Page 44 of Betrayal In Calusa Cove
“You wouldn’t have.” Decker let out a big puff of air in one extended swish.
“I don’t know about that.” Fletcher tilted his head. “Everyone’s got a weak spot. If she’d found mine, she might’ve been able to tug at the right string.”
Chloe’s phone buzzed. She lifted it. “My contact in Maryland.” She tapped the screen. “Talk to me, Diego.”
The speaker crackled, and then a low, gravelly male voice came through. “I’m with Garrett. He’s jumpy but talking. We met in a park—neutral ground. I brought coffee, he brought years of fear.”
“What did he say?” Chloe asked, sitting up straighter.
“He confirmed what your guy Decker said, and he’s got some proof to back it up,” Diego said. “The Barbaros have been running drugs and guns through their plants for years. That was bad enough. But a few years ago, they expanded. Started bringing in people. Women, kids. Young. Vulnerable. They’re trafficking them through cargo shipments disguised as parts and equipment. It’s not just moving drugs anymore. It’s moving bodies.”
Baily sucked in a breath. Fletcher’s hand curled around her waist. They’d suspected this was what had been going down, and Decker had been the first to say it out loud, but again, he hadn’t had any proof. No documents. Only his suspicions. But hearing it from Chloe’s contact, well, that made it real. That drove the point home.
“Garret kept the books for their warehouse in Maryland. He started noticing things. Things that didn’t settle right in his gut. He did some investigating. Next thing he knew, weird shit started happening. Things like he’d get blamed for stuff, but then his boss would be all like, ‘Man, stuff happens. We know you’re good. Now, how about we make this happen? Or that happen?’ It all got very cagey, quickly,” Diego said.
“Is Garret safe?” Baily asked.
“They haven’t touched him in two years, but he hasn’t done anything with what he knows,” Diego said. “He’s scared. Damn scared and with good reason. But he’s got intel. Things like how they’ve been scouting small coastal towns. Places where they can bribe officials, buy properties under shell corps, and build infrastructure that’ll support their ops. Garrett heard whispers—Calusa Cove’s on their list. The marina? Perfect cover. Same with some new builds, investments in businesses that need a little help, and public land near the Glades. Overflow points. Storage and transport hubs. He’s got a file. A few things that are concrete, others just notes and things that need to be tied together.”
“Jesus,” Fletcher muttered. “What’s he going to do now?”
“Nothing that would get him flagged with the Barbaros or their people,” Diego said. “He drives a rideshare and works at a local fishing charter. But every once in a while, someone from that organization comes poking around. Honestly, he thought I was one of them.”
“You do have that look,” Chloe said. “Why is he talking now? Why’s he trusting you?”
“Because he’s honestly got nothing to lose. He left too early to receive a pension. He’s got no money. His wife died last year. Cancer. Real shame. No kids. No grandkids. He looked me square in the eye and said, ‘Let’s burn the mother fuckers down if it’s the last thing I do.’”
“Gotta love guys like that,” Fletcher said. “But he could be playing us.”
“I doubt that,” Diego said. “Man’s broken. Until I walked into his one-room apartment, he hadn’t even an ounce of hope. Now? He’s got something to live for.”
Chloe nodded. “Tell him to pack a bag. He comes to Calusa Cove, or maybe we send him to Oregon. We’ll protect him. Maybe we can give him a reason to start over, after this plays out.”
“You sure?” Diego asked. “Because he wants to see them pay for what they’ve done to his neighborhood. To his friends. It’s not just him. It’s this entire harbor.”
Fletcher shifted his gaze, catching Decker’s. The man looked as if he’d seen a ghost. As if he knew exactly what that looked and felt like.
“Set it up,” Fletcher said. “I’ll try to back channel this with Foster’s team in Oregon and some fellas I know in an organization called The Aegis Network. Between the two, they can arrange transport and decide where to send him, for now.”
Chloe nodded. “I’ll call Greer.”
“All right. I’ll get him to a safe house,” Diego said.
“Chloe will send you Foster’s and a man by the name of Logan Sarich’s contact information. Logan’s out of Orlando,” Fletcher said. “Between those two, we’ll figure out the details.”
Chloe hung up and exhaled. “So, yeah. It’s worse than we thought. And now, we’ve got a guy on the run with a target the size of Florida on his back.”
“Been there before.” Fletcher arched a brow. “But at least we know what it is they’re doing, and sort of know what they want.”
“And what’s that?” Baily stood and paced in the small room. “Because they can’t use this town,” Baily said, voice tight. “I don’t care what they think their money can buy. Or their muscle can push around and manipulate. We’re not for sale. I’m not for sale, and I won’t be pushed out of my family legacy by fear.” She folded her arms. “I guess I know the sick game Julie’s been playing. Dangle those boys, get me to sell, and then it’s her and her family that set up some dummy company to… I just can’t even think about it or the fact that my brother probably knew all this.” Baily rubbed her temples. “It’s like a bad mob movie, and I’m the chick that’s too stupid to live.”
“You’re not stupid, Baily,” Decker said, then he pushed off the wall. “You’re one person doing your best to make it. The Barbaros? They’ve got a network of criminals in at least five major metropolitan cities at their beck and call. Not to mention, they’ve got billions of dollars. And we can’t forget, they’ve probably been planning this for years.”
“Can’t believe I’m going to say this.” Fletcher waved his finger toward Decker. “But what he said.”
“Agreed.” Chloe nodded. “But all this has me thinking more about that loan and how legal it is.”
“I’ve been making payments on it, and Paul Massey said…” Baily let the words trail off. “Massey was a fucking criminal, selling drugs for the cartel. And maybe he had a stake in me going under.” She stopped pacing and plopped into the chair with a sigh. “And maybe my brother knew that.”
