Commandeered (Mercury Black Authority Book 2)

by Finian Blake

  “Francesca and Frank were planning on leaving about ten. We can cover the arrangements for the ship good night.” Anna whispered something in Terri’s ear and gave her a light push.

  “What was all that about,” Adam’s curiosity was up.

  “Susan came down to get her nipples pierced and she let Gregory watch. The only reason that Anna answered the door is that she wanted to make him wait for her. The General is in a real state.”

  Adam talked Terri in to going back to the service center. There was something bothering him about the films. Working his way through the box of film Adam found one with the same date as Milo’s death. He loaded it in the projector. As the movie started the camera panned around the room. Terri gasped, the victim for the evening was Lola her former neighbor and standing next to her dressed in maroon was her other neighbor Ruby. Adam stopped the projector and walked up to the screen. Ruby was standing there wearing the knee length boots that were stolen from Terri’s house that day.

  “I think that Milo was murdered. Dianne was in your house the day he died. If she started the van and closed the door while he was passed out drunk it would look like a suicide.”

  “I never did believe that he was that stupid. He was a drunk, but he was not suicidal.” Terri was relieved to know that Milo had not committed suicide. She also wanted revenge on Dianne. “When they found Ruby she was wearing my clothes. Dianne set that up too and it also looks like Andrew from the studio is their cameraman.”

  “Do we tell Lewis what to look for?’

  “Suki is with him now.” Adam sounded tired. “Let’s wait until morning so we can find out what she has picked up.”

  Adam took the reel off the projector carefully tucking it back in the same slot that he removed it from. He looked at the dates and found one from the week before Milo died threading it on the projector and started it. The camera scanned the poker room and another familiar face appeared. Angie’s husband Frank popped up in a few frames.

  “That son of a bitch was attending the poker parties. Now we know how he gave Dianne the contract. The strange thing is for being a snuff film they show a lot of faces. Nobody is trying to disguise themselves. This is not footage that I would want my face to appear in.” The answer came to Adam and Terri at the same time. The only possible answer was black mail. The Boss and Dianne were blackmailing either some or all of the guests.

  “We need to proceed carefully,” Susan said. “There are more than a few powerful people in these reels. I was wondering why the investigation died so quickly. Somebody is killing the investigation! Dianne must have the Boss’s stash.”

  “That is why they sent all of this out here,” Adam noted. “I have a bad feeling that we are going to have a surprise visit or Lewis is going to have an accident on the way back to MI.” Terri was not a trusting person and Adam thought that she was probably on target. He quickly took the reel off the projector and put it back in the box.” Adam called Mark and had him come to the Knoll. He told Mark to bring Tom and Brent with him. Terri called the secure cottage and instructed Suki to bring Lewis with her to the security center.

  Suki hurried in the door with Lewis and Adam started to brief them immediately. “We have a bad situation here. There is too much evidence in your package and this stuff is red hot. It contains evidence of crimes by too many highly placed people. Lewis, Terri and I think that you have been set up to fail. We are going to send you back in one of our cars tonight. We will have your car delivered to you tomorrow. You will be taken into the MI 5 security area and held there until we are sure that you are safe. Suki get your gear out and sweep Lewis’s personal things, his car and the evidence. Go over his person too.” Suki did as instructed starting with Lewis. She found a transmitter in his shoe and another in his coat. She swept the evidence finding two more transmitters. When she went to the secure cottage, Suki found one in his luggage and two in his car. Lewis was shocked. Suki removed the transmitters from Lewis’s clothing and the evidence.

  Adam had an idea, “Do not destroy them. Move them over to the secure cottage and leave them there.” Adam apologized to Lewis. “I know this was supposed to be a nice weekend for you. Come out another time and we will be sure to give you the first class treatment.” Adam loaded Lewis and the evidence in a cart driving him up the hill. He made sure that Mark and Tom knew what the score was and had them pack an assortment of weapons. Mark drove the Bentley out of the upper gate starting out in the direction of Manchester.

  Adam intentionally did not give Lewis time for a phone call, since he was not entirely sure that Lewis was not involved. Next he alerted all of the people living at the resort about the security problem. He had Suki take Terri up to the gym and break out the Dragunov rifles, the star light scopes and the night vision glasses. He took two pair of night vision glasses and several sets of reflectors with him. Terri and Suki broke out the starlight scopes mounting them on the weapons. Adam had Muriel and Jeff lock the door of their cottage. He called Francesca and Frank telling them to lock the doors in the Founders Cottage. Gregory and Anna insisted on joining him in the hedgerow. Adam felt better about having some help with him. He pulled two AK 74s out of the security center. The 5.45 ammunition was more accurate than the 7.62 ammunition because with the lower recoil it was easier to stay on target. He had security leave the main gate open and set the barriers across all the entrances with the exception of the one to the courtyard. Lewis’s car was parked in front of the secure cottage. There was only one way in or out of the Secure Cottage which was the front door and they left that unlocked since they wanted the intruders in the cottage with ambushers picking a spot in the hedgerow. The phone buzzed in the hedgerow. Security had a white van driving down the central road.

  “When they pull in the yard, put up the barrier and close the barriers to the hedgerows.” He got on the radio. “Terri, if things start popping shoot out the tires on your side of the van, Gregory will take out the tires on the other side and Anna will come up from behind the van and check out the interior from the rear. We will go no further than the front of the van unless we tell you. Ryan will have our backs down low. Gregory, Anna and I are wearing the blue starlight security reflectors for identification.”

  The van stopped right after entering the yard and with the night vision glasses Adam could clearly see the driver and the front passenger seats. There were at least two people in the van and after a few minutes the van surged forward with five black clad figures jumping out of the back of the van racing to a position next to the cottage door. The figure in the lead tried the front door finding that it opened freely. All five figures burst in the cottage with pistols drawn. Adam called for a go glad to have someone of Ryan’s skill covering their backs. Terri and Suki took out the tires on the left side of the van. Adam went wide right and Gregory went wide left stopping at the open cargo door. He looked inside and moved forward. Anna jerked open the rear doors, poking her weapon inside, there was no one left in the back. Adam jerked the driver’s door open and ripped the driver out of her seat putting a knee in the drivers back quickly applying handcuffs. Gregory jerked open the passenger door and did the same to the passenger. Anna moved up behind Gregory. The lights came on in the cottage. Adam got on the radio, “Terri shoot anybody that tries to leave the cottage. Everybody inside is a target.”

  Mark called out from the corner of the cottage, “You in the cottage throw your guns out and take your clothes off.” Anna looked at Gregory with both of them having a clear line of sight into the cottage. “We have the other two out here and you are trapped.” There was a sudden rush for the door. They were going to shoot their way out. The first three went down in a hail of gun fire. The fourth dove out the door falling to the ground like a swatted fly having taken two shots from both Terri and Suki.

  The fifth called out, “Hold your fire I am coming out.”

  “Throw your gun out the door and take your clothes off.” The gun came out the door.

  “Why do you want me t
o take my clothes off?”

  “If you do not come out naked my sharp shooters will fill you with lead.” Within two minutes a naked man stood in the doorway. Adam called up to the Knoll, “Terri, you and Suki sweep the property for movement. Susan and Lynn take the dogs and sweep the property.” He moved forward handcuffing the naked man. When he checked Adam found out that the driver was in fact a woman. She was dressed in dark maroon slacks and blouse and her red hair stood out in the light from the cottage door. Anna started to move around the area to check for any other people that they might have missed. Gregory lifted the passenger to his feet.

  “Anna is checking the immediate area. Do you have her?”

  “We have her.” Terri was on the radio and Suki was following Anna with her Dragunov as she moved methodically through the cottages with her night vision glasses. “Suki will cover her. I am on my way down.” Terri raced down to the cottage in the cart. After a sweep of the property, Adam gave the stand down order. Suki followed Terri in another cart. Adam kept his hand firmly on the cuffs of the driver. When Susan finished the sweep they went to the security cottage.

  Adam started the introductions, “Ladies, I would like to introduce you to the woman that wants to kill you. This is Dianne.” Terri started for her instantly. Adam held her back.

  “We need information first. Anna, you have a special talent for interrogating women. Would you do the honors?”

  “I would love to have a chat with her. Can I use the stable?” Susan nodded in the affirmative. “What are my restrictions?”

  Adam added, “Don’t kill her. Other than that there are no limits.”

  “Can Gregory help? He likes to watch me work.”

  “Of course he can,” Susan said in a patronizing voice.

  Terri started to say something, but Adam started before she could speak. “Since you have a talent for interrogating men, I thought you might like to try these two.” Adam pulled out the naked man first. The other man was instantly recognized by Terri. It was Andrew from the studio. Terri looked at the frightened men.

  “Andrew, how nice of you to join us. Adam, after our first encounter I would love to spend some quality time with ‘shit head’,” Terri’s voice took on an ominous tone.

  “You may do whatever you want with no restrictions. Tell Suki go easy on the torch. We are running low on fuel and Terri you can have Andrew all to yourself.” Andrew started to cry loudly as Terri grabbed the hair on the back of Andrew’s head instantly starting up to the Knoll noting that he had freshly wet his pants. Adam excused himself and went to the Founders cottage. He knocked on the door with Frank and Francesca both answering the door.

  “Is everything alright?”

  “Yes, everything is under control. We are good for the evening. I was wondering if you could rent a helicopter for the garbage run tomorrow.” Frank knew what Adam meant by a garbage run. Adam would not ask Francesca to participate knowing that she preferred to stay away from those activities.

  “That should not be a problem.”

  “Ryan and I need to bag the trash. We will see you in the morning.”

  Adam stopped by the visual cottage. He did not want to further upset Muriel, but with all the gun fire there was no choice in the matter. He knocked softly on the door. Jeff answered.

  “Muriel is going crazy! What in the hell is happening.”

  “As you know, we had the evidence from the snuff ring,” Adam said. “Somebody pulled a raid to get the evidence. We stopped them cold. I think that we got the last of them.”

  “When will the police be arriving?” Muriel was trying to figure out what she was going to tell them.

  “They will not be coming. We handled it on our own. We have our own security.”

  “The evidence gave us the last few names. Terri and I figured out that Andrew from the studio was one of the cameramen.” A look of horror came over Muriel’s face.

  “Andrew, I confided in him! I told him what I was doing. He was one of them!”

  “I am afraid so. He was in one of the earlier films. He walked out in front of a camera while it was running, but we got both him and Dianne tonight. They were part of the raid. Neither of them will be bothering anybody any more. From the evidence we looked at, Dianne tried to kill Susan, Terri, Lynn and Suki a few years back. She killed Terri’s brother and two of her neighbors. Tonight should put an end of Diane. I know it will not be easy to believe, but they will not be a problem any longer.” He wanted to stay with her longer but there was several things left to do. “Sleep in tomorrow, we will talk after noon. You are safe tonight.” Muriel grabbed his arm.

  “Where is Dianne? I want to be sure that you have her this time.”

  “She is with Anna and Gregory in the stable.”

  Ryan helped Adam wrap the bodies in tarps and load them in the van. With four flat tires the van was difficult to move. They drove it straight back into the false hedgerow closing the door. None of the gun fire hit the outside wall of the cottage with all of the stray rounds concentrated in the doorway. Adam locked the cottage up and hosed down the area. Ryan went around with a metal detector picking up all of the shell casings. It was almost four AM before things were picked up. Adam went over to check up on Anna’s progress. Anna, Gregory, Lynn, Susan and Muriel were sitting on hay bales having a drink. They were using a hay bale for a table. Dianne was nowhere to be seen.

  “Where is Dianne?”

  “She is in the third stall under the mare.” Anna pointed to the stall. Adam looked in the stall. Dianne was hog tied in the straw covered with horse shit and urine. “We are softening her up. Please sit down and have a drink with us. She will keep.” Anna held out a glass of vodka.

  “I do have a few requests to make,” Adam started. “Dianne should have the financial information for the Boss. She should also know where his blackmail information is kept. If you have any energy left I would like to know how they got those transmitters on Lewis. You may want to keep Lynn handy. She is quick on British financial matters.”

  “No problem, when Dianne starts to talk the hard part will be to shut her up. I was going to start with an ice cold high colonic as soon as I finish this drink.” Anna looked at Susan. “You did say that this building is sound proof.” As Adam was leaving the building he could hear Anna talking to Lynn. “When is the last time that your German Sheppard has had sex?” He could hear Dianne’s muffled protests as he left the stable. Muriel sat on a hay bale hugging a bottle of scotch watching the others.

  Adam went up to the Knoll. He found Suki and Terri hard at work in the tool room of the garage. He could smell the ugly scent of burnt hair. Suki used the acetylene torch to remove the pubic hair from both men.

  “We recorded all they had to say. Andrew has not made any sense since Terri fired up the torch. The other guy is just a street thug that the Boss used to do his dirty work.”

  “Have they told you how they put the transmitters on Lewis?”

  “We never asked.” Suki stroked Andrews’ thigh. “I will have Terri work on that one. Andrew needs more quality time with Terri.” Andrew started to talk with Suki stuffing an old oil rag in his mouth.

  “We have not asked anything yet. When we ask, you will talk or scream it doesn’t make any difference. I am glad Frank will not be home until tomorrow. He hates to hear men crying and he really hates the smell of burning hair. So you had better go now. This is going to be hard on the ears.”

  Noah beat a hasty retreat, “Wake me up in two hours. Francesca’s husband Frank is going to help me take out the trash.”

  Adam had just fallen asleep when the phone rang. Susan’s voice broke through the haze. We have everything from Dianne.

  “Right after you left Anna went to work. She found a five gallon bucket with a pump in the veterinary room. Anna pulled Dianne out of the horse stall and hosed her down with cold water scrubbing her down thoroughly with a horse brush. She put the bucket in front of Dianne filling it with ice. Anna bound her wrists to her ankles f
orcing her ass in the air. Dianne rolled around screaming when Anna splashed some ice water on her, but when the hose went inside of her Dianne was pleading with tears in her eyes and when Anna did half a stroke with the pump Dianne lost her mind. We have the location of the blackmail information, details of the operation, location of the cash hides, safety deposit boxes, and their codes. The boss had two boxes in a Swiss bank. Between the four sites, there is a little over four million in cash.”

  “Did you get the name of the person that planted the transponders?” Adam wanted to put an end to this once and for all.

  Susan gave her account of the session, “Yes, she is a secretary in the administrative office. You were thinking that it was a man, but she was one of the women at one of the earlier poker games. Dianne had her solidly on the hook with blackmail. She told us where to find the book with the list of officials on the payroll. Anna never left a mark on her. She read Dianne like a book. The bitch hands out pain free and easy but she cannot take it. Anna gave her two more pumps from the bucket as an object lesson. Her screaming was unbelievable. I am thankful that Anna was not really pissed off with me when we played our game in the barn. There is not one mark on Dianne, and she is a total basket case.”

  “Well that is not the story up there,” Adam said. “Terri and Suki were in a mood to play. Their subjects thought they were finished. When I came up with some fresh questions the ladies went after the answers enthusiastically. Would you be sure to call the administrator and ask him to detain that secretary?”

  Muriel volunteered to watch Dianne while the others washed up. When the two women were alone in the stable Muriel stood over Dianne lifting her head up painfully by the hair.

  “You paid me a thousand pounds to get in with them. What will you pay me to release you?”

  “Anything you want.”

  “You gave them all of your stashes. You are out of money.”

  “I gave them all of the boss’s stashes not mine. I have a stash behind the headboard of my bed in the safe house. There are twenty thousand pounds in it plus my supply of drugs. Let me go or I will tell them about our arrangement.” Dianne was desperate.