Noah Wolf Box Set 2

by David Archer

  The sound of tires crunching on gravel woke him, and Noah was up out of his chair instantly, the pistol snatched off the table and out of its holster without him even thinking about it. A quick look out the window, however, showed him that it was very dark out and the vehicle coming up the driveway was towing a trailer. He put the gun back in its holster and onto the table, then shoved his feet back into shoes and stepped out the front door.

  Sarah had made good time. It was actually just a little after two in the morning, even though she had lost an hour on the way due to the time zone change. Noah stepped off the front porch and walked quickly out to where she parked, right beside the Charger.

  She jumped out of the SUV quickly and ran to him, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him passionately. Noah returned the embrace, surprising even himself with the relief he felt at having her back in his arms.

  When they finally broke for air, Neil was standing close by, a silly grin on his face. “I thought she was going to smother you to death for a moment there,” he said. “Good to see you again, Rex.”

  “You too, punk,” Noah said. “Come on in, we can unload that tomorrow.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Neil said. “Just let me grab my computer. That’s all I need for tonight.”

  He reached back into the SUV and grabbed the case that contained his laptop, one he had been given by Allison when he had first been recruited and which had been upgraded several times since then. It was capable of reaching the internet through cell towers or by direct satellite uplink, all with the built-in, internal antenna system it contained. It also held more computing power than all of the computers NASA used during the Apollo and space shuttle programs. He carried it up onto the front porch, then stopped and giggled when Noah swept Sarah up into his arms and carried her across the threshold.

  “You already did this once,” she whispered into his ear.

  “But this is the first house I ever bought for you,” he replied. “We can’t let an opportunity go to waste, now, can we?”

  She burst out laughing and threw her arms around his neck. She smothered his cheek with kisses until he dropped her suddenly onto the couch, then sat down beside her.

  Noah looked up at Neil as he set his computer case down beside the recliner. “Why don’t you check the place out? Never know what you might find that I missed,” he said.

  Neil grinned and opened the case. Besides holding the computer, there were several other items of electronic equipment inside. He picked up one of them, a small silvery box with a digital meter, and turned it on. It was marked as a signal strength meter, but it had another purpose.

  It took him about five minutes to walk all the way through the house, watching the readout the entire time. When he was satisfied, he returned to the living room and put the box back inside the case.

  “All clear,” he said. “No microphones, no cameras, no bugs of any kind.”

  “Good,” Noah replied. He was leaning back on the couch, with Sarah’s legs thrown over his lap. “That last call from our mysterious friend was the one we’ve been waiting for, I think. He’s coming to this area tomorrow—later today, I mean—and is willing to meet with me. He’s trying to talk me into leaving E & E and going to work for him directly, baiting it with the idea that I’d be able to have a normal life.”

  Sarah’s eyebrows went up. “A normal life? You’re not actually considering this, are you?”

  “No. I’m just pretending to be interested in order to secure this meeting. He made quite a point about the fact that he won’t be alone, however. It may be impossible for me to take any action against him this time, so I may have to keep up the act a while longer.”

  “And of course,” Neil said, “he’s not going to give you any advance notice on where to meet. That’d make it too easy to set up a hit, or try to take him into custody.”

  “Right. I’m planning to go to this one unarmed, just try to establish an atmosphere of trust. My idea is to try to convince him that I’m the jealous type, that if he wants me, then he’s got to make sure I’m number one. I won’t answer to anybody but him, and I’ve got to have enough access to make it certain that I could burn him if he betrays me.”

  “Honor among thieves,” Sarah said. “My dad used to deal with the people he sold cars to the same way. Make sure you got enough on them to hang their butts out to dry if they ever turn on you.”

  Noah nodded. “Exactly. It’s the only kind of trust model that could work in a situation like this. He has to be just as concerned about what I’ll do as I would be about what he might do.”

  “I like this place,” Sarah said suddenly. “But I have been driving all day and I’m tired. Can we discuss these things tomorrow?”

  Without a word, Noah pushed her legs gently off and stood up, taking her by the hand and leading her toward the master bedroom. “I’ll let you sleep in,” he said as they walked down the hall. “I have to be on the job at seven in the morning.”

  “Sleeping in is good,” Sarah replied. “And is it only me, or is this all antique furniture?”

  * * * * *

  Noah rose at six, quietly made his way into the bathroom and took a shower, then slipped into his coat and shoes. Sarah was sprawled across the bed when he came out, and he leaned down to kiss her cheek before slipping out into the hallway.

  Neil was up sitting at the kitchen table. “I made coffee,” he said. “Couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d try to play the game a bit. I relayed the situation back home, and you’re supposed to proceed.”

  “I was planning to,” Noah said. He poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down across from Neil. “So how does the game work?”

  “It’s an espionage game, one of those where players have to follow clues and track down a target, then eliminate the target. I’m a game master, which means I’m sort of like God in the virtual world of the server. Molly is one of the players on my server, and she runs a team that’s made up of people from Neverland. She and I worked out a code so that we can send just about any kind of information back and forth, simply by embedding it into screenshots I attach. It’s pretty sophisticated; NSA might crack the code if they knew about it, but it would take them a couple of months.”

  “Sounds excellent. And you actually get to interact with real players?”

  Neil snorted. “So far, I haven’t found half a dozen that could be called real players. There are a few thousand in my group that are rank amateurs in this game, even though they may have been pretty good at some of the others out there. Almost everything else is simply a battle game, where you build your army up until he can kick the ass of somebody else’s army. This is entirely different because they have to understand the politics of this virtual world in order to accomplish the missions assigned to them.” He grinned and winked at Noah. “I’ve already based for the missions on some of the real ones we’ve already pulled off.”

  Noah raised one eyebrow. “You might want to be careful about that,” he said. “If the mole is aware of how this mission runs, he may be watching what you do in the game. If he figures out that some of the missions in the bio he’s got on me are not real, it could blow the whole operation.”

  “Relax, Noah,” Neil said. “Like I said, I only based the missions on some of our real exploits. There aren’t enough similarities for anyone to put them together, I promise you. Different names, different locales, different reasons for the mission, everything.” He waggled his eyebrows at Noah. “I’m not stupid, remember?”

  Noah simply stared at him for a moment. “A high IQ doesn’t necessarily mean a lack of stupidity. Some of the most intelligent people in the world have made stupid mistakes.”

  Neil stuck his tongue out at him.

  Noah finished his coffee and walked out the door. A moment later, Neil heard the Charger start and then the crunch of gravel as he drove out of the driveway.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  One of Brendan’s crew was standing in front of the Morgan house when
Noah pulled up, and he stood facing the Charger until he saw who was driving. As soon as Noah stepped out of the car, the man almost came to attention.

  “Relax,” Noah said. “I’m just checking in on the kid. Everything go okay last night?”

  “No problems since I’ve been here,” the guy said. “Nice and quiet all night.”

  “Good. I don’t really expect anything to happen around the house, but you just never know. You’re Al, right?”

  “Yes, sir, Al Spencer. We met briefly yesterday.”

  Noah nodded. “I remember. The day crew ought to be here in a few minutes—just let them know I’m inside.” He walked up the front steps and knocked on the door.

  Marlene opened it a few moments later and smiled when she saw him. “Come on in,” she said. “We’re having eggs and bacon, would you like some?”

  Noah put his big smile on his face. “If it won’t cause any problems, I couldn’t turn it down,” he said. “For some reason I can’t figure out, there’s not a restaurant in this town that serves a decent American breakfast.”

  Marlene laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “Come on into the kitchen,” she said. “There’s plenty.”

  Noah followed her and found Ralph, Brendan, and Jimmy Morgan sitting at a big table inside the kitchen itself. The Morgans were eating breakfast, and Brendan was drinking coffee. Jimmy looked up and smiled, then waved him over.

  “Sit your ass down,” he said. “We’re having breakfast, and there’s plenty.”

  “I already told him,” Marlene yelled. Noah slid into a chair, and she set a plateful of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of him. “Dig into that. You want some coffee?”

  “I’d love a cup,” Noah said. She was back a moment later with a mug and then pushed the sugar bowl toward him. “You need cream?”

  “Nope, I’m fine.” He added a couple of spoons of sugar and stirred, then picked it up and took a big drink. “Okay, now that is some very good coffee. Can I ask what brand?”

  “I don’t know what it’s called,” Jimmy said, “but it’s imported. I tried some once when I was on a trip and liked it, so I have a standing order in all the time. Comes in these big three-pound bags. I’ll give you one.”

  “See?” Ralph said. “This job comes with perks, man.”

  Noah had just shoved a forkful of eggs into his mouth, so he chewed quickly before answering. “I’ll say,” he said. “If you guys eat like this every day, I’ll show up for breakfast all the time.”

  “Marlene wouldn’t mind,” Jimmy said. “She seems to think she needs to cook for a small army every day, anyway. I hate to think about how much food gets thrown out this house every week.”

  “Not very much at all,” Marlene said loudly. “How can it, with you guys here? Jimmy, you could eat more than most baseball teams all by yourself.”

  Jimmy laughed and slapped his belly. “That must be why I’ve got this,” he said, still chuckling.

  Noah laughed along, keeping up his act. “Ralph,” he said a moment later, “what’s on your agenda for today?”

  “I’m going down to see Ronnie,” the boy said. “We talked a little bit yesterday about some of my ideas, especially about liquid pot and things like that, so it’s time we decide how we’re going to handle the transition. He’ll be introducing me to his crews today, letting them know I’m taking over.”

  Noah looked over at the boy’s father. “Anybody on that crew I need to be aware of? Anybody you don’t trust?”

  Jimmy shrugged. “The way this bracket works,” he said, “is you put your lieutenants in place, and then you trust them to do their jobs. I don’t know who Ronnie has working for him, but I’ve never heard of any issues. I’m thinking that Ralphie will have to make some of those decisions on his own.”

  “I can handle it, Pa,” Ralph said. “Anybody working under me will understand real quickly that I don’t play games. It’s my way or the highway, nothing in between.”

  “That’s good,” Noah said, “but I don’t want you alone with any of them until they’ve proven themselves. You keep Forney and one of his boys with you at all times today, okay?”

  Jimmy Morgan looked up at him. “What are you going to be doing today?”

  “My wife and her brother got in at two o’clock this morning,” Noah said. “There are couple of things I need to take care of today, but I’ll be with Ralph and Forney most of the time. Is there anything particular you want me to do?”

  Jimmy shook his head. “Nope. Just wondered where you’ll be. You know, if the wife just got in and you need the day off…”

  “I don’t,” Noah said. “I made sure to get some sleep before they arrived last night so that I’d be all right for today. The job comes first, and Angie understands that.”

  Jimmy grinned at him. “I do like a man who knows where the bread comes from.” He swallowed his last swig of coffee and scooted his chair back. “Well, you boys have a good day. I’ve got some things I need to attend to, so I’ll be tied up for a good part of it. Call me if you need anything.” He rose and turned, then stalked out the door without another word.

  “Don’t let him get to you,” Ralph said. “He likes to give the impression he’s some kind of badass, but the truth is that he just likes power. If he’s got something to attend to, it’s probably something to do with one of the dozen or so women he keeps on the string.”

  Noah met Ralph’s grin with one of his own. “Rank does have its privileges,” he said. “It’s good to be the king.”

  “That’s what he always says,” Ralph said, chuckling. “And now he calls me the crown prince. I guess it’s good to be that, too.”

  Noah smiled. “I guess so. I know I’m glad to be the prince’s guard. Best job I’ve ever had, I can tell you that.”

  A sound behind him made him turn his head, and Scott Forney walked into the room. “Hey,” he said. “How’s it going?”

  “Going great,” Noah said. “Got here in time for breakfast, and it’s good.”

  Forney smiled. “I know, I’ve had Marlene’s cooking before. Hey, Marlene.” The housekeeper came to him and gave him a hug.

  “Sit down, Scotty,” she said, “and I’ll bring you a plate.”

  “Oh, no, Marlene,” Forney said with a grin, “I’m already full. Janet fed me waffles this morning.” He leaned close to her and stage-whispered in her ear. “But I’ll make sure I save room tomorrow, okay?”

  “Tomorrow we’re having pancakes,” Marlene said with a grin. “Janet will get jealous if you start eating here every morning.”

  “And you think that’d stop me?” Forney let her go and stood facing Noah. “Anything special today, Chief?”

  “I might need to do some running around sometime today,” Noah replied, “but not a lot. He’s planning on spending time with Sneed, and I want you to watch all the guys on his crew. If anyone seems nervous or fidgety, get ’em away from Ralph. Nobody new, either, nobody gets close to him without you knowing who they are.”

  Forney nodded. “You got it. I know most of his people, anyway, so if I don’t, they get patted down before they come in.”

  “Right,” Noah said. “We still don’t know who paid Benny for the hit. Until we do, and he’s dead, everyone is to be considered a potential threat. No exceptions.”

  “No exceptions,” Forney repeated back. “Best way to handle things. Hey, did the wife make it in?”

  Noah grinned and nodded. “Yeah, about two this morning. She’s sleeping in today. That’s one of the things I need to take care of today. She’s never met my sister. Katie was gone before I met Angie, and I need to get them together and see if they’re gonna get along.”

  There was a bit more small talk around the table, but finally Ralph was ready to go. Forney relieved Brendan, and he took his men with him as he left.

  “Ralph,” Noah said, “you’ll be riding with Scott today. I’m going to follow along, but I’ll just be watching from the car.”

  Ralph shrugged. “Don’
t make no never mind to me,” the boy said. “I just think it’s cool I get my own personal chauffeur out of this deal.”

  Noah chuckled, then walked over to his car and climbed behind the wheel. He waited until Forney started his own and fell into line behind the two men he had brought along. The three-car convoy moved along the driveway and out onto the county road, then headed toward Berryville. Ronnie Sneed conducted his business from an old used-car dealership on the east end of town, and Noah kept a close eye on surrounding traffic until they got there. The place still sold cars, mostly cheap ones such as Ronnie’s primary clientele could barely afford the weekly payments on. In fact, most of them came from those same clients when they were desperate for the money to conduct the other sort of business.

  No one seemed to pay any attention to the little motorcade, however, so he simply parked near the entrance of the lot, facing the main road. In his rearview mirror, he watched Ralph and Forney enter the brick office building. The other two men sat on the hood of the car they had ridden to the place in, one of them facing the road and the other facing the building’s door.

  A moment later, two men came out, both of them looking angry. Noah tensed slightly as they stomped past the two bodyguards, but neither of them said or did anything alarming. When they drove away, Noah took out his phone and dialed Forney.

  “Couple of guys who owe money,” Forney said as soon as he answered. “I told them to come back later; we had other things to occupy us for now.”

  “No problems?” Noah asked. “They looked pretty pissed.”

  Forney chuckled. “They were only pissed because Ronnie’s been letting them have some stuff on credit, and Ralph told them that’s all over. Cash and carry, no charge accounts anymore. Ronnie and Ralphie are arguing about it now.”

  Noah let a chuckle of his own escape. “Ralph is in charge now,” he said, “so he’s probably gonna start out by showing everyone who’s the boss. If he looks like he’s going to make new enemies, try to steer him a bit, but don’t piss him off.”

  “Will do,” Forney said, and Noah cut the call off. He settled back in his seat and contented himself with watching the traffic go by.