Trouble, with a capital T. - Nestor Oceteva

17 April 2019 - Nestor POV

I sat down exhausted, the man I had just tortured took forever to give us the information we wanted. I looked at my shoes and sighed. Another pair ruined. I finally found the motivation to clean up so I could get to bed. I meticulously cleaned each tool I had used, ensuring no DNA evidence would show if we were raided.

Leaving the body for the Mayans to deal with later, I made my way back to the Galindo compound. It has been almost eight years since I came back to Santo Padre and Miguel. After his father died, he asked me to come home and be his head of security. With nothing left to lose, I accepted the job immediately.

Pulling into the Galindo compound I saw Romero and Luis running to their trucks with some of their soldiers. Too tired to deal with them I made my way inside and up to my room. I threw my clothes and shoes in the bin before showering, I didn't need a lecture from Emily when housekeeping saw the bloodied items.

As I did every night, I kissed my fingers and placed them on the wooden box. The silver plaque was kept polished and clean.
Nadia Lucia Oceteva
4/2/1990 - 15/8/2011
Whispering my goodnight to her I climbed in bed and I fell to sleep quickly. It wasn't long until I was pulled into a dream.

"Shhhh, we will get caught!" She whispered angrily in my ear. I couldn't help that she felt so good. She put her hands over my mouth trying to stop me saying something in retort. Instead I ran my tongue along her palm and rolled my hips into hers. Her mouth fell open in a silent moan and her eyes shut in pleasure. I knew we were risking everything by being together but I couldn't help it with her.

I woke up to tyres hitting the gravel driveway. Knowing I wasn't going to get back to sleep I pulled on a clean shirt and made my way downstairs. The front door swung open and Romero stormed in cussing out the Mayans. "Romeo, what's going on?" I asked the older man. He kicked the door closed behind him and gestured to his office. He sat at his desk and I sat in front.

"Those fucking Mayans chased down my mijas car today. I don't even know how they knew to find her." I felt my eyebrows shoot up. I didn't even know Romero had a daughter. "What happened?" He ran his finger and thumb down his moustache before answering. "She just flew in from Istanbul and was being driven by one of Rivera's boys. Mayans fucking surrounded them. We were lucky they were almost here. I don't trust those Mayans, they tried to play dumb but that shit was planned. We need someone to head across the border and see if they have been talking to the Lobos."

I wondered how they knew where the woman was going to be. It had to be a traitor in their midst. "Why don't you bring her here to stay here? Just until we can meet with Miguel and discuss the Mayans. He should be back next week." It would be easiest to keep an eye on her, to have her in the compound. It would save having a man tail her wherever she went.

He nodded, agreeing with the logic but he still didn't look happy. "Yeah, I'll call her soon. She ain't gonna like being here. She doesn't want anything to do with this business." Smart woman. With the conversation over I left him to make his call and went down the hall to my office. A pile of paperwork was on the corner of my desk. I sat down and started looking through potential new security personnel.

One applicant was a Lopez and my mind drifted off from the page. I opened the locked drawer and pulled the dog tags out by the chain. It had been a while since I last held them so I ran my thumb across the engravings.

Lopez, Nadia, Lucia
326356885, USN, O+
Catholic

I regretted the last time I saw her alone, I hated myself that we had been arguing. She was right as usual. Her body would have barely been cold before the subject of our argument, Julia, came into my room and tried to climb on my lap. I'm so sorry, Nadia. She didn't deserve to die, if I hadn't been distracted by Julia talking about the mission I would have seen the shooter. I wish I could go back in time.

Putting the dog tags in my pocket to keep her close, I lock the drawer and my emotions along with it. Underneath the pile I found some tasks that needed to be done in town so I grabbed my aviators and headed to my Escalade.

Stopping for a late lunch, I felt like I was going mad. I swear I saw her but when I checked she was gone. I grab a coffee hoping it will chase away thoughts of her. What the hell? Again, I'm sure I have seen her and a little girl but when I run out of the cafe there's no one there. I've finally lost it.

Giving up on the rest of my jobs, I head to the shooting range. This is the only way to focus my mind and forget about Nadia. She's been dead a long time, move on. I can't though, it feels like a betrayal to her memory. Even if I'm the only one who knows we made any memories. I emptied a few magazines into the rubber bodies before I felt my phone vibrate.

"Nestor, are you in town?"
"Yes."
"I need you to find my daughter. That idiot driver didn't drop her at a hotel and she's not answering. Make some calls and check the hotels around the Heights area. Her names Lucia Parada. I would go but our shipments been taken by the Mendoza cartel so we got our own shit to deal with."
"Yeah, I'll head there now and keep you updated."

He hung up abruptly but he had more important shit to deal with than a grown woman wasting his time. Getting back in my Escalade, I made my way back to the nicer area of SP. I couldn't help wondering why Romero has never mentioned a kid before. I knew he was married and his wife was also called Lucia before she died not too long ago. Even the few times I met Lucia, she never mentioned a daughter either.

I spent an hour going to each hotel reception but no one had a booking under Lucia Parada. Giving up, I left the area but not before seeing the woman again. She looked exactly like my Nadia but she had a child with her. I had to get to her, I have to be sure. As I run across the street I feel the dog tags rattle in my pocket and I freeze. The stark reminder of the jingle is the fact that this woman can't be her. My Nadia is dead and chasing ghosts isn't going to bring her back. I turn back and driving home to the compound.