Divide & Conquer by Murray McDonald Read Free Book Online

what she had done. Sean’s mother had raised him well. He just couldn’t lift a finger to hurt a woman, unless of course she was a terrorist but then as far as Sean were concerned, terrorists weren’t human, let alone female.
    “It’s bullshit! He just wanted to get through the barrier and as I explained, this is for commercial vehicles only,” explained Martinez with conviction and some swagger.
    Sean thanked God he was cuffed. His mother’s memory was close to being disrespected as Martinez pushed him to the edge.
    Suarez looked with some disdain at his female colleague before turning back to Sean. “What vehicle were they in?” he asked.
    “A white E series, license number…”
    “Uncuff him,” ordered Suarez, interrupting Sean.
    “But the license? You’ll need it to alert the Mexicans,” argued Sean as his hands were released.
    “You’re not from around here, Mr…?”
    “Fox, Sean Fox,” replied Sean automatically. “ But what’s that got to do with a kidnapped child, what if it were your child?”
    Suarez waved his colleagues away and taking Sean by the arm, led him back to his car. Directing him to take a seat behind the wheel.
    “It has everything to do with that kidnapped child. That van you were following is a Los Zetas van.”
    The blank expression on Sean’s face told Suarez he really wasn’t from the area, or anywhere near at all.
    “All we can do for that boy is pray that the Zetas get whatever it is they want!”
    Sean was incensed. The guy was a law enforcement officer and he had just told Sean he was going to do nothing about a kidnapped American boy. He tried to exit the car.
    Suarez pushed back against Sean’s door and placed his other hand on his pistol. The message was clear. The conversation was over. Sean had outstayed his welcome. Sean looked into Suarez’ eyes and, much to his surprise, saw nothing but fear.
    “Are you going to lift this barrier?” asked Sean, resigning himself to the fact that nobody was going to help and it was down to him.
    “I’m sorry, Sir, you’ll have to turn back. This is for commercial vehicles only,” replied Suarez deadpan.
    “You are fucking kidding me?” Sean stared into Suarez’ eyes. Again the look in his eyes was not a man being stubborn about the rules; the guy was genuinely terrified.
    “I’m saving both our lives!” replied Suarez sincerely, before walking back to his office.
    Sean waited a few seconds to see if they were just playing with him but the barrier stayed down. He was not getting through. He thought about the boy now almost certainly miles from the border, deep in Nuevo Laredo, the Mexican side of Laredo. A metropolitan area that spanned the two countries, Laredo/Nuevo Laredo was home to almost a million people. That was unfortunately the extent of Sean’s knowledge and that had been garnered from the local map left in the rental car. He really wasn’t from around there and had no idea what Los Zetas was. In fact, in the last ten/fifteen years, he wasn’t even really from America; eighty to ninety percent of the time, he had been on other continents.
    Shot at, tasered, cuffed and witness to a kidnap. Not even his worst days in Afghanistan had been as dangerous as what had just happened. He wasn’t even taking account of the detention at the airport, DNA test and transcontinental flight. All because he didn’t go to the beach.
    He started the car, selected reverse and did what he should have done to begin with, find out what exactly he was up against. Gung ho had failed miserably. First though, he needed to make a call and for that, he needed a phone. A plain simple phone.

Chapter 11
    Sean replaced the handset and listened as his dimes fell and echoed inside the empty metal box. Nobody used public phones anymore and it was the only one for miles. He would have been quicker buying a cell but he didn’t know he’d take so long to find a phone, one that worked. The dimes were lost forever, as was the boy as far