Free GOTU - A Robin Marlette Novel by Mike McNeff

Currently, twenty-five tons of marijuana, eight thousand kilos of cocaine, and three thousand kilos of heroin sat in two large barn-like buildings on the premises. The guards were necessary.
    The sound of an aircraft engine starting up prompted Juan to walk to the corner of the veranda. He gazed at the airstrip just south of the compound wall. In the fading light of dusk, he saw a twin engine Beechcraft taxiing. The aircraft bore a Canadian registration number. Juan leaned forward and rested his forearms on the veranda railing. The Canadians developed almost as great an appetite for cocaine as the Americans, he thought. Juan smiled. They were also willing to pay more.
    The Beechcraft reached the end of the runway and turned around. The pilot revved one engine, then the other. Then both engines gathered power in unison as the plane strained against its brakes. The aircraft started to roll forward and quickly built speed. Juan lost sight of it as it went behind the buildings on the east side of the compound. He walked back around the corner in time to see the Beechcraft in a steep left bank. It rolled out to a northerly heading at about two hundred feet off the ground. Crazy pilot, he thought, shaking his head.
    Juan watched the plane disappear into the twilight. He kept his eyes to the north, even when he could no longer see the aircraft. He stared into America. The absurd Americans believe their country is the most powerful in the world. Yet they are powerless against this ranch, only fifteen miles south of the border. Every day the organization sent more and more of the most destructive force in the world into the United States, and every day the very fiber of that country grew weaker. A proud smile formed on Juan's lips. He felt great pride in his contribution to the destruction of arrogant America.
    Juan deeply breathed in the warm, Sonoran desert night air. He must tell Maria that Carlos would be delayed in returning from Arizona—not an unpleasant task for Juan. Maria's beauty took him the minute he saw her. Her mere presence in the same room excited him. Maria, being the wife of Carlos, complicated his feelings. He respected and truly liked Carlos—he was one of the few men Juan did respect. This, however, did not deter him from trying to impress Maria. In fact, Juan wanted to win Maria for himself, friendship notwithstanding.
    Juan walked downstairs from the veranda and out to the east side of the main ranch house to the house where Carlos and Maria lived. Juan felt his quickened heartbeat fueled by anticipation as he approached Maria's door. He quickly straightened himself out and ran his hands over his hair. Juan gave three sharp knocks on the door.
    When the door opened and Juan saw Maria, he became nervous and unsettled. She did not glow or smile as usual. Maria's face looked drawn; her eyes empty and exhausted. She did not say anything to Juan, but simply stared at him.
    “Maria, I...I just wanted to tell you Carlos will be late in getting back from across the border.” Juan cursed himself for stammering.
    Maria's eyes brightened. “Carlos is safe?”
    “Of course, my dear,” said Juan, making his voice mask his uncertainty.
    Maria seemed to almost collapse at this news. Juan reached out and took hold of her arm as support. She in turn held on to his arm. Looking up, she smiled weakly at him, her dark brown eyes meeting his with gratitude. Juan's heart pounded and his mouth became dry. He had never been this close to Maria before.
    “I am sorry for my weakness, Juan. I fear I have spent too many nights waiting for my husband to come back from somewhere.”
    “Maria, you talk nonsense. Carlos is clever and strong. Nothing could ever happen to him.” Juan realized an opportunity and added an afterthought. “ I would not let anything happen to him.”
    Maria lowered her head as if in supplicant thanks. At least Juan viewed it that way. She smiled again, and, stepping back, quietly closed the door. Juan