King’s (The King Trilogy #1)(2)
Author: Mimi Jean Pamfiloff

I’d never know if I didn’t go.

~ ~ ~

Four Weeks Earlier. San Francisco.

“Honey, you look a little…pale,” said my mother. Her powder-blue eyes, eyes much like my own, narrowed with suspicion from across my breakfast table. “You’re not coming down with that flu, are you? It’s going around.”

“Fall is always the worst time of year,” added my father, a retired school principal who now spent his days playing golf, fishing, and talking about random, meaningless crap he saw on the news. “They have fifteen new strains already. Fifteen. And none of them are covered by the flu shot.”

“Makes me wonder why we get one every year,” my mother commented as she took a bite of her bagel, our usual Sunday brunch. Although they lived only five blocks away on Nob Hill in a renovated Victorian that had been in the family for over a hundred years, we didn’t see each other much. My advertising job as a Global Campaign Manager kept me on the road a lot.

“Yeah. Makes you wonder,” I added absently, sipping my coffee, a cold sweat building on my brow.

My father went on to talk about the fascinating process for deciding which viruses were picked to be the lucky winners each year or something like that. I stopped listening after the first ten words because my mind was preoccupied with something unimaginably horrific that I’d learned only three minutes prior to my parents’ arrival. Something that would devastate them like it had just devastated me.

Kidnapped…How am I going to tell my parents?

You’re not. This can’t be real.

Besides, who would want to take Justin? My baby brother was the nicest guy on the planet. Ever. He was the sort of person who’d pick up worms off the sidewalk after a good rain and put them somewhere safe.

Who would want to harm him? Justin, of all people?

It wasn’t like Justin and his team were digging up gold treasures down in Mexico; they were excavating ancient pots and plates—crap like that. I remember how excited he was when he’d found a pre-Hispanic button. But were those worth his life?

He’s not dead, Mia. Not yet.

“Honey?” my mother asked. “Mia.” She snapped her fingers and then looked at my father. “I think that blonde hair has gotten to her head.”

I’d just had my wavy locks colored and then cut into a shoulder-length A-line bob the week before. It was practically the same shade I’d always had, just with a few highlights. The woman at the salon told me it would make my blue eyes pop. Not true. But I remember telling Justin about it. That was the last time we spoke.

Fuck. How? How can this be happening?

I blinked and lifted my head. “I’m going to Mexico to see Justin for a few weeks.”

“Oh.” My mom’s opportunistic eyes lit up. “That’s wonderful! You haven’t had a vacation in years. But I thought you were due in New York tomorrow.”

“Change of plans,” I explained. “Spur of the moment thing. Completely forgot to tell you.”

“Fantastic!” she said. “I’ll run home and bring you the care package I was about to mail off. I got him all of his favorite seaweed treats and those socks he loves. You have room in your luggage, right?”

I nodded and faked a smile. “Sure. Plenty of room.”

My father was silent for a few moments. “Mia, I know you’re a world traveler, one of those jet-setters…”

Jet-setter? Did people even use that term anymore? I didn’t know.

“But,” he continued, “you should be careful. That place is dangerous. All those bandidos kidnapping people. And do you have any idea how many murders there are every year?”

Over thirty-one thousand. At least, that’s what the Internet said. In any case, was Justin now one of them? Or did he fall into that other category? The narcos kidnapped people all the time to supplement their incomes.

“Oh, honey,” my mother swatted my father’s arm, “don’t scare Mia. I’m sure she’ll be fine. Besides, she’ll be with Justin. Won’t you, honey?” Justin was twenty-five, a year younger than me, but he was a big guy, just like my dad.

“Sure. I’ll be with him the entire time,” I lied.

My father leaned back in the chair, disapproval flickering in his green eyes, the same color eyes as Justin’s. I wanted to scream. “Just be careful, Mia.”

I took a breath, barely able to hold my composure. “I’ll be fine, Dad. I promise.” But I wouldn’t be fine, and neither would they.

“Oh! I wish I could go with you! I’m dying to see Palenque.” My mother paused. “You’ll be back in time for my birthday, right? We’re having a crab feed right on the pier.”

I smiled and grabbed her hand. “Wouldn’t miss it, Mom.”

But that would become just another lie in a string of many to come, because our lives would never be the same.

CHAPTER TWO

When I’d received the phone call from the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City informing me that my brother and his team had been kidnapped from their archaeological dig site near Palenque, I had the distinct impression I was being sold a barrel of bullshit. After all, I was in advertising. I could smell bullshit from a mile away. The woman from the embassy assured me that the local police were doing everything they could to find the people who’d taken the team, but when she insisted there was no need for me to come to Mexico, my mind tripped. I felt like she was trying to keep me away. That’s why I had to go.

After I got rid of my parents with some excuse of needing to run errands before the trip, I rang back the embassy. I couldn’t remember her name, but I’d never forget her sticky sweet, bullshit voice. When I told her I was coming to Mexico to see her, she immediately pushed back.

“I can’t just stay here doing nothing,” I told her.

“Ma’am, we realize how traumatic this must be, but we advise the families of victims to stay home and focus on supporting each other. Let us work with the Mexican authorities.”

“He’s my brother, and I’m not asking permission. I will be involved.”

There was a long pause, then a crackle on the other end of the phone. Was she eating a snack? “If you choose to come, we cannot stop you.” She crunched down on whatever she was eating. “We simply ask that you do not impede the investigation.”

Why would I want to impede anyone from finding my brother?

“Just tell me who to ask for when I get there,” I said.