Chapter 18 - The Hacker of Jalisco
Mateo retrieved a small, encrypted burner phone from a hollow space hidden behind the bathroom mirror. It was a relic from the dark days in Querétaro, a lifeline he had promised himself he would never use again unless it was an absolute emergency.
He walked into the backyard, ensuring the children were safely inside watching a movie, and dialed a number that hadn't been active in over a year.
"Who is this?" a sharp, highly suspicious voice answered on the third ring.
"Hector. It's Mateo," he said quietly.
There was a long pause on the line. Hector was a brilliant, reclusive cyber-security expert who operated entirely in the gray areas of the law. He had helped Mateo untangle the cartel's financial web during their initial escape from Coyoacán.
"You're supposed to be a ghost, Mateo," Hector said, his voice dropping an octave. "Your name just triggered massive red flags across the national security grid. Someone powerful is spending a lot of money to paint you as a domestic terrorist. If they track this call, they will drone-strike my apartment."
"I need your help, Hector. Arturo Vargas survived the warehouse fire. He's in Guadalajara, and he just drained my family's entire life savings."
"Arturo is alive?" Hector breathed in shock. "Mateo, that man is a psychopath. He has the backing of the Sinaloa remnants. You need to disappear right now."
"I can't run. I won't uproot my family again," Mateo said firmly. "I need you to trace the digital hack. Find out where Arturo is operating from in the city. If he hacked my bank, he left a digital footprint. Trace the money, Hector."
"It's suicide," Hector argued.
"If you don't help me, he will kill my wife and children," Mateo stated, offering no room for negotiation. "Find his location. Send me the coordinates."
May you like
Hector sighed heavily. "Give me two hours. If you don't hear from me, it means I’m dead, and you should start praying."
Mateo hung up the phone. The digital counter-strike had been launched. Now, they just had to survive long enough to execute the physical one.
