The address on the piece of paper led Horatio and Frank to a small house in Little Havana, just outside the main trouble area where most of the gangs congregated. Neat and tidy, the house was echoed by many of the houses on the street: each was well-kept and showed that the owners cared about their properties. Not the sort of area, in other words, that Horatio would have associated with mercenaries wanted by the Federal government. Then again, he considered wryly, so far nothing about the A-Team had been predictable.
With Frank hovering uncertainly in the background, Horatio knocked on the front door. A young girl, around sixteen, opened it, chewing on some gum, clearly uninterested in the visitors. "Yeah?"
"MDPD," Horatio announced, placing one hand on his hip, drawing his jacket back and allowing his badge to catch in the sunlight. "Can we come in?"
"Whatever." She shrugged and held the door a little wider, allowing them in. Inside, the house was still neat, although there were obvious signs of a teenager's existence. Teen magazines were scattered across the low table in the centre of the lounge. Aside from the debris caused by the girl, everything else was tidied away. There was little evidence of wealth here, no plasma screen TV, no computer, just a small television and a radio. On one wall, there was a display case of medals. Horatio raised one eyebrow when he saw a Silver Star and two Purple Hearts.
"Can I help you officers?" The man who spoke was short and slim, yet he gave the impression of being fit and capable. Grey had stained his temples, turning the black hair into a salt and pepper mosaic. Dark eyes weighed both policemen, before he relaxed and smiled, clearly reassured by whatever he saw.
"I'm Horatio Caine, of the Crime Lab, and this is Detective Frank Tripp, Homicide."
"Ah yes, Lieutenant Caine, I believe I've seen you on the news several times." The man laughed quietly as Horatio couldn't quite hide a grimace. "The press are not your favourite animals then?"
"Can we just cut to the chase?" Frank growled. "Who are you?"
"Eduardo Ruez, but you may call me Eddie. Everybody does," he shrugged with a smile. "Please sit down, and tell me what this is all about."
Sitting, Horatio handed over the photo he had pulled from the A-Team's van. "I was wondering how you know these gentlemen."
"Simple," Eddie grinned, leaning back in his seat. "They saved my life in Desert Storm. Pulled me and a buddy out of a bad fire-fight with the Iraqi Republican Guard. These guys are Special Ops. How did you get this?"
"I know they're the A-Team," Horatio said softly, and Eddie narrowed his eyes. "And I know they must be working for someone. I want to know what they are doing here."
"I have no idea what you mean."
Horatio half-smiled. "That's a big coincidence, Senor Ruez, to ask us to believe that you know the A-Team, and that you have nothing to do with them attacking members of Mala Noche."
"And we ain't so hot on coincidences," Frank added. "C'mon Eddie, we all know the score here. All we want is to know why they're here. We wouldn't ask you to betray your old comrades." Horatio shot the big Texan an odd look, but left it for now.
Eddie gave Frank a hard look. "You're not Army."
"No, but my brother was. Answer the damn question."
"You know the Noches have almost free reign in this area?" Eddie stood and began pacing the room. "And the police do nothing. Oh, I'm not blaming you; I understand that if no one reports a crime, it cannot be investigated. But some of us are growing tired of this regime we are forced to live under. We want an end to this constant crime, to the gun running, and the terror. So, we hired the A-Team. I knew how to contact them because I once fought with them. They came, and they promised to help us. The Noches are on the run, the A-Team have them scared and worried."
"The A-Team have them angry," Horatio corrected firmly. "The Noches will not just take this. Especially as I saw the A-Team apparently using foam to attack them. The Noches will come back with real guns and real bullets."
"Hannibal and the others aren't done yet," Eddie said complacently. "You will see."
"I hope so, for your sake," Horatio said, with a small shake of his head. He stood and held out his hand. "Senor Ruez, if you change your mind and decide you do need police help, you know where to find us."
"Thank you Lieutenant." Eddie escorted the policemen to his door, and only when it was shut did he let his smile falter. Dialling a number on his cell, he sighed as someone answered. "Hannibal, I've just had the police here. Are you all OK?"
Eric was running tests on a substance he had found lodged in the tires of the A-Team's van when Ryan walked in, shaking his head. The Cuban ignored his colleague as long as he could, but when it became clear the younger man was not about to leave, he said, "What have you got?"
"Results on the pink goo that the A-Team covered the Noches in." Ryan shook his head again. "This is just weird. They have enough weaponry to take over the state of Florida, yet they rely on a form of epoxy. It's a basic repair resin sold in boat shops, but they've modified it slightly, watering it down to make it more fluid and less likely to solidify. Oh, and they added some cochineal to make it pink."
Eric had to grin. "Yeah, the foam they used was aqueous film-forming foam from your basic foam fire extinguisher. You gotta hand it to these guys: they're nothing if not original."
"Yeah, but why are they here?" Ryan sighed with frustration. "It doesn't make any sense. What're you running now?"
"Mud from the van tires: I'm hoping it will give us a lead as to where they hang out. You seen Calleigh lately?"
"Nope, she's locked in ballistics. Last time I saw her, she was cooing over the AK-47s. I think she's in love."
"Yeah, combine the AKs with the RPG we found, and Calleigh's in heaven. I'm surprised she hasn't run away with this lot. They could give her everything she wants." Eric laughed at his own joke, only to frown as Ryan frantically shook his head. "What?"
"Guns are all I want, huh?" Calleigh said, leaning against the doorway, one eyebrow arched in amusement. "No wonder you don't have a steady girlfriend Eric." She ignored Eric's blushes and leant over to peer into the microscope. "Looks like peat. Where'd you get it?"
"The A-Team's van. Peat, huh?"
"Yep, looks like they're out in the Glades. You want to try running it for fertilisers to see if we can narrow it down any more." Calleigh grinned at both of them, and sauntered out.
"I hate when she does that," Eric complained, beginning to change the test he was running to isolate any fertiliser compounds.
Hannibal was sipping a Coke when Face drove up in a convertible Mustang. Exchanging grins with BA, he stood up and paced around the car, admiring the sporty lines and the sound of the engine. Murdoch had instantly leapt in and started fiddling with the radio.
"I'm feeling awful rednecky Colonel," Murdoch said happily, finding a bluegrass station. "Ah think," he added, his accent changing to a thick, Southern drawl, "Ah might be tempted to marry mah cousin."
"You don't have any cousins fool. And no one's mad enough to marry you."
"Actually, my second cousin twice removed, Ernest, is madder than me. He's got four different personalities living in his head, but they let Ernie do most of the talking. Apparently he's the sociable one." Murdoch was about to carry on when BA growled at him, and he shut up.
"This all you get for us kid?" Hannibal said to Face.
"Please!" Face assumed an injured expression which let his Colonel know that the kid was about to produce something good. Opening the trunk of the car, Face smirked at the others. "And you'll never guess where I got them."
Hannibal looked in appreciation at the array of rifles and pistols, all with plenty of ammunition. "Where from Face?"
"Well, I had a little chat with my new friend Pablo, and he gave them to me. On loan, of course."
"Pablo?"
"Pablo, of the Mala Noche gang." Face grinned at his own genius.
"So you've convinced the Noches to give us guns to put them out of business? Nice, Face, very nice." Hannibal grinned and lit a cigar. "It's all beginning to come together very nicely indeed."