Bad Jim drives the big car down yet one more hot, dusty, Mexican road.  Initially he had been followed by people that he had hired.  However, the hired people have done the job they were paid for and they're now on their way back to the US border.  However, they have left behind them several hidden supplies of fuel and they have also hidden a powerful motorcycle, of the dirt bike variety.

Bad Jim finally spots the place he has been told to look for.

It's a big house, set well back off the main road.  It's a lone house surrounded by high walls, with iron bars on the windows and gates.  Just outside the walls are fairly deep ditches.  The place is a fort.  It's easy to defend and hard to attack, at least if the attacker uses conventional techniques.

Bad Jim swings the nose of the big Mercedes into a drive that leads to a locked gate and politely beeps the horn.

A man appears from behind the Mercedes and asks Bad Jim what he wants.  The fact that the man asks his question in English and not Spanish, shows that Bad Jim is expected.

Bad Jim identifies himself and tells the man that he has come to speak with Linda Jones.

After a bit of questioning by the man, the gate is unlocked by another man, from inside.  Bad Jim is then allowed to park his car in a sort of courtyard inside the walls of the house.  He's then ushered into the living room of the house by the first man and another man who appears out of nowhere.  The two armed men escort Bad Jim into the house where he's directed to sit in a chair.

Bad Jim is then confronted by another armed Mexican man.  The Mexican man snarls, “What do you want here, gabacho?”

Bad Jim replies slowly and calmly, but without any sign of weakness, “What I have to say is from my employer and for the lady of the house only.  Surely you already knew that.  It puzzles me why you waste time.”

The Mexican man towers over the seated American.  He snarls, “I should just kill you, you know.”

Bad Jim looks at the man without any obvious emotion, “If you kill me, many men will follow me and well, I think you know what the final result would be.”

The situation teeters on the edge of control.  The Mexican man is large, strong looking and used to commanding other men.  Since it has become quickly obvious that he can't either scare or command Bad Jim, violence lurks very near the surface.

The situation might well have turned to violence.  However, a woman’s voice suddenly breaks the tension between the two men.

The woman commands, “Henrique!  That will be enough.  The man they sent is not stupid enough to harm me when he's surrounded by your men.  You have done well, now leave us alone.”

The big Mexican produces a pistol from a holster somewhere at his back and points the gun at Bad Jim.  The big man says, “Gabacho, if you so much as insult the lady, you will die by the gun or a very much worse death!”

Henrique then leaves and Bad Jim politely addresses the lady.  He says, “Ah, Linda Jones!  You are as lovely as they describe you.”

The lady seats herself opposite Bad Jim and eyes him with distaste.  She says, “And you are as nasty and vicious looking as I expected.  Perhaps your employer has forgotten the papers I hold.  Someone tried to break in here two nights ago.  Of course the thief didn’t succeed nor would he have found anything if he did succeed.  No thief will ever find anything here.  The papers aren't kept here.  They're in a safe place and will be released if anything ever happens to me.  Don’t you people ever learn or is it just that you no longer care?”

Bad Jim receives the little tirade with no visible emotion.  He replies calmly, “The people I represent are neither stupid nor are they desperate enough to try to obtain by force the documents that you hold.  There are, however, other players in this little game of yours.  The others just might try something like trying to obtain the documents by force.  The documents that you hold are valuable to other than just my employer.”

The woman looks at Bad Jim very sharply.  She says slowly, “I don't believe you.”

Bad Jim continues calmly, “The largest moneymaker for the operation that I represent is drugs.  Much of the drugs that my employers obtain come through people you know, people with whom you're connected or people over whom you have some sort of hold.  Where there's big money, there are people willing to do almost anything to obtain that money.  Don't assume that you know all of the players currently in the game, or all of the dangers that they represent.”

The woman digests the information.  “Why should someone else want information that affects only your employer?”

Bad Jim smiles a wintry little smile.  He calmly asks the lady, “Why do you keep the information?”

The woman smiles back.  It's a nasty little smile.  She then sneers at Bad Jim, “Because, while I control the information, I'm safe from your employer.  And your employer would do very well to remember that.”

Bad Jim thinks for a few seconds and then says, “You obviously have some sort of hold on my employer.  My employer won't even tell me what sort of hold you have.  However, it seems that the hold comes from some documents that you control.  The other players in the game probably know of the documents.  If one, or more, of the other players could get control of the documents, they might well have the same hold over my employer that you currently enjoy.  Such a hold is worth money, a lot of money.  For that kind of money, many would kill or even worse, perhaps much worse.”

The woman looks long at Bad Jim.  She finally says, “So, you are not just some sort of killer.  You can actually think a little, or were you coached by your handlers?”

Bad Jim responds with no obvious show of emotion.  “I'm an independent.  I was hired by the people with whom you were once associated.  They want their documents, the documents that you now hold, returned to them.  They sent me to explain to you the new game you're now playing.  It may be that I can convince you that what I'm suggesting that you do is in your own best interest.”

The woman’s eyes narrow.  She asks suspiciously, “Exactly what are you suggesting?”

The big man leans a bit forward.  “My employers can't realistically obtain by force the documents you hold.  Whatever information is in the documents would harm my employers too much, if the information were ever to be released.  The other players, however, don't have the same problem.  Sooner or later, they will capture your house and either obtain the documents or kill you for failing to produce the documents.  I'm sure you realize that such a death would come after they would inflict considerable pain to try to force the location of the documents from you.”

For the first time the woman’s face shows fear.  However, she snaps defiantly, “You think they will just walk in and take the documents I hold?  The men I use as security here are wanted by the police.  In many cases they are wanted both by the Mexican police and the American police.  If someone, anyone attempts to storm my house, many will die.  I'll die before I give up the documents.  Because, if do give up the documents, then I'll most surely die!”

Bad Jim replies calmly, “And, if you don't give up the documents, you will most surely die!  If not at the hands of my employers, then at the hands of some of their competitors.  It's not really much of a choice for you.”

The woman’s face hardens.  She asks, “You come to threaten me?”

Bad Jim says, again with no show of emotion, “I have come to tell you that you are poised on the edge of a high cliff.  You can't retreat from those who menace you.  You can't maintain in the face of several very strong enemies, even with your small, private army.  You have only one realistic chance.”

The woman’s face hardens again.  She says sarcastically, “Let me guess, you have the answer!”

Bad Jim continues calmly.  “As you know, if you give up the documents that you now hold, Big Louie will kill you for the many, many thousands you have extorted from him.  That is, he'll kill you unless it is very much to Big Louie’s advantage not to kill you.  I have managed to explain to Big Louie such a situation.  You will, I hope, excuse me, but I'm the best in the business.  That's why I'm here.”

The woman laughs shortly.  She then says, “And so modest too!”

Bad Jim explains calmly.  “You have a hold over Big Louie.  I have documents that will give you a hold over Big Louie’s competitors.  With the new documents, you can begin to extract your blackmail from Big Louie’s competitors, instead of from Big Louie.  Thus, Big Louie gains a significant advantage over the competition.  If you agree to my plan, you still face the possibility of death from Big Louie’s competitors, however you will no longer face death from Big Louie.  In fact, it'll be to Big Louie’s very great advantage to keep you alive.  To this last end, Big Louie will even give you information about his competitors so that you may stay alive and disadvantage Big Louie’s competitors.”

The woman laughs again.  She clearly does not believe Bad Jim and she asks, “Why should I trust you?”

Big Jim replies reasonably.  “Why not contact the people you deal with?  I have information in a briefcase in the trunk of my car.  If I can retrieve the information, you can check it out with your people.  If the information is what I claim it is, it'll be the first of six packets.  As you receive each new packet, you will furnish Big Louie’s representative with one of the six documents, pertaining to him, they tell me that you hold.  You can use the time between transfers to check out the new information.  I don't know why, but apparently only the originals of the documents you use to keep Big Louie in line are of any use, for that purpose.”