“Boss, we’ve just heard from our contact inside the police department. As far as they know, García hasn’t yet given up the location of his hiding place and he’s going to be formally charged on Monday at the federal court in Morón. From there, we think he’ll be taken to Devoto Prison where they will no doubt keep him in the high-security wing. Once he’s inside, it’s going to be impossible to get our hands on him.”

Herrera cut in. “Boss, we may not be able to extract him, but I think we can silence him. I know the plan has always been to find the contents of the box, but if García dies before he talks, then no one gets them, and the secrets remain secret.”

Nobody spoke for a moment, and then Paz nodded to his trusted number two. “What exactly are you thinking, Luci?”

* * *

The walls of Richard Franklin’s study were covered with animal trophies. All the victims had died at his own hand. He had a passion for big-game hunting and one of his prize possessions, mounted behind his desk, was the head of a rare South African white male lion he had killed on one of his many illegal hunting trips. Despite his passion for killing animals, the one true love of his life, his German shepherd, Mucki, lay curled up on the carpeted floor at his master’s feet, awaiting his next command.

Franklin sat at his desk, reading the single-column story buried on page sixteen of the San Francisco Chronicle for a third time. The small headline had caught his eye a few minutes earlier. It referred to rival gangland killings that had taken place in Buenos Aires earlier in the week. The story covered the torture and execution of two men who were suspected of being involved in a recent safe-deposit robbery. The police had recovered a significant amount of the stolen property and were reportedly tracking down a third robber. Franklin grimaced and reached for the red phone on his desk. He had no idea the police now had Paz’s mobile. Instead, Franklin’s call was diverted from Paz’s landline to his new burner phone.

A few moments later, Paz was on the line. He stayed silent as the owner of his company let rip. He knew the man on the other end of the phone could wipe him and his business out at a moment’s notice. Franklin’s high-level connections throughout South America made him an extremely dangerous adversary.

“Paz, you’ve not exactly been discreet in your methods. The exploits of your men have now made the news over here. How close are you to finding the third man?”