Page 136

His voice breaks completely. I give him time, wait. Mauro moves closer, his arms crossed over his chest.

"He took this guy—this guy I knew—he didn't like how he handled a shipment or some shit—" Skinny's breath stutters. "Didn't kill him. Didn't touch him." The wet laugh that escapes him borders on hysterical. "Nah… he took his daughter."

The room stills.

"Sent her to one of those houses in Mexico…" His voice drops to a whisper. "Sent the man videos. Every day. Made him watch."

The similarity to my receiving the emailed video of Catarina is not lost on me. I stiffen. Unfortunately, it's also not something new. It's a strategy used by most cartels and gangs.

Skinny shakes his head violently, tears streaming down his face. "The guy—he snapped, man. Lost it. Killed his own brother, thought he was the one who set it up—" A choking sound tears out of him. "And then—then the girl just… showed up again. Like nothing happened. Totally unharmed. She told himthank you, Daddy, for the Disneyland surprise." Skinny shakes his head wildly, "The man he… never recovered. I mean, he killedhis brother. He thought his daughter was… two years later, the daughter vanished again. But this time when she came back, she was… broken, man." His eyes are nearly bulging out of his head. "I mean, the guy who started it, he was already dead. But El Recaudador, he doesn't stop. He never stops."

A heavy silence presses in.

I have to hand it to the Collector. That's taking revenge to a whole new level. Skinny's chest heaves, but he's not done.

"Another guy," he whispers, because his voice is cracking. "A different guy. He took that guy's wife's mother… tied her to a cactus out in the desert."

I clench my jaws, in anticipation of where this is going.

"A camera," Skinny sobs. "Left a camera. Made him watch her die. Slow. Sun, thirst… days…" His whole body shakes now. "And when she was gone—" He sucks in a broken breath. "He took the wife next." He pauses. "And then him."

The words barely make it out. Like saying them might bring it all back. Skinny looks at me not as his captor, but as someone who might understand what's coming.

"That's who he is," he whispers hoarsely. "You don't cross him… You don't even look at him wrong… because he won't just kill you—" His voice breaks again. "He'll make you wish he did."

El Recaudador most certainly is a different kind of predator. Not brute force. Not chaos. He's a controlled strategist. The stories Skinny spilled take terror to a whole new level, and I'm starting to understand why people are so scared of him. This man doesn't just kill. He dismantles. Piece by piece. Until there's nothing left but what he wants you to feel.

I crouch down one last time. "And Manuel?" I ask quietly. "What is he to him?"

"A runner," Skinny whispers. "A messenger. He sets things up, passes orders, watches people—like the girl, like—like?—"

His voice cracks. I study him for a long second. Sure, Skinny gave me all the useful information he could. That doesn't erase his debt. He knows the guy who sent me the email, that makes him… what's the legal term the cops love to use? Guilty by association. But for right now, my mind drifts for a second. If Manuel is the link, and he's watching the girl, then she's part of the game. Whether she knows it or not.

I look back at Skinny. "You've been very helpful."

His face crumples. He knows what that means. I straighten, adjusting my cuffs like this is just another meeting.

"Mauro." That's all I need to say.

Slowly, the gurney moves towards the ever-hungry Oven's maw.

"No, no, you said…" That's all Skinny gets out before he screams in earnest. The metal door closes, drowning all sounds.

"Let's go find us the girl."

"Going somewhere?"

My heart nearly stops. Close. I was so damn close. I glare at Brick. "I don't suppose you could pretend you didn't see me?"

He lets out a humorless huff and shakes his head.

"I didn't think so." Grinding my molars, I shrug.

"Get in, I'm supposed to take you wherever you're going."

"What?"

"Gabe said you might make a run for it. Granted, I waited by the valet area first, but then your signal pointed down the staircase. Nice touch, by the way. Smart."