Chapter 6 - The Intimidation Game
Two days after the vault was opened, the pressure began.
I was walking back to my small rented apartment near the university after a long day of classes when a dark SUV with tinted windows pulled up onto the curb, blocking my path.
The door opened, and two men in dark suits stepped out. They weren't police officers; they had the heavy, brutal look of private security guards or hired muscle.
"Diego?" the larger one asked, his voice low and threatening.
"Who's asking?" I said, my hand instinctively reaching for my phone in my pocket.
"Senor Eduardo Vega wants to have a word with you," the man said, gesturing to the back seat of the SUV. "Get in. It's in your best interest."
"I'm not getting into any car," I said, stepping back. "If your boss wants to talk to me, he can call my lawyer."
The second man stepped forward, his hand moving slightly under his jacket, revealing the outline of a holster. "We aren't asking, kid. Get in the car, or we'll make sure you don't make it to your exams next week."
My heart hammered against my ribs, but I remembered the face of Carmen when she held my hand at the hospital. I remembered Mateo Jr., who had died in a cold cell because he was afraid to fight back.
"If you touch me," I said, my voice steady despite the adrenaline surging through my veins, "the notary, Licenciado Herrera, will instantly release a digital folder to every major news outlet in Guadalajara. It contains the financial records of the 2006 housing projects in Zapopan. The ones where your boss used sand instead of concrete to build three apartment buildings."
The two men froze.
The larger one looked at his partner, his expression shifting from arrogance to a sudden, deep concern. They clearly hadn't expected a broke college student to have that kind of ammunition.
"Tell Eduardo," I said, taking another step back into the safety of a busy student cafe near the corner, "that the game is over. If he wants to talk, he can meet me at the municipal courthouse on Monday morning. And tell him to bring his best defense lawyers."
I turned and walked quickly into the cafe, my heart pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears. As I watched through the window, the dark SUV sped away, its tires screeching against the asphalt.
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They were afraid.
The powerful, untouchable Vega family was terrified of a dead mother's secrets and a twenty-one-year-old kid with a backpack full of truth.
