 |
The Mendoza Conondrum Part 2
Category: Stories
Eva sat on the couch, taking an extended drag on her cigarette before blowing the smoke in the air. Winston stood across from her near the coffee table. He had just finished explaining how the meeting went with Tony. Eva wasn't amused.
"So let me get dis straight... He believes dat we are cops?"
Winston shrugged, "I don't know. He made the suggestion, but he kept saying how he wants to meet with the boss himself."
Eva crossed her legs. She was wearing a white robe that covered her body. When she wasn't working, she enjoyed the comfort that all the drug money brought her in life. She wasn't the only one who knew the truth about Robert Mendoza. Winston and Johnny were her contacts that she used to play these games. So far, Johnny had been out of the picture. If a meeting was to be arranged, he would be the one playing the main role. The only problem was that neither men were good negotiators. They had the balls to run business, but they lacked brains when it came to getting good deals.
"This Montana is smarter than we expected," Eva said, shifting her eyes over at Winston.
"I'm not too sure about that. Something has spooked him."
Eva shook her head, "I don't tink dat he is scared. He's used to doing business straight up, face to face like most people do. He wasn't expecting to get the runaround from us."
"What are you gonna do?" Winston's question was sincere, but knowing Eva he probably wouldn't get an answer. She liked to keep her motives to herself. Eva leaned up to place the cigarette into the ashtray and then she smiled.
"I'll meet with him myself. He likes watching me dance, so I'm sure I'll see him tonight."
Little could she have guessed that her assumption would be proven wrong. Tony decided to avoid the club all together. He was beginning to grow impatient, fearing that this trip to Key Largo was a waste of time. He spent the night alone in his hotel room catching up on sleep. He liked to stay up and live the Miami night life, but he was far away from it right now. The next morning, he received a call to his hotel.
"Hello Mr. Montana, dis is Eva Florez speaking," Tony smiled as he held the phone. He loved the sound of her accent slurring her words. "I didn't see jou at the club last night. What's wrong? I thought dat jou like watching me dance?"
"I do. But maybe I like watching you without an audience of every horny bastard in this town cheering you on," she paused, breathing into the phone and then laughing. "Jou are a funny man."
"So what's the occasion? I don't think you're calling to check up on me."
"I'm not. Let's meet up somewhere and talk. Has anyone shown you a place for a good meal since you arrived in town."
"No," he replied. "Good, then I get to be the one to show you. There's a diner not far from your hotel. Little place. Jou should have an easy time finding it, I'll meet jou there." She hung up, not giving him any time to reject her offer.
Over the past night, Tony had much time to think about the situation and identity of Robert Mendoza. He came to believe that the man was well hidden, protected even from the outside world. Maybe he was Eva's husband, and that would explain her interest in him. Or maybe he didn't exist at all. The fact that she wanted to meet him a second time told Tony that someone wanted his business. But he had other things on his mind after the night with her. He wanted Eva, and she must've wanted a piece of him to arrange a second meeting into a date.
He found the diner. It was a small building and looked like a small business operation. Inside, the menu consisted of ice cream, deserts and simple American fast food. Tony found Eva sitting in the corner wearing a red dress that revealed her cleavage. Her dark hair was split down the middle. She was smoking a cigarette as she sat alone.
"Waiting all by yourself?" He asked with a grin, she just smiled. "Of course. Why would I bring another man here when I want to see jou?"
He walked over and greeted her by taking her hand and kissing it. Eva grinned smugly as he did this. They sat together, sitting directly across from one another. Outside the window, Tony could see his car parked.
"It's not every day I meet another Cuban in this line of work," Eva said as she placed her cigarette down into the ash tray.
"Come to Miami. You'd fight in with Hialeah and Little Havana," he replied. She just laughed. "I know all about the community there," Eva said back.
"I tink it's funny dat jou didn't see me dance the last two nights."
"Like I told you on the phone, I'd rather be the only one in the audience watching you," Tony replied. Their eyes met and Eva flashed her teeth in a grin. "I like jou, Montana. Jou are honest and jou got balls.. big balls."
"Oh, you really think so?" She nodded at her question. Tony continued, "Something tells me this isn't the only reason we're sitting here talking."
"It isn't. Winston told me that you wanted to meet the man in charge."
Eva acknowledged one of Tony's suspicions. He expected Winston to go back to Eva and repeating what he said. As he looked back at her, he nodded. "Is that what I'm not doing right now?"
"I am no man," Eva snarled back at him. Tony laughed, teasing her. "No, but I think you're the one in charge of this whole operation, no? You see, I've done a lot of thinking since we last met. I'm stumped on something, so I might as well ask you. Who is Robert Mendoza? Is he your husband?"
Eva's jaw dropped, opening her small mouth, "My husband? I don't have a husband." Tony smiled, "then does he even exist?"
He had her figured out. Robert Mendoza was a made up alias. Tony knew that Eva had to be the real one behind the scenes calling the shots. He had only met Winston, but assumed there were other men she sent out to do meetings. She was figured out and didn't try to hide it behind her shocked expression. There was no sense in lying any further to a man who could see right through her.
"Jou... Jou are smarter than Winston gave jou credit for."
Tony sat back and simply smiled at her, "I've been thinking about it for days. So tell me, do you buy and sell yeyo? Or what is your game out here? I have to give you credit. The nightclub set up is a good cover."
Raising her hands, Eva then placed them down on the table, blushing, "fine, jou got me. I wasn't expecting someone to figure this out, so I have to give credit where credit is due."
"Excellence respects excellence. I like how you think. Putting yourself out there as an exotic dancer is a good cover to the public."
"You met Winston. I have another man who I send out for meetings, his name is Johnny. Which one I don't send usually stays back to play the role of Mendoza."
Tony was impressed by her cover. So Robert Mendoza didn't exist. Different identities for the men made for a good cover in her operation.
"Since I figured out your game, I want to show you a good time tonight."
Eva smiled, "but I have to work." Tony shook his head, knowing that she was only teasing. "You already did your work getting my attention. Come on, I'll take you out for a drive in my car."
"Where do you want to go, Montana?"
"Anywhere, and you can call me Tony. I'd prefer that."
Rising up from his seat, he offered Eva a hand. She took it. Their palms rubbed together before their fingers intertwined. He held her hand as they walked out the diner and to the parking lot. He opened the passer door of his big black Mercedes, helping her in, even though Eva could do it herself. Tony was treating this night as a date. Where to as their next destination? He didn't know. All he wanted to do was drive and talk.
The sun dipped into the ocean as the wheels spun across the paved roads. One lane towards Miami with no onlooking traffic. The ocean view was visible to her passenger window with the fading sun falling beyond the crystal blue waters. Most of what they saw surrounding the road were marshes. The ticket back to Miami was through Homestead Florida.
Tony was in his comfort zone. He didn't speak at all as he continued to drive. Eva saw how relaxed he was sitting behind the wheel. With her sitting next to him, he felt that words didn't matter right now. He cruised down the highway connecting the Florida keys without any thought of where they were going. There was enough gas in the tank to drive the night away.
By night time, they were still driving. Eva waited until then to begin a conversation with him. Something more personal between the two of them.
"How old are you, Tony?"
"I'm thirty eight, and you?"
"Thirty three." She smiled, "I like dat we are closer in age."
He turned, smiling at her as he pulled in to Ocean Blue Marina.
"Do jou even know where we are at?" Eva asked. Tony blushed, trying to hide his smile, "no. I just know that you're with me and that's all that matters.
"I thought you were taking me to Miami," she replied, biting her lower lip.
"Oh, trust me, I want to. But that's far away for a first date."
"If you're not taking me to Miami then get back on the main road. We'll talk as you drive," she spoke her demands openly, not showing any fear. Tony liked to see that in a woman. He preferred someone with strength and who wasn't scared to retort his ideas.
"I'm sitting on 30 keys of coke back at my apartment. Or shall I say, that is the stash of one Mr. Robert Mendoza." Eva paused speaking to glance out the window as Tony continued to drive.
"If I take you back to Miami, I want that to come with us."
"What do jou mean by that?" Eva asked. Tony slowed down the car and then looked back at her, "I want you."
"Jou want me?"
"Yes. You see, I'm the kind of man that takes what I want when I see something I want.. and I want you." he blurted out his desires without second thought. Eva didn't know how to react at first. She didn't reply so he continued on, "look at you. You're smart enough to run your own deals. A woman like you needs a man like me. I have business in Miami. You and me could make a hell of a team."
"And here I thought you wanted to sleep with me," Eva teased.
"Oh, trust me. I do. But I see more in you than just some dancer on stage. That's all an act. I can see right through you, Eva. With me, you can hang up your dancing shoes and those skimpy outfits for good. Go into retirement and I'll make you rich."
"What about Winston and Johnny?"
"What about them? Bring them with you to Miami. They can be part of your crew. I have my crew, you can have yours."
He seemed to have it all figured out ahead of time. Eva didn't see a reason to refuse his offer so far. Tony was proving to be a man who thought ahead and planned accordingly. "Is it true dat there is a Cuban Mafia in Miami?"
"Yeah," Tony responded, "and they don't think very highly of me since I had Frank Lopez taken out. They don't like Cubans to be killing each other."
Eva raised an eyebrow at his confession of killing someone. She didn't know who he was talking about, "you killed him?"
"No. I told someone to do it, just as he told someone to take me out."
"Ah, so it was revenge," she replied. Tony chuckled, "I guess you could call it that."
"How many people have you killed Antonio?"
"Since I got here? Or back home in Cuba?" Eva giggled at his question back at her. "Have you ever killed anyone before, Eva?"
"No. How does it feel to take another life?"
"It feels good to look someone in the eye before killing them. Don't worry, you will learn how it feels soon enough if you come with me."
She swallowed her breath after he spoke. Eva could see where this was going. He wanted her and the potential spark was there for them to have more than a simple business relationship. Their talks continued. Eva confessed about her time spent in an American prison. Tony was impressed to know that she was part of the Freedom Flights of refugees leaving Cuba in the early 70s, Vuelos de la Libertad. Eva explained how she did 7 years time in an American prison for women in Atlanta. She returned to Miami and took up exotic dancing after linking with a contact she met in prison.
The name Mendoza was connected to an old cell mate that Eva knew. Shannon Mendoza was married to a drug runner. "I just liked the name and thought it sounded legit," she explained to Tony. He laughed, finding it amusing. When they reached Key Largo again, he dropped Eva off at her apartment.
"I would like to invite jou in, but since I didn't show up at the club tonight, I know Winston is worried about me. I can talk to him in the morning," she told Tony after stepping out of the car. All he did was shake his head, "don't worry about it. We have a lot of stuff we need to talk about tomorrow. I have to call my partner in Miami. You need to think about my offer to you. If you say yes, we can leave tomorrow. Pack up the coke and bring it with us."
Back to Blog List
|
