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“We’ll be home soon,” said Pax, hugging Deanna closely, kissing her in front of everyone. “Just stay safe. Do whatever you want to the cottage. Paint it, buy new furniture, wallpaper, hell, add an addition of you want. I don’t care as long as you’re there when I get back.”

“That’s the plan,” she smiled. “Be careful, Pax. I know you’re good at what you do, but all of this is seriously messed up.”

“I know,” he nodded. “I’ll be careful.”

Annie and Alice said their goodbyes to their husbands and sons, boarded the bird with Evie, and took off toward the east.

“What now?” asked Brax, staring at their senior leaders.

“We need to get back down south and start kicking some hornets’ nests. Brax? Let your buddy know where we’re headed, and if we don’t check in, send a signal to everyone back home.”

“Will do,” he nodded, stepping away to call Aaron.

“I think we need to find a few bars, start talking about the problem with illegals crossing into the U.S., maybe give someone a reason to ask us for help. A few others will play the softer side. Figure out how to communicate that you want to help people. Someone has to know something,” said Eric.

“I thought I saw you guys standing out here. Are you leaving?” asked Aaron.

“No, afraid not,” said Luke. “We’re going to head down to Mexico and kick over some rocks.”

“Shit,” muttered Aaron with a sly grin. “I sure would like to go with you.”

“Brother, you need to stay here and make a good show of not giving a shit.”

“The problem is, I do give a shit. More than ever now,” he said, looking at them. “Brax didn’t know this. We never really talked a lot about our family, obviously, since I knew nothing of all of you.”

“What’s wrong?” frowned Brax.

“There wasn’t a lot of time spent on some of these autopsies, as you can imagine. Basically, all of the passengers were written off as drownings, which they were. But I started digging into them on the computer, just hoping to find something that might connect them all.”

“And did you?” asked Pax.

“Yeah. I have one older half-brother and a little brother, Cole,” he smiled. “He’s the cutest damn kid ever. Fifteen now, so not so little, except he is. He’s autistic, non-verbal, often combative, but my folks do everything for him to give him a normal life. He was an ‘oops’ baby, but they didn’t care, and neither did I.”

“I’m sorry, man,” said Brax. “But how does this connect.”

“Every passenger had a disability. Downs Syndrome, autism, deaf, blind, cerebral palsy, MS. It’s a veritable Gray’s Anatomy of problems. That’s how they’re getting these people to buy in. I’m betting that they’re promising them better healthcare options, and they believe them.”

“They all have issues?” asked Cam.

“No. Sorry, not all, but those that didn’t were guardians, parents, loved ones who accompanied them.”

“The boy, that’s why he was so small for his age,” said Pax. “Something was wrong with him.”

“Jesus, this just gets sicker and sicker, doesn’t it?” asked Hex. “What the fuck is wrong with people?”

“I don’t know, but if we’re not hearing that these people had disabilities, obviously, that’s not something that anyone wants the public to hear. Why? I mean, if it were to make the public more sympathetic to the immigrant plight, that would certainly help their case,” said Aaron.

“It’s a great point,” frowned Saint. “I guess we’re going to Mexico either way.”

“I wish I could join the party,” said Aaron, “but I have to get back to this group. Oh, one other thing. Your boy from the boat show, Marvin Jessup. He was found dead in his hotel room early this morning. Overdose.”

“I seriously doubt that,” frowned Cam.

They said their goodbyes to Aaron and made their way back to the house, where they packed their gear. Splitting into several vehicles, they made the short drive through the border and then toward their destinations, staying close to coastal areas.

“AJ? Hiro?” called Luke.

“How about Tanner?”

“Same thing,” smiled Luke.

“ That’s hurtful. I’m Korean, Hiro is Japanese, and AJ is about as white as a guy can be. But what do you want?”

“My apologies,” laughed Luke. “Does Mexico or any of the Central American countries have lists of those children and young adults on a disabled list? Also, do they have any form of assistance for those with disabilities?”

“ Well, they follow the UN convention for rights of persons with disabilities, or so they say. Most reports say that they ignore those who complain of being mistreated or abused. I think, like a lot of things, the rich do alright, the poor not so much.”

“That’s what I was afraid of. What about housing? Care facilities? Special schools for kids with special needs?”

“ Luke, I think you’re really reaching. Again, you can find those things in the wealthier areas, but in the less affluent areas, there’s nothing for them.”

“Thanks, Tanner.”

“One more thing, Luke. You asked me to look into the boats that were used. Of seven different sinkings, it was six different types of boats. Most were ten or twenty years old, but two were brand-new purchases. Both were cruisers, roughly thirty-five feet in length. These boats are generally used for pleasure boating. You know, lay in the sun on the back deck, fish, cruise, that type of thing. These two were so new, they didn’t even have names on them.”

“ Do we know where they were purchased?” asked Cam.

“ That’s what I’m working on now. I’ll let you know what I find.”

“Brand new boats, probably a hundred grand or more, with chains attached to the top and lower decks. Why? What the fuck?” frowned Eric.

“I don’t know,” said Hex, shaking his head, “but we can’t go in guns blazing, or no one will speak to us. There will come a time when we can do what we want to do. Let’s just figure this out first.”

Spending the entire day driving to their locations, they finally made it to their hotel rooms, checked in with one another, and stepped out to get some food. They avoided Mexico City and Baja as it was mostly tourists, and Mexico City was too far from the coast to truly attract this type of crime.

In the small cantina across from their hotel, Saint, Pax, Brax, Benji, and Bogey got a table and ordered drinks. When they heard a crash and laughter, they turned to see a young girl kneeling, trying to pick up the pieces of the broken water glasses. Three men were laughing at her, and as she stood, they knew why.