He hoped that one of them might get lucky, or that their combined numbers might overwhelm Tanner, but deep down, he realized that Tanner wouldn’t be stopped by such men.
No, Tanner was coming, and he was coming for him.
Alvarado had done something a day earlier that he had never done before, or had ever needed to do. He had hired outside help, professional help, in the form of a company that specialized in security, among other things.
The company was named Hexalcorp, and they were supply contractors with several governments, including The United States of America.
Hexalcorp was rated second in their field, but their top competitor, the corporation, Burke, had refused to do business with him.
That slight would not go unanswered, and Alvarado would send grief towards Conrad Burke, the Burke Corporation owner, but for now, Tanner was the main concern.
Hexalcorp was sending a top representative to the compound to enhance the security, and had dispatched a group of men they called a “Strike Team” to find and eliminate Tanner.
Alvarado hoped that the men would succeed, but he was far more interested in increasing the compound’s security, because Tanner was coming. Alvarado knew with everything in him that Tanner was coming, and the bastard Cody Parker was as inevitable as death.
CHAPTER 4 – Closing in
Tanner left the hapless Derrick and Bobby inside the burnt-out house.
They would be discovered in the coming days, but not soon enough for it to interfere in his plans.
He dumped Derrick’s car in long-term parking at the airport and then took a cab back to the motel, where he apologized for the busted door and paid for its repair.
He had enough people after him; he didn’t need the cops looking for him over a busted motel room door, and the phony ID he was using was still good.
He drove to a different motel, just in case, and after spending an hour coming up with a revised plan, he sent an email off to Tim Jackson. If anyone could decode what was on Chemzonic’s secret website, it would be Tim.
Tanner fell asleep with Derrick’s shotgun propped up against the side of the bed, and would sleep until the sun woke him.
***
The following morning in Mississippi, Alexa was sitting inside her van, watching the sunrise, as she wondered where Tanner was.
Her mind told her that he was probably in Mexico by now, but her “little voice”, her sixth sense said that he was heading west, northwest.
She was parked outside a motel, and had checked in the day before under the name Anna Sanchez, with a fake ID and credit card courtesy of Damián Sandoval, Alonso Alvarado’s rival.
Without doubt, Sandoval was as big a dirtbag as Alvarado was, but his assistance had proven useful, and his man Dante had saved her life.
As she checked in to the motel the night before, Alexa had showed the clerk the drawing of Tanner. The night clerk hadn’t recognized him, and Alexa was waiting to ask the day clerk the same question when the new person came on shift.
She took the drawing out and looked at it yet again, and wondered what sort of man Tanner was. He was a killer for hire, of that she was certain, but he was also a Tanner.
Alexa’s adopted father, her Papa Rodrigo, had known Tanner Five.
Rodrigo had still been a boy of fifteen and living with his widowed mother while Tanner Five had been middle-aged, but he had become friends with the man before he knew who and what he was.
Rodrigo was gay, and he and his friends from the circus had been attacked by a gang of local kids from the town where they were performing. After Rodrigo had been spotted holding another boy’s hand, the two of them were thrown to the ground and kicked.
Tanner Five had stopped the beating before Rodrigo and his friend were seriously injured, or possibly worse.
Tanner Five had later traveled with the circus and stayed with Rodrigo and his mother for months after that, and although Rodrigo had never come out and said as much, Alexa always got the impression that Tanner and Rodrigo’s mother became more than friends.
In any event, Tanner Five had taught young Rodrigo to fight, at least enough to defend himself, and he had also impressed Rodrigo as being a man of honor.
It wasn’t until years later that the two of them met again, and by that time, Rodrigo had become an accomplished young thief. Accomplished, but not perfect, and he was caught in the act of emptying a safe by the man he was trying to rob.
Rodrigo told Alexa that after he heard the sound of a shotgun racking a shell, he knew he was dead, but to his surprise and joy, when the blast came, it was the owner of the shotgun who perished, because he had been shot by Tanner Five, who had been hired to kill the man.
The two fled the scene and went where they could talk, and that’s when Rodrigo learned the truth about his Tanner.
More trouble ensued shortly thereafter, and Rodrigo recounted how Tanner Five went up against incredible odds on several occasions and came out on top every time. He said that Tanner Five told him that he had been trained by his predecessor, the fourth Tanner, who in turn had been trained by his own mentor.
A Tanner was an assassin, yes, but they were trained to be more than that, they were trained to be the best, to survive anywhere, and to never give up until the target was dead.
Now, some thirty-odd years later, Alexa searched for her Tanner, and she prayed that he was someone who could help her, and not just some mindless killer.
A car pulled up and parked in front of the motel office. When a man got out holding a paper sack and a thermos, Alexa assumed he was the day clerk starting his shift. She left her van holding Tanner’s picture, and went to see if the man knew his face.
***
Alexa lit up when the desk clerk nodded his head affirmatively.
“Yeah, this guy, he was here; it was the night before last. I wasn’t working that night, but I was here talking to my boss when he checked in.”
“What name did he go by?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, we’re not allowed to give out that kind of information, but he checked in alone if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“I’m not involved with him; I’m just looking for him.”
The clerk leaned on the counter. He was a young white guy with curly brown hair and gray eyes. He looked Alexa over and smiled.
“He’s a lucky guy to have you looking for him, but what are you, some kind of bounty hunter?”
Alexa returned the man’s smile and wondered if he was about to hit on her. She would love to know what name Tanner was traveling under, but in truth, it would do her little good. She had no way to track him down electronically and a man like Tanner would change identities the way other men changed clothes.
“I’m not a bounty hunter or a cop, but the man I’m looking for, well, we have something in common, and I want to find him to see if we could help each other.”
The man straightened up, tapped at the computer keyboard for a moment, and then shook his head.
“He checked out yesterday morning and left no forwarding address, sorry.”
“That’s okay, and thank you for your help.”
“You’re welcome.”
Alexa opened her purse.
“I’ll be checking out.”
“Oh, too bad, I was going to ask you if you’d have dinner with me tonight.”
“I might have,” Alexa said. “But I should keep moving.”
“To find the man you asked about?”
“Yes.”
“It’s really important to you, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
The clerk handed her back her credit card. After a moment’s hesitation, he shrugged and gave Alexa more information.
“He checked in under the name of Clay Drake, and I saw him driving away in a black Ford, a newer model.”
Alexa gestured for the man to lean forward, when he did so; she kissed him on the cheek.
“Thank you so much.”
“You’re welcome, and if you
pass through here again, come find me and we’ll have that dinner.”
“I will.”
Alexa left the office and headed for her van. If Tanner had come this far west than he wasn’t headed south anymore, which meant she was on the right track. She mentally chastised herself for ever doubting her instincts, and when she got back on the highway, she continued to head northwest, towards Oklahoma.
CHAPTER 5 – Rag doll
In Georgia, Ariana O’Grady was in the parking lot of a diner, talking to the waitress who had spotted Tanner days earlier.
The woman had called in her brother and his friends to come and attack Tanner, in hopes of claiming the bounty on his head. Tanner had killed the woman’s brother and seriously wounded one of her friends.
Ariana had expected that the woman would want to help her find Tanner, but the waitress, a young redheaded woman named Violet, had only one thing on her mind.
“I’ll tell you what you want to know if you pay me ten grand.”
Ariana blinked in surprise. She was twenty-seven, with dark hair, a fair figure, and a pretty face, but was usually scowling about one thing or another.
She and her late father, Hank O’Grady, had had their differences of opinion over the years, but she loved her father, and when Tanner killed him, she began hunting him to exact revenge.
In truth, Ariana wasn’t after Tanner because she was convinced that he had killed her father, but more because it gave her something to do.
Before Tanner, there had been her involvement in the war on drugs, prior to that, she championed environmental causes, and while still in college, she attempted to “Save the Whales!”
Ariana hadn’t really cared about any of the causes, but they kept her occupied and gave her something to do, while also pissing off her late father, an activity she enjoyed greatly when she was younger.
Ariana was one of those people who have never wanted for anything materially, and because of it, because of the ease of her life, she felt empty inside and needed something external to fill the void.
Tanner was that something at the moment, and chasing after the man was a lot more fun than marching for hours while holding a picket sign.
“Violet, Tanner killed your brother and you want money to help find him?”
“I’m not an idiot, lady. The dude is worth a million dollars, all I want is ten grand for helping you to get him.”
Ariana was sitting in the passenger seat of Violet’s old car, as Violet was on her break, and she turned from Violet and looked up at her companion, a man who went by the name, Brick.
Brick actually looked like a brick. He was six-foot-six and nearly as thick as he was wide, even his coloring brought to mind a brick, in that, he was a full-blooded American Indian, a Comanche.
He stood by Violet’s subcompact car instead of sitting, because his thick frame was too big to fit inside.
Ariana had previously employed four men to help her as she searched for Tanner; the four were mercenaries who came highly recommended.
While at a bar in Manhattan, one of the men made a pass at the woman Brick was with at the time, Brick took offense, the other three men joined the fight, and when it was over, only Brick was left standing.
Upon learning this when she went to bail her men out, Ariana left them to rot and bailed out Brick instead.
“Do you believe this stupid bitch, Brick? Tanner kills her brother and all she can think about is money.”
Brick gave a nod; he rarely talked.
“Who are you calling a stupid bitch?” Violet said. “And you’re damn right I want money. I need it to bury my brother. And you got money, hell yeah you do, shit, that Gucci purse of yours cost thousands by itself.”
Ariana leaned closer to Violet.
“Tell me what I want to know now or you will be one sorry piece of white trash.”
Violet reached across Ariana and opened the passenger door.
“Get out of my car!”
Ariana looked at Violet with a set of cold eyes, but she rose from the car and walked towards her own vehicle, a black Lexus LX.
“We’re leaving, Brick.”
Brick followed her; his long raven hair was loose and hung halfway down his broad back.
“Don’t come back either,” Violet said.
***
Later that night, Violet stepped out the back door while carrying two trash bags, as she headed for the dumpster at the side of the diner. She never made it there, because two large hands took hold of her and lifted her off the ground.
Brick was holding Violet aloft as if she were a child. One hand was clamped over her mouth and the other was around her neck.
Violet began to panic, but when a sharp pain ran down her spine, she stopped her struggling, fearing that she would hurt herself.
She was scared, and wondered if she were about to be raped, but when she saw Ariana come walking towards her from the parking lot with a smug look lighting her face, rage flashed in Violet’s eyes.
“Are you ready to talk now?” Ariana asked.
Brick moved his hand away from Violet’s mouth and Violet used the opportunity to spit in Ariana’s face.
“Fuck you, lady, you and your Indian ape. I ain’t never telling you shit for free, and after this, I want fifty-thousand.”
Ariana wiped the spittle from her cheek as she stared at Violet in amazement. She thought the girl would be terrified, but no, she was too stupid to be scared, and more than that, she would report the incident to the police.
“Shut her up, Brick.”
Brick’s hand went over Violet’s mouth again.
Ariana stared at Brick with eyes full of indecision.
“The dumb bitch will report this as an assault... I don’t know what to do.”
“Pay,” Brick said.
Ariana sneered at Violet.
“I wouldn’t give this thing a dime if she were starving.”
Brick smiled without showing his teeth, and then he moved his giant hand up higher on Violet’s face until he was covering her nose along with her mouth, and thus, cutting off her air supply.
Ariana opened her mouth in surprise, and then watched in fascination as Violet struggled in Brick’s grip, the struggle to breathe became frantic, and when Violet tried to swing a leg backwards to kick Brick in the balls, something in her neck snapped audibly, and she went limp.
Brick held Violet off the ground easily while using only one hand, the hand that was around her neck, and Ariana saw Violet’s head flop over to the left. When she searched the woman’s eyes, she saw only a blank stare looking back at her.
She pointed and laughed.
“Holy crap; the dumb bitch broke her own neck.”
Brick opened his hand wide and Violet’s body fell to the ground, where it lay beside the bags of garbage she had brought outside with her.
Ariana stared down at Violet. Violet’s red hair was arranged in twin ponytails and her freckled face had a button nose.
“When I was a kid, I had a rag doll that looked just like her.”
“Me too,” Brick said.
Ariana looked up at him with her head tilted slightly, not sure if he was joking or not. She then shrugged. “We’ll find Tanner some other way.”
Brick grunted in agreement, and then they were back in Ariana’s SUV and leaving the scene.
CHAPTER 6 – Survival
Like Ariana O’Grady, Alonso Alvarado also believed that the violence in Georgia was committed by Tanner, and it appeared that Tanner was headed in his direction.
Alvarado was finished with underestimating Tanner. That ended when he realized that Tanner was actually Cody Parker.
He had shot an already seriously wounded Cody Parker square in the chest and left him lying on the ground bleeding to death.
On top of all that, the boy was alone and just feet away from his burning house. How Parker survived, Alvarado had no idea, but assumed that it meant he had been helped by someone, in the same way that he himself had been
saved by his brother-in-law, the recently murdered Carlos Ayala.
As Alvarado thought of the past, he recalled the night that he had been attacked, and remembered how his brother-in-law had risked his own life to save him.
***
Matamoros, Mexico, October 1997
After regaining consciousness, Carlos Ayala rolled over onto his back and felt the edge of his damaged computer dig into his shoulder, but that was not the only source of his pain.
He had bashed his forehead on a stair, after having been shot by the intruder dressed in black, and there was a wound on his left side from a bullet.
The round had ricocheted off an internal metal component of the computer monitor he had been carrying. Had the shot gone straight through, he would be dead.
Carlos sat up atop the landing that led to the second floor. He moaned from both the pain in his side and the sight of his damaged computer. There was also a distressing amount of blood.
The sound of a single shot came from upstairs, and Carlos’ breath caught in his throat. He wondered if the intruder had just killed his friend and brother-in-law, Alonso Alvarado.
Carlos made it to his feet with a great effort and looked down on the dead guards lying together near the open door that led out to the courtyard.
He could leave through that door and find a safe place to hide until the intruder left, but although he wasn’t a brave man, neither was he an abject coward.
Carlos went up the stairs as quickly as he could. His head hurt and his side was burning where the bullet had sliced him open, but fear helped to fight the pain, and he knew he had to help Alonso if he were able.
The sight of three more dead guards lying outside an open bedroom doorway made Carlos’ gasp, but then he heard the voices coming from beyond the closed doors of Alonso’s room at the end of the hall.
Although both voices were speaking Spanish, Carlos detected an American accent in the intruder’s voice.
Carlos was standing in the hall and gazing down at the dead guards when he heard a sound come from the doors leading to Alonso’s bedroom. They were being opened, and if he didn’t hide, the American would know he still lived.
The TANNER Series - Books 10 -12 (Tanner Box Set Book 4) Page 2
