Evasive Action (Holding The Line Book 1)

tell him that I know Jimmy Verdugo and was present in his house when he was plotting some kind of hijacking of Las Moscas.”
He balanced his chin on the back of the chair. None of this would look good for April. “Maybe we can come up with a different story—just a different reason for your presence in that house.”
“We can’t do that, Clay. Once Espinoza talks to Gilbert...and Jimmy, they’re going to tell him about me. And once he talks to them, Jimmy’s going to know that I know about his business. It’ll probably convince him that I stole that flash drive, too.”
Massaging his throbbing temple, Clay said, “Then we don’t tell Espinoza about your involvement at all.”
“How are you going to explain that you happen to know the first name of a woman who wound up dead at the border?”
He shrugged, feigning a nonchalance he didn’t feel. “I come in contact with a lot of mules, drug dealers, users, you name it. I’ll say I came in contact with her before—remembered the nose piercing, remembered her name but nothing else.”
“How is Espinoza going to tie Elena to Gilbert Stanley? He needs that connection to do a full investigation.”
“I’ll think of something. I don’t want you involved any more than you are.”
“Which is a lot, isn’t it?” She stacked the plates on the table. “You need to get going on those security systems. Meg won’t be happy if hers isn’t in place before we leave for New Mexico.”
“I’m going to tell Espinoza Elena’s name first. The sooner he knows, the better. I’ll do it on my way to Kyle’s, my friend in security.” He cocked his head. “Do you want to come with me? You’ll have to keep quiet about Elena, though. Can you do that?”
As the words left his lips, he acknowledged their obviousness. April kept secrets better than anyone he knew.
Her eyebrows formed a V over her nose. “I don’t want you to get into trouble covering for me.”
“It’s not like Espinoza isn’t going to get the information we know. He is. The kind of trouble I’d be facing is nothing compared to the kind of trouble you’d be facing from Jimmy if he catches on that you know more than you’re claiming to know. You’re not out of the woods with that guy yet. This would put you firmly back in those woods—up a tree.”
“Two years ago, you would’ve been happy to see me twist in the wind.” Her bottom lip trembled, and he placed the pad of his thumb against the plump middle.
“Never. I never wanted anything but the best for you, April.”
“Same. It’s just that I knew the best for you wasn’t me.”
A spark ignited in his heart. Was that why she’d left him? Some stupid notion that because her father had been suspected of murdering her mother and her brother had gone off the rails after finding her body that she wasn’t good enough for him?
“Did you...?”
She put up one hand. “Let’s leave it. I’ll clean up while you change into civilian clothes, and we’ll break the news to Detective Espinoza together.”
The spark he’d felt earlier died out, but he stoked it with hope that they could return to this conversation.
“Okay, just put the dishes in the dishwasher and leave the pan in the sink. I’ll take care of it later.” He pushed to his feet and strode to his bedroom to change out of his uniform.
An hour later, they pulled into the parking lot of the Paradiso PD and asked for Detective Espinoza inside.
Espinoza came bustling out of a back office, his cowboy boots clomping on the tile floor. “We ID’d the young Latina.”
April grabbed on to Clay’s belt loops in the back and tugged.
“That was fast. Who is she, and what’s her story?” Clay crossed his arms over the folder with Elena’s picture.
“Her name is Elena Delgado. We got a hit on her fingerprints for a couple of car thefts.”
April’s hold loosened. “So, she had a record?”
“Enough of one to have her prints on file, and those cases gave us an accomplice, too.” Espinoza rubbed his hands together. “I’m guessing he’s involved in this latest scheme that got his girlfriend killed.”
“Elena has a boyfriend somewhere?” Clay shifted from one foot to the other.
“Jesus Camarena.” Espinoza flicked open another file folder and jabbed his finger at the picture of a young Latino with a mustache. “Every crime that girl committed was in the presence of Camarena.”
April seemed to freeze behind him. Even her breathing stopped.
Clay asked, “Where’s Camarena now?”
“That’s the big mystery. His name hasn’t popped up in a while.” Espinoza scratched his chin. “Last known address we have for him is in Phoenix.”
April sighed, the air warm against the back of Clay’s neck. “Maybe he got a new identity. Changed his name to start out with a clear record.”
Clay jerked, and he reached back to tap April’s leg. They’d just been handed a present and she wanted to throw it back in Espinoza’s face.
The detective hunched his shoulders. “Maybe, but we’re gonna track him down one way or the other to find out his role in this mess. We have another person to ID.”
“You’re going to have to find the body to get her prints or wait for the DNA test results, but if she hasn’t been arrested for a felony, her DNA isn’t going to tell you much.” Clay brushed the back of his hand across his forehead.
“The name Elena Delgado mean anything to you, Archer?” Espinoza narrowed his eyes, his gaze dropping to the folder in Clay’s hand.
“Nope.” Clay cranked his head back and forth. He held up the folder. “I was going to tell you she looked familiar to me from the photos of the head, but features in that condition are hard to distinguish.”
“Just wondering why Las Moscas went to the trouble to leave one head on your porch and the other on your... Ms. Hart’s.”
“They want Border Patrol to back off.” Clay smacked the folder against his