Livewire

Chapter 13

Kyle, Trudie and Emilio each sat along the launch ramp in front of the boat shed, dangling their legs over the edge with a beer in hand.

"How about drugs?" Said Trudie. "I bet César has contacts who'd buy large volumes. Daddy makes a shit tonne selling drugs."

Emilio scoffed. "No chance. The cartel controls all drug traffic in the city."

Kyle nodded. "He's right. There's no way we're getting messed up in cartel business." He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. This was proving difficult. They all stared down at the water below while they thought of potential targets. The usual hits were off the table. Jewellery stores and banks would draw too much police attention

Emilio stood up, his beer bottle drained. "Trouble is," he said, "There isn't much worth stealing in this city. Most of the money comes from tourism, the rest goes through the port."

The port. Emilio had cracked it.

He smiled and looked up at his friend. "You're working tonight right?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Think you can get me inside?"

Emilio scratched the back of his head and exhaled through pursed lips. "Security can be tight. Without a valid pass they won't let you in. Maybe if I can smuggle you inside. Wearing my spare uniform, no one would ask questions once you're in."

"Perfect. I can get a good look around"

"You better not be planning to shoot up my place of work."

He laughed. "Of course not. Anyway I just wanna look around and scope out my options"

"Ok, that I can deal with. Shipments are regular each week, so once you've found what you're looking for, you'll have plenty of time to get your Uncle his cash."

He frowned. "He's not my Uncle."

"Whatever. Finish your beers, we should get going for dinner before Mama sends out a search party."

They got into the pickup truck and Emilio drove them over to his house. Elvira was already standing at the door when they pulled up. The bruise on her face had gone down a little. The moment Trudie stepped out of the truck, Elvira erupted into a high pitched squeak.

She darted over to Trudie, clapping her hands. "Señorita Hermosa."

"Mama this is Trudie." Said Kyle.

"Hola chica Trudie. It's wonderful to meet you. Welcome to my home." Elvira held out her hand to usher them all inside. "I could not believe it when chico Kyle told me he had found a señorita, but here you are and you are so beautiful." The door swung shut behind her. "Please sit everyone." She danced over to the kitchen while the rest took their places at the table. A steaming dish of chicken was placed down followed by one of rice and vegetables. Elvira sat herself next to Trudie then clutched her hands to say grace.

Emilio and Kyle could hardly wait to tuck in when Elvira ended her prayer. He loaded up Trudie's plate first and Elvira began her interrogation.

"Kyle tells me you are a singer. You must have a lovely voice."

"Yes I–"

"Oh you are an American, how long have you been in our City?"

"Only a few weeks." She brought the fork to her mouth to take a bite.

"Have you seen the catedral? Oh, it's beautiful."

He could not help but smile while Trudie tried to answer the barrage of questions, fitting in a forkful here and there where she could. After dinner he and Emilio left them chatting in the lounge. Emilio went into his truck and pulled out some unwashed overalls, then threw them at Kyle.

"These will have to make do. They're the cleanest ones."

He raised his eyebrow while examining them. A few oil stains and a bit of dirt covered them. "Knowing you, It certainly could be worse." He pulled them on over his clothes, tugging the legs up past his boots.

Emilio held the back door of the pickup open for him. "Come on get in."

He cocked his eyebrow again but did as he was bid, lying down onto the foot well in the back of the truck. Emilio pulled a bunch of other dirty overalls and rags over him, burying him beneath.

"There. Know would ever know."

The front door slammed after Emilio got in. The engine struggled to turn over, eventually coming to life. The truck lurched forward and heaved around the corner off the drive. Emilio seemed to be trying to hit every pothole and bump between his house and the port. Kyle felt every single one.

The truck jolted to a stop and he could hear muffled voices. They must have been at the port gates. He froze, knowing any movement would draw the attention of the security guard. Emilio's tone was calm and casual. It was no surprise. He had worked at the port for so long he knew everyone on a first name basis.

The gears ground and the ropey engine revved, struggling when the truck lurched forward, carrying them through the gates. The first obstacle was passed. Emilio drove slowly through the port complex, eventually coming to a harsh stop, throwing Kyle into the back of the seat.

Emilio chuckled. "You can come out now hombre." He sat up, pushing the dirty overalls off his face then climbed out of his hiding spot.

With his feet on solid ground, he brushed the dust off. "Where do they keep the shipping manifests, or logs of imports?"

"Si bro. It's all kept on the computer system. In the office."

"Ok. I'm gonna need to get in and see it."

"That could be hard. It's not often us stevedores need to go to the office, and there's always a clerk there. No chance they'd let you use the computer system."

Kyle grimaced and scratched his head. "Could you distract them somehow? I just need them out of the office for long enough for me to check the manifests."

Emilio hesitated, pulling a face. "I can try, I guess."

They walked over to the port office and he could tell Emilio was anxious. Being dishonest was not something that came natural to him. Emilio pushed the door open and peered around the door. Kyle hung back. Emilio's voice quivered a little while he gave some excuse about a container he found open. It worked. The clerk left the office, following Emilio to the red herring. Out of the shadows, Kyle slipped in through the office door before it had swung shut.

He darted straight over to the clerks computer and began to look through the files. The regimented structure made it very easy to find what he was looking for. A spreadsheet which showed all of the ships coming to port and what they were carrying. Each container's contents was listed and the onward destination. Even the means of onward travel - ship, rail or road. He hit the print button and the office printer whirred into life. Pages started to roll out of the printer's mouth one at a time at a gruelling slow pace. He could feel his heart race while he waited in anticipation for the print to complete before the clerk returned from Emilio's reuse.

Voices faded into earshot from outside. He recognised one of them as Emilio. He was talking louder than usual. Probably to give Kyle a heads up. The voices got louder and he knew it was time to get out. He let the printer spit out one more page, then he grabbed the stack and slipped back out of the office door and into the shadows.

The clerk walked by without noticing him, rolling his eyes when he went back into the office. Emilio looked as if he would collapse when Kyle stepped out of the shadows.

Emilio sighed hard. "Got what you needed then?"

He held up the stack of pages. "I think so."

"What next then?"

He scanned around, through squinted eyes. "I need to look around, get a feel for security and how things run. If I'm gonna drive out of here with a container of loot, I'll need to know all the checks and steps to get out the gate unscathed."

Emilio shrugged. "I've got a job to get on with." He chucked the keys to the pickup at him. "You can sit in the truck when you're done." Emilio then turned and walked off into the twilight of the growing night, leaving him to his own devices.