The Book of Joshua I - Trust (The Gems & Gents Series 2)

by Iris Bolling

  “All of that sounds good. The way to do that is to trust the people who are trying to protect you. You have lied to Absolute and he knows it, yet he cares enough to still try to help with your mission. All he asks is that you trust him to do what’s right by you. And you can’t give him that.” She pointed to the door. “Hell, the door’s open. Walk out.” She turned back to the computer monitor, pushed the power button on and continued working.

  Monique turned when Akande didn’t move. The woman was standing there, with tears streaming down her face. “Aww, hell, not the tears. Really, you want to pull out the water works?” Monique reached over to the desk, grabbed the box of tissues and handed one to Akande. “What?” Monique asked exasperated with the scene.

  “I do not want to leave him.” Akande wiped the tears away. “I know I must leave him behind and I believe it will hurt him.” She began to settle down. “But this is my mission, my purpose, my duty to my country. I do not want him to suffer because I was weak and fell in love with him.”

  Monique stared at the woman. “You don’t expect to live through this mission, do you?”

  Akande squared her shoulders. “I will not. I always understood that. Once the sanctions are lifted, my purpose will end and I will die at the hand of the American or my aunt will surely have me killed upon my return.”

  “Then why in the hell are you doing this? Out of some sense of honor, no less.”

  “Honor is everything.”

  “You speak of honor as if it’s this badge you are proud to wear. Yet, you dishonor the man who cares for you with lies. See, I think your plan is find your father, who you believe is Senator Davenport and once you do you plan to kill him. Joshua has a sworn duty to protect all Senators for they represent the United States. You are putting him in a position where he will have to choose between you or his country. Which would you choose?”

  Akande did not respond to the question. “Would you check on him? Please.”

  Monique gathered two important pieces of information in the five minute conversation. Honor was important to Akande and so was Joshua. She was still putting Joshua in a hell of a situation. However, she guessed the woman wasn’t all bad. “I’ll call, but I’m sure he’s fine.”

  “Thank you.” She turned to leave.

  Monique watched as a proud woman’s shoulders slouched. The sight wasn’t pretty. “Hey, Akande, have you ever been to D.C.?”

  “I have never been anywhere but Asmere. Unless you count when I was kidnapped.”

  “Well, I think some fresh air might do us some good.” She stood. “You won’t get kidnapped here.” She picked up her gun and put it in the back of her pants. She grabbed her coat and gave another to Akande. “Let’s get some fresh air.” They walked towards the door. “You might get shot though.”

  Akande stopped and looked back at Monique. “I’m joking.” Akande looked as if she did not believe her. “Really, I am joking. You’ve got to loosen up a little, Akande.”

  Monique locked the door behind them. “D.C. is a great place for visitors. Sightseeing is one of its largest tourist draws. Hell, the White House is here. Everyone should see that at least once in their lifetime. Do you like basketball?”

  “No.”

  “Okay, we’re going to the Verizon Center. Check out the ball players.”

  “Where is your Senate Building?”

  “In the opposite direction. Doesn’t matter, you’re not going anywhere near there today.”

  “Why not? It is my whole purpose for being here.”

  “You’ll go when Joshua clears it and not before.” Monique stopped in the lobby. “Hold up, that’s not how you wear that jacket.” She adjusted the collar. “You have to jazz it up a little.” She stepped back and took a look at the woman. With the tears gone, and the attitude in check, she could see why Joshua would be attracted to the woman. “There, you almost look as good as me.”

  “You and Joshua and this clothes thing,” Akande huffed. “The clothes are not important. What is inside is what counts.”

  “Really, hmm.” Monique smirked. “Well, don’t ever go to L.A. or Miami Beach.” She opened the door and they walked out onto H Street. Akande did as most tourists do she looked up at the tall buildings. Monique surveyed the area.

  They had been walking for a few minutes when Akande grabbed her arm. Turning she noticed that Akande’s face had gone white as a sheet as she stared across the street. “What’s with you now?”

  “Who are they?”

  Monique looked across the street to see men emerging from vehicles. “Prince Raheem of Emure.” Her grip tightened. Monique quickly moved them from sight. She wasn’t crazy about this woman, but it was her duty to protect her while Joshua was away. “You are shaking like a leaf. What gives?”

  She looked up at Monique. “Are you sure?”

  “I make it my business to know fine men,” Monique looked up as security surrounded the man. They stood at a corner behind one of the columns of a bank giving them an unobstructed vantage point. “The man in front is Prince Raheem.”

  “I have seen this man before.”

  Monique looked down at her. “Which one?”

  Akande watched the man closely. “Prince Raheem.”

  “That’s possible. He is from your region.”

  “No, you do not understand,” Akande cut her off. “When Joshua took me home, to the palace in Asmere, this man was there. He was leaving when I was brought in to see Queen Sermyera.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I looked him right in the eyes. That is the man who met with Queen Sermyera in Asmere.”

  Akande took a step out to get a better look. “Why is he here?”

  Monique pulled Akande back behind her just as one of the security men looked up. “Did the man at the palace see you?” Monique asked never taking her eyes from the security guard who was still looking her way.

  “Yes. Just as I saw him.”

  Monique held the guard’s eye, until he turned away to speak to the man next to him. When that man looked up she pulled Akande around the corner. “Time to go.”

  She pulled out her handheld. Cell phones were not secure enough for this communication. Need help. Track Me. Surveying the area, she knew they could not go back to the hotel. They would follow them there. She put the device in her pocket and walked towards Chinatown. They had to get lost fast.

  The busy tourist area allowed them to take a minute to assess things. Monique noticed two men dressed in suits with guns. The guns weren’t visible they were under their suit jackets. Not unusual, this was D.C. after all. The area was loaded with agents of all kinds carrying weapons. As a precaution, she walked across the street, keeping Akande to her inside. Monique stopped at a storefront window pretending to be looking at the outfit. Through the glass, she saw the two men stop on the other side of the street to her left. In her peripheral vision, to her right she saw two more suspicious-looking men. They needed to lose the men and get back to the hotel. If she was alone she would kick ass, then find out who in the hell they were, however, Akande was with her and she did not want to put her in danger.

  “You see them too?”

  Monique looked through the glass at the woman. “The men?”

  “Yes.” Akande replied. “The men to our left followed us from the hotel. The others joined later.”

  “Do you recognize them?”

  “No.”

  Monique hoped they would not open fire in a crowded area. They wouldn’t be that stupid. Monique heard the swoosh sound a second before the glass shattered. She grabbed Akande and began running as some others did. She ran past the Verizon Center heading towards a building under construction. She couldn’t take a chance that a civilian would be shot.

  They ducked behind a truck near the construction site. Monique pulled out her glock and looked around. The area was less populated here. Maybe someone called the cops when the window shattered, but it was D.C., they might not. Monique pulled a button from the strap
of her heel.

  Akande must have thought her foot was bothering her. “You should remove your shoes and run bare foot. You will go much faster.”

  Monique looked over her shoulder at the woman. “Have you lost your mind? I’m not running barefoot on the streets of D.C.” A shot hit the bumper of the construction truck. “Oh, hell. Too close.” Monique pushed Akande back. She looked around. “We are going to run inside that building and straight out the back. On three. You ready.”

  Akande said, “One, two, three,” and ran.

  Monique tried to catch her but it was too late. All she could do was fire off two rounds to slow the men down. Then she ran into the building. A homeless man was sitting on the floor in the back. “Hide!” she yelled to him, then let off two more rounds on the men following them. She caught up with Akande, stopped her in the alley and hid behind a large green dumpster.

  “You weren’t supposed to run until I counted to three. Don’t do that again. I count, you don’t.” Monique took a breath. She looked around. There wasn’t anyone in the alley. Now all she had to do was hold the men off until Joshua got there. She had no idea where he was, but she knew he would show up.

  ***

  Joshua was just about to land the chopper at Reagan National when Ned’s voice came through the panel. “Absolute, I show you in D.C. and Spicy is under attack. I’m sending you Intel.”

  “Where is Akande?”

  “With Spicy,” he said. “They’re holed up at a construction site not far from the Verizon Center.”

  “Shit. Sammy pull two semi’s from the vault. We have a gun fight to get to in D.C.”

  Samuel came back to the front with guns in hand. He looked down over the city. “D.C. is a no fly zone. Where are you going to land?”

  Joshua put the chopper in sleuth mode. “The Verizon Center is as good a place as any.”

  “That’s not going to draw attention?”

  “You have a better idea?”

  “Take it to the fight. Land on the roof of the construction site.”

  “That has no flair about it, Sammy. You have to do things with style.”

  “Let’s see how much style you will have when you have to explain landing this chopper with all its weaponry to Congress.”

  He looked over at his brother. “You always take all the fun out of everything.”

  ***

  Monique heard the accent filled voice and knew they were still a good distance away. She did not reply. That would give their position away. Her hand held beeped. She pulled it out and read the message. Ten minutes. “Hell, in ten minutes I could be dead.” She put the device away.

  “Can you fight?” Akande asked Monique. “We can try to take them.”

  “If they didn’t have bullets, I would take you up on that.” She shook her head. “I have to draw them away from you.” She looked around. The brick wall covered their back, the large dumpsters kept them hidden from one direction. She looked up and it came to her.

  She moved Akande, made sure she was covered then gave Akande the button she pulled from her shoe. “Hold this.” She held the woman’s eyes. “Do not. Listen to me. Do not throw this unless you have absolutely no other choice to save your life.”

  Akande looked at Monique and just shook her head. “Joshua gives me a straw you give me a button. Don’t you people know about guns and knives?”

  Monique glared at the woman. She grabbed the hand Akande was holding the button in. “This little button will go boom. You understand.”

  Her meaning must have become clear to Akande. The woman looked down at her hand. “This is a bomb. I do not want this.”

  “Hold this. Do not drop it. It will not explode until it hits something. The last thing I need to explain is a bomb going off in D.C.”

  “Keep me in your eyesight.” Monique ran behind one of the large corner pillars holding up the building. She looked back to make sure she could see Akande. Staying low she ran further into the building behind another pillar. She heard a sound behind her. Turning quickly she raised her gun and froze. It was the homeless man, lying flat on the floor. “Get out of here,” she mouthed to the man.

  He shook his head, pointed to his eyes, then gestured with his hand. Four fingers, then pointed to his right, indicating four men. She nodded. He next closed his hand into a fist twice, then put up two fingers, indicating one at twelve o’clock. That meant a man was straight ahead in front of her. He stopped. Then put up a fist and four fingers. There was one at nine. He stopped. Put up two fingers. They were trying to surround her. He then closed his eyes, indicating he could not see the other men. She blew a kiss at the man, and looked over her shoulder to check on Akande. She was still where she’d left her. Good. When she took a shot, they would converge on her location. It might get a little sticky at that point. She saw a movement in front of her and took aim. One bullet, dead center and the man behind the construction wood fell out. Shots hit the pillar. She moved to the next anchor of the building. With the silencer on, the only sound that would have been heard by bystanders in the area was her one shot. To the untrained ear, a person would think it was just a vehicle backfiring. Nothing out of the ordinary. There would be no help from D.C.’s finest. She looked back. Akande was still in place, not as clear as she would like. But as long as the men were after her, Akande was in a good place. She turned to check on the homeless man just as a bullet went through her arm and hit the metal pillar. “Shit.” She moved again and fell against a stack of wood. She sent off two rounds in the direction the shot came from. She dropped her weapon and quickly checked her arm. The bullet went through, but she was bleeding and it hurt like hell.

  “We know you are hit,” The accented voice called out. “All we want is the girl and we will let you live.”

  The voice was close. Monique heard a whistle and smiled. She picked up her gun, and counted to ten. “Sorry. You can’t have her.”

  “Then you both will die.”

  Monique looked up and back to see the man point his gun at her.

  “Get down!” Joshua yelled as he ran into the building. Monique hit the floor as sounds of a semi filled the air.

  Joshua never hesitated as he sprayed the empty structure with bullets, taking the remaining men down instantly. He walked towards Monique and towered over her. When he saw the blood, he lost it.

  He picked the man up off the floor. “You come into my country, after my woman and you shot my trainee. You have lost your damn mind.” Joshua picked up the body and threw it against the brick wall. “Say something damn it.”

  “Joshua, he’s dead.” Monique released a nervous laugh. “He can’t answer you.” She stood and walked over to the homeless man.

  Samuel ran into the building and looked around at all the dead bodies. “Did you kill all of them Joshua.” Incredulously, he looked up at his brother. “How in the hell are we supposed to question them?”

  “He doesn’t ask questions,” Monique explained then looked at the man. “Joshua, this Vet over here saved my life. You think we can ask him a few questions before you shoot him?”

  Joshua was still pissed. “I’ll ask them when I reach the fires of Hell. ‘Cause if one more person starts shooting in my country I’m going to blow all their asses up!” he yelled and looked around.

  When she heard his voice Akande peeked out from her hiding place. She had never seen this side of Joshua. It didn’t frighten her. It made her proud, for he fought like a warrior.

  “Where in the hell is she?” he yelled looking around.

  “In the dumpster.”

  Joshua stared at Monique. “You put her in the damn dumpster?”

  “Hey, she was surrounded by metal,” Monique yelled back. “They didn’t find her.”

  “Akande,” Joshua called out. He saw something moving in the dumpster and ran over. He then pulled her out.

  She put her arms around his waist and held him. She could feel his anger. This was one of those times she needed the jokester in him to come o
ut. She held up the button. “A straw and a button. You Americans need real weapons.”

  He took the button from her then looked over at Monique. “You gave her the button?”

  Monique was now talking to the veteran. “She is still alive isn’t she?”

  He looked down at Akande and slowly wrapped one arm around her, lowered his chin to her head and closed his eyes. He held his gun in the other hand.

  “Can you two do that later?” Monique bent to one of the bodies. “Let’s check some ID before the police arrive.”

  “It’s D.C.,” Samuel stated as he looked around. “We have time. Take the ID off of one and let’s get out of here.”

  As the chopper took off, Monique looked down at D.C. MPD converged on the scene and she wondered why is Prince Raheem in D.C.?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Samuel and Joshua Lassiter were a sight to behold as they walked through the hallways of the Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. Both were tall, formidable and handsome. Women and men took second glances as the two walked by.

  “May I be of service to you?” one woman asked, smiling up at Joshua.

  “No, thank you,” Joshua replied and continued to walk.

  Samuel looked sideways at his brother. “You feeling okay?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “You didn’t ask the sister for her number or flash the dimples or any of the normal things you do.”

  “Not interested. We have business to discuss with Davenport.”

  Samuel stopped. “You, not interested in a woman?”

  “Sammy, the Senator.”

  “Wow, and serious too,” Samuel said as he started walking again.

  Joshua opened the door to the Senator’s office. “I still got it.”

  Sammy laughed. “Now that’s the brother I know and love.”

  “Good afternoon. May I help you?” A young blonde woman smiled up at Joshua.

  He returned the smile. “We are here to see Senator Davenport.”