Doctor Collins’ rebuke stings, but Kayla knows he is right. Her head is elsewhere and she doesn’t want to jeopardize a patient’s life by staying on and working today. After asking the doctor to keep things quiet she hops in a taxi and takes off towards home. It’ll be good to get some shuteye and to process her feelings in a safe environment.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The Hit
A white delivery van pulls up in front of a non- descript house and parks blocking the driveway. With the engine running, the side door to the van opens and a man in dark pants and a power company shirt hops out. In his hands he holds some type of box about the size of two packs of cigarettes joined together. The man walks over to the driver’s side of the car, stops by the front door and looks around. Apparently satisfied that no one is watching he drops down on his stomach on the hot cement. He rolls over on his back and reaches up with the box. He touches the metal undercarriage of the vehicle and with a metallic click it fastens itself to the underside of the car. The man reaches up and pushes an unseen button with his index finger and immediately a flashing green light comes on. Satisfied, the man gets up and casually walks back to the delivery truck and climbs in. Even as the door is closing the truck is pulls away from the house.
Forty-five minutes later…
A lone biker sits astride his tricked out Harley Davidson Electra Glide. His mouth is hanging open in shock as he stares at the smoking, burning remains of a car in the driveway in front of him. He starts to get off the bike to inspect the mess but a siren in the distance convinces him he should be elsewhere. He fires up his bike and peels out of there before anyone can mistakenly connect him to the explosion that just took place minutes ago. Fifteen minutes later he pulls off the road, turns off his bike and fishes out his cell phone. This is not a call wants to make, not in a million years. This is going to ruin a man’s life and maybe a motorcycle club in the process. His hands are shaking so badly that he drops the phone as he punches in the numbers. He picks up the phone and gets it right on the second try.
“What news Seth?” Luke asks as he answers his phone.
“We’ve got a problem Luke, a real big problem.”
“So what’s new? Talk to me bro.”
“I went by the hospital like you suggested and Kayla wasn’t there. Apparently there was an incident and she went home before her shift was finished. I decided to check by her house to make sure she’s fine and there was a problem…” Seth trails off, unsure of how to proceed.
Suddenly he can’t get any air and his heart is thudding in his chest. Why did it have to be him to deliver this news he thinks to himself?
“What’s the problem Seth? Spit it out man!”
“It’s Kayla. Someone set off a car bomb Luke and—"
The screaming is so loud he has to take the phone away from his ear. This is even worse than he had imagined, far worse. Seth waits patiently, allowing Luke to have his reaction. He can barely make out anything Luke is ranting for the next several minutes until he finally runs out of steam. With the initial reaction over the Luke that comes back on the phone is not the grieving boyfriend anymore. The Luke that starts speaking next is Luke the US Governments top assassin and war hero; the terror of Afghanistan.
Luke speaks in a quiet, deathly voice that sends chills up Seth’s spine.
“What kind of explosion was it? Could it have been a Molotov Cocktail that someone just chucked through the window?” He asks.
“No,” Seth begins. “I’ve seen enough car bombs to know when I’m looking at another one. Judging by the blast radius as well as the collateral damage, it was a pressure sensitive IED placed right under the driver’s seat. The car along with the front of the garage is demolished. Windows in the houses on either side and across the street are all blown out.”
“So in your experience, is there any way she could have walked away from such a blast?”
Seth has never wanted to lie so badly. He just about does just to take the heat off him, but he knows that the truth will out, and a lie now will be discovered and remembered. The truth is the only recourse.
“Yeah...there’s no way anyone could have lived through that blast. I’m sorry dude, I really am.”
“Seth, I want you to arm yourself and return to the club immediately. We’re going to war with my father and his goons and we’re not stopping till the last one is dangling by his toes and skinned alive. Do you copy?”
“Sir yes Sir.”
Epilogue
Sitting around a long wooden table are Luke and the officers of the newly formed Sons of Chaos. Today they are bringing the chaos to his father and anyone else who’s foolish enough to align themselves with the man. Gunnar Madsen has him outgunned, outmanned, and always seems to be a step ahead of Luke; not anymore.
Luke looks around the room studying his brother’s expressions. They are all resigned to the fact that they are going to war. The men seated to his right and to his left are the Suicide Kings that were loyal to him and members of his platoon in Afghanistan. They are above suspicion and can be trusted with his life; at least that is what Luke believes.
He could not have been more wrong…
Edge of Chaos Page 18
