Chapter 2 : Tango
Carlos had picked a secluded table in the corner at the back of the bar. From where he sat beside Chola, he could see nearly all of the people in there. Ramiro and Omar were sitting at a table off to one side, nursing beers they were chatting about something he could not make out. Probably getting bored as they had been waiting for over an hour now. A group of four bikers were sitting at a table in the opposite corner. Carlos had spotted them when he had come in, but they did not look like trouble, so no need to change the plans. Sarah had not been too keen on meeting in the bar, but he was uncomfortable meeting at his house. When they had left that evening, he had had the impression that he was being watched, and so had driven on a circuitous route to get to the bar. If the girl had been following them, then they must surely have lost her. Though as they entered the bar, he had the impression that they were being watched. He had looked around, but could see no one.
The door to the bar opened, and he looked across. A young couple, walked in and sat down at a table, the man beckoning to the waitress as they did so, whilst his blonde girlfriend looked over to Carlos, then hastily back to her boyfriend. They did not look like, or behave like Feds or cops, Carlos was always wary, always alert. He was still unclear over the death of his Uncle some months before. He suspected that Enrique had been in contact with the Feds, if so then they may be onto him. It was the uncertainty of it that Carlos found unnerving. If he knew for sure that they were after him, then he could take measures, but not knowing when the knock at the door, or the heavy hand on his shoulder might come preyed on his mind.
The jukebox started up, the blonde had picked out an old Marvin Gaye number.
Chola nudged him, and he flinched slightly. She was looking to the door, he had not noticed it opening. He saw Sarah and her daughter. Sarah was looking around the bar, she seemed to be looking carefully at all the people in there. The daughter locked eyes with him, then the two of them made their way over to him.
Sarah sat down opposite him. The daughter sat down next to her. The scar on her face much smaller and faded than the one he had seen in the drawing. Sarah clasped her hands on the table, her dark hair cascading over her shoulders. Carlos was always slightly uneasy in her presence. She had always struck him as a dangerous person, always close to the limit of her self control, never quite going over the edge, but never far away from it. Yet it was this very aspect of her that Carlos somehow found alluring. Inez was so predictable, and sometimes Carlos found himself attracted to her opposite.
Chola glanced over to the jukebox, and looked meaningfully at Sarah's daughter. The two of them then got up from the table without a word, and walked over to it.
"Good to see you again Carlos. How's business?" Sarah asked.
"Not bad. Always busy. Beer?" Cruz smiled at the waitress as she passed by, and pointed to the bottle of beer in front of him.
"I was surprised when you called me on the phone. I thought at first it might not be you. That's why we were late, watching who went in and out for a while."
Sarah looked up and smiled a thank you at the waitress as she put an open bottle in front of her. "What was it that you could not say on the phone? Why the meet in person?"
"I'll come to that." Carlos said. "But there was something else. The cops were sniffing around Enriquez few months back. You heard he'd died I take it? Murdered they say. Two bullets. Bang bang." He made a gun with his hand and pretended to shoot Sarah. "Now I think about it, you must have been about the last person to speak to him."
Sarah looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression. "From what I heard Carlos, he was killed a couple days after I last spoke to him. I did hear a rumour he was an informer. Man can make a lot of enemies that way." She lifted the beer, and took a drink.
Carlos looked her in the eye, convinced she was hiding something. At that moment the juke box changed to a dance track. He glanced across to where Chola and the daughter had started dancing. It seemed that Chola was teaching her how to dance to that type of music, and she was picking it up quickly. There was something almost sexy with the way she was dancing, though she had always seemed so innocent when Carlos had met her previously.
"I didn't think you were all that close to Enriquez." Sarah continued. "Was there something else you wanted to talk about?"
"He was family, always close to family. But here, take a look at these." Carlos pulled the drawings from his pocket and pushed them across the table to Sarah.
She took them and unfolded them, smoothing them flat with her hand. Her expression changed, she was no longer slightly disconnected and bored. Now Carlos had her full attention, and she seemed almost shaken by the drawings.
"Where did you get these?" She demanded.
She seemed to have forgotten Enriquez. Carlos still thought it was Sarah who had shot him, but was not too concerned. If you run with wolves, expect to get bitten. Enrique had once told him.
"She dances well, your daughter." He said, looking across at them. "They both do." Chola and the girl were swaying rhythmically to the music. The biker gang were looking across at the girls. He turned to Ramiro and Omar, they were both looking towards the biker gang. He knew that Ramiro was carrying a gun, not so sure about Omar.
"Do you have another daughter?" Cruz asked.
"No, just the one." Sarah replied. "One like that is enough for anyone." Then more firmly, "The drawings Carlos? That scar on Cameron's face, she only got that two days ago. These drawing were done about then. Where from ?"
She seemed so convincing to Carlos, but she had to be lying, the scar was at least a week old, perhaps older. But the sudden burst of emotion had made her seem so attractive, so full of life and energy. Carlos had a pang of guilt over the thought.
"I thought she might have been your daughter. Long lost child or something. That's what she said." He said.
"Who? What girl?"
"She came around our way this morning. Bit younger than..." He pointed. "...Cameron. Slightly shorter. Dressed in weird clothes. She was asking after you, trying to arrange a meet. When she gave me those drawing I knew it was you." He took another drink of beer. "She was weird. Almost crazy weird."
He looked across at Sarah. She was staring down at the table. She seemed to have shrunk in on herself. She appeared to think for a while, then pulled herself together. Sat upright, and looked back at him.
"Enrique used to say 'Al que madruga, Dios lo ayuda.'" She said. "I need to meet this girl. Can you get a message to her?"
"Yeah, she left a cell phone number. You want meet a place of your choosing not hers? I'll need money." He said. "For my trouble."
"Or course." Sarah tried to smile, but it was more of a grimace. "Give me a moment to think about it."
Cruz looked back at the girls. Two of the biker gang were now dancing with the girls. He glanced across at Ramiro and Omar, they were staring at the biker gang with blank expressions. Almost as if they were resigned to having a fight a bit later on.
The waitress passed by and Carlos signalled for two more beers. "That's a job I don't think I could do." He said. "Serving tables. Having to be polite to people.
"You get used to it." Sarah muttered. She then raised her head and seemed to draw herself together. "Ok. We will meet with this girl. I know of a place, but I'd like to check it out. It's on the south side of the city, I'll phone you and let you know where and when. Don't tell her until just before though. I don't want to risk her setting up an ambush or calling the cops on us."
Carlos shrugged. "I'll let her know. You can trust me Sarah."
"Good." Sarah stood up. "It's almost been a pleasure Carlos. Wish I could stay, but you know how it is." She nodded to him and turned to the door. He looked after her. Something about her attracted him. She looked good for her age, she had to be several years older than him. He glanced at her daughter, who was following her to the door. Perhaps she was even older than that, he thought. He took another swig of beer. Chola was returning to the table, and the biker gang were ignoring her. They had started playing pool amongst themselves. Ramiro and Cruz seemed relieved that the fight had been avoided.
He reached into his jacket and fingered his phone. He would call the girl and arrange a meet.