Dead Man's Land by Jack Patterson (digital e reader .txt) 📕

Simple in that it didn’t require much in the way of planning. Brazen in that they would have to rip off Ramon Lopez, Prado’s uncle and Yunel’s father, who also happened to be the drug kingpin of Isla de la Juventud. Lopez worked with Diego Cervantes, a cartel leader from the Dominican Republic who controlled distribution in several Caribbean countries. Cervantes’ reputation as a ruthless drug lord extended to all his captains—and Ramon Lopez was no exception.

“Did you get the combination?” Prado asked.

Yunel tapped the pocket on his shirt. “It’s right here.”

By day, Lopez oversaw the robust fishing industry on the island, handling the processing of each boat’s daily catch. He had a small office in a clapboard shed at the head of the main dock.

The incoming tide lapped against the shore, while the sound of larger waves rolling up pierced the otherwise peaceful night. A light fog swept toward them and mixed with the dim lights along the dock, casting an ominous glow.

Prado inhaled the saltwater air as he crept quietly down the dock behind Yunel. Scanning the area, Prado saw no one but remained vigilant to move as stealthily as possible.

Once they reached Lopez’s office, they both slumped against the outside of the building.

Prado took a deep breath and froze.

“Do you smell that?” he whispered, sticking his nose in the air.

Yunel took a whiff and shook his head. “No. What do you smell?”

“Someone is smoking nearby.”

Yunel arose in a crouch and crept back along the shed and looked around the corner at the other docks along the shore.

“I didn’t see anyone,” Yunel said once he returned.

Prado grabbed Yunel’s arm. “You think your father is inside?”

“The lights are out. Besides, he smokes Partagas, not cigarettes. You can smell him coming five minutes before he arrives.”

Prado forced a smile, though it did nothing to relieve his uneasiness. But how he felt about the situation mattered little the moment Yunel turned the key to open the door.

Click.

Yunel pushed the door open; it creaked as it gave way.

Prado looked back along the dock and followed Yunel inside.

With a window overlooking the other docks, Lopez’s office wasn’t quite as hidden in the dark as Yunel made it out to be in his earlier conversations with Prado about his master plan. Prado realized they were susceptible to being seen.

Yunel turned on his phone and used it to light the front of the safe hidden beneath his father’s desk.

“Keep your phone down,” Prado said. “Someone might see us.”

Yunel stopped and turned toward Prado. “Would you relax? No one is going to see us.”

Prado leaned back against the door while Yunel pulled out the stacks of cash needed to pay the smugglers, who were scheduled to arrive in five minutes.

“How much is it again?” Prado asked, trying to keep his mind busy in order to squelch his paranoia.

“Ten thousand per person.”

“And there’s enough in there for both of us?”

Yunel snickered. “There’s enough in here for every member of the Grapefruit Cutters.” He continued to pull the money out of the safe and started to count it. “Don’t want to cheat the smugglers.”

Prado nodded and smiled. But his smile vanished as he caught the scent of cigarette smoke a second time.

“There it is again,” Prado said.

“There is what?”

“Someone is smoking.”

“Nobody’s around, El Roque. Come over here and help me count this so you can take your mind off of it.”

Prado ignored Yunel, instead standing up and peering out of the window. On the dock below him were two men who appeared to be arguing. One man wore a white lab coat, while the other sported a fedora.

“Look. There’s two men right there,” Prado said as he turned back and looked at Yunel.

“Ssshhh. I’m counting,” Yunel said. “Just stay down so they don’t see you, and be quiet.”

Prado ignored Yunel again, staring at the scene unfolding before him. A stiff breeze cleared out the lingering fog, giving Prado a clear view of the two men.

Prado gasped. “I know him,” he whispered.

Yunel tugged on Prado’s shirt. “I said get down.”

Prado crept out of the office and stepped onto the dock so he could have a better look. He stayed low as he peered around the corner of the structure. He didn’t move as the argument continued to escalate. The man in the lab coat pulled out a small handgun and pointed it at the man wearing a fedora. But before he could pull the trigger, the man in the fedora shifted to the side and wrenched the other man’s arm, shaking the gun loose. He then grabbed the gun and jammed it into his adversary’s chest.

The man in the fedora glanced around the docks. As his head turned toward Lopez’s office, Prado pulled back out of sight and swallowed hard.

Yunel crawled on his hands and knees to the doorway. “Are you crazy? Get back in here,” he whispered.

Prado poked his head back around the corner just in time to hear a gunshot fired followed by a splash. He darted back inside the office.

“Finally. Now will you help me count this,” Yunel said.

Prado leapt back to his feet and looked out the window, just in time to see the man with the fedora scampering down the dock until he disappeared in the shadows.

“He just shot that man,” Prado said, putting his hand over his gaping mouth.

He felt Yunel brush up against his arm as his cousin was now at his side surveying the scene.

“I wasn’t being paranoid,” Prado said.

They both stared at the man in the lab coat lying facedown in the water, the waves gently bumping his body into the dock’s anchored posts.

“We have to go help him,” Prado said.

“You are crazy. We can’t get caught down here—not now anyway.” He held up the bag full of money and shook it a couple of times.

“What if he’s not dead?”

“That’s not our concern any more.”

“But that man just shot him.”

Yunel put his hand on Prado’s shoulder. “You’re going to end up just like that if my father finds out we