by Dale Mayer
“Well, my buddy had to knock you out,” he said, “so you didn’t shoot me.”
“I wouldn’t have shot you.”
“Well, you were standing there with a weapon in your hand, and it was turned in my direction.”
“That’s not who I am,” he said, “honest.”
“Well, I believe you,” he said, “but I don’t know if the cops will.”
“Cops?”
“Yeah, who do you think will be handling this from here on out?” he asked. “Of course it’ll be cops.”
“Shit,” he said. “I can’t have the cops find out I’m here.”
“And why is that?” he asked.
“Because the cops and I don’t get along very well.”
“Well, I’ve heard that a time or two,” Gavin said. “Have you been through the rest of the building? Or even this corner? I’m not seeing anybody else here.”
“No, we shouldn’t have seen anybody here actually,” he said. “I don’t even know what’s going on.”
“Well, I want to believe you. I’m just not sure I can.”
“Really?” he said. “Because I’ve never shot anybody in my life.”
“You mean, before today,” Gavin said, and that shut up the guy for a bit.
“Did I shoot somebody?” he asked, after a long moment.
And this time Gavin could really hear the horror in his voice. “I don’t know if you landed any of those shots you fired,” he said. “I hope not for your sake.”
“I hope not for my sake too,” he whispered. “That’s not somebody I want to be.”
“You got a family?”
“Yeah, I do,” he said, “and my wife’ll leave me if she finds out about this shit.”
“So why don’t you tell me what the hell’s going on?”
“Like I said, when we got inside, a couple was here.”
“And were you supposed to be in today?”
“No,” he said. “Honestly we were just sitting here and having a couple beers. We’re kind of—well, the strike’s really screwed us up, and the wives are pretty upset. We haven’t done a whole lot of work lately, and we just wanted a place to go hang out.”
“Ah.” Gavin got it. “So, in other words, you weren’t supposed to even be in the building, and somebody brought the kidnap victims here because it was supposed to be empty. Then you guys showed up and threw things into disarray. Is that it?”
“It sounds like that’s exactly what happened,” he said. “I really don’t want my buddy to die either.”
“Is he involved in the kidnapping?”
“Kidnapping? Kidnapping that old couple? Is that what that was? I wouldn’t think so,” he said. “Johnston’s a good guy. He’s young and has twin girls. He’s got his whole life ahead of him. I don’t know why he would mess it up getting involved in something like that.”
“Well, sometimes that’s exactly why people do things,” he said, “because they need the money.”
“Maybe,” he said, “but I don’t think he’d do that.”
“So, tell me what happened when you arrived.”
And the longshoreman gave Gavin the rundown about the two of them deciding to get away from their wives for a little bit and just shoot the breeze and have a couple beers. And when they got into the warehouse, they’d seen the couple and phoned the bosses. Then security had shown up.
“And they are normal security?”
“I don’t know what’s normal or not,” he said. “I’ve never dealt with them before. At the same time, these men were here right away. We weren’t allowed to see the couple, but they were alive. I know that.”
At that, Gavin let out a gentle sigh. “Well, that’s good news,” he said, “because, if they weren’t, things would be worse than I thought.”
“Who are they?” he asked.
“A businessman and his wife,” he said. “They were here in Hawaii for a visit and were kidnapped off the street.”
His voice rose in horror. “Seriously?”
“Oh, yeah, I’m serious,” he said. “The question is, what is your part in all this?”
“Nothing. I told you. Absolutely nothing. I wouldn’t. No way.”
“And yet I find you right in the middle of it all.”
“And yet,” said a strange voice from behind Gavin, “you’re not even looking around to see who else might be involved.”
Gavin slowly turned to see a man with a rifle over his shoulder and a handgun in his hand, currently held against Rosalina’s head. “Oh, interesting,” he said. “That worked out really well, didn’t it?” Rosalina just glared at him. He smiled at her reassuringly.
“Oh, I don’t think so,” the man said. “No more of your tricks.”
“What tricks?” Gavin asked. “By the way, is this guy telling the truth?” Gavin pointed to the one conscious guy on the floor. “Does he have anything to do with you guys?”
“Why would I tell you that?” the sniper asked in disgust.
“See what happens,” Rosalina said to Gavin, in a biting voice, “when you leave me alone?”
Gavin laughed. “Remember that part about, you weren’t supposed to come with us?”
“Well, it’s a good thing she did,” the gunman said. “Saves me a trip later.”
“Interesting,” Gavin said, “so she really is one of the targets.”
“Sure,” he said.
“What about the other sister?” But the sniper just shrugged. “She’s not though, is she?” he asked. The sniper again just shrugged.
“We were both released,” she said, with a gasp. “Why do you keep harping on Melinda?”
“Oh, no reason,” Gavin said, with a smile, wondering how long Shane would be. But just then, Shane’s voice came in a whisper through Gavin’s earpiece.
“Keep him busy. I’m two minutes away.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to tell me how this is all supposed to work?” he asked the sniper.
The man stared. “I don’t give a shit how it’s supposed to work or if you know or not,” he said. “I’m too much of a professional for that.”
Gavin studied him, taking a closer look. “Mercenary?”
“Hell no,” he said. “Contractor.”
Gavin wanted to laugh. “There’s a difference?”
“Absolutely there is,” he snapped. “I pick and choose my bosses,” he said.
“Well, that makes a hell of a difference, doesn’t it?” he said with seriousness. Because he did understand that people had problems with bosses all the time.
“Absolutely it makes a difference,” he sneered.
“And your boss this time?”
“What about him?”
“Must be good money, huh?”
“Not the greatest but it’s getting there,” he said. “As you should know, it takes time.”
“As I should know?” Gavin repeated.
“Yeah, I know who you are. And your buddy. You all think you’re some hotshot military special ops guys. But you’re not. You’re just the same as the rest of us hired guns.”
“Well, I don’t think anybody working for Uncle Sam considers themselves a hired gun,” Gavin said slowly.
“No difference,” he said. “Same damn shit only, like I said, I get to pick my bosses.”
“So, you were in the navy?”
“I was,” he said, “but I wasn’t part of all that rah-rah bullshit.”
“Not a team player, huh?”
“Not that kind of team player,” he said with a snap.
At the same time, Rosalina stared at Gavin, waiting.
Gavin liked that about her; she was very observant and understood that things were going on around her that she didn’t understand, but, rather than questioning and making judgments, she was waiting. And so was he.
“Now, I want you to move forward,” the sniper said to Rosalina. “Nice and easy.”
“Sure,” she said. “Anything you say. You’ve got the gun.”
“You better beli
eve it,” he said.
“Where are my parents?”
“They’re safe,” he said calmly.
“Good,” she said, “but where are they?”
“Well, we obviously had to move them,” he said, “but, like I said, they’re okay.”
“I want proof.”
“Well, bitch, it doesn’t matter what you want,” the sniper said with a laugh. “Because you’re not the one calling the shots.”
“So who is?” she asked him in bewilderment. “What could my parents have possibly done to deserve this?”
He laughed. “Nobody ever expects who it’ll be when they find out they’ve been betrayed.”
Unfortunately that was so very damn true, Gavin thought to himself.
“Is it my family?” she whispered. “I don’t see myself getting out of this unscathed,” she said. “So I would really like to know who I can thank for this predicament.”
“Well, I don’t know. I’d have to get an okay from the boss before I tell you anything,” he said. “I haven’t been paid yet for everything, so I want to make sure there are no issues in that quarter.”
“I see,” she said quietly. “How about a hint. I won’t tell.”
“Sure,” he said. “It’s somebody close to you. But not likely somebody you would think of.”
Chapter 7
Somebody close? Well, that would certainly fit her sister, but was the sniper saying that? Was she letting words taint her thought process? As a scientist, Rosalina could read nuances. She could utilize something here. If she could figure out the data, surely something in this situation would make sense if she applied her brain to it. “That could be all kinds of people,” she said slowly.
“And they thought you were so smart,” he said, laughing. “That’s the thing about those you never see.”
“I never see?”
“Exactly,” he said. “Like I said, it’s not somebody you would ever expect it to be.”
Now she was stumped, and, of course, all she could do was think about everybody in her world. “But why my parents?” she asked. “They’re harmless.”
“Hardly,” he said. “They’re very wealthy, and they hold a lot of power in their hands, power that they’re not choosing to wield in the way that this person thinks they should.”
“Ah,” she said, “so somebody who is pissed off at them.”
“Not necessarily,” he said, “but it’s not like the boss talks to me.”
“Right. Back to the boss again,” she said, her tone derisive. “A boss you said you got to choose.”
“Well, I took on the job,” he said, with a laugh.
“And what about the rest of your buddies, like Henry?”
“Yeah, see? Henry was not supposed to get caught. For that he would go down anyway.”
“Interesting,” she said. “So does the person live here?”
“Nope, just has ties here,” he said. “Of course that’s likely to be what gets him caught, but he doesn’t seem to think so.”
She latched on to the he with relief. “So it’s not my sister! Thank God for that.”
He laughed. “Wow, so much sisterly love. To actually consider that shows just how much you do understand her. She’s not a very nice person, but you could still be wrong on your assumption.”
Gavin needed to be ready for anything because he knew Shane was right here; he could see his shadow. But they needed a diversion. With the gun held against Rosalina’s head, it was just way too close for comfort.
“Well, it is kind of sad,” Gavin said, “to see a family torn apart like this.”
“Yep, and it’s all about power and greed and positions and all that good stuff,” the sniper said with a smirk. “Nobody is ever happy enough with what they’ve got.”
“I’m not surprised,” Gavin said. “As you and I both know, that’s what makes the world go around.”
“Well, it certainly keeps us employed,” the sniper said.
“And what about these guys here?” Gavin asked, motioning at the longshoremen, lying here in stunned shock on the ground, pretending to be unconscious, if not one of the two already dead.
“Yeah, they didn’t have anything to do with the kidnapping,” the sniper said, “but I can’t leave any of them alive, of course.”
“Yeah, of course,” Gavin said casually. He noted the shock, the imperceptible reactive movement of the guy he’d been speaking with earlier. “On the other hand, you don’t really have a reason to kill them, since they’re out cold anyway.”
“Maybe,” he said. “Maybe not.”
Just then a loud bang rang off to the side, where several old barrels were stored.
The sniper looked over and smiled. “I suppose that’s your partner trying to cause a diversion, huh? It won’t work, you know.” He fired off a couple shots in the direction of the barrels. “There. We’ll just let him think that it worked.”
“Ah, we don’t have to think about it,” Shane said, as he placed his handgun against the sniper’s head.
He froze. “Shit,” he said. “Where did you come from?”
“Think about a diversion. It’s really only helpful if you’re in a position to make good use of it,” Shane said. “So I set it to crash a few minutes after I left the area, so I could already be here.” As he spoke, he quickly grabbed the sniper’s wrists and disarmed him. “So now,” he said, “we’ll have another talk, only our way.” Grabbing the man’s hands, he pulled him forward.
Freed, Rosalina raced to Gavin’s side, where he opened his arms and tucked her up close. “What the hell?” she whispered. “This is one messed-up world.”
“Oh, it is,” Gavin said, “but the good news is that now we have the sniper.”
“Does that mean he’ll be dead soon, like Henry?” she asked.
“Possibly,” he said, “but this is the guy who killed Henry.”
She looked at the gunman and frowned. “Why would you do that?” she asked. “Henry was a nice guy.”
He laughed at her. “A nice guy he was not. He just had that beautiful unassuming air that led a lot of people to be deceived as to who he really was. Same as other people. If you look into a supposed break-in here in town, you’ll see that a mother and daughter were shot before breakfast, and that wasn’t random at all. The husband was responsible for that one.”
She stared at him in shock. “Why would you take a contract like that?”
He looked at her and asked, “What do you do for a living?”
“I research ways to make people’s lives better,” she said, simplifying it.
He laughed and said, “Well, so do I. The husband’s life is infinitely better without those two bitches in it.”
She shook her head. “That’s cold.”
“Yep,” he said, “but it’s also the way of the world.”
“It isn’t if it’s not what you want,” she said.
“Well, it is the way I like it,” he stated. “I tried the navy and got out as fast as I could,” he said. “That was so not my style.”
“That’s because you don’t like following orders, and you’re not a team player,” she scolded him.
He just shot her a hard look.
Behind the sniper, Shane laughed and said, “It doesn’t do any good to try to stop her.”
“Doesn’t matter,” the sniper said. “You can take me down to the cops, and I’ll be out in no time.”
“Why is that?” Gavin asked.
“Because I don’t have anything to do with anything,” he said. “I just happened to walk into this area and saw a dead man at the front door, and I came in to help the poor longshoremen,” he said. “And look what I found. Two gunmen.”
“Right,” Gavin said. “Like that’ll work for you.”
He shrugged. “Why not?” he said. “It’s your word against mine. And I’m a local. You’re foreigners.”
She smiled. “Maybe, but my father’s got a lot of money. And he donates a lot of it. And money talks and
not just to get people killed.”
“You’ve got to find him first,” he said, laughing.
As they walked him out the front doors where Henry had been shot, she stopped and said, “You know what? I don’t feel very good going out there.”
“I know,” Gavin said. He looked at Shane.
His partner shrugged and said, “We got to take him back.”
“I suggest we call for backup,” Gavin said. They stood just beside the open door.
Shane looked at Gavin, then at the sniper, and asked, “You think he’ll talk?”
“No.” Gavin really didn’t think so.
“We can’t let him go,” Rosalina said, “but I don’t want you or him to get shot if you lead him out of here either.”
“Well, let’s tie up his feet too, and we’ll just leave him inside the door,” Gavin suggested, as he and Shane trussed up their captive, pushing him to the ground. “We do have men coming, but I also need to make sure that longshoreman back there is okay.”
She looked at him and asked, “Who?”
“One of the two men Shane knocked out earlier.” He looked at Shane and said, “Keep an eye on her.” And he turned and bolted backward. She stared at the sniper on the ground, catching a twitch of his lips.
“It’s a trap,” she gasped out to Shane. “Oh, God, Gavin’s gone into a trap.” Then she turned and bolted backward. She could hear Shane calling her to come back, but it was too late. As she got into the area, she stepped in behind the stacks of boxes occupying one portion of the room and watched as Gavin reached down to check on the two unconscious men. Just then one pulled his hand out from beneath him, holding a handgun, and held it against Gavin’s head.
“Shit,” she whispered. She looked around but saw no weapons on the floor.
Gavin slowly straightened as the other guy moved to get up, but Gavin’s knee came up and slammed the gunman in the jaw, as Gavin reached for the gunman’s hand and snapped it backward. While the longshoreman screamed in agony, the gun went flying, his arm hung loose, completely snapped.
She stepped out and stared at him.
He looked over at her. “What are you doing here?” He frowned.
“Well, I figured out it was a trap,” she said simply, “so I came to help.” She held her hands wide and said, “But apparently you didn’t need it.”
