Chapter 37 - The Ghost in Monterrey
If Natalia was going to fight a man who controlled the police and the state legislature, she needed a weapon that superseded local corruption. She needed irrefutable proof of Vargas’s criminal underworld connections.
Late that night, Natalia and Elena sat in the secure conference room, reviewing the encrypted files they had seized from Mauricio Salazar’s empire a year prior.
"Salazar didn't operate in a vacuum," Elena muttered, highlighting a series of redacted bank transfers. "He had political cover. Someone in the state senate was washing his cartel bribes to keep the anti-corruption task force looking the other way. If Vargas is the one who protected Salazar, we can use these ledgers to trigger a federal investigation."
"But the routing numbers are heavily encrypted, and the authorization initials are completely redacted," Natalia pointed out, rubbing her tired eyes. "We need the cipher. We need someone who understood how Salazar’s internal blackmail network functioned."
Natalia stopped, her eyes widening as a sudden realization hit her. "Javier didn't just write down the attacks in his notebook. He was Salazar’s chief acquisition consultant. He bragged about knowing the financial weak points. But Javier is in maximum security."
"We can't ask Javier," Elena agreed. "He would sell us out to Vargas for a reduced sentence in a heartbeat."
"No," Natalia said, pulling out her personal cell phone. "But there is someone else who lived in that house. Someone who had access to Javier’s home office before he was arrested, and who spent months copying his notes to give to me."
Natalia booked a first-class flight to Monterrey the very next morning.
She navigated the bustling, industrial streets until she found a small, unassuming bakery. Inside, wiping down the display counter and wearing a flour-dusted apron, was Jimena.
Javier’s sister looked up, shock registering on her face as the wealthy, powerful architect walked into the humble shop.
"Natalia?" Jimena breathed, quickly wiping her hands. "What are you doing here?"
"I need your help, Jimena," Natalia said gently, sitting at a small corner table. "I am trying to protect a woman from Senator Arturo Vargas. I need to know if you ever saw Vargas’s name or private account numbers in Javier’s files when he was working for Salazar."
Jimena hesitated, fear flashing in her eyes. "If Vargas finds out I helped you, he’ll kill me."
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"He will never know you were involved," Natalia promised. "You saved my mother’s life a year ago, Jimena. You proved that you are a good person. Please. Help me save Sofia."
Jimena looked down at her flour-covered hands, taking a deep, shuddering breath. "Javier kept a secondary flash drive hidden inside the lining of his expensive golf bag. He told my mother it was his 'insurance policy' against the politicians. I took it before I left Guadalajara. It’s sitting in my apartment right now."
