Blood Ties

by Shaun Sinclair

  Carmen didn’t even flinch. “Relax. No one is spying on you. I know what I know because I’m in the same hotel as you. Month after month, feeling just as lonely as you. Every time you come, I see you. So, I decided to make my move. Can’t blame a sister, can you?”

  Carmen’s tone had softened considerably. A long curl fell across her face. Leader knew he was treading on thin ice, but there was something about Carmen that magnetized him.

  “I won’t pull your arm though. If you say you’re happily married, then I must respect that,” Carmen said. “Can we at least finish this wonderful meal?”

  Against his better judgment, Leader agreed to finish the meal.

  As they conversed, Leader found that Carmen was highly intelligent and world traveled. She spoke multiple languages, and was skilled in martial arts. In addition to her dazzling mind, Leader couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. Her cinnamon-colored skin was as smooth as satin. Her cheekbones were high and round. Her hazel-hued eyes sparkled like diamonds reflecting the candle light. When the meal was over, both of them were reluctant to leave. Yet their time had come to an end.

  Carmen stood and led Leader to the balcony. Outside the autumn air was brisk as it clipped their ears. Leader removed his suit jacket and draped it over Carmen’s shoulders. Carmen smiled and backed into him, demanding that he hold her.

  “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Carmen purred, referring to the Chicago skyline.

  “Yeah,” Leader confessed.

  “Listen to me,” Carmen turned her head to look Leader in his eyes. “I’m not trying to interfere with your happy home. I just think we have a lot in common, and a lot to offer each other. No one deserves to be lonely. I see the same look in your eye that I see when I look in the mirror. I’m just thinking maybe I can show you a good time whenever you’re here—strictly platonic,” she added.

  Leader was feeling the proposal. But he knew that every big thing started small first. He was not up for any drama at home.

  “Why me?”

  “Other than the fact that you’re attractive as hell? I sense that there is a part of you just dying to be released. I want to be the one to bring that out. Be your escape. Maybe we can free each other from our chains of loneliness.”

  The game Carmen spit was like music to Leader’s ears. He knew he was flirting with betrayal. But the possibilities were too pleasing to pass up.

  “I’ll consider it.”

  Even as Leader mumbled his response, Carmen already knew she had him. If he wasn’t interested, he simply would have said no. But he didn’t. With the right amount of patience and perseverance, she knew she could weigh him down eventually and execute her plan. Then the real fun would begin.

  Chapter 14

  After Justus dispatched his first victim, he experienced a rush of guilt as his mind did battle with his heart. Leader had infused his brain with a new psychology of Objectivism and although Justus bought into it, like an updated computer program, his mind still had its glitches. To keep him in game mode, Leader had taken Justus hunting shortly after their return from New York. Over hunting they bonded, and Leader was able to correct the glitches in his mind.

  Over the course of months following Justus’s return, he and Nikki were inseparable. He had been accepted by her family so much that Aunt Darlene had become his personal spokesperson. Justus took it all in stride. Using tricks that Leader had schooled him about real estate, Justus was able to purchase land in Hope Mills, a small town bordering Fayetteville, at a cheap price. Justus arranged to have the land cleared then set up vacant lots for modular homes. Through a contract with HUD, Justus was guaranteed to lease at least half of his 25 plots out for $250 a month. It wasn’t much compared to what he would clear for a job, but it was constant cash flow that legitimized his money. More importantly, it established a residual income so when he did make major purchases, his capital could be accounted for.

  In conjunction with the real estate purchase, Justus acquired five acres to build his own home on. He even allowed Nikki to add input on the house plans. When the house was completed, it would consist of a three-car garage, a glass cylindrical bedroom with a Jacuzzi inside the master bath, a swimming pool in the shape of a J, and five bedrooms. Since it was being built from scratch, the house would cost only $300,000. Justus only received $150,000 from his first job, and his initial investment put a substantial dent in that cache. So, he was looking forward to going on more jobs.

  Reenergized, Justus was ready to go hard. With the two of them together, their efficiency doubled and their reputation grew. As a result of this, they began pulling in no less than four jobs a month, for no less than $100K per job. Just as fast as transportation would get them to a job, they were there. As fast as transportation would allow, they were whisked away to the next job.

  With each job, Justus’s experience grew. In the real world, he received real world experience. Where his conscience used to bother him before, it was nonexistent now. He simply rationalized murder as work. He became methodical. He was meticulous.

  He became a professional.

  Leader assisted in Justus’s transition every step of the way. He was constantly critiquing him, always showing him better ways of doing things. He was always digging inside of Justus’s mental soil to plant more wisdom. Pretty soon, he began trusting Justus enough for him to go on jobs by himself. While Justus was putting in work, Leader met with Menes in Chicago to receive new contracts. Menes had his suspicions about the speed and efficiency with which Leader was carrying out these jobs. However, in this business, the less you knew, the more insulated you were. As long as the jobs were being carried out, Menes would continue to be pleased.

  Unfortunately for Leader, he began something else while in Chicago.

  Every moment that wasn’t spent handling business with Menes was spent with Carmen. She turned out to be cool peoples. She and Leader went everywhere together. They went to the theater, Bears and Bulls games, and every restaurant imaginable. One night in particular, Carmen took Leader gambling on the Majestic Star, a casino gambling boat owned by a black entrepreneur. They both got dolled up, Carmen in a red strapless gown, Leader in a black tux. Leader was in between jobs so of course his bald head was glistening like an 8-ball under the bright lights. He and Carmen spent the night gambling away thousands of dollars, tossing back drinks, and having fun. Leader felt like a kid again. He found himself really enjoying Carmen’s company. The best part was that their boundaries were respected. Their relationship was purely platonic. Carmen found herself sorely missing Leader when he was away. Against her will, she was becoming attached, but in a different way.

  Chapter 15

  It was nearing time for Nikki to drop her load. Justus had promised Nikki he would be right by her side when she gave birth, so he only had time for one more job before he went into hiatus. Leader already had the job lined up. The payoff would be enormous, enough for the them both to ride off into the sunset for a while.

  But they had to earn it.

  Their mark was a highly-trained general that worked on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Over his years of service, he had accumulated a body of evidence against the government. He knew of secret pacts with the Chinese, election tampering from the Russians, foreign assassinations. He knew it all! Disillusioned with the Trump Administration, he was ready to go bird against the very institution that made him. An attempt had already been made on the general’s life, but the general managed to reverse the tables and kill the assassin. The incident spooked a lot of cleaners in the community, and drove the price up on the job. Despite the hefty tag on the contract, other cleaners were reluctant to accept the job.

  Leader took the job because unlike most cleaners he had two wild cards. One, he had intimate knowledge of the general’s location. Two, he had a duplicate of himself. Leader was banking on these two cards to give him the edge. If they pulled this job off, not only would he be set for retirement, he would also solidify his position in the community as a living
legend.

  He hoped.

  * * *

  Leader and Justus sat in the hotel room combing over their plan one last time before they embarked on their journey. They were doing things differently this time. Normally, they preferred to dispatch their marks close up because it allowed them greater control over the variables of the job. Because of the heightened security of this quarry, they were arranging a long-distance hit. Long shots were always tricky. The mark had to be in the right place at just the right time, the potential for witnesses was greater, even the wind conditions had to be just right for the perfect shot. To help their cause Leader had purchased a new toy for this assignment.

  The Barret .50 caliber rifle was a state-of-the-art rifle designed for only one thing: killing at a distance. At nearly four-feet long, with a ten-round magazine, the Barret’s killing range was just under a mile. If the shooter was accurate, anything within a mile was a guaranteed kill. For this assignment, Justus had been designated the shooter. He had trained with the weapon for the past month, taking at least a hundred shots a day. He was hitting his target at a rate of 98% before it was deemed he was ready.

  Leader tossed the heavy case on the bed and popped it open. In the case lay the .50 broken down into fragments.

  “Man, I remember the first time I fired one of these babies,” Leader said. He exhaled a deep breath as if recalling the memory. “This thing will destroy anything it touches. You know it will penetrate metal?”

  “Really?” Justus asked.

  “Damn right. I saw one shoot clean through a Humvee before.”

  “Wow!”

  Leader placed another case on the bed and pulled out a metal object as long and wide as a two-liter bottle. “This is the suppressor,” he explained to Justus. “You need to make sure it’s one shot, one kill because every time a round goes through this thing it changes the accuracy of your weapon. Got it?”

  “Got it.” Justus was ready for this contract to be over. The anticipation was killing him, and he found it hard to remain focused. Aside from the stress of this job, he was on the verge of becoming a father. The thought terrified and exhilarated him simultaneously. He took in a deep breath to reign in his thoughts as his father’s words echoed in his ear.

  A distracted soldier is a dead soldier.

  * * *

  Nikki stuffed the clothes inside the box and taped it shut. This was her second time moving in a year. The last time she was forced to move. This time she was happy to be moving. The contractors were nearly done with her and Justus’s new home in Hope Mills, and she couldn’t wait to get her new life started. Justus may have been younger than her, but he was adept at taking care of business. As far along as she was into her pregnancy, she knew she shouldn’t have been working so hard, but if she didn’t do it then it wasn’t going to get done. Her twins were showing her who was boss as they kicked inside her belly like they were fighting in the UFC. Just as she was about to sit down to take a break, her phone shrilled to life. A private number.

  “Hello?”

  No one responded, just heavy breathing.

  “Hello?” Nikki repeated. Still, no reply. “Look, why the hell did you call my phone if you didn’t want anything?”

  “Bitch, you think you can cross me and get away with it?” Jock snarled.

  “Jock?”

  “That’s right, bitch! Didn’t I tell you that I was going to fuck you and that nigga up if you shit on me?”

  Nikki hadn’t heard from Jock since the day she left him in jail. “Jock, don’t call my phone no more. I’ve moved on. Now, if you call me again I’m going to go down to the jail and tell them people you got a cell phone and you using it to harass me,” she promised.

  Jock shrieked in laughter. “Go ahead and tell them. I don’t give a fuck. I got pull in this motherfucker. I’ll have two more phones by the time they take this one. Don’t get it twisted, I’m still that nigga.”

  “Exactly. You still a nigga.”

  “Oh bitch, you wanna get smart now because the li’l nigga done knocked you up? Don’t forget it was me who took care of your ass when you ain’t have shit! Your parents disowned you after you got your father’s Benz impounded when they found that dope under the seat.”

  “But it was your dope, Jock!”

  “It don’t fucking matter! The point is, they abandoned your ass and kicked you out. I took you in and put you back on your feet. I took care of all your needs and made you a queen in this city. Me! Don’t bite the hand that fed you. Fuck with me and I’ll kill both them little bastards in your stomach, and they daddy.”

  That threat really pissed Nikki off. “Yeah, yeah, say that shit, say that shit. You Mr. Bad Ass behind them bars. Why don’t you tell him that to his face when you get home.”

  Jock laughed hysterically. “You know, I just might do that.”

  “What the fuck is so funny, Jock?”

  “You funny. Bitch.”

  “Look, I ain’t gonna be too many more of your bitches.”

  “You gonna be that one.”

  “I’m hanging up,” Nikki announced.

  “Wait! Hold up.”

  “Hold up for what, Jock?”

  “I need you to do me a favor.”

  “What? After all that shit you talked? Fuck you!”

  “Look out your door.”

  “What?”

  “I said, look out your front door?”

  “For what?”

  “You’ll see.”

  “Whatever Jock. I’m not playing games with you.”

  Even though she dismissed Jock, her curiosity overwhelmed her. She hobbled over to the door with the phone to her ear and snatched it open. To her astonishment, she saw Jock leaning behind the wheel of a Cadillac smoking a blunt. He rolled his window down and stuck his arm out. A red beam appeared just beside Nikki’s head. A split second later, a shot crackled through the air.

  Nikki jumped to the floor facedown and excruciating pain exploded through her entire body. Another shot crackled through the air but Nikki never heard it. She didn’t hear Jock howl in laughter either. She never saw him peel out of her neighborhood in a cloud of smoke. Never heard him call her a dirty bitch.

  Nikki was unaware of those things because when she hit the ground on her swollen belly her body went numb. Blood flowed freely between her legs and contractions wracked her body.

  The last thing she was able to do was call Jackie.

  * * *

  Justus peered through the scope of his rifle down onto the Washington D.C. street. He was tucked safely in the back of a nondescript van parked at the top of a parking garage. The back window of the van was removed, giving him open access to the world outside the van. He spotted Leader in his peddler’s disguise right away. Although Leader was nearly a mile away from his location, with the HD lens on the scope Justus could count the hairs in his nose.

  The general was scheduled to meet with reporters in the Penthouse suite of a hotel to give a recorded deposition. The meeting was supposed to be top secret, but the location was leaked to Menes, who in turn passed the info on to Leader. It was rumored that after this meeting, the general was going underground. This would be the ideal time and place to strike because the general would be briefly exposed for the short walk from the parking garage to the hotel. The route would take him past a corridor of open buildings, right into Justus’s sight line.

  Justus swung the rifle in a wide arc once again, sweeping the street in search of his target. Still, no sign of the general. To pass time, Justus drew random targets into his sight picture and practiced taking the shot. He marveled at the efficiency of the weapons system. Each time he placed his crosshairs on a pedestrian his red dot landed center-mass. Justus was beginning to believe the hype that his father lauded upon him. Maybe he was a natural.

  Justus’s earpiece squawked to life. “Get ready. I think I see him,” Leader relayed.

  Justus tightened his grip on the weapon and allowed his vision to go slack. His heartbea
t quickened, and a lump rose in his throat. His hands began to sweat inside his leather gloves. This was the moment he was slowly starting to crave. The adrenaline rush, the surge of power as he stalked his target. The omnipotence of it all excited him more than it should have. This was what his father had warned him about. Keep it professional, Leader had schooled. Don’t let the job get into you. Justus now understood the advice.

  “It’s him! It’s him! We’re hot.” Leader said.

  Justus scanned the street with the scope and saw the general bend the corner. He wasn’t alone though. Two guards flanked him, one in front, one in the back.

  “Don’t worry about the guards,” Leader coached. “One shot, one kill. Remember: one shot, one kill.”

  Justus drew the general’s bulky chest into his sight picture. He steadied the weapon and his finger tapped the trigger. A red beam appeared at the center of the general’s chest. Justus raised the beam until it danced at the base of the general’s neck.

  One shot, one kill . . .

  * * *

  Nikki blacked in and out of consciousness, as she felt herself rolling beneath bright lights. Her eyes flitted open and in those flashes she saw Jackie by her side. The pain in her stomach was unending, and her body was drenched from her navel to her toes.

  “Come on, Nikki. Stay with us. I’m right here,” Jackie said. “You’re gonna be fine.”

  “Jus . . .” Nikki gasped. “Where is Justus?”

  Jackie frowned. “Pug is on the way to get him right now,” she lied.

  “My babies, Jackie. What’s happening to my babies?” “You’re going to be fine, Nikki. The babies are going to be fine,” Jackie assured her. She hoped that she was telling the truth.

  A pain ripped through Nikki’s midsection. She bit her bottom lip to stifle the pain. “Justus, where are you???”

  * * *

  Justus laid his crosshairs on the general’s neck and the red beam danced on his Adam’s apple. He slowly reduced his breath to next to nothing and zoned out. He tightened his grip on the handle and prepared to take his shot.