Red Horizon

by Bernard Lee DeLeo

  Nick took a deep breath from his crouch. “Three. Please call your Mom. It would be better if she heard your voice first.”

  “Sure. I got this.” Jean called home, laughed, and brought the phone over on speaker with both Gus and Deke at her side. “It’s Mom.”

  “Hi, honey.” Nick did not relax for a moment. “Little busy. It’s the Kader show again. Please head here. I’ll have Gus call Johnny to warn him.”

  “On my way.”

  Gus had his phone in hand, calling Johnny.

  Nick stayed vigilant as he heard sirens approaching.

  * * *

  An hour later, Nick sat at Neil Dickerson’s desk. Neil joined him with a folder, sitting down opposite Nick with a pinched look on his face. “First off, I’m glad you, Gus, and Jean are alive and well. Please don’t think otherwise. That said, this new incident on the heels of the gangbanger shooting is going to be rough. Your friends in the US Marshal’s Office confirmed for the DA that you have been targeted by the Kader family. I took this folder detailing the planting of explosives on your house. I explained how the Kaders were also tied into the Fontaine incident. I think if he could, the DA would order you exiled from Pacific Grove.”

  “I couldn’t very well allow them to kill us,” Nick said.

  “I think the execution style killings in the car worried the DA, his words, not mine.”

  “Apparently, he doesn’t know much about those MP5’s they aimed out the window at me. They were fully automatic, Neil. We would have all been dead in seconds. I couldn’t very well allow them to recover from the tree ramming and open fire.”

  “I told him. The fact all three had fully automatic submachine guns definitely made an impression. The DA thinks you can just shout halt and the whackos with submachine guns lay down their guns and surrender. I reminded him it would be much better to worry about where the hell those three came into possession of the guns.”

  “I’m concerned about that myself. I recognized one of them, Ishmael Kader. He’s the only male Kader I’ve ever met who I thought was reasonable. There he was, in the backseat of the car this morning, getting ready to blast us with a submachine gun. That means Cala Kader’s marriage to Johnny Groves set off the crazies in the Kader family. They refused my offer of a dowry, even though it was much greater than Fontaine’s. Ishmael was the Kader family negotiator. When I talked with him last, Ish wanted no part of me. Did you have a chance to find out who Ish’s friends were?”

  “Yes. I’m sure their identities and background won’t make you feel any better. They were accepted in the last bunch of Syrian refugees.”

  “Oh goody. It wasn’t enough I had the family already here trying to kill me. Now, California decided to import them for me. Ever wonder if maybe our looney tune leaders want to be part of a new Caliphate the Muslims keep killing people all over the world to install?”

  “I don’t know, Nick. I meet people in this state all the time. I live near some very good people. They work blue collar jobs. They live a conservative life style – but they go out on Election-Day and vote into office the worst idiot leftists they can find to vote for, who don’t believe in anything they do. I don’t have an answer for it.”

  “Can you send me what you found on the other hired killers with Ish? Oh… uh… am I free to go?”

  “Yes to both questions. I’ll call if there are problems. I’ll go with you to get your personals. How does Jean manage with the events like today on the walk to school?”

  “Exceedingly well, my friend – frighteningly so. None of it is a game to her, but Jean’s fearless. At least Rachel doesn’t think I’m corrupting her.

  “You could drive, moron.”

  Nick stood. When he thought he could repeat what Jean said earlier, in tone with the way she sounded, Nick took a deep breath. “Jean told me, ‘if we avoid our regular routines, the terrorists win’.”

  The two men endured a lengthy appreciation of Jean’s adlib.

  * * *

  The woman cried in muffled quietness. She had buried her husband, Ishmael Kader, that morning. Their two children slept in the adjoining room at the house of Ishmael’s relative who was also now dead. A hand gripped her shoulder, causing a brief bark of surprise, as she turned to the person clutching her shoulder. The black masked figure made hushing motions, which she obeyed instantly.

  “Hello, Aara. Do you know who I am?”

  “Yes… you are El Muerto,” Aara answered in whispered tones. “He told me you would come once he failed to kill you. He guessed who you were, but he could not convince his family elders to leave you alone. They threatened to kill us all for trying to escape the family. He sacrificed himself to save us, but Ishmael knew you would come. My husband foresaw his death in a dream.”

  “It’s too bad Ish didn’t call me. I would have freed you all from the Kader nightmare,” Nick explained. “I have killed all the males in this house except for the children. The women have been sedated. They will awaken. I noted you were still awake. I liked your husband. He attacked me, my daughter, and my friend, after agreeing to stay away from me.”

  Aara nodded in sad agreement. “Ishmael told me I might barter for my family’s lives if I gave you this.”

  Nick accepted the thumb-drive from Aara’s hand. “In reality, I never would harm you or your children. I only allowed you to talk with me because I needed to warn you and the other women Kaders. Pass the word once the bodies of the male Kaders are found in the house. Plead ignorance to the police how such a thing could happen. Blame it on Islamists unhappy with the Kader’s failure to obey Sharia decree. Count your blessings, find men for husbands outside Islam. Never mention anything about me ever. Here.”

  Aara accepted the envelope with reluctance. “I will never mention you again, Muerto. No one who has any sense of reality will ever speak of you again. I will warn them. I do not know if the women will heed my warning after your visit here, but I will tell them. Blaming extremists will be what I do when asked. If you post my husband’s thumb-drive contents, the police will suspect the actual men responsible for all these deaths.”

  “The envelope contains a cashier’s check on a bank in the Cayman Islands for five million dollars. Use it to help free yourselves from this Kader curse. Also in the envelope is an internet drop address. Contact me there with any information or problem you have. No one else will be able to access it. Once you use it, another will be issued to you. Each time will be untraceable. Keep silent about the money, Aara. Work in silence to help the others. Do not worry about the zealots who wish to wail in the streets. Leave them to their self-pity and grief for maniacal male mutants who terrorized them daily. They will be lost. I know each of your fellow Kader women wives has been mutilated… except for you. Ishmael was the only man amongst the male Kaders to refuse the atrocity. I am sorry for your loss.”

  Nick injected Aara with a syringe to sedate her until morning. He wasn’t sorry for her loss, but he felt after learning how much Ishmael had refused to do under pressure, that his wife and kids deserved more. Plus, he now had an unexpected gift Ishmael meant for his eyes only. Five more mutants were brought to room temperature this night in the house of Kader. Nick had no doubt the sudden unexplained deaths would bring the authorities pounding at his door. He also knew they would be able to prove nothing in relation to his involvement. Nick had left his own clues amongst the dead, pointing to an Isis betrayal and claiming the deaths of the males as retribution for their disloyalty. Combined with the messages of outrage posted earlier on hacked Muslim terrorist sites, Nick figured to have enough misdirection to play ignorant at the Kader killings. I’m not done by a long shot. This will be war as promised.

  Nick stayed close to the house fronts with mask on. Arriving at the street perpendicular to his targeted street, Gus drove to the curb and Nick entered the back. Johnny sat next to Gus with satellite imaging while monitoring the police band. Nick passed the thumb-drive to Johnny.

  “Do a quick scan of this. We may be abl
e to post it into the police website if the info helps distract from my Kader culling of the herd.”

  Ten minutes later as Gus drove along slowly towards Nick’s house, Johnny removed his headphones. “Ishmael confessed to the attempt on your life as ordered by elders in the family and an outside group with Isis ties. He claims they would have killed his wife and kids if he had not went along with it. Ishmael spoke plainly he did not expect to survive the attack. I have found nothing yet expanding on anything that would jeopardize what you did tonight. In fact, once I go through the entire recording I will bounce it around and post it to the police.”

  “Maybe I won’t have the cops beating on my door after all. There will be no more school walks. I’ll be driving Jean and Sonny to school from now on. Deke will have to walk with me down to the beach for his outings. That was a very close call with the Kader hit attempt. Did Ish mention names, Johnny?”

  “Yes, but three of them are now dead. They were in the house you relieved me of in-laws at and acquired this marvelous thumb-drive of proof. One other family name resides in New York. He was the one who sent the three you killed. Another interesting thread concerns the Pilot Hill compound of Al-Kadi. Although Ishmael didn’t know their names, he said two other men sent from New York stay at the compound. The elders threatened his family, claiming the cell would take vengeance on Ishmael’s wife and kids. By sending the two assassins to accompany the Kader relatives they left Ish with very little room to maneuver. He should have called me.”

  “Good Lord,” Gus muttered. “The comedians make jokes about mother-in-law problems. This is ridiculous. By the way… no one talks of the moms. Where is Dimah’s mom? Johnny, where the hell is Cala’s mom? Do they ever speak on behalf of the children their husbands wish to sell into slavery and murder?”

  “It is not a subject we discuss,” Johnny admitted as Gus stopped in front of Nick’s house. “Cala claims both mothers supported their husbands with the same vitriol and wailing support of anything destroying America. They have turned their own sons to the dark side. Cala tried to talk with her brother. He told her if he sees her he will kill her on sight. I have decided to relieve him of his life but Cala asked me to hold off from doing so for a time.”

  “Let me know,” Nick said. “Dimah has expressed the same request. The males in the family get no special exceptions from this point on. Ask Cala if she would like us to teach her brother about shooting his mouth off down in the chamber of horrors.”

  Johnny grinned at Nick. “Yes. It will be as you ask, Muerto. Cala can take care of herself but I worry he will catch her unawares.”

  “We cannot lose the ‘Cleaner’, Johnny,” Nick replied, getting out of the vehicle. “If Cala sees the brother in the chamber of horrors, she can ask him anything she likes once. Then, we’ll know which way the brother will go. If we see any animosity toward Cala after he hears her plea to remember they have blood ties, we will try the hard way. After that, he sleeps with the fishes.”

  Johnny chuckled. “Yes, Godfather. Shall we meet at the Point after Jean and Sonny get to school for a discussion of coming events, complete with the Deke and the Irish?”

  “Of course, dog brother. Will you be joining us, Payaso?”

  “Yes, dog brother, if I’m allowed to come out and play by the infamous T-Rex.”

  Chapter Eight

  Back to School

  Jean sat with disgruntled frown and arms crossed in the front seat while Nick drove. Nick could see Sonny smiling in the backseat. Deke sat happily with his head hanging out the window, tongue lolling in the breeze. The decision to drive from now on to school did not sit well with Jean who openly preferred gun battles to peaceful transfer to the school grounds.

  “You’re getting to be a spoiled brat, Jean,” Sonny stated.

  “What?! Oh…my…God… Sonny Salvatore! You did not just disrespect me with the S word!”

  “Yeah… I did. You deserve it, you little whiney wart,” Sonny finished with a flourish. “Your Dad’s trying to protect us. You were nearly killed the other morning. I care about you! I don’t want you killed because you insist on being an idiot!”

  Nick grinned. The two carried on conversations as if they were twenty instead of ten. He could tell Sonny’s words about caring for her silenced Jean. He could see the myriad retorts she wanted to zing him with floating across the Daughter of Darkness’s features. “Sonny’s right, kid. You’re not bait in a trap. Once I make sure the threat is gone we’ll walk again together with Deke. Until then, it’s not happening.”

  “You’re going to walk Deke to Assassin’s Beach this morning,” Jean accused. “What about that?”

  Jean’s renaming of Otter’s Point threw Nick off for a moment while unable to contain the amusement he would share later. “One day soon, we’ll be walking old Deke to the beach, and you’ll be fully capable of protecting the old Dekester with knife or gun. You can wait until those times come.”

  “Deke!” Jean’s sudden teary eyed sob brought Deke across the seat into Jean’s arms. After noting she wasn’t in danger, he stuck his head out of her window.

  Knowing he had crossed a future tragedy of age not to be dealt with, Nick shut up. The remainder of the short ride to parking the car near the school was completed in silence. When they were parked, Nick started out of the vehicle but Jean grabbed his arm.

  “Don’t, Dad. Sonny and I will be fine. C’mon Sonny.” Jean kissed and hugged Deke before getting her bag from Sonny. “Bye, Dad.”

  “Bye, Kid. I’ll be over to pick you both up after school. Your Mom’s working the Monte today on the late shift.”

  He watched Jean and Sonny walk along toward school with Sonny hesitantly taking her hand. Nick smiled, looking over at Deke. “Sorry I mentioned your years down the road, my canine brother.”

  Out of nowhere a bearded man ran at Sonny and Jean. Sonny saw him coming and shoved Jean behind him. Deke yipped plaintively as Nick forced him down on the seat with a stern ‘Stay’ order. Deke slithered to the open car door. He slid down to the pavement. Nick ran a full speed sprint to the scene. The bearded man shoved Sonny to the sidewalk, reaching to grip Jean. Nick’s charge upended and flattened the man whom he guessed was Majd Nazari. Nick resisted the instant reaction of snapping the man’s neck. Instead, He revealed something Jean and Sonny did not know the extent of: his physical strength. Nick grabbed the easily hundred and eighty pound man off the sidewalk by his robe at the neck and belt, snatched him over his head, and body slammed Nazari to the ground. For a split second Nick forgot where he was, readying a killing stroke to the man’s neck.

  “Dad… behind you!” Jean’s scream brought Nick around in an instant, Colt in hand.

  Nick had only a moment to see the two coming at him before Deke smashed the leader to the ground, ripping him at arms, hands, and groin. Nick pistol whipped the man’s partner to the ground, resisting the impulse to shoot him in the head. “Deke! Hold!”

  Deke lunged across the man under him trying to writhe into a fetal position with screams of pain. Deke grabbed his throat, snarling wildly, and only calming when his victim stopped moving. Nick did a quick weapons search of the man he had pistol whipped, bleeding from the head wound, and groaning in shock. Nick confiscated everything he found into his windbreaker, including the 9mm Beretta pistol and wallet. He then stood and pointed at the pistol whipped man.

  “Deke! Hold!” Deke left his first hold to grip the second in the same manner. Nick acquired a Glock 9mm, knife, and wallet from him in quick succession. He looked toward where Jean helped Sonny to his feet. “Are you okay, Sonny?”

  “I’m good,” Sonny stated with emphasis as he saw Nick point his Colt up through the man’s throat. “Please… it’s all good, Sir. Jean and I are okay.”

  “We’ll go in the school, Dad. I’ll call Mom and let her know we’re okay.”

  The Terminator retracted slightly as Nick catalogued where he was, the details, and the oncoming sirens. He nodded at Jean, waving her toward the s
chool. “Thanks, Jean. I’ll see you kids later.”

  The gaping mouthed stares from the school crowd generated a perception not blending with reality for Nick. He realized there could be no violent endings for Jean’s attackers at this time. Jim Amos and Rita Gonzalez moved to his side instantly. Behind them, Ruth Gurkovsky secured the scene. Nick relaxed, seeing his three military background friends from a past flag incident at the school.

  “Hey, brother,” Jim said. “Can we help? Rita, Ruth, and I have decided to become the Nick McCarty backup crew here at the school.”

  “Your wife, Rachel, is a badass,” Rita added. “We would have moved in on the scene the other day but she backed the beard here off without blinking.”

  “We saw the whole thing this morning, Nick,” Jim said. “So did my kids.”

  “Thanks, Jim.” Nick watched Ruth take Florence Nazari to the ground with attitude. By then, the police cars arrived. Nick took a deep breath as Neil Dickerson approached.

  “How many dead?”

  “Very funny,” Nick replied, motioning Deke to his side. “I took everyone’s advice and drove Jean and her friend Sonny to the school this morning, even though my daughter pointed out if we stop doing our normal routines, the terrorists win.”

  Nick had to pause as Jean’s line drew avid amusement from everyone within earshot including the police. “They got out, walked toward the school, and Majd Nazari attacked them. Sonny stepped in front of Jean to protect her. Nazari cuffed him to the ground. He then grabbed for Jean. He didn’t make it. Deke and I handled Nazari and his two buddies.”

  “That’s exactly what we saw,” Jim said. “My boys and I couldn’t believe this kind of thing can happen outside a school. Ruth has this idiot’s wife on the ground over there. She’s a teacher although anyone who has a kid in her class would dispute that.”

  “He…he is a murderer!” Majd Nazari screamed in outraged falsetto voice. “McCarty killed five men last night! He makes war on innocent families!”