooner or later.
Preferably sooner.
The man he believed to be Gonzales said nothing in response.
“I will say your men have a keen sense of loyalty to you,” Mason went on. “They only talked when I threatened to kill them.” He forced a smile. “Much like you’re doing with a ten-year-old boy.”
“Enough!” the man thundered. “You’re finished!”
Mason tensed, expecting to be shot dead at point-blank. He didn’t have any regrets, other than not telling Aubrey how much he loved her.
He gave Bravo the signal for attack. At the same moment, Lucas went limp, sagging away from the man holding him. Bravo darted forward, barking like crazy, catching Gonzales off guard. Mason quickly drew his knife and threw it at the man sitting in the chair, hitting him to the right of center of his chest.
A look of surprise widened Gonzales’s eyes as he aimed the gun at him and pulled the trigger. Mason ducked and rolled, going closer to the guy’s chair as Bravo grabbed the man’s ankle with his mouth and bit down, hard.
Gonzales howled in pain. Lucas broke free of his grip and made a run for it. Mason didn’t take his eyes off Gonzales as the boy ran away, heading straight toward the corner where Aubrey was waiting.
He reached up to grab Gonzales by the neck with his right hand while snagging the weapon from his grip with his left hand. Despite all his tough talk, disarming the guy was easy.
Thanks to Bravo.
“Police!” The shout from the doorway was more than welcome. “Throw down your weapons and come out with your hands up!”
“There are two unconscious men tied with duct tape in the warehouse and this man here who is no longer armed,” Mason called out.
“We have the other two Blue Devils,” the same voice said.
“Mason, are you okay?” Aubrey’s voice was shaky. “I have Lucas, he seems fine.”
He didn’t immediately answer because up close he finally recognized the man who’d held Lucas hostage. Who’d used the boy as a human shield and would have very likely killed him if necessary.
The same man who’d been in the picture on Nanette Espinoza’s nightstand.
Lucas’s father.
“Why?” Mason asked, truly confused. “Why did you take him?”
Gonzales was moaning and crying, his hand near the knife embedded in his chest. Before Mason could warn him not to do it, the idiot pulled the knife out.
Blood squirted from his chest wound. Mason ducked his head to avoid getting doused in the face. He shucked off his jacket and pressed it against the wound, but he knew it wouldn’t be enough to stanch the artery the tip of his knife had pierced.
Gonzales continued to moan, but the sound was weak. Mason could see the man’s face turning pale as he continued to bleed out.
“Why?” he repeated, shaking the man in frustration. “Why did you do it?”
But it was too late. Benito Gonzales was dead.
Chapter Fifteen
Aubrey took Lucas outside and crawled into the back of Russo’s car with the boy. She could see Mason standing with Bravo beside him, talking at length to Lee about how events had unraveled.
Lucas gripped her tightly, his face buried against her chest. She wanted nothing more than to comfort him, and she would gladly spend the rest of her life doing so if given the chance, but right now, the police needed to know what happened to him over these past few days. And what he may have witnessed.
She silently prayed for his emotional well-being.
With one hand, she gently lifted his face so she could look into his eyes. His dark gaze clung to hers, then filled with tears. She cradled him close again, shaking her head at Russo who was watching through the rearview mirror. “I don’t think he’s going to be able to tell us anything.”
“Okay, then we should have him taken to the closest children’s hospital to be examined.” Russo already had the car running, heat blaring from the vents. “We need to know if he was hurt—physically.”
She closed her eyes for a moment, knowing exactly what he meant. Then she reluctantly nodded. “I need to explain that to him, or he won’t understand.”
The rear passenger door opened, and Mason slid in beside them with Bravo crowding them even farther. “Friend, Bravo,” Mason said, putting his hand on the boy. “Lucas is a friend.”
Lucas lifted his head and looked at the dog. It was a little surprising that there wasn’t any fear in the boy’s eyes. She gently patted Lucas’s arm so that he would look at her. With one hand, she signed as she spoke out loud, “This is my friend, Mason. He helped save us tonight. And that’s Bravo, he helped too.”
Lucas glanced at Mason and nodded. He signed, I like Bravo. He and Mason are good guys, right?
She nodded. Yes, they are. Please, I need to know if you’re hurt.
Bravo is brave, Lucas signed, his mind obviously preoccupied by the dog.
Yes. Are you hurt? she repeated.
He shook his head, but she wasn’t sure she could believe him.
Easing farther away, she quickly used both hands to explain, again speaking out loud for Russo’s benefit. And also as a way to help Lucas learn to lip-read. It was a common tactic she used every day in the classroom. “We need a doctor to examine you, okay? To make sure no one hurt you.”
He shook his head again, then signed back, I’m not hurt but my mamma . . . Tears spilled down his cheeks. He killed her.
“I know, I’m so sorry.” Aubrey couldn’t prevent her own eyes from welling up. No child should have to witness his mother’s murder. She exchanged a knowing glance with Mason. He nodded at her reassuringly. She knew this was important, so she continued. “Who was the man who hurt your mother?”
El Jefe.
Mason tapped Lucas’s shoulder so the boy would look at him. He signed as he asked, “Who is el jefe? The man who had you in the warehouse? Or someone else?”
Man in warehouse. There was a pause before Lucas added, He is the devil.
“He claims the man is the devil, which could mean the Blue Devils,” she said out loud to Russo. “Or just an evil man who killed his mother.”
“He saw that?” Russo asked, his expression grim. “How awful.”
“Yes, it is. He’ll need counseling for sure.” Aubrey turned her attention back to Lucas. The boy had his hand on Bravo’s head, and the dog remained still, seeming to understand how much the child needed him. Again she spoke and signed at the same time. “Did you stay with the devil the whole time you were gone from school?”
Lucas shook his head, no. First, Jose took me to be with another man, one with a scar here. Lucas touched his cheek. She remembered the mug shot of Raymond Nassar who had a deep scar in his cheek. Then they gave me something that made me sleepy. When I woke up, the devil and my mom were there. They had a huge fight. I saw them yelling at each other but couldn’t understand everything they said.
Aubrey glanced again at Mason, wondering if the fight had been over Lucas’s deafness or the fact that Nanette had taken the boy from his father. Russo frowned in the front seat. “What did he say?”
She explained what Lucas saw, then focused again on the boy. “Then what happened?”
Lucas’s lower lip trembled. The devil killed her, then brought me here.
Mason took over the questioning, drawing Lucas’s gaze. Mimicking her lead, he also spoke out loud as he signed. “Do you know why the devil wanted you? Do you know why he told Jose to take you away from your mom?”
Lucas didn’t answer for a long moment. Finally, he began to sign. The devil said I belonged to him. That my mamma had no right to take me away. But that I was useless to him now. I would never be able to help run his empire because I can’t hear or speak.
Aubrey blew out a heavy sigh. She repeated what Lucas said for Russo’s sake, then added, “I can only think that Nanette took Lucas away when he was young to protect him, but somehow Gonzales found out. He arranged to get his son back, but it wasn’t until the big fight that he learned the boy was deaf and unable to speak.”
“Which would explain why he called him nothing, then used him as a way to get to me,” Mason added. “He wanted revenge for the way I’d injured so many of his men. Although I’m not sure how he knew I was in the warehouse.”
“He must have heard you approaching, or maybe one of the guards warned him that an intruder was there.” Aubrey shook her head helplessly. “It’s unbelievable to think that Gonzales didn’t know his own son was deaf.”
“Could be that was the reason she took off,” Mason pointed out. “I recognized Gonzales from the photograph hidden behind one of Lucas I found on Nanette’s bedside table. Lucas was a baby in that picture.”
“I guess we’ll never know if Nanette was part of the Blue Devils or not,” she said with a sigh.
“I can shed some light on that,” Russo said. “Nanette Espinoza wasn’t her real name; her ID and social security numbers were fake. Her real name is Margarita Juarez. Her, ah, prints popped in the system because she was arrested several years ago for prostitution.”
So the skateboarder was right. Aubrey was hit by a wave of regret. If only she’d known. She could have done so much more for Nanette. Then she frowned, her stomach clenching with fear. “Wait a minute, what about Lucas?”
“He was born here in the US,” Russo said quickly. “No need to worry about that. I’ll notify Child Protective Services that we found him.”
“I would like Lucas to stay with me, if possible.” She darted a glance at Mason. “He’s better off with someone who can communicate with him.”
“Of course, he should stay with us,” Mason said. “But we’ll need to go through formal channels. With Russo’s help, I’m sure we can convince CPS to place Lucas with us temporarily, on an emergency basis, until we can go through the formal paperwork.”
“With us?” She stared at him. Why was he including himself in this? “I—don’t understand.”
Lucas was looking between the two of them, clearly trying to grasp the conversation. Feeling guilty, she quickly signed as she spoke. “Lucas, would you be willing to stay with me for a while? After we get you checked out at the hospital,” she added, knowing there was no way around that.
“I’m going with you to the hospital,” Mason said and signed.
Bravo too? Lucas asked.
“Yes, Bravo too. We’re a team.” Mason looked at her. “A really great team.”
Aubrey wasn’t sure what to say to that. She was afraid that Mason was just trying to smooth things over for Lucas, especially since the young boy had already formed an attachment to Bravo.
But once their lives went back to normal, she was pretty sure Mason would fade out of her life. The very idea filled her with sorrow, but she could certainly understand. Mason had no idea what it was like to be tied down to a family. She wasn’t naïve enough to believe everything with Lucas would go smoothly. Just the opposite.
The boy would forever be emotionally scarred by what he’d suffered the past few days. He may get angry, lash out, get into trouble.
This wouldn’t be an easy road. But one she intended to travel with Lucas, no matter what.
Deep down, she knew this was God’s plan. Despite the terrible things Lucas had seen, she believed that she had the ability to help the boy survive and thrive.
To succeed.
Glancing again at Mason, she flushed when she realized he was watching her closely. It occurred to her she hadn’t thanked him for saving their lives.
“Thank you, Mason. For everything. Without you, Lucas and I wouldn’t be sitting here.”
“Oh, I think you did your fair share.” Mason arched his brow. “I asked you to leave the warehouse, but you didn’t. I wasn’t too happy about that. Good thing there weren’t other Blue Devils hiding in there to hurt you.”
She winced. “I didn’t know about them at the time, but I couldn’t have left. Not when I knew Lucas was there.”
“I know.” Mason smiled down at the boy curled against her. Lucas was resting with his eyes closed yet keeping one hand on Bravo’s head. “It was good you could reassure him. And you helped him get away.”
She smiled wryly. “You may be right about how we make a good team.”
“We do.” Mason looked as if he wanted to say more, but Russo pulled up to the emergency department of the children’s hospital in San Diego.
“Let’s get Lucas inside,” the detective said.
Aubrey nodded. She felt certain Mason would offer his support in the upcoming days, which was sweet.
But he had his own life to live, one that didn’t include a ready-made family.
A clean break may be better for all of them in the long run.
After Aubrey helped Lucas get out of the car, he and Bravo quickly joined them. The rain had finally stopped, but they were all soaked to the skin, and he noticed Aubrey was shivering.
His attempt to subtly include himself in her plans hadn’t worked. Mason couldn’t be sure if that was simply because Aubrey didn’t feel the same way toward him as he did or if she was too focused on Lucas.
Either way, he wasn’t about to give up.
SEALs never gave up. Never.
The staff quickly escorted Lucas to a room. The nurse frowned as he and Bravo crowded in next to Aubrey and Russo. “No dogs allowed.”
“He’s a service animal.” Okay, technically not, but Lucas made a grunting noise and reached toward the dog. “See? Bravo will help keep Lucas calm.”
“Lucas is also deaf and unable to speak,” Aubrey added.
The nurse gave up the fight. “Okay, fine. But you need to know that if that dog bites someone, we will press charges.”
