Behind us, a slew of news vans followed. Walking out of the tong wearing bulletproof vests and carrying rifles had been a huge tell that something was up. Surely they were salivating at what appeared to be a new development in the Chasing Chinatown story.
We were traveling east on Highway 12 and about ten minutes away from the B&B. Even though it was early morning and the roads were mostly empty, Knox had done a great job at shaving even more time off the drive. Still, it felt as though the vehicle couldn’t move fast enough. I was a restless mess buckled in the front seat.
“You sure you’re up for this?” Knox asked, keeping his eyes focused on the road ahead. “We can enter the building first.”
I knew what Knox was implying. I didn’t even want to think about it. We were talking about my family. There was no way I was sitting this one out, regardless of what might be waiting for us.
“I’m going in first,” I said as we approached Highway 29.
Chapter 39
All at once, Castro’s skin buzzed to life. The neurons in his brain fired as he worked to weigh his next move. There was only one reason Lin would be awake at this hour. Kane had been right.
Castro checked his watch. Eight minutes had passed since his last contact with her, and a mere thirty seconds were all that separated him from Lin. He thought about the few minutes he’d spent in his room, desperately trying to make sense of what Kane had conveyed. Lin is an assassin? What’s he doing working for the FBI? So many questions and no time for answers. If he had spent another thirty seconds contemplating what he had been asked to do, essentially to turn his back on a fellow agent, Lin would be in this room and not him.
First things first: secure the room. Initially he’d planned to move the family out of the B&B and drive away—an obvious no-go with Lin on the move. Castro had already flipped the deadbolt on the door, the first line of defense. He thought of rearranging the furniture in front of the door but passed on the idea—too loud and not very effective.
Rather than face Lin, Castro started to look for another way out of the building. As he hurried over to one of the large windows to see if it were possible to climb out and make it to the ground, common sense reared its head. I have an elderly woman and two young children. What the hell am I thinking?
Castro had come to grips with what had fast become a reality: The door was the only way out of the suite. That would undoubtedly put him on a collision course with Lin. His only real option would be to secure the family as best he could and wait for backup to arrive. It was doable, except for one small hiccup: Castro had never counted on Lin having a key to the room.
He could hear the mechanism of the lock cylinder turning. He could hear the latch receding out of the doorframe. He could hear the click of the door opening. There wasn’t any time to think, only to act.
Castro moved toward the backside of the opening door. Lin would have to open the door all the way and move into the room in order to spot him. By then, Castro would have had numerous opportunities to pull the trigger if it came to that.
But what if Kane was wrong?
The thought weighed on Castro like two monster-sized anvils. This was an FBI agent, someone who, like him, had taken an oath to uphold the law, to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Were there ever any bad agents in the FBI’s history? Sure. But Kane had fingered Kip Lin. He might have been new to the service—a rookie, really—but Castro had known Lin for three months before he had received the assignment to secure Kane’s family, and he felt like he had gotten to know the guy.
On top of that, Castro had been in the service for a good fifteen years. He liked to think that, over those years, he’d developed a sixth sense when it came to vetting people. Could he have gotten it wrong? Or had Kane? Suggesting that Lin was a bad egg without any solid evidence was alarming. It’s not something that an agent readily accepts. An agent has to trust his partner with his life—and up until then, Castro had seen no reason not to trust Lin.
Still, Castro granted Kane the benefit of the doubt. She was an outstanding agent and, as far as he knew, about as straight as they came. But that’s not what had him drawing a gun on another agent. It was her phone call, something about her voice, the way it quivered and how it cracked on some of her words. It was uncharacteristic of Agent Kane. It was fear.
Chapter 40
Castro waited with his Glock aimed at the door, his finger resting inside the trigger guard. He had already decided that, if Lin entered the room with his weapon drawn, he would order him to drop it first. One warning. One opportunity.
The door swung all the way open. Castro didn’t dare move to give away his location. He stood off to the side of a small sofa with his knees slightly bent, his arms straight out in front, and his weapon trained on the doorway.
He waited for what seemed an abnormally long time for Lin to enter the room. It had Castro wondering if Lin knew he was waiting just behind the door. But how could he? Castro slept light and kept the ringer volume on his cell on low, so no way Lin had heard it ring. Castro had also been careful about his movements throughout the building. Surely the two creaks in the floorboards his footsteps had caused hadn’t been enough to penetrate Lin’s door.
Castro thought briefly about calling out to Lin but nixed that idea. Instead, he took a step to the right and paused. He continued this action until he could clearly see outside the door. He saw nothing.
As he took a step forward, he felt a sharp pain in his chest near his right shoulder. Seconds later, the same agonizing pain exploded in his right biceps, crippling his arm and leaving just his left hand to hold his gun. He moved to raise his right arm but couldn’t. The pain stifled him, and he knew why. Protruding from his arm was the handle of a small knife.
He was being attacked.
Like lighting, two more knives struck him, one in his left thigh and one in his left arm. A soft groan left his lips. He lost the grip on his weapon, and it fell to the wooden floor, clacking away from him. Castro’s left leg buckled from the pain, but he prevented himself from falling completely. He rested on one knee with his other leg straight out, only to see Lin charging at him. Castro had no defense.
Castro lay on his back as his partner, the man he had called a friend, straddled him. He felt the cool metal of a blade pressed against his neck.
“Don’t make a sound,” Lin whispered, his breath hot against Castro’s cheek. His eyes were dark, but their intensity shined brightly.
Castro could not bite his tongue. “Why?”
A grin widened on Lin’s face. “Why? Don’t take it personally. This is business. I’m being paid to do a job. That’s all.”
“Paid? Who’s paying you? They’re just children. Have you no conscience?”
“My employer is of no concern. Of course, the mother-in-law is safe. She’s not part of the contract. Nor were you, Marty. You should have stayed in your room. I imagine a convoy of black SUVs is racing toward the B&B right about now. Yes, I realize Agent Kane has been tipped off, though I have no idea how she figured out that I was the threat. Did she tell you? That’s why you’re up here, right? Kane contacted you.”
“She didn’t get into the details.”
“You know, it’s part of the plan—that Agent Kane arrives here just in time to discover that she’s too late to save her kids. Sick, yeah, I know, but I don’t ask questions. I’m just here to collect a paycheck.”
Lin pressed the knife into Castro’s neck and pulled away, easily slicing through his vocal chords and severing his jugular. Lin pressed his palm tightly against Castro’s mouth until the man stopped moving beneath him. He then ran both sides of the blade over Castro’s shirt before standing.
I wonder which room the kids are in. I’d hate to accidentally walk into Po Po’s room and have to kill the old woman.
Lin took a step forward toward the bedroom door behind Castro, thinking he would have guarded the door the kids were behind. He had only t
aken one step before a noise alerted him.
Lin spun around, arm cocked back and ready to release the knife, but stopped short of throwing it. “You?”
Chapter 41
Lin spoke in a hushed yet direct tone. “Don’t tell me the plan has changed, because clearly…” He waved a hand at Castro’s lifeless body.
Sei stepped out from the doorway. Her arms hung relaxed at her sides, and her facial features were neutral. There was nothing threatening about her approach, and there wasn’t any reason for Lin to be worried anyhow. He had met Sei in Shanghai just before he’d set off for training at Quantico.
Lin was a different type of assassin from Sei; he was manufactured. The mastermind had recruited a young mercenary with raw talent and a whole lot of promise and then groomed him into an intelligent, highly trained killing machine.
In exchange for this, Lin had but one duty to fulfill for the mastermind: join the ranks of the FBI and remain there until the Chasing Chinatown game had completed its run. If he were utilized for tasks during that time, he would be adequately compensated.
Upon the completion of the game, their arrangement would end, and he would no longer be in the mastermind’s employ. He would be free to remain at the FBI or leave. Lin thought it was easy money and a trade-off that favored him. Achieving FBI status would give him unprecedented access that many people around the world would pay him handsomely for. He hadn’t thought his services would ever come into play. But they had.
He lowered his arm while his brow did a terrible job of masking his confusion. Why is she even here? He didn’t report to her, and he had clearly understood his orders from the mastermind. He even thought that maybe he had gotten it wrong but quickly ditched that notion, as he had never gotten an assignment wrong. Unless… “Just to be clear here, this is my contract, my payday.”
“This isn’t about money. The job has been canceled,” Sei said calmly.
“Protocol states that only the boss can cancel a hit. Why was I not contacted directly?”
Lin glanced at his watch and then snapped his fingers three times. “Time’s running out. I need to finish the job.” He turned around and headed toward the bedroom door.
<><><>
NPD had set up the checkpoint where Highway 29 and Highway 12 intersected. That’s where we cut our ties to the media caravan following us and ordered them to wait at the checkpoint until further notice. The captain in charge radioed his men at the other checkpoint and gave them the go-ahead to move in.
A trail of blue and red lights lit up the highway as we sped toward the B&B. A few minutes later, Knox hooked the steering wheel to the left, and the SUV made a sharp turn onto a dirt road leading into the property. I could barely make out the building as we approached. During the day, I imagined it would be partly visible through a couple of trees, but the fog that night had masked it fairly well.
House had called to say that she and another agent were about ten minutes out. I told her we were at the B&B and would move to enter the building immediately. I didn’t want to wait. I couldn’t.
There were six agents in total and about a dozen officers from NPD, more than enough manpower. NPD would work to set up a perimeter and secure the property to prevent anybody from slipping away while we breached the building.
I texted Po Po to let her know we were there and asked if she heard voices outside the door. She said no but couldn’t be sure.
That fact that she still texted me was good news, though we were heading in with the idea that Lin was still in the house. If he wasn’t, Castro would have reached Po Po and the children and gotten them out. Instead, Castro had gone silent and stopped communicating. Something had gone wrong.
A few of NPD’s vehicles were equipped with battering rams. We stacked up behind Copeland, and he splintered the front door of the B&B. One by one, we filed into the foyer and fanned out.
I knew the kids and Po Po were on the top floor and both Lin and Castro were on the second. Knox ordered a couple of agents to clear the second floor while the rest of us headed up the stairs.
We stacked up behind Copeland on the landing at the top of the staircase. From down below, we could hear still hear voices calling out, “Clear.” Copeland gave a whispered count to three before throwing the ram into the door and destroying it. I went in first.
Upon entry, I noticed two motionless bodies on the carpet. With my weapon trained on them, I called out, “Po Po!” and headed toward the room I knew they should be in.
Knox moved toward securing the other bedroom. Copeland made a beeline for the two bodies to assess if they were still a threat.
I knocked on the door. “It’s me. Open up.”
A few seconds later, the lock clicked, and the door opened.
Chapter 42
I let out a breath of relief when I counted three familiar faces in the room. Lucy wasted no time running toward me and jumping into my arms. Holding her, I gave Ryan and Po Po a healthy dose of hugs and kisses.
“Mommy, what’s happening?” Lucy asked. “Why do we have to leave? Its still nighttime.”
From the sound of Lucy’s voice, I could tell that she wasn’t aware of what had happened. “I know, sweetie, but we have to move again.”
“Are we going home now?”
“No, not just yet.”
I pulled Ryan back against my side. “How are you?” I asked, unsure of what he knew. I assumed he had an idea because even I could see the police cruisers with their flashing lights through the windows.
Knox spoke through the door. “Everything okay in there?”
“We’re fine,” I answered.
“The situation is covered out here, literally.”
I assumed Knox meant he had gone ahead and covered the bodies, knowing I still had to get the kids out of the building. I already had a good guess that the bodies belonged to Castro and Lin. I had recognized their body shapes. Had I been wrong about Lin? Was there someone else?
I spent the next few minutes enjoying my family before having to do the inevitable. The B&B was a crime scene, and I needed to remove them from it.
The lights in the living room were still off, and Knox and Copeland helped escort us down a path that wouldn’t have Ryan or Po Po stepping over a body. I had Lucy in my arms and shielded her eyes. I don’t think she had any idea of what we were walking past.
Ryan, on the other hand, probably knew what lay under those sheets. From the moment Castro and Lin had moved into our house, he’d understood the situation. He never once had let on that he was bothered by any of this, but I couldn’t know for sure. Still, I felt guilty. I should look into counseling for the family.
Once outside, Knox and Copeland walked us over to the SUV we had arrived in. We bumped into House on the way.
“Abby, thank God everyone is okay.”
“We’re all good,” I said as I ushered the kids and Po Po into the backseat of the vehicle, locking the door behind me.
House knew Lin had been fingered as a possible threat but hadn’t had a chance to enter the B&B. I gave her the lowdown of what I had seen on the third floor, but I couldn’t yet speak for the other floors, other than saying they appeared to be empty.
“Castro? Lin? Both dead?”
“I couldn’t see their faces, but I’m pretty sure it’s them up there.”
She shook her head. “This makes no sense. That means there was a third person.”
I nodded. I called two officers over to the vehicle and asked them to watch over my family while House and I went back inside for more answers.
The lights in the suite were on, and Knox and Copeland were standing near the bodies, talking softly amongst themselves. They had pulled the sheets back, and House and I could clearly see that it was Castro and Lin lying on the floor.
Before I could say anything, Knox spoke, his voice solemn and matching his body posture. “From what we can tell, Castro has three blades of some kind sticking out of him. Throwing knives are my guess. They were probably
used from a distance to immobilize him but not enough to kill him. His neck is severed. Pretty sure that’s what did him in.”
House and I moved in closer. I bent down and looked at Lin. I didn’t need a play-by-play from Knox. I could see a knife handle sticking out from one side of his neck, the tip protruding from the other side. I leaned in for a better view before looking up. “I think I know who the third person is.”
Chapter 43
Earlier in the night, when I had filled in Knox and the others about Sei’s visit, I left out a few details. “The knife in Lin’s neck looks a lot like the knife she had hanging from her hip. At least, the size is dead on.”
“This is getting stranger by the minute,” Knox said, running his hand across his face. “We have an assassin who warns you about your children being in danger and then shows up and kills Lin… Heck, she might have killed both of them for all we know.”
“Well, maybe she was here to kill the kids, but Lin and Castro intercepted her.” House looked at me, her eyes widely suggestive. “You said you warned Castro, right? Well, maybe the two were up here to protect the kids when they were attacked.”
“Why not finish the job?” Copeland jumped in. “No offense here, Abby, but it wouldn’t take much to get it done.”
House crossed her arms over her chest. “Maybe the sound of the sirens approaching scared her off.”
Knox chewed on his lip and started shaking his head. “Doesn’t make sense. A trained assassin would have finished the job. And I agree with Copeland: She had time.”
I listened to the possible scenarios that my fellow agents were tossing out. All of them had some sort of plausibility. Pegging Lin as the threat was a gut instinct; I could have been wrong. Maybe Sei warned me as a challenge. Could she get here before I did? I also found the situation confusing. “He’s wearing gloves.” I motioned at Lin with my head. “What agent do you know that wears gloves while on duty?”
Coit Tower (Abby Kane FBI Thriller - Chasing Chinatown Trilogy Book 3) Page 14
